Movie and Discussion

Some friends of mine and I got together the other night...some guys who I really look up to, for their faith, their character, and their incredible wisdom.

We watched a movie that came out not that long ago, called Saved!, which seriously and humorously addresses the issue of judgmental, hypocritical Christians. Afterwards we got into a great discussion time.

This is the heart of what we discussed:

What can Christians do to become more comfortable & inviting to those who are not Christians?

My response was that we need to stop being "Pharisees". (And one of my good friends is helping me stop using what we like to call "Christianese", i.e. churchy words). So to define that more fully: We need to stop deciding that we have the authority to pass judgment on every human being that walks the earth, and then follow up by instructing them on how to live, what to change, who to be, and what they can and cannot do. We've also talked about it in the sense of - we have to stop expecting people who aren't Christians to act as though they are.

There is a difficult task for Christians - to present the gospel in an enticing way, to live in such a way as to make Christ attractive, and to have conversations with people that present the opportunity for them to experience the joy, excitement, hope, and peace that God provides. It is difficult because our world doesn't really find Christianity (and therefore, Christ) all that attractive. Because all they see are the judgments, the rules, the hypocricy.

And there's a balance to be had. As a Christian, (although some of my friends opposed the use of this word) I feel there is a Law to be obeyed. Christ didn't abolish the Law the Jews based their faith in, he fulfilled it - as my pastor said recently, he filled it full. Christ made the Law make sense, have a real purpose.

Yes, on one hand I do believe that the Law shows us how much we need God's grace. Because we cannot, no matter how hard we try, ever be perfect. Jesus was the only one. It's because we are human that we cannot ever be sinless on this earth. And so yes, one purpose of the Law was to show us that we need a way to get to God, because we will never be able to do it on our own.

But just as it was for the Jews, given by God for the benefit of His people - so it is still for us. It is still commands, not requests, that Christians should accept and follow, be obedient to. Not because if we don't God will smite us, kill or destroy us. I do believe in consequences, and I do believe that those consequences are from God, whether they're immediate or not, visible or not.

There is an opportunity to be had by being obedient to those Laws - the ability to experience a deeper relationship with Christ, a blessed and healthy lifestyle, and a life that speaks volumes in a world that obeys only oneself, is submissive to no one.

Anyways...just a few thoughts from that conversation.

Oh, and that friend approached me the next day with another thought on that subject. He said, "What if another part of that inability to socialize with non-Christians is our pride? I hate that bumper sticker that says 'Real Men Love Jesus' - it's so cocky and arrogant to say that I'm a real man and you're not because I have something that you don't, because I've been blessed enough to find Jesus, and be accepted by him. What does that say about our attitude to an unbelieving world? I just think it's so prideful."

And you know what, I think he's right. I don't know how I feel about the bumper sticker, but I definitely think that our judgmental attitude is because of our pride. That because we are a Christian, we are somehow better than everyone who isn't. What a ridiculous idea. We aren't better, we're just blessed - by grace, which is available to everyone. And we are so unworthy of it (just like everyone) that it's not something to be shown-off in a "na-na-na-na-na, look-what-I-have-and-you-don't" kind of way; but rather an "Oh-my-gosh! Can you believe this is free?! You've gotta get this!" kind of way!

Let me know what you think if you want!