I've been contemplating the state of the world and my views upon it. I tend to do this alot as it seems to be my nature to dwell on things till I have broken them down into their base parts. Recently, my thoughts have went to breaking down my beliefs on homosexuality, abortion, and the actions of the Christian church as a whole. While my base beliefs has stayed the same through this, my attitude has changed, as well as how I wish to conduct myself when confronted or asked about my beliefs on these issues.
The reason I have chosen homosexuality and abortion as topics are strictly because they seem to be a constant source of tension within the Christian community and between Christians and non-Christians. We don't tend to see the same kindof fever within Christians when it comes to infidelity, stealing, and lying. I have not seen nor heard of marches on the streets of Washington crying out for lying within the courtroom to be halted, or even in the government itself. We have allowed ourselves to fall into the trap of thinking ourselves better than non-Christians because our sins are "not as bad as theirs." As I'm writing this, I am reworking my own belief that all sins are equal. Originally, I believed this was so do to interpreting several key passages in scripture. As of now, my belief stands that, while all sins may not be equal, how we deal with them is dependent on if one is Christian/within the church or non-Christian. As we shall leave the law of the state to justify non-Christians, we cannot judge them as it is not our duty to do so. Our duty is to be fishers of men/women, not judge, jury, and executioner to those who have sinned. One does not catch a fish by throwing things at it and telling it to get in the net, but by making the journey towards the net look appealing. Thusly so, it is my belief that, as we deal with non-Christians, holding picket signs and shouting about eternal damnation is not the proper way to lead someone to Christ. One should not seek Christianity because they are worried about the punishment of hell, but rather because they wish to have a relationship with Christ and follow Him.
Now, allow me to address how Christians should address Christians about each others sin. Should we come to each other in love? Absolutely, for just as Christ loved us, and we SHOULD show that love towards non-Christians, we should also show that love towards one another. In that same vein of reasoning, allow us to look at the time Jesus took a whip and drove out the money lenders from the temple. Some of my Christian brothers whom I've had discussions with point to this as an example of what Christians need to do towards non-Christians outside of the church. I believe this philosophy is often held by the same people who yell, threaten, and berate those who walk into abortion clinics, or who march up and down the streets holding signs that say "All Fags Deserve Hell", "God Hates Gays", and "GAY - God Abhors You." I'll dig into that in a bit, but, this philosophy is incorrect. Look at where Jesus was when he drove out the moneylenders. He was in his Father's house, the temple. Now, I am not saying go and take some whip and go Indiana Jonesing your way through your local church, but rather look at this as an example to hold others within your own Church accountable as they hold you accountable as well. Do this in love. Nowadays, we elect church leaders, whether it be deacons or board members, and these are the shoulders where responsibility for accountability rests. As these people are the ones elected into these positions, they are the ones who are to hold the congregation accountable. As members, we are to support and challenge each other lovingly to live a life which brings glory to God.
The reason I have chosen homosexuality and abortion as topics are strictly because they seem to be a constant source of tension within the Christian community and between Christians and non-Christians. We don't tend to see the same kindof fever within Christians when it comes to infidelity, stealing, and lying. I have not seen nor heard of marches on the streets of Washington crying out for lying within the courtroom to be halted, or even in the government itself. We have allowed ourselves to fall into the trap of thinking ourselves better than non-Christians because our sins are "not as bad as theirs." As I'm writing this, I am reworking my own belief that all sins are equal. Originally, I believed this was so do to interpreting several key passages in scripture. As of now, my belief stands that, while all sins may not be equal, how we deal with them is dependent on if one is Christian/within the church or non-Christian. As we shall leave the law of the state to justify non-Christians, we cannot judge them as it is not our duty to do so. Our duty is to be fishers of men/women, not judge, jury, and executioner to those who have sinned. One does not catch a fish by throwing things at it and telling it to get in the net, but by making the journey towards the net look appealing. Thusly so, it is my belief that, as we deal with non-Christians, holding picket signs and shouting about eternal damnation is not the proper way to lead someone to Christ. One should not seek Christianity because they are worried about the punishment of hell, but rather because they wish to have a relationship with Christ and follow Him.
One should not seek Christianity because they are worried about the punishment of hell, but rather because they wish to have a relationship with Christ.To this end, I challenge those brothers and sisters of mine who do follow Jesus out of fear of Hell and not out of love to look deep inside themselves and change their mindset on their faith. The closest example I could give would be one of marriage. Is a marriage between two people based upon some form of punishment should the other not marry them one truly based in love? Surely not, and neither is a relationship with Christ that is based in the fear of receiving eternal damnation.
Now, allow me to address how Christians should address Christians about each others sin. Should we come to each other in love? Absolutely, for just as Christ loved us, and we SHOULD show that love towards non-Christians, we should also show that love towards one another. In that same vein of reasoning, allow us to look at the time Jesus took a whip and drove out the money lenders from the temple. Some of my Christian brothers whom I've had discussions with point to this as an example of what Christians need to do towards non-Christians outside of the church. I believe this philosophy is often held by the same people who yell, threaten, and berate those who walk into abortion clinics, or who march up and down the streets holding signs that say "All Fags Deserve Hell", "God Hates Gays", and "GAY - God Abhors You." I'll dig into that in a bit, but, this philosophy is incorrect. Look at where Jesus was when he drove out the moneylenders. He was in his Father's house, the temple. Now, I am not saying go and take some whip and go Indiana Jonesing your way through your local church, but rather look at this as an example to hold others within your own Church accountable as they hold you accountable as well. Do this in love. Nowadays, we elect church leaders, whether it be deacons or board members, and these are the shoulders where responsibility for accountability rests. As these people are the ones elected into these positions, they are the ones who are to hold the congregation accountable. As members, we are to support and challenge each other lovingly to live a life which brings glory to God.
...we are to support and challenge each other lovingly to live a life which brings glory to God.
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