Jesus Wept

Christianity is under fire. Christian Nationalism and Evangelicals have taken over the conversation, but they aren’t following the teachings of Christ. I heard from more than one friend say that they don’t want to call themselves Christians, so instead they have chosen the term “Follower of Christ” because we believe in the teachings of Christ, not some distortion that supports hate and division.

My faith is who I am. It was crushing to learn my daughter doesn’t even want me to mention my faith until my grandson is old enough to make up his own mind. I doubt she’ll ever understand why that hurts so much. I didn’t understand where she was coming from until a friend gently told me she was trying to protect her child. One of my childhood trauma issues is that I wasn’t protected so even though I don’t agree with my daughter, I respect her intentions. This is where we’re at. We believe we have to keep children safe from Christianity.

Believing in Christ does not mean believing scripture is literally true. When we look at the Bible, we see a great literary masterpiece with stories, parables and poetry. But I do believe in the relevance of scripture. I believe 2 Timothy 3:16-17 where we’re told that the Bible is useful for teaching, but I don’t believe it is inerrant. Instead, all scripture must be viewed through the lens of Christ’s teaching. Matthew 22:37-39 tells us everything God calls us to do can be summed up in four words: Love God, Love Others.

I believe in six core truths:

1)      There is a God. Romans 1:20

2)      We and this planet are His creation. Colossians 1:16

3)      God loves us. John 3:16

4)      He commands us to love others. Matthew 22:39

5)      He sent His son to save us. John 3:17

6)      He offers freedom not condemnation. Galatians 5:1

The teachings of Evangelical Christians warp these basic truths. God calls us to love, not condemn, not judge, not hate. Love. And Evangelical teachings make no sense. Stop and think about these questions: How is it loving to say that two people loving each other is bad if they happen to be the same gender – even ignoring the complexities of gender? How is it loving to say women are less than men and should deny their gifts of leadership because it makes men uncomfortable? How is it loving to ignore the destruction of our planet – God’s blessed creation? How is it loving to say there’s only one way to be with God and that if we don’t say the words “I accept Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior” we’ll be condemned to hell for all eternity.

There were years when I believed the lies instead of truths. Why? Because Evangelical Christianity is alluring. It’s cool to be in the “in group”. It boosts the ego to be called the chosen ones. The world makes sense when you eliminate anything – saying it’s heresy – that contradicts your world view. You’re in the club. God loves you best.

It was not an easy fit, but I drank the Kool-Aid until it almost destroyed me. But when the only way to be saved is to believe just the right things, it gets hard to trust. If I’m doing something wrong, God will send me to hell. If I question or doubt, I’m not REALLY saved. I would find myself saying the words “I accept Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior” over and over, unsure that I was truly right with God. I believed God saves us but only us. And I wanted to be an “us” not a “them”.

I am not God. I do not define behavior for other people. I am not a judge. I am a servant demonstrating God’s Love. I can offer ideas from a place of humility, knowing I may be wrong. But I do not believe if our theology varies then those that are “wrong” will be tormented for eternity.

I follow Christ. I believe in scripture, but I have a covenant relationship with God, not the Bible. God does condemn behavior, but it isn’t what we expect. God didn’t condemn the sinners – the tax collectors and the prostitutes. God condemned the religious leaders. God condemned selfishness. God condemned hate.

Why do you believe what you do? The presence of God, the idea of serving that God, what that looks like is so personal, but for me, it’s pivotal. If this life is all there is, what is the point? If we are not connected as children of a loving God, why not “look out for number one”? You can disagree with me but that just makes my point. If we condemn one another for thinking differently than we do, then God is not all loving. If you are a parent, would you send your child to Hell just because they disagreed with you? If you really love your child, could you do that? I can’t imagine my child could do anything that they would need to be sent to unrelenting torment. Experience the consequences of their actions, of course. Having those consequences be eternal separation from God and others, never!

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Photo by Charlotte Knight on Unsplash