Author: Jimmy Day

Without question, some of Jesus’ sayings are alarming. I was particularly intimidated as a young Christian by the wide gate and broad road leading to destruction.

Jesus said, Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate, and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

At the time, the church I attended leant towards legalism and understood many of these sayings through that lens. After all, small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. With the emphasis on only a few find it. Catch that? Just a few. Not many. You may be left out. At least, they were the words that echoed in my young Christian mind.

So, is Jesus trying to scare the hell out of us? Let’s find out.

Hit the Nail on the Head

The Sermon on the Mount serves as context (Matthew 5-7). Jesus explains in chapter seven the critical nature of hearing and acting on his message. Thus, we see numerous examples throughout this chapter that serve as a contrast between two groups:

  1. Two types of gates ~ wide and small
  2. Two kinds of roads ~ broad & narrow
  3. Two sorts of trees ~ Good and bad (fruit)
  4. Two classes of disciples ~ true and false
  5. Two kinds of builders ~ wise and foolish

Jesus is expressing the same thing in each of these analogies and uses various images to emphasise his point, similar to repeatedly striking a nail with a hammer until it is deeply embedded in the wood. That is to say:

Entering through the wide gate is the same as

Travelling on the broad road, which is the same as

Bearing bad fruit, which is the same as

Being a false disciple, which is the same as

Being a foolish builder.

The opposite is also true:

Entering through the small gate is the same as

Travelling on the narrow road, which is the same as

Bearing good fruit, which is the same as

Being a true disciple, which is the same as

Being a wise builder.

Two Kinds of People

Jesus ends his sermon with The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders, a reference to these two kinds of people who all hear Jesus’ words and teachings:

Group one “hears these words of mine and puts them into practice,” while group two “hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice.”

Group one is “like a wise man who built his house on the rock,” while group two “is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”

Both groups (houses) experience the same trials and storms in life, “The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house.”

Group one’s house “did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.” So is everyone who hears Jesus’ teachings and puts them into practice.

Group two’s house “fell with a great crash.” So is everyone who hears Jesus’ teachings but does not act on them.

The Gospels preserve Jesus’ teachings, while the other New Testament writers expound them further to demonstrate how his teachings apply in daily life. Among the points made by these authors is the following:

You don’t enter the kingdom of heaven by doing good works; you enter the kingdom of heaven by doing God’s will.

That is where the “Many” Jesus refers to have made a grievous error. Their justification for being admitted to the Kingdom of Heaven is based on the excellent actions they have performed. They have prophesied, cast out devils, and performed miracles, but these are manifestations of God’s power at work through a person, not proof of genuine trust in Christ.

Kingdom access is, according to Jesus, for the person “who does the will of My Father in heaven.” What is God’s will? Jesus taught, “my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” We enter God’s Kingdom through trust in Jesus! Only through faith in Jesus can we hear and apply his teachings. While good deeds spring from genuine faith, they do not guarantee admission to the kingdom.

Two Stories

As the late Billy Graham put it: “There were a few times when I thought I was dying, and I saw my whole life come before me. I didn’t say to the Lord, ‘I’m a preacher, and I’ve preached to many people.’ I said, ‘Oh Lord, I’m a sinner, and I still need Your forgiveness. I still need the cross.’ And I asked the Lord to give me peace in my heart, and He did – a wonderful peace that hasn’t left me.”

I’ll finish this with a story about a man who died and went to heaven. Of course, St. Peter met him at the pearly gates and explained, “Here’s how it works. You need 100 points to make it into heaven. Let me know all the good things you’ve done, and I’ll give you a certain number of points for each item, depending on how good it was. When you reach 100 points, you’ll get in.”

“Okay,” said the man, “I was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated even in my heart.” “That’s wonderful,” said St. Peter, “that’s worth three points!”

“Three points?” he says. “Well, I attended church all my life and supported its ministry with my tithe and service.” “Terrific!” said St. Peter, “that’s certainly worth a point.”

“One point? Gosh. How about this: “I started a soup kitchen in my city and worked in a shelter for homeless veterans.” “Fantastic, that’s good for two more points.” “TWO POINTS!!” the man cried, “At this rate, the only way I get into heaven is by the grace of God!”

“Come on in,” said Peter.

I became a Christian in a Pentecostal church at age 19. Pentecostal Christianity was my Christian formation and has continued to be my practice. I value the spontaneous, spirit-led and spirit-filled experience of my relationship with God. I love leading a church community that is renewed by God’s presence. We see God at work in and through our lives. God is real, tangible, and awesome.

However, my experience doesn’t blind me to the many downsides of modern Pentecostalism. I’ve witnessed plenty of abuses of God’s power, word, and name in my forty-plus years in church life. One of these is the often-shallow handling of Scripture. Verses are plucked out of context and applied in ways they were never intended.

The shallow approach to Bible study has led to bizarre interpretations and practices that are foreign to authentic Christianity. In this blog, I’ll explore one of these ~ binding the strong man ~ a tradition based on one of Jesus’ shortest parables.

It’s a Parable!

The parable is just one verse in Matthew 12. Jesus asks, “Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.” (29, NKJV). Modern translations update the word “binds” to “ties up.” But that doesn’t sound nearly as good in a Pentecostal prayer meeting where people love to “bind” the devil from all sorts of things.

Jesus’s statement is often combined with two other mentions of “binding and loosing” in Matthew’s gospel (16:19; 18:18). But these statements have absolutely nothing to do with prayer or spiritual warfare. I discuss this in another blog.

Context is Vital

Now, back to the verse in question. It begins with “or”, linking this statement to what Jesus has already said. Early in chapter 12, Matthew told the story of a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?” (22-23). The Messiah would be a descendent (son) of King David, the closest example of an exorcist in the Tanakh. Consider 1 Samuel 16:23, “Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.” David’s music brought temporary deliverance to Saul.

The Pharisees reacted to the crowd’s question. They said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.” Beelzebul means “Lord of the House,” a term applied to Satan in later Jewish sources. Hence Jesus speaks about plundering the strong man’s house.

Jesus Knew Their Thoughts

Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit [breath, wind] of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” (25-28). In other words, Jesus is NOT in league with Satan as they suggest. Jesus then tells the little parable, “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up [binds] the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.”

Matthew’s Broader Context

Matthew Chapter 12 proves that Jesus is the Messiah. Jews believed that the Spirit withdrew when the last prophet died about 400 years before Jesus came. Protestants call this the 400 Silent Years. But the Spirit would return in the time of the kingdom when Messiah came.

