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GROCERIES OR GADGETS?
(Characteristics of the church)

John 13:34-35;15:12-14
August 24, 2008

Christianity is being featured in a media blitz. As believers, we’re being scrutinized and analyzed. Our religious terminology is constantly popping up in daily headlines and best seller titles.

TV News Anchormen often turn into theologians to interpret current events. “Born again” and “Amazing Grace” have become fad phrases.

Every word we say is amplified! Every mistake we make is magnified! Our credibility is on the line! The world is watching! “Who knows but that (we) are come into the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14).
So, “What manner of people ought we to be?” (II Peter 3:11).

Should we be majoring on minors and bickering about trivia? Some Christians can’t seem to agree on what constitutes a gnat and what constitutes a camel! In these momentous days, surely some consensus on priorities must be reached. Jesus is our example. Only by considering his ministry can we answer the question, “What manner of people ought we to be?”

I. FIRST, WE OUGHT TO BE A PEOPLE OF LOVE!

Throughout the gospels, we find this is the greatest emphasis. Unfortunately the word love has been overworked and even cheapened; but we’ve never found an adequate substitute. Jesus himself used it constantly: “Love me” (John 14:15); “Love one another” (John 13:35 and 15:12); and even “Love your enemies”
(Matt. 5:44).

Love is sorely needed in this materialistic age. Christians must exhibit a special kind of love that allows disagreement and respects opposition; a love that truly unifies without demanding conformity; a love that elevates the individual, because the worth of each person is infinite!

Promotional schemes, that use people as statistics to be manipulated, are immoral! Guilt producing creeds, that turn people into neurotic hypocrites, are immoral.

Jesus said, “Be merciful as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:36). Mercy suggests compassion and forgiveness. The prodigal son’s father was merciful. The Good Samaritan was merciful. The crucified Christ was merciful. It’s better to pardon too much than to condemn too much.

The Scriptures specifically compares the church to the family, and the newborn soul to the new born child. If the family knocked a toddler down every time he stumbled, do you think he’d ever learn to walk? Of course this doesn’t happen! On the contrary, the older members of the family pick him up, comfort him, and encourage him to try again.

Yet, too often, the church sits like a vulture, ready to pounce on new converts at the first sign of weakness. The “babe in Christ” is knocked down by our smug expressions, our critical remarks, and our “holier than thou” attitudes.

Our outreach must be positive

Did you ever try to fill an empty container with ants by picking them up one at a time? It’s impossible. They crawl out faster than you can put them in! But, if you add a sugar cube to that container, it’s a different story. They’ll swarm in all by themselves. The reason is that you now have something they want.

Do we try to attract prospects with empty programs instead of the sweet spirit they crave? If so, we’ll fail! Why do “telemarketers” have to use hard-sell tactics, while grocery clerks don’t? It’s because “tele-marketers” offer gadgets and grocery stores offer bread!

Are we offering useless gadgets instead of the “bread of life?” Jesus said, “feed my sheep” (John 21:16).

The Bible says, “Love not in tongue, but in deed . . .” (I John 3:18). Jesus always alleviated physical and mental discomforts. He fed the hungry, healed the sick, and counseled the disturbed. He broke every traditional rule that didn’t serve people. Every precept Jesus emphasized was to encourage and support individuals. Can we do less?

We ought to be a people of love.

II. NEXT, WE OUGHT TO BE A PEOPLE OF WISDOM.

When Jesus sent his chosen ones to carry out the “Great Commission,” he didn’t tell them to be naive illiterates. No, indeed! Rather, he warned, “I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves, be ye therefore wise as serpents . . .” (Matt. 10:16). In order to influence the population of the twenty-first century, we must earn their respect. There is absolutely no virtue in ignorance and incompetence. God wants our best mentally as well as our spiritually.

We must forget those things which are behind (see Phil. 3:13), because, contrary to popular opinion, “we’ve always done it that way” is not the first commandment! Things will never again be like the good old days! In fact, they probably never were! Sin is not a modern invention. Every age feels that the breakdown of traditions is bringing it to the edge of disaster. Fewer divorces one hundred years ago didn’t prove greater fidelity, merely greater fear of criticism. Pioneers may have walked to church and sat on hard benches; but what alternative did they have! They had to walk everywhere else and their homes had hard benches too! Certainly revivals were better attended. They were entertainment right along with medicine shows. People don’t deserve praise for following accepted behavior patterns.

