Spectacular Liars

Let me just preface this with the fact that I’m writing this with a (probably un)healthy level of frustration with myself and others.  Just something that's been simmering for...a while.  But here we go anyway…

One of the common criticisms used against any church or religion is that there are a ton of hypocrites.  And we, the church, need to be quick and ready to respond with strong agreement!  We, both corporately and as individuals, regularly show that we can easily ignore the principles of the faith that we claim.  But I honestly believe that our hypocrisy is rarely tied to the fact that we publicly act in ways that we condemn.  Instead, I think our hypocrisy is tied to the fact that we are such spectacular liars…

In our culture, image is everything…and our religious subculture is no different.  I go to work and try to look busy (even when I’m not).  We go to church and try to look like we’ve got it all together…that we’re living our lives dedicated to God when most of the time we care, more than anything, about satisfying our personal desires (and our ‘religion’ is part of that).  And this hypocrisy is completely in conflict with what we’ve been called to in Christ! 

Most people would probably say that Paul had some of the greatest impact (other than Jesus) on the shape of Christian faith.  But Paul called himself the ‘chief’ of sinners…he wrote out descriptions of his sin and publicly admitted that he struggled against his desires.  James told us to confess our sins to each other, but do we really welcome confession?  Derek Webb (probably not up there with Paul and James, but whatever) once said that the best thing for all of us would be if our sins were broadcast on the 5 o’clock news.  But imagine if Ted Haggard had gone to the elders of his church (or, gasp! the entire congregation) and confessed that he was being tempted to give in to his desire for drugs and extra-marital sex.  You’d hope that they would pray with and for him…that they would beg for God to heal him and give him strength and a renewed desire for what is good.  But odds are, it would’ve spread out through the gossip network and the ‘righteous’ would’ve step forward to pass judgment. 

No wonder people say ‘screw it’ and go big once they’ve crossed the line from temptation into action!!!  They know there’s nothing but negativity ahead, so why not try and get some fleeting pleasure while they still can?  They (and we) have tied their identity so tightly to their failure that they see no way out.

For some reason, we’ve decided to allow actions (missteps or good deeds…either way) to define us and the people around us.  I know the Bible talks about knowing someone by their 'fruit', but doesn’t our personal identity come from our standing in Christ?  If Jesus came and died so that we could be seen as righteous in the eyes of the Father, what makes the way we see ourselves or others so important?  My holiness is NOT defined by my actions!!!!  And your perception of my holiness borders on irrelevant unless I’m intentionally causing others to stumble.  Instead of passing judgment on those that are not living up to certain standards (or are even living in open rebellion), shouldn’t we approach them with love and a readiness to admit our own failures…our own weakness? 

A lot of churches have tried to do this with ‘accountability’ groups, and some of them do a great job.  But some of the time, they (again) shift the focus towards our behavior instead of the state of our heart or our faith.   Over time, this just encourages a front all over again…or (maybe) worse, it encourages changes in behavior while the heart stays the same.  And this goes back to the first lie…that we can do this on our own…that we don’t need God.  Reminds me of another Derek Webb line – “I’ll clean up this act and be worse than when we started.” 

I think that’ll do.  As an aside, I realize that I tend to rage against the machines that we’ve built.  But this in no way indicates that I want to tear people down…I believe we need to see ourselves for who we are (if it’s just me, then I guess I’m WAY off base…sorry?).  We need to beg God to heal us, tear apart the lies that we believe and propagate, and give us a true faith that is focused on him instead of us.  But despite all that, I love the country that I get to serve.  I love the family that God uses to bless and challenge me every day.  And I love the ‘dysfunctional family’ that makes up the spectacularly beautiful body of Christ (to steal a quote from my friend Bobby with a capital ‘B’). 

Ok…that’ll do for real.

Christian Nation...not so much

A few posts ago, I got on a rant about the idea that America is or is not a Christian nation.  I ended up focusing on Christians (and our hypocrisy), but another concept has been rattling around in my skull the past couple days.  It's this...Can a nation truly be Christian? 

