Posts Tagged ‘Gospel’
Why I don’t need some hollywood starlet pushing “religious” convictions on me…
I saw someone post and article yesterday that read “Hilary Swank Pushes Churches To Reach Out To Prisoners.” This obviously caught my attention, so anticipating I would not like what I would read, I forged on. I indeed was not only not in agreement, I was quite angry. The whole tone of the article smacks of all that is wrong with Hollywood and their self-given right to push their agenda, and is a testimony of the slippery slope that Charles Colson’s ecumenist agenda was bound to bring.
That Colson and Company would feel comfortable at all with this linking speaks to the deterioration of discernment on these sort of choices and further weakens the gospel they claim to be proclaiming. Swank is no Christian and indeed the articles even states that she, “believes in a higher power but doesn’t subscribe to a particular religion.” In fact what Swank does say means nothing whatsoever. In regard to wrongful imprisonment she says, “I think we always have to have hope and faith that eventually the right thing will happen.” Ms. Swank, what are we to have hope and faith in? A higher power? Which one is going to solve this problem? Where is hope, if there is nothing to place our hope in? Why does she care what kind of church does prison ministry? Why is she particularly pushing for “churches” at all? The article makes it sound like Jesus said we ought to do it (and He did), but Ms. Swank just said, in not so many words, she doesn’t care what Jesus said. So why is Prison Fellowship teaming up with her? Because ministries and churches (not all I understand), feel the need to have famous spokespersons and goshdurnit, if we can get the world on our side, then we could really accomplish something!
Here is where my biggest beef comes in to play. I would say, “Dear, ministries and churches that feel like you need pagan Hollywood starlets to promote Christ’s work in the world, please stop appealing to Satan to be on our side.” Ms. Swank does not speak for God and/or the Scriptures when she stands up and says that churches need to be doing better at prison ministry. She hasn’t really even said anything like that at all. Ms. Swank would be just as happy if this were any other organization who was promoting what she happened to be promoting. It is enough that Jesus has said it. This, is in my opinions, is the result of many years of Colson’s push that all denominations to just get along and we’ll see God’s work take place in the world. The problem is that Paul tells us in Galatians (please read the entire book if before you spout disagreement with me over this) that we are to see those who promote a gospel other than the one given by Christ to Paul as anathema. There is common ground upon which we must stand and it is the gospel. Something that the “pastor” they interview in this article can’t even get right when he states, “Like Miss Swank said, it’s a tremendous love story. This is about love. That’s what Christ was about, that’s what he died for — receiving people that proper Christians or church folk didn’t think he ought to be receiving. If we’re not careful, we’ll get into that same kind of religion.” Really? This is what Christ came to do? I can’t even begin to tell you all the things that are wrong with this statement, but I will.
First of all I can only assume that by “Christians and church folk” this dear confused man means “Pharisees, Scribes and Sadducees.” Yes, Jesus condemned them (especially the Pharisees) for their twisted and manipulated religion, but it would have been because they saw the outcast as one to malign and take advantage of and more so by the fact that they deceived the people into believing that righteousness was something attained by following their prescribed way of living and not seeking what God had told them to sought, which was an alien righteousness by way of a suffering Messiah (read the book of Hebrews, it makes for a fascinating understanding of what the Bible actually says!) Where is repentance? Where is sin? Did not Jesus come to seek and to save those who are lost? (Luke 19:10) In fact this place in Luke is a perfect example of how these folks have misused what Jesus did while he was here. Jesus did reach out to the outcast, but it was with a particular message, one that Ms. Swank says she has no interest in believing, because she “does not ascribe to a particular religion.” Nowhere is a true gospel mentioned in this article. Now I understand that it could have been edited out, but why would this pastor say this is Jesus’ mission in the first place? Notice what he states, “Like Miss Swank said…”, it’s about what Ms. Swank has said. They have to get that Hollywood promotion or God’s just going to struggle to get His work done in the world.
