I Don’t Want to be a “Christian”
I ran across this video on Facebook Friday night. Around 11:30. I had just posted a status update about finally clearing out my inbox…managed to answer and reply to all of my email, file what needed filing and finally delete some things that were just taking up space. I’m down to two remaining emails, y’all. I feel liberated.
I was headed to bed, but I got sidetracked looking at one of my college roommates recent wedding photos. Don’t you love how Facebook allows us to see glimpses into people’s lives when we can’t be near the people we love? Anyway…as with any social media site, I somehow started jumping around from profile to profile; reading stalking and looking at photos, when a video caught my eye. I don’t do YouTube videos too terribly often, but this one got my attention. I’ve placed it below. Take a second to watch (it’s 3:00-ish minutes…I’m sure you can spare it and it’s worth it).
Preach.
Josh and I have talked about this very thing time and time again in our lives. This is a topic that gets me fired up and ready to start shouting. If I’d been in the room when someone started talking about this, I’d have been one of those women shouting hearty “Amens” and “Praise Jesus!”
I’ve been part of places where the moment you let your weakness show…admit to your shortcomings…let on that you aren’t perfect like Christian’s are “supposed” to be…everything changes. I’ve been on the receiving end of those judgmental stares. On the other side of the room when the whispers start. Been the brunt of an indirect but oh-so-obvious Facebook status.
It hurts.
And it’s wrong.
If you don’t know my story, let me give you a quick rundown:
I drank myself to the point in college where I should have ended up dead. Not only did I drink to an extent that I was an alcoholic at not even 20 years old, waking up hungover and spending the day itching for the evening when I’d party it up again, but I was also foolish with my choices…looking to hookup with whoever I could, whenever I could. Trying to find acceptance through popularity and doing what the “popular” girls did.
How I didn’t end up dead in an alcohol related car wreck or pregnant with an illegitimate child, is by God’s grace only. And it’s only by God’s grace that I’m still here and have reached the point in my life where I am comfortable sharing my mistakes and hoping that others learn from them.
But you know what? Those mistakes? Those stupid choices?
They don’t make me any less SAVED than anyone else.
We ALL have baggage. We all need grace.
If we didn’t, then the cross? The cross is meaningless.
I’m not bashing the church or saying we don’t need the church. God gave us the church-the body of believers we are supposed to come together with to worship and fellowship-as a gift. But, it’s been the church-the building, the body of believers thumping the scripture over people’s heads-that has led people away.
It’s the church that’s left me feeling many times over like I don’t want to be a Christian anymore.
Because as unfortunate as it is, “christianity” isn’t the same today as it was when Jesus Christ walked this earth.
Christianity isn’t a once a week (twice if you go on Wednesday’s) thing to just check off your list.
It’s not driving the most expensive car, to the most prestigious building, wearing the top of the line name brand clothes and sitting in the front row singing louder than anyone else, interjecting the “amen” in the right spot.
It’s not knowing or memorizing the most scripture or being able to understand Hebrew.
It’s not knowing the Books of the Bible or having the most verses highlighted on those tissue paper thin pages (Bonus points if you use something like the inductive method with all kinds of different colors, all coordinated in accordance to subject matter.)
It’s not looking the other direction when a brother or sister in Christ is struggling and needs your help. It’s not passing judgement or condemning someone over a bad choice or even a series of bad choices. Last time I read the Easter story, I’m pretty sure Peter denied Christ…not once, not twice, but three times.
Jesus rode a donkey. Not a Porsche. He wore a robe and sandals. Not Chanel and Jimmy Choo’s. He carried with Him the presence of the Almighty. Not a Michael Kors bag.
Jesus associated with the least of these so that we could have the greatest of his grace.
In fact Jesus was the least of these. Dig your Bible out and read-really read– about who Jesus was. Because he wasn’t who the churches seem be depicting him to be these days.
A church is fine. Going to church is fantastic. My family and I go every week.
But, who do you see in church? Your friends? Family members? People you associate with? Families that are part of the school attached to the church? Upstanding citizens of your city?
Do you see the least of these? Do you see the barstool type people? Do you see the broken, beaten and bruised souls that are all around us? Do you see the Vets holding the signs outside your local fast food place? Do you see the homeless man you always pass by, but manage to “turn the other cheek” to?