Jews also believed that Satan and demons were “bound” or imprisoned after God cast them from heaven. In this parable, Jesus is declaring that he has already defeated Satan and could therefore plunder his possessions by freeing those who are demon-possessed.

Isaiah prophesied this time in 49:24-25,

But this is what the Lord says:
“Yes, captives will be taken from warriors,
and plunder retrieved from the fierce;
I will contend with those who contend with you,
and your children I will save.

Satan and the demonic realm were completely and utterly defeated by Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

It’s Already Done!

While some Christians have the gift of discerning spirits, including the power to cast out demons, the strong man, Satan, is already bound. So there is no need for believers to go around binding him or any demon. They’re as restrained as they’re ever going to be, and that is COMPLETELY!

The gotquestions website states, Some Christians, usually in the Charismatic or Pentecostal movements, apply Jesus’ parable to the spiritual warfare that believers must wage. They teach that Christians are the ones who must “bind the strong man” in their lives or in their cities and then win the victory in Jesus’ name. Some Charismatic preachers even name the “strong men” and attempt to identify the cities or geographical areas over which they hold power. Such doctrines go far beyond what Jesus said. The Lord’s parable was simply to impress upon the scribes that He was not in league with Satan. Never does Jesus instruct us to “bind the strong man” or tell us how to do it. We do not have warrant to interpret the parable as a spiritual reality over geographical regions.

We Christians need to rest in Jesus’ completed work and enjoy the victory and freedom he has provided. No one needs to bind the strong man because Jesus has already done it, once and for all.

I’ve almost died five times!

The first time, I was six years old and fascinated by music, record players, and speakers. I guess my radio career was already developing! One day, I decided to “make” a speaker to play music. I’m not sure what was going on in my little brain, but I figured that if I pierced a tin box with a nail and then shoved the whole thing into a power point, it could possibly work. What it did do was throw me across the room (this was before safety switches). I thought my mum had come in and whacked me across the top of my head. I turned around, and no one was there. I then realised what had happened. I was frightened out of my tiny mind!

The second near-death experience was as a 19-year-old hitchhiker in northern NSW. The truck I had hitched a ride in collided head-on with another truck. Two guys died, but I wasn’t one of them. It was that experience that led to my Christian conversion.

A year or so later, as a lapsed Christian who was getting into drugs and various New Age philosophies, I was battling depression (although I didn’t know it at the time). I was at a very low point, and one night after the pub was shut, I tried to overdose to end the pain. I am glad I failed. Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.

Things Can Only Get Better?

Shortly afterwards, I returned to my faith in Jesus. I eventually went to Bible college and became a pastor. A few years later, I met Christie, got engaged, married, and enjoyed a two-week honeymoon. In the last few days of our honeymoon, I began feeling unwell. When we got home to Melbourne, I felt like I was getting the flu. A few days later, I couldn’t get out of bed without passing out. Christie called an ambulance, and I was rushed off to Monash emergency, where I became unconscious. More on that experience in a moment. I was diagnosed with meningitis with a viral complication.

And then, a few years ago, I suffered mid-level burns from a ruptured hot water bottle ~ along with residual electricity from the electric blanket. In agony, I was booted out of bed onto the floor and spent the next eight days in the Alfred Hospital burns unit.

I really hope that’s the last near-death experience I have for many decades until it’s REALLY time to go. I have the feeling that God has me on earth for a purpose, but I’m done with almost dying!

Near-death Experiences

Did I see my life flash before my eyes? Well, no, not really. The truck accident brought me to Jesus, so that was pretty spectacular. And when I passed out with meningitis, I remember being unconscious. I was consciously unconscious, felt incredibly peaceful, and not sick. Christie told me later that I turned grey. She thought I’d died. The next thing I remember was the ED nurse yelling right in my face. I was furious because I was awake and again in a world of pain.

But some people have reported their life flashing before their eyes during a near-death experience. And now neuroscientists have accidentally stumbled upon some possible proof for this. Their research is reported in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience.

Accidental Research

“When an 87-year-old patient developed epilepsy, Dr Raul Vicente of the University of Tartu, Estonia and colleagues used continuous electroencephalography (EEG) to detect the seizures and treat the patient. During these recordings, the patient had a heart attack and passed away. This unexpected event allowed the scientists to record the activity of a dying human brain for the first time ever.

“They discovered rhythmic brain wave patterns around the time of death that are similar to those occurring during dreaming, memory recall, and meditation. [Their research] brings new insight into a possible organisational role of the brain during death and suggests an explanation for vivid life recall in near-death experiences.

“Imagine reliving your entire life in the space of seconds. Like a flash of lightning, you are outside of your body, watching memorable moments you lived through. The study suggests that your brain may remain active and coordinated during and even after the transition to death and be programmed to orchestrate the whole ordeal.”

Dr Ajmal Zemmar said, “As a neurosurgeon, I deal with loss at times. It is indescribably difficult to deliver the news of death to distraught family members. Something we may learn from this research is: although our loved ones have their eyes closed and are ready to leave us to rest, their brains may be replaying some of the nicest moments they experienced in their lives.”

I hope you find those words as comforting as I do.

As Senior Pastor of Bayside Church, I am incredibly grateful for the generosity of our church community and for their faithful support, financial and otherwise. Every church, charity, and other not-for-profit organisation relies on members and partners who resonate with the vision to sustain that vision with finance. In turn, these organisations need to be honourable, trustworthy, and accountable, including how they raise money.

The Bible has much to say about this. 2,350 verses in the Bible speak about money – twice as many as devoted to prayer and faith combined. 15% of Jesus’ teaching was about finances. In fact, he said more about how we are to view and handle money and possessions than any other subject.

When I pioneered Bayside Church, I promised the people that I would never beg for money. I have kept that promise. In my teaching of Scripture, I have taught on giving, investing, getting out of debt and more. I have made needs known, but I have never begged for money.

Financial Abuse

But in my four-plus decades as a Christian, I have seen some horrendous abuses of people and their money by Christian leaders and organisations. One landed in my email inbox last week. It was from a large Australian, not-for-profit that regularly uses fear and alarm to motivate people to give. Upon reading this latest email, I believe the Holy Spirit prompted me to write this blog to help people recognise when they’re being manipulated.

