Striving Against the Right Wing in Christianity

I don't know how Christians think they are supposed to reach the unbelieving world when they constantly belittle and disrespect the unbelievers in their own country.

 Forget for a second, the ideology.  Forget the opinion that business should be of primary importance in the economy.  Forget the view that government should operate with no debt.  Forget the idea that greed is good or that poor people are moochers or that black people only vote for Obama because he's black.  Forget all that.

How do you reach someone?  How do you get someone to come over to your point of view.  How do you dispel myths about your position and draw people into your enlightened way of being?  Do you do it through insults?  Do you mock them into seeing things your way?

 Jesus said you are supposed to love them and by your love, they will know that you are his disciples.  And he was all about making new disciples.  'Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them all that I have commanded you, and I will be with you always.'

For some reason, and I can't figure out why this is the case, but people who call themselves Christians are making right asses of themselves today.  Assume for a minute that their political opponents, the Democrats are among the unbelievers they should be so desperate to lead to Christ.  Then why are they so vehement in their ridicule and dishonorable speech?

 I don't say these things lightly.  I have struggled with calling myself a Christian for several years now, going back and forth.  Today one of my pastors compared our president Barack (a name which means blessing) Obama to Chewbacca from Star Wars.  Why are Christians so vicious today?  It's one thing to disagree with people, I do it all the time.  But there is no need for this name calling and flatly dishonorable behavior.

Are you against abortion?  Great!  That's fantastic, but how can you be most effective?  Is it by standing outside an abortion clinic hurling insults at poor women who come trying to escape their problems?  I'll tell you this.  Pro-life liberals get way more positive attention and frankly, they get way more done.  The enemy is not going to let you into his castle to pry the ears of his advisers.  But if he's not your enemy, he'll let you in and offer you a meal and let you try to change his mind.

 Paul had some great things to say about how you reach people.

"For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became mas one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings."

Is it possible that Paul in his wisdom may have said something like "to the Democrats, I became as a Democrat for the sake of the gospel that I may share with them in its blessings"?  That sounds like something he might say, if he were a republican which I dare say he wouldn't be.

I am in a tough spot.  I have been in a tough spot for a number of years.  I feel uncomfortable where I am.  Though my service is strenuous and valuable, I feel like I'm working with the wrong people.  I have become more and more withdrawn because the words of my 'friends' and associates are so repulsive to me.  I feel like it's all coming to a head.  I feel like if my small group leader says that 'all these regulations are in the way' again, I'm going to burst.  And I'll tell you this much, if my church participates in 'Pulpit Freedom Sunday' I will be leaving it.  Because you don't draw people to the truth with hateful and insulting language.  You don't win people to your side with partisan bickering.  Jesus hung out with hookers and tax cheats, sailors and radicals.  And all he told them to do was stop sinning.  That's it.  Not that they were bad people.  Not that they were ruining their country.  Not that they were a drag on society.  And he didn't compare them to hairy creatures whose speech nobody understands.

Movie Review: Gran Torino

If you see one R rated movie in your lifetime, see The Passion of the Christ. If you see another one, see Gran Torino. In my point of view, this is likely one of the greatest movies of all time. It so much captures my worldview regarding violence, even though it is shown through a quite imperfect man.

Spoilers ahead, I'm spillin' the beans.

The story is about Walt, a very old very grumpy Korea veteran who lives in a neighborhood in Detroit now largely populated by Hmong. He shows a boy what manhood is like, and sacrifices himself for the boy and his sister and the whole neighborhood.

I've been watching some Clint Eastwood movies lately, and I couldn't help but notice that this one follows a kind of form that some of them follow. First you have an unlikely hero or antihero who wittingly or unwittingly helps some people, there is little real action for much of the movie, but some openers to get the story going. One of the people being helped is in some way brutalized by the bad guys which leads up to the climax. And then there is the final shootout followed by the denouement. It reminded me a bit of Pale Rider or Unforgiven except for the way the shootout goes.

This movie speaks to me in the way that it portrays the occurrence of redemptive violence. So many movies are based on revenge, kill the bad guy, get the girl, you win. But life, especially if you are a true believer in Christ does not work that way. This movie demonstrates that violence doesn't solve much, in fact, the only time Walt retaliates, it results in the rape and beating of Sue, the girl who introduces him to her Hmong family. So instead of mounting some sort of war against the Asian gangbangers, he instead implicates them all in his own murder by allowing himself to be gunned down as the only way of ridding the neighborhood of an inescapable negative influence. He says the only way Thao and Sue will ever make it is if the gangbangers are gone for good. As he demonstrates, the only way to successfully achieve that was to sacrifice himself. Really what it promotes is active non-violence, which is where I'm at.

One thing truly demonstrated in this movie is love. At the beginning of the movie, Walt is the grumpiest old man you can imagine, but when he, in a probably selfish move, saves Thao, the neighborhood lavishes love on him until he just can't resist it any more. This leads him to take Thao under his wing and ultimately leads him to sacrifice himself for the neighborhood. No, it's not as pure as Jesus, but it's almost as good as a human can pull off.