We aren’t too good to reach them. We aren’t too good to associate with them.
When did becoming a Christian…becoming a church member…take us from being ONE of the least of these, to thinking we were the BETTER of these?
The Bible tells us in the book of 1 John that all wrongdoing is sin (src).
Not some of it.
Not just a little bit of it.
ALL of it.
There’s no good sin and bad sin.
No right sin or wrong sin.
No little sin or big sin.
It’s ALL sin.
From that little white lie to the adultery. From stealing a pencil from your office (that wasn’t yours!) to murdering half a dozen people.
It all put Christ on the cross.
It all kept Christ on the cross.
And at the end of the day, when I stand before God at those pearly gates, I know that I will answer for the mistakes that I have made (and heaven knows there’s been a lot of them). I know that I will have to give an account of all the wrong doing in my life.
But when all of my transgressions are counted and the great and mighty Lord of Lords gets ready to place his verdict? I want to be sure that I hear him say, “Well done my good and faithful servant.”
If I have to be the “too good of these” to engage with the least of these, then how much like Jesus am I really?
Prostitutes.
Adulterers.
Tax collectors.
Lowly fishermen.
Shepherds who shot slingshots.
Blasphemers.
Thieves.
Murderers.
These don’t sound like the high society type to me.
And if associating with them makes me more like HIM…then that’s right where I want to be.
Because when Christianity becomes about being better than the ones who need to hear the good news of Jesus Christ, then I don’t want to be a Christian anymore.
Have you ever been on the receiving end of a church’s (or Christians) criticism and judgment? How did you feel? Are you under the impression that that’s what Jesus Christ is like? If it is, I’d love talk to you more about who my God is and what he is really like!
I believe in Christ and all of his teachings. I have struggled with the American church system for many years now, the messed up teachings regarding tithing as money as well as the hypocrisy of leaders and their seemingly insatiable appetites for worldly possessions. Every church I’ve ever been to were filled with people who were either there for the right reasons or the wrong ones. I grew tired of the church, so I quit going. But I’ll never give up on Christ.
I think one of the biggest errors facing the church today, however, is the fact that it is no longer received as a sounding board for sinful behavior. I feel that the world has convinced the church that being the messengers of God’s word is now judging everyone. The world, the unsaved world, will never come to Christ if they never believe they need him. Coming to Christ means one thing for every true Christian, that salvation requires us to look in the mirror and repent of our wrong doing. We have to ask God to forgive us and include our sin on that cross on order for our sins to be cast into the lake of forgetfulness. God will only forgive us if we ask Him to forgive us. That requires and always will require us to acknowledge our sin. If we don’t believe our behavior is sinful, we will never hear the words “Well done, good and faithful servant.” If we truly care about the lost souls, we will warn them that the bridge is out ahead, that they are sinners just like us, that they too need Jesus, just like us. Candy-coated scripture and easy tickling never has saved a single soul. It never will. Sin is sin, and we can never be servants if we think we can pick and choose which sins we chose to warn the world about. The good news isn’t that Christ died on the cross. The good news is that our sins died with him on that cross. He only requires repentance in order for us to hang those burdens to the cross. Let’s never forget that. I fear that’s what the church is failing to do now.
Wow! Your eloquence is amazing. It is so sad to see how so many in the church are so cruel. I am so sorry to hear of how difficult it has been to be part of the church.
While I love the video and have experienced some similar levels of condemnation from many claiming to be Christians, I am not surprised. It started with Adam and Eve blaming the serpent and each other. We are always trying to point to others as worse than we are, as more sinful than they claim to be, and we don’t want to take the blame for our own actions. The church is full of those same kinds of people. People in need of a Savior. People who don’t get it right. If the church only had people in it who treated folks with decency, kindness, love, and acceptance, only Jesus would be in the church!
To be Christians is to be declared righteous by the substitutionary work of Christ Jesus. Despite this declaration, we remain in these bodies on earth, waiting for His return when we will then be perfect. For now, we remain simil justus et peccator. At the same time, saint and sinner.