The email was full of panic. It could be illegal to pray; Christians face hostility for their faith; churches, Christian organisations, and individuals can be harassed and silenced. Your religious freedom will be limited. You could be fined or end up in jail for praying.

It then quoted three instances to “prove” its point. By the way, these same three examples have been cited by others to support similar scaremongering.

Following these scary examples came the financial ask. Here’s the proof; now hand over your cash. We’ll make sure we’re fighting for your freedoms. It’s unholy fundraising!

Fearful Fundraising

I’ve wracked my brain, and I cannot think of ONE instance in Scripture where fear is used as a tool to raise money. If you find one, please let me know.

As mentioned earlier, the Bible has much to say about giving and supporting God’s ministers and work. The apostle Paul used the example of the poor but generous Macedonian Christians to stir up the generosity of the Corinthian church (2 Cor. 8:1-4). Scripture teaches about the blessings of generosity (Malachi 3:10). If you’re part of a church, you are responsible for making sure the pastors are supported financially (1 Tim. 5:17-18). Followers of YHWH and Jesus are challenged over two thousand times to look after the poor (Proverbs 19:17). But no fear, no intimidation, no shock tactics because that would constitute unholy fundraising.

The New Testament teaches us that God loves a cheerful giver (2 Cor. 9:6) and that we are not to give either reluctantly or under compulsion (pressure, coercion, force). The original word translated as “compulsion” can also mean “to torture somebody.” It infers outward pressure brought upon someone by using unholy methods to, in this case, hand over their cash. Paul says, “don’t respond to pressure like this as it doesn’t please God” (My paraphrase).

Christian Opposition

I do not deny that some Christians (as well as people of other faiths) in Australia face opposition from time to time. But we are not a poor, persecuted, picked-on minority. Christians still make up over 50% of the Australian population.

The Bible tells us to expect opposition and to rejoice when we do because we share Christ’s sufferings (1 Peter 4:13). Many people suffered opposition in Scripture, but they didn’t follow it with an offering! Peter reminds us that “If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed.” He continues by telling us to make sure that if we suffer, it’s because we’re doing right, not being foolish and unwise. “However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name” (1 Peter 4:12-19). In other words, don’t use this as an opportunity to scare people into giving.

I hope my comments here will help you discern honest, from unholy, fundraising. I encourage you to be generous to God’s work but to never give in to the profane tactics of fear and manipulation. In fact, challenge them and bring them into the light (Eph. 5:13).

Warning: This blog explores the rise and fall of “conversion” therapy and some of the failed techniques used to change a person’s gender identity from transgender to cisgender and/or to rid people of “unwanted same-sex attraction” (SSA) and as a result may be triggering for some people. Please proceed with caution, and reach out if you need help; either to the pastoral care team or Rainbow Door (1800 729 367)

 

For much of my time as a Pastor, the accepted position of most churches was that being homosexual or anything other than cisgender was a curable condition through prayer, counselling, and deeper dedication to Jesus. Churches worldwide told people that they could only be accepted into the Christian fold and please God by becoming heterosexual. They (we) were wrong.

Our Journey

Over the last ten plus years, Christie and I have been on a deep learning journey that has involved listening to the stories of LGBTIQA+ people who have attempted to change their sexuality or sexual identity. We know people who have been to counselling with psychologists, pastors, lay leaders, had accountability partners, attended confession groups and retreats, and engaged in visualisation, social skills training, prayer, and fasting to change their sexuality.

Some have deliberately or unwittingly participated in exorcisms and electric shock treatment. In times past, people had lobotomies, received nausea-inducing drugs or hormones, had hypnotism or castration (chemical or otherwise). The movie, The Imitation Game, tells the story of Alan Turing, a gay man who was subjected to chemical castration. He died by suicide in 1954.

I also highly recommend the movie (or book) “Boy Erased“. It tells of Garrard Conley’s shocking conversion therapy experiences at Desert Streams (Living Waters) Ministries. Garrard is one of some 700,000 Americans subjected to this so-called “Christian” ministry.

The Exodus from Exodus

Until 2013, Alan Chambers was President of Exodus International, the world’s largest gay conversion organisation. He said, “I would say the majority, meaning 99.9% of them, have not experienced a change in their orientation or have gotten to a place where they could say that they could never be tempted, or are not tempted in some way or experience some level of same-sex attraction.” Exodus had been operating since 1976 with a 99.9% failure rate!

Although some have continued under different names and umbrellas, Exodus shut down its support groups and counselling programs in 2013. Chambers also stated, “for someone to put out a shingle and say, ‘I can cure homosexuality’—that to me is as bizarre as someone saying they can cure any other common temptation or struggle that anyone faces on Planet Earth.” He apologised for the claims they had made that change was possible. Another provider, Living Waters, noted that almost all people experienced no change whatsoever.

As a young pastor in the 1980s and 90s, I believed the testimonies of “healing and change” spread by ministries like Exodus. I referred people to such ministries. I have since apologised, and I state here I am very sorry. I was wrong. We were wrong.

So Much Pain

Sadly, much damage has occurred. Many people have died by suicide over their anguish about being non-heterosexual and unacceptable to their faith community. Every Christian LGBTIQA+ person I have spoken to can tell me of someone they know who has attempted suicide because their church did not accept them. Thousands walked away from churches, taking their extended families with them in many cases.

Multiple medical, psychiatric, and psychological organisations have made it clear that people of diverse sexuality cannot be “cured” and that coercing people to try and change is harmful psychologically and spiritually. These include the American Psychiatric Association (APA), which describes attempts to change a person’s sexual orientation by practitioners as unethical. They’re confirmed by the British medical association, The Australian Psychological Association, and the Australian Medical Association.

And so, same-sex conversion therapy does not work in the best cases and has caused significant damage and suicides in the worst. Understandably, medical practitioners and LGBTIQA+ advocacy organisations have begun working together to see these practices outlawed.

In Victoria

The Victorian parliamentary process passed the Change or Suppression (Conversion) Practices Prohibition Bill last year. It became law on February 17, 2022.

This legislation prohibits change or suppression or “conversion practices that seek to change or suppress an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity.”

I think it’s an indictment on the broader church that the government even needs to introduce such a law. But when the church fails to regulate itself, it is left to governments to intervene. That’s the experience with the Royal Commission Into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. And it’s the same here with so-called “conversion” therapy.

What Does This Mean for the Church?

