April 09, 2005
Faults of the American Christian
The more time I spend on the Internet, reading blogs and politics and the thoughts of others, the more I come to this conclusion about Christians in America - our reputation sucks. To some degree, of course, this can be explained with appropriate Scripture references to Jesus' predictions that His followers would always be hated by the world. Satan hates us and influences the world to hate us, too.
But we'd be fools to think this is the only reason why American Christians have such a foul reputation. If you asked the majority of the people whose opinions I read to describe Christians, I think a standard description would include the following: intolerant, self-righteous, hypocritical, holier-than-thou, prudish, right-wing nutcases ... etc. Heck, if you asked the average evangelical to tell you about the state of the modern American church, he wouldn't say anything good. I've noticed in the last few years that (at least in the circles I run in) the words "the modern church" are a sure lead-in to a tirade about the failings of the Christian Church in these times. And, I'm afraid, my post isn't going to be any different. Not at first, anyway.
This past Friday in chapel, Dr. Patrick Mays was speaking. He said something I thought showed a serious problem among Christians (because I hear it so often). We were discussing sin in the body of Christ, and he looked around warningly at us and said "You may have issues with ... sex! Or alcohol ... and you're living a double life." These words struck me, not because we don't have problems with sex and alcohol (we do), but because I realized much more serious and widespread sins among Christians are almost never addressed. Why didn't he say "You may have issues with ... spiritual pride! Or a graceless attitude toward people who are different from you." Sins like spiritual pride, pharisaism, haughtiness toward people guilty of more obvious sins (like pre-marital sex or alcohol abuse) ... apathy ... gluttony ... lots more.
The modern Christian evangelical church is not famous for the love of its members for one another. It is famous for judging others and serving as the moral watchdog of America. It is famous for its condemnation of premarital sex, abortion, and homosexuality. Don't misunderstand me - premarital sex is rampant in our society and needs condemnation, abortion is murder and needs condemnation, and homosexuality is a perversion and needs condemnation. But we get so focused on the sins of society that we simply don't love one another. The church has become a place where good people go ... or at least, where people go and pretend to be good. It is not a fellowship of ordinary believers who love one another. This is bad.
The battles we modern Christians have chosen to fight - abortion, homosexuality, and pre-marital sex ... I'm beginning to doubt if they deserve our first attention. Isn't pride a much more insidious and deadly sin than any of those? Isn't apathy a greater sin? Those are much more difficult battles to fight. It's obvious (to some degree) if a person is struggling with abortion, homosexuality, or pre-marital sex. It is not obvious at all if a person is struggling with pride or hypocrisy. And, to be honest, the people who most loudly condemn the Three (abortion, homosexuality, and pre-marital sex) are usually the people most guilty of pride or hypocrisy or gracelessness.
I've heard it said that the average lifespan of a Christian is two years. That a person, upon becoming saved, often undergoes a radical transformation that continues for a couple of years ... and then peters off and the person calcifies and doesn't change again before he or she dies. Jesus said that he had not come to call the righteous, but sinners. I think there's more to that than is usually thought. Jesus came for everybody, but He can only reach people who admit they are sinners. Jesus is of no use to the righteous. So I think that an average Christian grows until his behavior is roughly in line with expectations in church. And then, the average Christian considers himself or herself "good" ... and stops growing.
"Brokenness" is a wonderful word, horribly mangled in recent years. So is the phrase "speak truth into a person's life" and ... well, lots of others. I think that "brokenness" is a necessity for growth, meaning that a person has to honestly see themselves as a sinner. I know that, in the abstract, we know that "all of us are sinners," but I don't think many of us feel sinful anymore. We look pretty good. The most deadly and dreadful sins are virtually invisible to the sinner. Pride. Hypocrisy. A critical, unloving spirit.
How, how, how can we see ourselves as we really are?
We Christians have a bad reputation for several reasons:
- We talk a great talk, but we live lives that are virtually identical to those of the outside world.
- We change on the outside to some degree, but on the inside we remain much the same.
- Our churches are a place where we go and listen to sermons and socialize. They are not fellowships of believers who love one another.
- The most important attributes of Christians are the least practiced and the most talked about - love, mercy, generosity, kindness.
- We condemn outward sins while tolerating worse sins in ourselves. We condemn without grace.