This is not an excuse or license for sin, evil, hatred, or any form of poor behavior; all that was described is really sin, really evil, and unacceptable I. The church. This post is intended to be an examination of the depth of our (MY) sin, and how much greater the love and forgiveness of Jesus is. It’s still wrong for those in the church to act that way. But it is not surprising. Come, Lord Jesus! Until then, we will have to endure each other’s sinfulness.
i try daily to be last. It is not easy I must admit. My passion is prison ministry. I go monthly to fellowship with the men and women that society just disregards. When people ask me why I do this I simply tell them ‘ their sins are no greater than mine’.
I have given up on going to church. I am a Christian who got saved the day I got out of a dextox unit. If it were not for God’s grace I would have simply started drinking myself to death again.
I have been to several churches since. One church leader told me “God does not love everyone.” Another church told me they are an army against Satan. Another was suspicious of my salvation and wanted to make a big show of it before the congregation. One wanted to cast demons out of me. Now when I see Christians deny people their civil rights and talk politics from the pulpit I feel like choking up my lunch.
I chose another path. I work with other alcoholics to help them get sober and find a new life by God’s amazing grace. I do not know what to make of most Christians anymore. I don’t hate them, but it is hard to love those who are so cold to the millions of suffering people in this world. I know I am not perfect, in fact, I am a mess. I am no one to judge. I have yet to find a church that is more interested in bringing the good news of God’s grace to the dark and ugly places in this world than they are in being better than everyone else. I let them be and do what I know Jesus taught me to do.
I finally have found what I’ve been thinking put into words. I can’t stand going to church for the very reasons you stated. When we “stopped “going to church suddenly we weren’t included in many things. Our family became happier not going to the building- funny how that works!
I was raised Christian. My father “drug” me to church every Sunday. I remember the women I went to church with would snicker at me when I would dance to the music. They would tell my dad I was embarrassing and they felt sorry for him. I wasn’t allowed to dance anymore. I had to sit when told to, and stand as well. Nothing “strange.” I lost my faith for a long time. Recently, I’ve made my way back to God, and I see all these “Christians” bashing other people, and when I remind them to love thy neighbor, they come back with, “Well, they’re sinners!” Aren’t we all? Thank you for this. Definitely worth the read.
This completely made my day! I’ve never read anything so PERFECT. LOVED THIS. ❤
I think you have a lot of great points! Thank you for sharing! If I could add one thing, Jesus walked with these people and managed to find, somehow without guile, the ability to tell these people that they needed to repent and do better.
A lot of mainstream Christians are very much just the “church on Sunday” type of people and the scriptures have warned us about those people. They contribute to the problem MORE than the non-believers and they will be held accountable for that. With the great debate going on in our country about morals, I think it’s important to remember that it is okay to stand for moral choices, even when we are imperfect. “Judging someone” as God judges us, is to say we know someonne’s heart and their intent and we have told them if they are going to heaven or hell for their actions. But telling someone that their actions need repentance and that there is a better way, in a way that invites them to do good, which when we study Christ’s life, was done through stories, parables and sometimes the plain ol’ truth, is not wrong. And if we hate sin, we must hate ALL sin, not just the sins we think are worse than others. God is no respector of persons and sin is sin in the long run.
Being a Christian isn’t about other people, it’s about you. And you’ll always be a Christian if you keep your eye single to the glory of God and genuinely desire to follow Christ. Pray for guidance and keep a meek and humble heart with you. That means giving money to the homeless even when you think they’ll buy booze. Pay a full tithe to your church and be faithful to your spouse. Visit the elderly, the sick and the poor. Christ was a selfless servant and also a radical thinker for his time.
The Bible tells us that the definition of pure religion is to visit the fatherless and take care of the poor. We need many more true Christians in this world and less Sunday church attenders. More followers and less believers. We can believe all we want, but if we don’t follow…what’s the point?
Yes! Yes! And Yes x 1,000,000!!
This was a good article that I enjoyed reading. I’m a Christian and I don’t personally look down on people in any setting. I would hope that people who think the way that I do about others would also not be too critical of the Bible thumpers and the other so-called Christians who judge other people. They probably have their own life issues that caused them to be that way. Just saying.
Well said!