In terms of our day to day work of loving people, nothing changes. We can share our belief about God, salvation through Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit. We can worship, preach, publicly and privately read the Bible, feed the poor, visit prisoners and feed and clothe the poor. Nothing will change.

Christians can freely read any passage from the Bible, including the six contentious verses that appear to condemn homosexuality. A preacher can preach on those verses, believing that the Bible denounces loving same-sex relationships or that they are silent on such relationships (as I think). We can encourage people to live lives of purity and be faithful in marriage. The legislation does not dictate what we teach from the Bible.

But, churches can no longer promote or provide any programs that purport to change LGBTIQA+ persons. Furthermore, we cannot refer people to anyone inside or outside of Victoria whose modus operandi attempts to change that person’s sexuality. That will now be illegal, and rightly so. Why would we desire to participate in something so ineffective and dangerous? We would be dishonest to claim that the church has a successful track record in “healing” same-sex attracted people or trans-people when all evidence shows this is just not true.

The Bill will mean that if church leaders have a person who shares that they are dealing with same-sex attraction or gender identity, we can support them, just as we should support people at any stage of their life journey. My focus is to assist people in loving God more deeply, not dictate with whom they can or cannot fall in love.

Leaders can pray for the individual to know and experience the love of God but cannot pray that the individual will be changed to being heterosexual. Nor can we play amateur psychologists. It is not our job to “treat” such people. Victorian church leaders and members should encourage people to speak to counsellors, medical practitioners, and psychologists to talk through their sexuality if they so desire.

Our primary call is to help people be followers of Jesus, not decide that people must conform to some image we think they should have. Bayside Church’s pastoral team supports many people with a whole range of concerns, but we never seek to “treat” people with anything other than kindness!

In 2021, Bayside Church released an Inclusion Statement, our promise to treat all people equally regardless of gender, sexuality, age, ability, race, or ethnicity.

 

Further Reading: Lucas Mendos, a senior research officer at the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, or ILGA World, has written an exhaustive account of so-called “Conversion Therapies.”

Australia’s largest collection of information, articles, and research on this topic: https://www.abbi.org.au/conversion-therapy/

I investigated some pitfalls in last week’s blog when reading the Bible. And I promised that in this week’s blog, I would share some practical ways to enjoy the Bible on your own, as well as, with other people. So, here goes.

I choose to bring a humble spirit to the Lord and his Word in my devotional life. The more I learn, the more I know that I don’t know! God “guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way” (Ps 25:9). Humility is at the very heart of God, revealing truth through his word. And then, trust God to speak to you from the Scriptures.

Ways to Read the Bible

I chose to read the Bible from cover to cover every year in my early Christian years. Four chapters a day is all it takes. I am grateful for this foundation as it has given me a good overview of the Scriptures and an understanding of how the various books interact with and complement each other. As I’ve matured in my faith, I’ve found that a quality over quantity approach works best.

When gold was first discovered in Victoria in 1851, nuggets were found in waterways with no digging required. However, miners had to dig a little deeper once these were all gone. After some time, shafts were built, and seams of gold were discovered and mined. The Bible is similar. As a young Christian, I found nuggets of truth daily with little effort. Over time I’ve had to dig deeper and deeper to find rich deposits of truth.

Today, I use the You Version Bible App, which has a verse of the day and thousands of reading plans. I also enjoy picking a book or letter or just a section of the Bible. For example, I might choose to read 1 & 2 Thessalonians; maybe a chapter or just a few verses a day. I lookout for a verse or a line that speaks to me. A few weeks ago, it was 1 Thess. 5:16-18, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” There’s a wealth of truth in those words.

Christian Meditation

Don’t be scared of meditation. It was God’s idea, and the Bible mentions it over twenty times, mainly in Psalms. The Hebrew word for meditate means to ponder by muttering. Meditation is literally talking to yourself. Last week, I spent time meditating on Psalm 121:2, “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” I walked and talked with God and repeated this line emphasising different words.

My help comes from the Lord ~ it’s what I need personally.

My help comes from the Lord ~ God is coming to my aid.

My help comes from the Lord ~ It’s on its way from God now.

My help comes from the Lord ~ The support is not just from anywhere. It’s from God.

The second line of the verse provides the proof of God’s ability to help me ~ “the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” God created all things, so what is my problem in the light of such power? The prophet Jeremiah said it this way, “O Sovereign LORD! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you!“

My time of walking and talking with God and muttering the scriptures was powerful, encouraging, refreshing and enjoyable.

Respond to God

Enjoying the Bible is not just about learning facts. Facts are the lowest form of truth unless applied to our lives. I find asking four simple questions of the verse or line I’m meditating on can be very helpful.

1. What is God saying to me through His Word?

2. How will I respond to God’s Word?

3. How does this cause me to love God?

4. How does this encourage me to love my neighbour?

Enjoying the Bible Together

The Bible is not just something we appreciate on our own. God’s word should be read aloud, discussed, and enjoyed with other believers either in Connect Groups or with one or two friends.

One compelling way to enjoy the Bible in a community is the ancient Christian meditation practice of Lectio Divina, or “sacred reading.” The four basic steps are straightforward to learn:

  1. Lectio (reading)—Slow, contemplative reading of a text aloud. Don’t spend much time rationally analysing the text, and do not try to work through it quickly; instead, let your mind linger on the individual words and phrases. Read the text several times. Each person is listening for a word, phrase, or sentence that speaks to them.
  2. Meditatio (meditation)—At some point during the process of Lectio, one passage/verse/sentence should speak to you more than others. Spend time repeating that, silently or aloud, letting it sink in. Write it down if that helps. Everyone can share their insights at this point.
  3. Oratio (prayer)—Use the truth that you’ve gained from meditating in forming a prayer. You can write this (crafted prayer) or say it, draw a picture, paint something, or write a poem.
  4. Contemplatio (contemplation)—If you feel yourself being enveloped by the presence of God, let go of all words and silently settle into the experience.

Remember, as a result of an encounter with God in Scripture, we are always called to action. The Bible calls this godliness ~ devotion in action!

You’ll find some more devotional resources on the Bayside Church website. I hope this blog and these resources lead you into a richer experience of enjoying the Bible and, more importantly, enjoying the God of the Bible.