To fully unpack this idea, I probably need to define (for myself) the words Christian and nation...what do they really mean?  Most people would say that Christian means 'like Christ' or 'a follower of Christ.'  So the common American viewpoint that we're all Christians because we believe in God and lead generally moral lives is...ummm...wrong.  If Jesus was here today, he would probably be treated much like he was in his day.  Those who saw their need for a savior would flock to him.  Most of us that believe we're doing ok on our own would probably judge him.  And all the while he would be talking about (and living out) sacrifice...giving of himself until there was nothing left (***See sidebar below).  I'm not going to give the definition of nation (should be pretty straightforward), but nationalism is a concept that is a bit more tricky.  Nationalism is the pursuit of a nation's interests, separate from (or at the expense of) other interests. 

So...what does this have to do with anything?  Give me a couple minutes and I'll try to bring this around...

Recently, there's been a ton of discussion on Capitol Hill about US intervention in Syria (or other nations) to put a stop to violence.  Also, in the last few days (weeks?), the KONY 2012 video has swept across Facebook.  Now this video may be propaganda that ignores the efforts of the African nations that want to take care of their own issues.  It may be emotional manipulation or a host of other negative things.  But 2 weeks ago, most of the people on Facebook had no clue who Joseph Kony was...at least now there's a recognition that he's systematically destroying the lives of thousands of children in Uganda, S. Sudan, and other surrounding nations.  And one major criticism is right...clicking 'Like' on a Facebook page isn't 'doing something.'  But signing a Congressional petition for greater US involvement is something...but do we really want our country involved in a hunt for Kony?

Now in general, I'm a non-interventionist.  I'm pretty sure we would've been pretty pissed if Great Britain would've tried to shell the Union forces that burned Atlanta...it was none of their business, right?  A good friend recently shared a quote from John Quincy Adams that I thought was pretty great stuff (see 1821 Independence Day Address here).  But the thing is, my nationalism is what drives my views on interventionism.  Because let's be honest...most of our attempts at involving ourselves in the struggles of other nations haven't really done much for our national interests.  If we jump into Syria or increase our involvement in the hunt for Kony, it will be because of public pressure on politicians (read: I want to serve another term)...not because it's in America's best interests. 

However, if I look at our nation as a tool I can use to serve other people in a Christ-like manner, then it changes everything.  Suddenly, we have to consider the fact that we should be doing even more in foreign aid and doing more to halt injustice...even at the expense of our nation's interests.  So...to try and bring it around...if we claim that we're a Christian nation, then we're claiming that our nation is willing to sacrifice itself (completely) to meet the needs of others.  And let's be honest...that's just not going to happen. 

So I'm not saying that we need to hunt Kony or take over Syria or anything like that.  I don't know the right answers to those questions.  My point is that words matter...and the phrase 'Christian nation' is an oxymoron.  We, as individuals, need to examine where our loyalty lies.  I believe that Christians must choose to follow either our King or our nation...not both.  How that choice plays out in your own life is up to you, but if our faith is tied to the success of capitalism or representational democracy, then we're in for disappointment.

***Ok, I'll try to keep this sidebar short because I've written a book. 
It's always interesting to me when I hear others (or myself) use the phrase 'haven't I done enough?'  Most of the times that I use it, I'm just frustrated that some charitable organization keeps sending me annoying junk mail.  But I really believe that the use of that phrase identifies a basic misunderstanding of the gospel.  It means that we see giving, or charity work, or whatever, as a means of checking off a list towards meeting a standard of 'righteousness.'  But this is in direct conflict with the grace offered through Jesus.  There is no checklist...we're already righteous.  And we're given the chance to find joy in pouring out everything in love for Christ.  Not many of us would say 'haven't I done enough?' if our kids needed us to take them to the doctor tomorrow.  We'd give up our time, our money, our everything, if necessary, because we love them completely.  Should our love for God be something less?

Ok...that'll do.