Church Voices

Sometimes I feel like Christians in America are defined more by panic than they are by the kingdom of God. It seems like everywhere I look there’s hyperventilating about the collapse of evangelicalism, or the collapse of freedom in the US, or the swine flu, or economics, or … well whatever. Just take a quick look at Snopes and you’ve probably been the recipient of a panicked email debunked by that site (sometimes for years).

Anyone remember the Y2K hysteria? Anyone remember how many churches and Christians were deeply involved with perpetuating it? Anyone remember anything significantly impacted by the Y2K bug?

Brothers and sisters, we are a people living in the kingdom of God, we claim that the all-powerful creator of the universe cares about us enough to know every hair on our heads.

So why all the worry?

From this article on the changing face of Christianity:

Revival is an eternal theme in the history of Christianity. Time after time, evangelical fervor ignites, burns itself out and then re-emerges in some altered and surprising form, in constant cycles of migration and renewal.

It seems to be a pretty evenly keeled article, worth it just for that single line alone.

…I wonder what a blog that tried to convey the truths of scripture only in a fictional short story format would look like.

A recent commercial in my area says, “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to look your best.  After all, when you look good, you feel good.”

Really?

I find Christians using the phrase “There’s nothing wrong with…” a lot when they are trying to rationalize their choices.  But often it isn’t the choice that is wrong, but the heart/attitude behind the choice.  I think that ultimately, we know this and it shows in our trying to make something sound okay by saying that there is nothing wrong with it.  Whenever you hear that phrase, or one similar to it, ask yourself, “Is there anything wrong with…?”

So is there anything wrong with wanting to look your best?  Is this an issue that Christians should even care about?  I’ll post an update with my answer in a few days, but first I’d like to hear from some of you on the issue in the comments.

Rolling Stone: Don’t you think appalling things happen when people become religious?

Bono: It’s a mind-blowing concept that the God who created the Universe might be looking for company, a real relationship with people, but the thing that keeps me on my knees is the difference between grace and karma.

RS: What’s that?

Bono: At the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, you put out what comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics every action is met by an equal and opposite one. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I have done alot of stupid stuff. I would be in big trouble if Karma is going to finally be my judge. I am holding out that Jesus took my sins to the cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don’t have to depend on my own religiosity.

RS: The Son of God who takes away the sins of the world. I wish I could believe that.

Bono: The point of death is that Christ took the sins of the world, so that what we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap the obvious death. It’s not our own good works that get us through the gates of Heaven.