When I first picked up a Bible, I was nine years old. I’d been given a family Bible by my dad. It was his mother’s Bible, and she’d signed it on January 18 1915. My dad signed it on 6-10-1941 when he was eleven. When he gave it to me, I signed it too ~ April 1 1967. My plan was to read the Bible from start to finish. From memory, I got through the first couple of chapters of Genesis and then got bored. I didn’t pick the Bible up again for a decade. I was nineteen and had just accepted Jesus as my Saviour. I must say, the Bible had improved dramatically in ten years.

I’ve now been reading and studying the Bible for over four decades and have learned a few things that have helped me enjoy this wonderful book. I’ve also fallen into the trap of reading and understanding the Bible the wrong way at various times, reaping the not-so-good consequences. So, let’s explore how NOT to read the Bible!

Out of Obligation

It goes something like this: “God says to read the Bible, so I better do it, even though I don’t want to.” Obligation takes all the joy out of reading the Bible. It comes from legalistic teaching that says, “you just gotta read the Bible; otherwise, God won’t be pleased with you.”

As a young Christian, I attended the seminar, “The hour that changes the world.” It taught people how to pray for an hour, breaking 60 minutes into 12 five-minute segments. You’d spend the first five minutes in praise and worship, the following five in waiting on the Lord. Then confession, praying Scripture, watching and intercession all the way through to praise at the end.

I’m sure Dick Eastman, the author of this course, had good intentions. But this seminar killed my prayer life. It changed it from a spontaneous and enjoyable time with God into a legalistic chore. Imagine me treating my relationship with Christie in this way. “Right-o honey, we’ve got an hour to spend with each other. Let’s take the first five minutes to praise each other, then we’ll wait in silence for five minutes, then….” I can just hear Christie’s response already, and it’s not good. That would be a perfect way to ruin any relationship.

It’s the same with reading the Bible. Legalism ruins our enjoyment of God’s excellent Word. “We don’t read the Bible because we have to. We read it because it’s good for us, our relationship with God, other people, and the world.”

An Instruction Manual

Instruction manual Christians view the B.I.B.L.E. as Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. It’s clever but inaccurate.

Seeing the Bible as merely an instruction manual, a handbook takes away from its status as God’s inspired Word, a holy communication from deity to humanity. The Bible is so much more than just a list of dos and don’ts. Indeed, there are dos and don’ts in the Bible, but if you spend all your time doing the dos, you won’t have time to do the don’ts.

Remember, The Law didn’t work. If it had been sufficient to restore the relationship between God and people, God wouldn’t have needed to enter the human race as one of us. God’s instructions would have been enough. Except they weren’t. God’s interested in a relationship with you. A real relationship that is not based on a to-do list!

Again, imagine bringing the “instruction manual” attitude into a relationship. Your primary communication method to your partner becomes a “To-Do List” posted to the fridge each day. Such a relationship will not endure.

God’s Answer Book

The Bible has lots of wisdom, but it doesn’t answer all questions or life situations. People who view the Bible as merely an answer book treat it like a daily horoscope. In my years in radio, I often had to play the daily stars. I’d get phone calls from listeners who’d missed hearing them and asked me to tell them what their horoscope was. One listener told me they couldn’t get out of bed until they knew what their day would be like. How sad.

I’ve come across many Christians who “read” the Bible by randomly opening it with their eyes closed and then pointing their finger at a verse. It’s a practice called bibliomancy and is basically fortune telling for Christians.

The process of bibliomancy involves:

  • Asking God a straightforward question
  • Opening the Bible to a random page
  • Trailing a finger in slow circles until “the spirit” says to stop.
  • The verse where the questioner’s finger points supposedly contains the answer.

Don’t get me wrong. God can and does lead us to specific Bible verses that speak to us in a time of need. God sometimes causes us to stumble on a verse precisely when we need the message it contains. But the Bible is so much more than just an answer book.

To Win Arguments

We all know THAT person who is ALWAYS right about the Bible and more than willing to tell you why! On EVERY occasion! People like this lack humility and grace and invariably come across as harsh, legalistic, and dogmatic.

I encourage you to spend some time this week reading and meditating on Psalm 25:4-21. The theme of this song is “How to have a teachable spirit.” The bottom line is this, “He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.” (9)

To have a teachable spirit, we must be humble. The humble heart says to God, “I don’t know it all; I haven’t arrived yet. Please teach me; I want to learn.” The humble heart also listens to others. That is the person whom God will teach. We need to bring that heart and mind to our time in God’s Word.

Next week, I’ll share some practical ways to enjoy the Bible on your own as well as with other people.

Imagine, if you will, that a family arrived at your house and moved right in because someone told them your house was Casa nullias – “nobody’s house.” In any case, they considered themselves as better than you. They moved into the best rooms, took the best seats in the lounge, and the loveliest spots in the garden. They ate your food, drank your wine, wore your clothes. You protested, but it was all in vain, and, after some time, you find yourself working for this new family for little or no money. You are, literally, a slave in your own home.

Have you imagined what that would be like?

How did it make you feel?

Outraged, I hope!

Nobody’s Land

It’s the sort of stuff of which nightmares are made. You’d wake up from such a dream with your heart thumping, and gradually realise this awful scenario was just a bad dream ~ except it isn’t. This is what happened when the British declared Australia “Terra nullias” – “nobody’s land” (or wasteland).

In 1788 Australia was not “nobody’s land,” it was inhabited by about 700,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who were made up of between 500 and 700 tribes. The Aboriginals tried to protest the colonisation, but the Europeans drove them from their lands or killed them. Because of massacres, plus the introduction of disease and alcohol, the Indigenous population decreased by almost 87% by 1900.

White Superiority

Cook and Banks had seen few natives as they sailed close to Australia’s coast. They deduced, wrongly, that there’d be fewer if any natives inland. In any case, “European culture was superior to all others, and…Europeans could define the world in their terms. A colony could be established by persuading the indigenous inhabitants to submit themselves to its overlordship; by purchasing from those inhabitants the right to settle part or parts of it; by unilateral possession, on the basis of first discovery and effective occupation.” 

The Earl of Morton, president of the Royal Society, reminded Cook’s crew that Indigenous peoples were the “legal possessors of the several regions they inhabit” and “No European Nation has the right to occupy any part of their country … without their voluntary consent.”

He also advised Cook and his naturalists to “Exercise the utmost patience and forbearance with respect to the Natives of the several lands where the ship may touch. To check the petulance of the Sailors and restrain the wanton use of Fire Arms. To have it still in view that shedding the blood of these people is a crime of the highest nature.”

