A quick glance at the titles of many Christian news articles today and you'll get a good feel for what Christians are "against." Recent news article titles like - "Wisconsin High Court Upholds Same-Sex Marriage Ban" and "Methodist Church to Clarify Position Against Abortion" and this doozy "Southern Baptists Denounce Oil Spill, Pro-Gay Bills, Divorce in Churches." They are the ubiquitous "biggies" that by far get the most media time - gay marriage, abortion, declining religious freedoms. Now don't get me wrong, these are important issues that merit discussion, but I think a better question is simply this: what are Christians for?
In my personal opinion it seems that too many Christians spend too much time clamoring about what they are against, when in fact it might be more beneficial to campaign for the things for which we stand. Consider this: the Bible mentions homosexuality 12 times. It mentions justice for the poor over 300 times. And while the Bible, of course, mentions murder, it never specifically mentions abortion or infanticide, both of which were apparently "legal" in Jesus' time. So why is it that the vast majority of many Christians' zealous effort is spent denouncing homosexuality and abortion?
I have always found it disheartening when you see those videos of people on the street being asked what in their opinion they feel it means to be a Christian. Inevitably, what you always hear the most of are things like, "Well, they're against this" and "They're against that." How much better (and more godly I would argue) would it be if Christians were known not for what they're against but what they are for? What if Christians were most known for their zealous and unwavering care for the poor? What if they were most known for their single-minded determination in seeking justice for the least of these? And what if they were most known for radically loving and serving and sacrificing themselves for the poor, the orphan, and the widow? That, my friends, is a kind of revolution that I would like to be a part of.
Comments
It's interesting to read your article on here today. I had this very same subject placed on my heart just this morning concerning Christian radio. Listening to the news blurbs of the day on the station that my wife and I wake up to in the morning consisted of "the outrageous things Muslims and Atheists are doing..." or abortion or gays, etc. It made me so angry and that's not something I enjoy waking up to in the morning. I'm concerned that Christian radio has become a public forum for hate and agression. More time should be spend in spreading the good news and the love of Christ than the hate speech of conservative "Christians" (I use the term loosely since their behavior is questionable).
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