the problem of representing
I was reading last night from a book titled "The Emerging Church" and found some of it hitting very close to what we are discussing...a few quotes from the chapter entitled 'I Like Jesus, but I don't Like Christians':The author refers to a video interview conducted on the U of Santa Cruz's campus in which the following questions were asked:
"1. What comes to mind when you hear the name Jesus?"
"2. What comes to mind when you hear the word Christian?"
the responses to them were very interesting:
"At the first question, student's faces light up in smiles. 'Jesus was beautiful.' 'I want to be like Jesus.' [...] 'I want to be a follower of Jesus.'" (Kimball, 79).
"But at the second question, their expressions changed dramatically. Eyes looked downward, smiles turned to frowns and even pained expressions. 'Christians have taken the teachings of Jesus and really messed them up.' 'I would want to be a Christian, but I have never met one.' 'Christians are dogmatic and close-minded.'" (79)
The author goes on to say that "we are living in a wonderful time when younger generations are wide open to Jesus, but Christians are often the stumbling block." (80).
Kimball uses a quote from Gandhi (a great follower of Christ's teachings and examples, who ultimately rejected accepting Christ as God and liberator):
"I like your Christ, but I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ" (qtd. in Kimball, 79).
I will let those words speak for themselves. An outside 'verbal audit'.
J.M.
Source: Kimball, Dan. "The Emerging Church: Vintage Christianity for New Generations." Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 2003.
posted by J.M @ 10:43 AM
2 Comments:
I guess your post explains some of my reluctancy to announce my beliefs to the world. In fact, I'm not entirely sure what my beliefs are, and that I'm about as desireous of slapping myself with the label of Christian than I am of having a vanity plate on my car.
I do enjoy reading the bible, and out of that I've done much praying, and I do believe that prayer or the lack of prayer has had tremendous impact upon my life.
Still, I do tell people that I'm a Christian, the feeling being that whatever being Christian is, it certainly describes me better than whatever else is out there.
I do think that there is a lot of integrity in being a Christian, no matter how the forces of modern culture try to ridicule its supporters. I chose the word supporters, thinking that the word supporter sounds much better than follower.
I'm a supporter of Jesus!
Thanks for your comments, Isldguy, and welcome to the discussion.
I agree with you on your reluctancy to affix the label of Christian to yourself. For some time now I have been very reluctant as well. Instead, I have preferred to use the term 'follower of Christ'.
I think your comments are very weighty: "I do think that there is a lot of integrity in being a Christian, no matter how the forces of modern culture try to ridicule its supporters". Wow. How true. There is a huge weight that comes along with labeling yourself a Christian, as you become, whether you like it or not, a representative of Christianity and of Christ. We don't need to look very far to see the effects inconsistencies have on the reputation of Christianity...the crusades are a glaring example of things being done by people who espouse to Christianity yet do not implement the teachings of Christ in their lives.As Yancey states: "by and large, the history of European Christianity is the record of a church that relies on wealth, power, prestige, and even coercion and war to advance its cause" ("Soul Survivor, 163) I have to admit that I wince inwardly whenever I hear someone in position begin to claim to follow the Christian faith. I am thinking right now of George W. Bush, who claims Christianity, yet his politics and foreign policy seem to openly go against this.
In his book entitled "Soul Survivor: How My Faith Survived the Church, " Philip Yancey points to the life example of Mahatma Gandhi as a political leader who openly followed and implemented the teachings of Christ:
"To appreciate the mark of Gandhi's mark on history, contrast the Salt March with the American colonists' reaction to Britain's stamp tax: We fought a war over it. And as Gandhi surveyed the history of Europe, Christian Europe, he saw a series of wars fought over racial differences, fine points of religious doctrine, land borders, and acts of colonial aggression. Yet Jesus himself preached love for enemies and showed a spirit of sacrifice, not violence. Gandhi sought a new way of change, something closer to the spirit of Jesus." (152).
It is a very humiliating thought to consider that one who ultimately placed himself outside of Christianity was able to model Christ's teachings on such a grand scale. Instead of advocating for violent revolution or retaliation (the very thing Christ's supporters looked for...a violent liberator.) Gandhi would go on hunger strikes, or stage marches of nonviolent protest...
I think if we were truly supporters of Christ, as you well phrased it, then we would have to implement his teachings in real ways in our lives. If we were to truly live out the following, then I think we would go far in reclaiming the title Christian as one that truly means a follower of Christ:
"For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self control; and to self control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these things in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Peter, 1:5-8 NIV)
"Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing, he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form. And in human form he obediently humbled himself even further by dying a criminal's death on a cross." (Philippians 2:5-8)
---And we know that the fruit of God's spirit is :
love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self control....
and against these things there is no law.....
if we were to live these things,
what a revolution.
but not a revolution in our sense, but a Godly one. I truly believe Jesus was a revolutionary, but the only blood he spilled in bringing about his revolution of love and grace, was his own.
I echo your words, I, too, am a supporter of Jesus.
bring on the revolution.
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