But Cook didn’t listen. Instead, he became increasingly frustrated that the savages refused to embrace the gift of civilisation.

Australia Day 

The first historical records of celebrations on January 26 happened in 1808, twenty years after the first fleet arrived from Great Britain.

The first official national day named ‘Australia Day’ was on July 30 in 1915 ~ a day to raise funds for the World War I effort. In the decades following, different states held celebrations on various dates. From 1935, all states and territories celebrated on the same date, although various names were still used. Australia Day officially became a public holiday for all states and territories in 1994.

First Nation peoples have been protesting the date for almost the same amount of time, with the first official ‘Day of Mourning’ held by the Australian Natives Association in 1938.

From Little Things …

Wave Hill Station was established on the Gurindji lands by British pastoralists in the 1880s. Mounted police assisted in settling the lands by killing any Indigenous people who dared to resist the invasion of their homes. Indigenous people were unpaid, had deplorable working conditions, were beaten or killed for defying the landowners, and the women were often used as sex slaves. The isolation of the Station allowed this treatment to continue for 80 years.

Then, on August 23 1966, Wave Hill workers and their families, led by Gurindji spokesman, Vincent Lingiari, walked off the Station and began their protest. The protest lasted for nine years, during which time Vincent toured Australia to lobby politicians and galvanise support. The victory was achieved in 1975!

The protest is immortalised by the song, “From little things big things grow,” written and sung by Australian Paul Kelly.

The Future

In 1835, a treaty was made between John Batman and the Aboriginal people. There was an exchange of goods and blankets for 250,000 Ha of land. However, this Treaty was never recognised by the authorities, and so Australia remains the only Commonwealth national government that has not signed a treaty with its Indigenous people.

Tasmanian Aboriginal writer and activist Michael Mansell said, “A treaty would break the 200-year-old cycle of governments not negotiating with the Aboriginal people…It would say, ‘we’re no longer just going to do things to them, but that they’re included and empowered.”

A Treaty would provide a framework for negotiations on indigenous issues such as welfare, employment, education, health and land ownership.

Uluru Statement from the Heart

In 2017, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders gathered at the National Constitutional Convention, coming from all points of the southern sky to make a statement from the heart. It’s a stunning and gracious declaration that I encourage you to read. It calls for establishing a First Nations Voice enshrined in the Constitution. You and I will have the opportunity to express our views on this in a referendum later this year.

I understand why many indigenous people, and others, call January 26 “Invasion Day.” At the very least, it is an annual event that rubs salt in the wounds of our Indigenous peoples. What harm would it do to celebrate Australia Day on another date so that everyone could celebrate this wonderful country together? This would be a tremendous act of “Love your neighbour as yourself.”

I am glad to see the Federal Government taking Indigenous issues seriously. In the future, Australia Day could be held when a Treaty is signed.

Australians Together has some excellent resources that can help you understand the importance of a treaty.

Coincidence – a situation in which things happen simultaneously without planning.

For example, in 2011 Time Magazine reported the coincidental story of a meteor crashing through the roof of a house owned by the Commette family. No one was hurt and, if you’re anything like me, you’ll appreciate the humour in this strange coincidence.

Have you ever had a coincidence happen to you? Some people put them down to random chance or luck, and indeed, some of them fit those categories. But with other coincidences, I believe something more significant is taking place.

My father-in-law says that a coincidence is when God performs a miracle but desires to remain anonymous! I think he has great wisdom and insight.

One of the most amazing “coincidences” happened to me almost 14 years ago.

In preparation for bringing our beautiful new baby, Trinity, home from the hospital, I had booked my car into a baby car seat fitting service. I drove to the site at the specified time and had our two trusty old car seats with me. While the seat was being fitted, I went into the store to pick up a few things we needed for the baby. A few minutes later, the fitter came up to me and told me that one car seat was too old and that the other one was okay, but the stabiliser bar was missing, so he couldn’t fit it. My heart sank as I was now in a position of having to buy two new car seats – and they weren’t cheap!

I began looking at new seats with a heavy heart and had just about decided which one I would buy first when the fitter returned. He was amazed that when he had gone back to his van and moved something there, lying in his van, was the same stabiliser bar that fit my car seat! He couldn’t believe it – what luck he said! I was so blessed as that “coincidence” had just saved me several hundred dollars.

Was it luck? Was it a coincidence? I think not. I believe it was a God-incidence where he performed a miracle of provision for Christie and me just because he loves us! And remember, God doesn’t have favourites (Acts 10:34).

Like any caring parent, God loves to surprise his kids in many ways. Sometimes it’s by anonymous miracles that we quickly dismiss as coincidences.

As we enter a new year, I encourage you to look out for God’s surprises in your life. Open the eyes of your heart (Eph. 1:18) and see the divine hand lovingly and anonymously at work behind the scenes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We Christians can sometimes be a little too preoccupied with sin, especially other people’s sin. We tend to give ourselves a lot of grace. When I sin, it’s because I’m human. When others sin, well, God needs to sort them out, and they need to repent. We want mercy for ourselves and judgement for everyone else!

We also have favourite sins and others that we ignore. For example, the sin of gluttony is repeatedly mentioned in the Bible but rarely mentioned in church. I’ve been in countless green rooms at Christian’s conferences over the years, where lots of XXL evangelists fill their huge frames before preaching about the sins of others.

But one sin we rarely hear about is the sin of discrimination. It’s something I’ve studied as we’ve formed Bayside Church’s Inclusion Statement. I confess I was surprised at the multitude of Bible verses that address this sin.

First-Century Discrimination

First-century Jews considered non-Jews (gentiles) as unclean. A Jew would not enter a gentile’s home or eat with them as either act would lead to ceremonial uncleanness. Imagine Peter’s horror when he was praying on the roof of the house one day and experienced a vision from God. In the dream, he saw a sheet suspended by the corners and crammed with all kinds of unclean animals that a Jew would never eat. A voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.” Peter’s response dripped with spiritual pride, “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”

What’s fascinating in this story is that Peter was staying in the home of Simon, the tanner. Simon was in the business of treating animal hides to produce leather, a trade that was considered unclean by the Jews. Through this vision, God dealt with Peter’s hypocrisy and discrimination, two things that made Peter’s heart impure.