You might not expect it, but this movie is funny. In fact, I remember wishing that what they call comedies nowadays were this funny. Walt is hilarious. He spews racial epithets with impunity, he really doesn't care what anyone thinks. He calls the Hmong gooks to their faces, but they don't care, they welcome him anyway. I wish we as a country could let go of race and treat it as a source of humor not hate like Walt does with his barber and construction worker friend. "How ya doin' ya slimy mick bastard?" He didn't actually say that I don't think, but it was something like that. I'm a honky, he's a cracker, he's a wop, she's a beaner. So what. Race is a thing we have to deal with, and it won't be dealt with by ignoring it. Problems never go away that way.

All in all, this is one of the most impactful movies I have ever seen because if it's negative portrayal of redemptive violence. Even in the small cruddy theater I saw it in, there was substantial applause when the film ended. The only complaint I had was the acting was a little thin from some of the Hmong leads, but that was because only one of them had ever acted before. And I guess you could say with all the frowning and stern looks Eastwood gives in all his movies, the look has almost stuck. It's kind of hard to make him look any more pissed than usual, but the general nastiness and pissed offedness of the character does a pretty good job.

Entertainment wise, The Dark Knight was the best movie last year, but with how I perceive the message that I'd like to present, I put Gran Torino in first place. I hope one day Israel figures out that violence doesn't work. I give this movie 9/10 and it would have been 10 save for the acting. This will be a movie that I get on Blu-Ray or whatever technology is in, and it will be a movie my children will watch with me. Yes the swearing is excessive, but that's reality for you and it is easily forgettable. Watch it. I think it would be a fitting end if ol' Clint quit making movies.

WiredForStereo

Faith=Think+Do

One of the unfortunate difficulties with being an American Jesus Freak is that the Bible was not originally written in English. Yes, I know, I just found out myself. Apparently if it was good enough for Paul and Silas, it's good enough to be translated for me. As anyone who speaks more than one language any significant amount knows, things don't always translate directly across. For instance, in English, "I am hungry" translates to "Yo tengo hambre" in Spanish which translates back to English as "I have hunger." Simple example I know, but it makes a point. "I have hunger" doesn't really fit into our lexicon. So the same are important concepts in Greek in the New Testament. Greek has several words for love, while English basically has only one.

Let's explore this.

James 2:14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

In western culture, there is often a very real dichotomy between what we believe and what we do. You can believe stealing is wrong, but if you accidentally get out of a store with a small item in the bottom of your shopping cart, you may not go back and pay for it. You can justify it with any range of excuses, but ultimately, you stole it. This represents a disconnect from what you believe. In ancient Greek culture (which all of the New Testament is in someway influenced by,) the spirit has a more direct connection to the body, and therefore, actions a more direct connection to beliefs. James is saying "I don't need to tell you how much faith I have, you can see it, you can see it in the dirt on my hands, you can feel it in the strength of my hug, you can see it in the smile on my face, you can hear it in the tone of my voice, you can tell in an unwavering way by the way I am."

Why is it today that it becomes increasingly difficult to tell the difference between Christians and the world? What is going on here? We live in a world that draws us to value the same things as the world, to love the same things, to believe the same things, to think the same things, to act the same ways. Why is our rate of divorce the same? Why are we spending our time arguing about gay marriage when there are people starving all over the world? Why don't people stop us on the sidewalk and say "you're a Christian aren't you?"

Check this out: Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Check this out, it's like a math problem, verse 8 THINK, verse 9a DO and 9b FAITH.

Think+Do=Faith

Let me re-emphasize this because I know some of you are still stuck in the faith vs. works mindset. You are essentially equating think with faith. That is not how it was intended. Just as your spirit separated from your body essentially destroys what is "you" so separating the think and do parts of your faith destroys what faith really is. Faith is not a word attached to something you just believe. "I have faith that it will rain." Nor is it something achieved by performing a task. Faith is a thing that when it exists in a person, you should be able to see it before you are told about it.

The equation works both ways. If there is faith, there is think and do, if there is think and do, then there is faith.

So, do they know you are a Christian because of your love for one another?

WiredForStereo

Why I am not a Jehovah's Witness

Which is to say, why I do not attend a Kingdom Hall, why I do not belong to or am not affiliated with the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. Because I am not a witness of "Jehovah," for that is not his name, just as the Allah of Islam is not God and the Jesus of the LDS church is not Jesus.

I am a follower of Christ, a "Christian," a believer in the One true God, named in the Old Testament with the letters YHWH. The Father who's only begotten, not made, son Jesus died and whose blood cleanses the sin of all who call on him for forgiveness, and the Spirit who himself calls for repentance and fills the believer with light and understanding.

I have spoken to a number of Jehovah's Witnesses (JW's) and have found a number of characteristics which they, apart from the majority of the population, have.