Sometimes we confuse truth with facts. They are not necessarily synonymous! The factual statement, “Asa begat Jehosephat” (Matt. 1:8), has far less spiritual significance than the non-factual statement, “Ye are the salt of the earth” (Matt. 5:13).

Literalism becomes a stumbling block. Often, the most important question is not, “What did Jesus say?” but rather, “What did Jesus mean?

The Bible is filled with teachings that require analogous interpretation. For instance, when Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice” (John 10:27), we know he didn’t mean that they have four legs and a tail! Why, then, do the sparks fly when writers or professors suggest that the “truth” in certain other passages may be symbolic?

Furthermore, religion doesn’t have a monopoly on truth! Scientific and psychological principles are not inferior to theological principles. Discoveries made in the areas of geology or technology are to be utilized, not disputed. Each generation has a right to reexamine and reevaluate every doctrine and practice without being branded as heretics!

Christianity has nothing to fear from valid information and inquiry. Jesus wasn’t afraid! He encouraged inquiry and welcomed honest doubt. We will “know the truth, it will make us free!” (see John 8:32).

Also, some matters are more consequential than others. We should avoid the temptation to attack a few obvious offenses and overlook deeper problems.

Our Lord set a strange precedence in ethical matters. Jerusalem was anything but a Holy City in 30 A.D. Wickedness abounded. Most preachers in that situation would have begun fervent crusades against the orgies in Roman baths, prostitution, alcoholism and corruption in high places; but Jesus didn’t! Instead, he turned to denounce law abiding, temple going, tithing, community leaders; calling them “whited sepulchers” (see Matt. 23:27). How utterly astonishing!

The point is, Jesus never wasted time on symptoms. He went after the disease! “It’s not things without, but things within that defile . . .” (Matt. 15:16-20).

Christians have a positive message, but we often project a negative image. We’re “those folks who don’t!” We don’t drink! We don’t gamble! We don’t cuss! So what? A newsman covering a religious convention approached a participant and said, “Excuse me, but I’ve been here three days and I’ve heard over and over what you’re against. Please tell me, what are you folks for?”

Jesus took the positive approach because he knew that only righteousness can dispel evil.

We ought to be a people of wisdom.

III. FINALLY, WE OUGHT TO BE A PEOPLE OF VISION.

The Scriptures present the basic principles of morality, but specific applications have to be adapted as conditions change. Jesus himself explained this: “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now, howbeit, when he the Spirit of Truth is come, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:12-13).

He knew there were deeper understandings his followers would need as time passed, but they weren’t ready for them yet. If he had tried to give detailed instructions for dealing with future issues they would have been meaningless. Instead, he stressed underlying values and expected growth to continue under the direction of the Holy Spirit. Comprehending this one point would enable Christians to exhibit maturity rather than frantic hysteria when confronted with the inevitable cultural changes of civilization.

Once preachers ranted against movies, until television forced our hands. Then, our tirades were directed against dancing, until modified customs effected a strange silence.

The issue concerning the ordination of women is already largely irrelevant, since the role of pastor is changing. Today, videos preach! Puppets preach! So, why must we keep weakening our credibility by confusing transient mores with absolute principles?

God has also made us agents of reconciliation. “Blessed are the peacemakers . . .” (Matt. 5:9). Only Christians can perform this vital task.

We need peacemakers in the home as divorce and drug problems increase. We need peacemakers in industry as strikes and picket lines abound. We need peacemakers on the streets as violence and vandalism multiply, and we need peacemakers in the government as war and nuclear destruction threaten.

As peacemakers, we must broaden our scope to include those who worship differently, who are more liberal or more conservative than we are. Jesus said, “If they operate in my name, forbid them not” (see Mark 9:38-40). Christians viciously trying to destroy each other is disgraceful.

Christians don’t have to be identical. In Greek mythology, Procrustes, a grisly bandit forced each of his victims to lie on his bed. If the victim was too short, he was stretched on the rack. If he was too long, his legs were lopped off!

Some Christians also insist upon fitting everyone to their own “doctrinal beds.” Instead, we should encourage various shades of interpretation.

Tolerance is not a vice! It’s a virtue! We can be a people of vision because success is assured. We must exemplify God with love, wisdom and vision if we’re to influence the world.

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This issue of NEW PERSPECTIVES is from an unpublished manuscript © copyrighted 2008 by Miles and Maralene Wesner, Idabel, OK. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO USE THEM IN ANY WAY YOU THINK IS APPROPRIATE. The only thing we ask is that you give credit for original material in PUBLISHED works.

Miles E Wesner