The Divine Reply

God’s response is stunning, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean” (Acts 10:15). The Spirit was moving, and the newly-formed church would need to welcome “unclean” gentiles into their communities. It took decades for the Jewish church to wrap its heart around this truth. Much of Paul’s letter-writing ministry was aimed at the pushback by Jewish Christian leaders against the acceptance of gentiles in the church.

Over the centuries, the Holy Spirit has placed a finger on various other aspects of “Christian” discrimination. Jesus’ people have been guilty of racial bias in supporting slavery and treating people of colour as second-class citizens. We have shown prejudice towards women, single parents, illegitimate children, mixed-race couples, the separated, divorced, and remarried. For decades the church has discriminated against LGBTIQ+ people.

Sin of Discrimination

All this discrimination has been justified by quoting Bible verses, but rarely has the sin of discrimination been called out. And yet, the Bible has so much to say about it. James names it bluntly, as he does so well, “My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favouritism” (James 2:1).

Favouritism is “the fault of one who when called on to requite or to give judgment has respect to the outward circumstances of men and not to their intrinsic merits.” It’s forming an opinion of someone based on externals like skin colour, clothing, mannerisms, wealth or lack thereof, and either accepting or rejecting that person. Note what James says, “believers in … Jesus Christ must not show favouritism.” A few verses later, he asks, “have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?” And then verse nine, “But if you show favouritism, you sin ….” (James 2:4).  The sin of discrimination!

Be Like God!

God doesn’t discriminate, and neither should his people (Romans 2:11, 10:12). “To show partiality in judging is not good” (Proverbs 24:23). Christians are required to follow God’s Word “without partiality, and to do nothing out of favouritism.” (1 Tim 5:21). We should treat everyone the same because “there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus“ (Galatians 3:28).

The apostle Paul said that the Royal Law, “Love your neighbour as yourself”, is the fulfilment of the law because “Love does not harm a neighbour.” Jesus taught what is now referred to as the golden rule, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Notice that the Royal Law AND the Golden Rule both fulfil AND summarise the entire Bible. That’s how Christians should live, behave, and interact with others. There is no room for discrimination.

Ready to Change?

The church has not always treated others in the way we would like to be treated. I have not always got this right either. I apologise for my missteps. I aim to do better. So does our church.

With that in mind, we have crafted an Inclusion Statement as a public declaration that all people will be treated equally by our church community:

At Bayside Church, we believe that every person is created in God’s image. All are equally worthy of respect, dignity, and love, regardless of gender, sexuality, age, ability, race, or ethnicity.

Everyone is invited, welcomed, and supported to grow in their relationship with God and each other. Everyone is encouraged to use their gifts and abilities to serve God and others.

At Bayside Church, we are committed to creating a safe space for all – we do this through clear policies and pathways so that everyone can feel safe and nurtured.

At Bayside Church, we courageously love and empower people to become like Jesus.

Of course, it’s easy to write and read this. The challenge comes as together we seek to live it out as a reality and no longer commit the sin of discrimination.

 

One of the good things about a crisis is it often provokes people to read the Bible and pray. The global pandemic certainly has achieved this. It’s been a motivator for people to read Revelation. But as one of the Bible’s more mysterious books, it is often misunderstood and mishandled.

My Early Christian Years

I’ve watched Revelation being mishandled for decades. I had my first encounter with Christianity in the late 70s. Hal Lindsey’s book, The Late Great Planet Earth, was all the rage. The planets would align in 1982, starting the Great Tribulation. Cataclysmic events would unfold upon the earth, and Jesus would return in 1988. Oh, and the Pope was the antichrist because he had 666 written under his cap. I kid you not, someone told me this in all seriousness, and I believed them!

None of it was true. None of it happened, just like all the other predictions over the centuries from mishandling Revelation.

I now know better.

A Little History

The book of Revelation was (reluctantly) admitted into the Canon of Scripture in 395 CE. It was the last book to be incorporated into the New Testament.

The Western Church wanted Revelation included but didn’t appreciate Hebrews. The Eastern church didn’t like Revelation (and still don’t use it in their services), but they wanted Hebrews included in the Canon. So, the compromise was to have both books in the Bible.

The Nicene Creed

By 395 CE, the church’s doctrine was well and truly completed and stated in the Nicene Creed (325). The Nicene Creed contains everything the early church believed about the future:

[Jesus] will come again with glory

to judge the living and the dead.

His kingdom will never end.

We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,

and to life in the world to come. Amen.

These statements form a summary of eschatology (doctrine of last things) and comprise everything Christians have ever believed about the end of this age:

Nothing to Fear

Notice the line “We look forward to the resurrection of the dead.” In other words, the future is not something to fear. The apostle John put it this way, “This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world, we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” (1 John 4:17-18).

And so, according to the church’s greatest creed, the future is not something to fear. It’s something to look forward to. Contrast that to an interpretation of Revelation that does nothing but inject fear:

  • Fear of antichrist and one-world government
  • Fear of the Mark of the Beast
  • Fear of the great tribulation
  • Fear of the most dreadful afflictions rained upon the earth
  • Fear of beasts, dragons, harlots, & birds feasting on human flesh
  • Fear of Armageddon
  • Fear of a lake of burning sulphur
  • Fear of a sneaky rapture where you could be left behind

Left Behind

One of the most popular Christian songs of the 1970s was Larry Norman’s “I wish we’d all been ready.” The song included the line, “There’s no time to change your mind, the son has come, and you’ve been left behind.” It was a great song, but the theology was awful.

Some particularly full-on (read, obnoxious) Christians at the time would ask other Christians, “are you rapture saved?” It was a weird question that basically asked if you, as a Jesus follower, were saved enough to be taken up in the air when Jesus returned. Again, awful theology!

One Saturday, I finished my shift on the radio and headed back home to the farmhouse I was living in at the time. I walked into the house. There were pots of food bubbling away on the stove, and two chairs were pulled out from the table and facing each other. It was as if two people had been removed (raptured) from the room. I was terrified. I’d been left behind.

Shortly afterwards, my housemate walked back into the room with another friend. I was so relieved.

Left Behind was the title of a series of novels in the 1990s and early 2000s. Some of these were made into movies starring Kirk Cameron and Nicholas Cage. They are terrible films, having attracted the lowest audience score of all time on Rotten Tomatoes (3%). Sadly, many Christians base their understanding of Revelation on the Left Behind series. These books are novels, not Bible commentaries!