This leads to my second point, we have become so accustomed to man centered theology, that we feel as though God needs help. Why do we visit the poor, the widow, the destitute, the prisoner? Not because of their physical needs alone, but because they need a Savior. Do we need to reach out to these and all others? Do we need to proclaim the gospel to all, regardless of what they have done? Yes, we are all sinners and some of us are incarcerated because of it! Do we need Hollywood on our side? No. God can get the work done through His people much more effectively, if they turn off their television sets and get their cues from His Word instead. We are to proclaim the gospel and God is the one who causes the growth (1 Cor. 3:7).
It is the Word of God and the transformation of the gospel that must compel me to reach out to all sinners with the message of repentance and Christ’s death and resurrection. I need no backing of the supposed elite, but only the words of my Savior to drive the passion and compassion for the lost (Matt. 28:18-20).
The Trivial Pursuit of a Once Upon a Time, Cultural America
I might lose any credibility I had with some of you previous to this article(s) once it is (they are) written. Quite frankly, this needs to be said.
The “church” needs to stop trying to recover the culture of the ca.1950s and/or colonial America as if those were the glory days of the church and it is somehow going to die if we don’t so something! There, I’ve said it, and now some of you have thrown your shoe at your computer screen or are wondering what the heck I am talking about.
Here’s the main idea. I’m tired of statistics that state that once America was a Christian nation and we are losing that. No, America was once a nation founded on biblical ideals, that recognized a moral compass had to be grounded somewhere, that looked a bit like Christianity, but it was nothing more than a cultural norm. That no longer is the case. I’m tired of statistics saying that Christians are fleeing the church for something better. There is nothing better than the true church for true believers.
American society was once veiled in a thin veneer of what looked something like Christianity, because a lot of people went to church on Sundays and all of the smut that we see today was relegated to dark allies. That was the way culture in that day, demanded it to be! Sin was more concealed and actually Christians might have been harder to distinguish from amongst the crowds, because everyone did Christiany things.
So here is what I propose we stop. Stop trying to make America a Christian nation. It never was one to begin with. Stop being alarmists about how many students/people are fleeing the church (It’s based on bad statistics anyway. Barna has no clue what a real church is. For instance take a gander at this, “In this “blueprint for survival,”[A book entitled The Second Coming of the Church ] Christian sociologist George Barna evaluates the moral and spiritual decline of society and the corresponding stagnation within the Church. Using hard data, Barna unveils the status quo and argues convincingly that the Church must re-invent itself or face virtual oblivion by the mid-21st century.” Excuse me, I believe you forgot to read what Jesus said in Matthew 16:18) If they are fleeing the true church, then guess what… they aren’t true believers!
What the World needs is not righteous politics or righteous society, people need the righteousness of Christ which is found only in the Gospel. (BTW, look at the denominations that Barna polls and you’ll discover that some don’t even get that right! Another reason why those statistics are bogus!)
I am not fearful of the Church dying (because it won’t), or America going the way of Europe (because it will!). This means nothing to the Sovereign God of the universe. Is God wringing His hands hoping that the church won’t die?! Is God wringing his hands hoping that all who He has called will somehow not come?
In saying all of this, I am not against Christians doing there duty as citizens and voting, I am not against Christian politicians, I am not against evangelism. In fact I am “pro” all of these things and I would encourage them. I am against Christians believing that the Church will only survive if we do our part to educate our children correctly1 or turn American policy into Christian policy. America will go down the tubes and we can do nothing to stop it. The church will live on (and the true church rise out of the false!) and death can’t even stop that from happening (Matthew 16:18). In fact bring on the persecution, that will indeed make the true church stronger!
________________
1I am not saying we do not educate our children I am simply saying this is not the reason to do so. A child may or may not abandon the church no matter how “good” of a job we have done as parents, church, et.al, because it is our responsibility to do the best we can and God’s responsibility to do with it what He wills!