They use certain words that others never use. The greatest example of which is the term "do obeiscence." They use this term to keep Jesus from being worshiped as God. No one uses this term. No one but JW's. This is how you can spot them a mile away. In the post below, you can see an email sent to me under the auspices that the person who wrote the book mentioned therein was not a JW. I almost laughed out loud. JW's are so disconnected with the rest of society that they can't discern their own writings and beliefs from those of others, and any attempt by them to use the "Reductio ad Absurdum" argument suffers for it. JW's are not allowed to read materials not explicitly published or OK'd by the Watchtower people. So all the materials they read say the same thing, and they believe it because that's what they are told. I have to admit, they have very good memories, but they have nothing new or fresh. And I know this to be true. Their arguments go the same direction every time, and I know this to be true, because I have had plenty of arguments with them. They have nothing new because they don't have the prompting of the Holy Spirit, but I'll talk more about that later.

I am a studier Christian Apologetics, because first of all, we don't all have to agree on every tiny point. There are differing points of view on minor subjects, and that's OK. There are unlimited numbers of arguments in Christian Apologetics and they change daily because of a changing world and philosophical marketplace, and they can compete in the philosophical marketplace and they always have. But the truth at the center remains the same. Because Christianity is about a set of ideas that are really true to paraphrase J.P. Moreland. I also study Christian Apologetics because I believe the the historic Christian faith can be defended and championed because it is true objectively.

It also is my belief that life should be fun, love of God should be wonderful, life should be about enjoying the LORD, and making him known. Living in his grace and growing in his love is the way of life for a Christian. Fun, because God invented fun. I can say from personal experience that missions work is fun. I do not see much fun in the lives of Jehovah's Witnesses.

I have heard that many JW's will never led anyone to their faith. That is not fun. Spending a lifetime of proselytizing on a daily or weekly basis and seeing no result is not fun. And I know why it happens. JW's do not believe in the person of the Holy Spirit. How can the Spirit lead someone to repentance in Jesus Christ if there is no Spirit? Thats why true JW's number well less than 10,000,000 in the entire world while other Christians number around 2,000,000,000. Now I am not saying that all those are true believers, but there is a point there.

On the subject of fun, I enjoy listening to good contemporary Christian and Gospel music. I don't know of any Contemporary JW musicians. Point made.

I also love good philosophical conversation. I know of no well known or even not so well known JW philosophers, while I know of tons of Christian philosophers and thinkers.

I even love celebrating holidays, even if what I am celebrating did not actually take place on that date. Take Christmas, Jesus was born on the Day of Atonement in September, but he was still born, and if everyone else celebrates his birth in December, I'm ok with that. I also enjoy having a birthday every year, and celebrating with others when they have a birthday. I enjoy Valentine's Day which is also my wife's birthday, and named after a Roman Catholic saint. But I am ok with that because it is a chance to celebrate love, and love is good. I enjoy Independence Day, because it signifies the founding of a country where I am free to have all these opinions. I enjoy Mother's and Father's Day, as well as Labor Day, and Presidents Day, and New Years, and even Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Name one JW holiday. Point.

I would also be glad to accept the gift of life of someone else's blood or body tissue, not only to save my life, but to add credit to their spiritual account for saving my life. Jesus said that no one has greater love than someone who lays down their life for a friend.

I read a story written by a man who used to be a Jehovah's Witness, and decided to leave the church. The problem was, his coworkers at work were also JW's. They effectively kept him from being promoted, or even to perform his job to the best of his ability. He eventually had to quit. A true Christian would never do something like that. Former believers are of all people to be pitied and loved, not tortured.

Let's explore the concept of Hell. In the JW view, believers spend eternity on earth while Jehovah, Jesus, and the 144,000 (filled up in the 1930's by the way) rule in Heaven. There is also no hell. People are just blinked out of existence, end of show, as if they had never existed. In my view, heaven comes to earth and believers get to spend eternity with the risen Christ as the faithful bride and Church. Hell is a place of eternal conscious torment that Jesus himself spoke endlessly about with the strongest of warnings. I don't know about you, but I think there is much more to be both gained and lost in my view and the orthodox Christian view. JW Salvation and damnation is kinda "eh."

And the final reason why I am not a Jehovah's Witness is this. Jesus. Jesus is life and love. Jesus, my creator, died for me of his own free will. You see if Jesus was created himself, it means that the Father in his omnipotent way would have known that Jesus would have to die. He would have therefore been created to die, only to be recreated after death by the Father in the JW view. This is no savior, he'd be a pawn, maybe a rook. If God created somebody named Bob to die for my sins, it would mean nothing. But if the Father, the Son, and the Spirit have existed in perfect union and love from eternity past, then none was created by, for, or to do, anything, and they'd be free to create and love and to die for what they willed. That is the meaning of a true sacrifice.

And that my friends is a reason for the hope that I have, and it is a real hope.
WiredForStereo