A Solid Foundation

Fearmongering might be a good money-spinner, but we must not base our beliefs on these fads. Our faith must rest solid and secure on the truth as it is stated by the great creeds of the church:

[Jesus] will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will never end. We look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and to life in the world to come. Amen.

And so, when the book of Revelation was finally included in the Bible, it could not add to the doctrine as stated by the Nicene Creed. The church’s essential beliefs had been fully expressed by 325 CE, seventy years before Revelation was accepted into the New Testament (395).

Revelation was not to be used to add anything to eschatology. In fact, it was expressly stated that Revelation was not to be used to foretell the future (how ironic!)

Handle with Care

Revelation’s two main uses were/are as:

(1) A call to Worship (the Lamb upon the throne) and,

(2) A call to faithfulness (in the face of persecution and hardship).

The book of Revelation is jam-packed full of marvellous truth that applies to today. When we remove our fixation with the so-called “end times” and cease to use Revelation to predict the future or read interpretations into it from the daily newspaper, we free Revelation up to be the inspiration it was designed to be.

Revelation was written initially to seven churches that existed in the first century. But as part of inspired scripture, this book is written to every church and every disciple of Jesus. I hope you will handle it with care and not give in to the wild speculation and conspiracies that I fell for in my early Christian years.

For further study, listen to two podcast discussions between Shane Willard and myself (Rob):

Understanding Revelation 1

Understanding Revelation 2

I was recently asked if I thought the world would be a better place if everyone were a Christian. My immediate response was yes. But the answer did not sit well with me and, upon further reflection, I said, “actually, I’m not sure. I would hope so, but maybe it wouldn’t.” Here are the reasons I changed my mind.

Extreme Examples

The answer to the question depends on what kind of Christian you have in mind. If it is any of the following, the answer is no. No, the world would not be a better place if everyone was a Christian. Consider:

  • Christian snipers in Beirut.
  • Catholics and Protestants blew each other up in the Northern Irish Troubles.
  • The Lord’s Resistance Army that wanted to create a Ugandan state based on the Ten Commandments.
  • Plus, the Spanish Inquisition, Salem Witch Trials, and forced conversions to Christ during the Crusades.

Those “Christians” certainly did not make the world a better place.

Modern Examples

On social media, I am frequently exposed to Christians acting in anything like a Christian manner. Unkind, judgemental, accusatory, argumentative, aggressive, you name it. There is a definite lack of the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:23-24). I try and reason with such people but often to no avail. I wonder how they treat people in their workplaces and families.

And yet, they all say they are Christian, but there is a disconnect between their faith and actions.

Christians at War

The disconnect invariably comes from what is taught in their local church. Spiritual warfare is consistently aimed at personalities like politicians even though “our struggle is not against flesh and blood.” And so, they are constantly “at war” with the world rather than “in love” with it like God is (think, John 3:16).

I know where they are coming from because that used to be me. When I became a Christian in the late 70s, we thought the antichrist and Illuminati were about to launch the Great Tribulation and a One-World Government. Communism was taking over the world, and non-Christians (and lukewarm Christians) would be left behind after the rapture. Of course, none of this happened.

It is sad to see history repeat itself and a whole new generation of conspiratorial Christians waging war on nothing! The enemy has changed, but the mindset remains the same. The world is NOT a better place by the attitudes and behaviour of these Christians.

History Repeats

The Moral majority and religious right were born out of a movement protesting against desegregation in the 1960s USA. Around this time, Christian schools opened because white Christians didn’t want to have mixed-race classes, which were perceived as unholy. The home-schooling movement followed in the 1970s.

Later, the religious right added abortion and LGBTIQA+ people as enemies to fight because this religious brand constantly needs an enemy to survive. It keeps people in fear and leverages this fear to generate commitment and cash. People will donate time and money to a cause they perceive will help win the war against … (fill in the blank of whatever the current enemy is).

Inventing an Enemy

For many years, communism was the target of the religious right’s attention. When the Berlin Wall fell, it was time to identify a new social enemy against which the religious right could mobilise. Enter cultural Marxism, “the perfect post-communist adversary located specifically in the cultural realm – academics, Hollywood, journalists, civil rights activists and feminists. It has been a mainstay of conservative activism and rhetoric ever since.”

The global pandemic has provided fertile ground for Christians who love to play the victim. It is a new Cold War waged against the so-called elites. But Cultural Marxism is a conspiracy theory just like all the other “alternative facts” spread by Christians at war. The world would not be a better place if everyone were like this.

UnChristian

In the early 2000s, the Barna Foundation commissioned David Kinnaman to conduct “groundbreaking research into the perceptions … sixteen to twenty-nine-year-olds” have of Christians. What they discovered should shock and challenge all Jesus’ followers. These young adults perceived Christians to be hypocritical, anti-gay, judgmental, and insensitive. The research published in UnChristian is one of the most challenging books I have ever read.

It is a sad indictment upon the church that produces disciples of Jesus that are nothing like Jesus. Jesus, the man who hung out with the poor and side-lined and who ate with the unclean. He was scathing towards those who were religious but lacked mercy, who “shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces” (Matthew 23:13). The world would certainly NOT be a better place if all the Christians were unchristian.

The Genuine Article

The world needs to see authentic Christianity – people who are honest about their failures and mistakes. We owe it to people to apologise for our missteps. To open our lives to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit to make us like Jesus. We read the gospels to investigate what Jesus was like, who he spent time with, how he spoke, and interacted with people. We pray that we will progressively become more like him. Not people locked away in church buildings or protesting against this world, but people who get their hands dirty in helping the poor. We welcome the excluded even though we know that other Christians will criticise us and leave the church because “those people are here.” I know because I have experienced this firsthand.

On October 23 1915, Albert Einstein published an astonishing 3-page critique of the growing “Christian nationalism” in the country of his birth. He argued that the problem with hateful Christians is their departure from Christianity. Written in his native German, the little essay is titled “Meine Meinung über den Krieg” or “My Opinion of the War.” It ends with the beautiful words (translated from his German): “Yet, why so many words, when I can say it all in a single sentence, and indeed in a sentence that is most apt for me as a Jew: Honour your master, Jesus Christ, not only with words and songs but, rather, foremost through your deeds.” Apparently, the antidote to violent, nationalist Christians is … Christianity!

I think it would be helpful to rephrase the question. “Would the world be a better place if everyone were like Jesus?” It’s a massive YES from me!