16 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. 17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God. Colossians 2: 16-19
Well that about sums it up…..
What I am trying to say is that I have grown weary of people saying , “if you are a true Christian, you will do such in such or so and so. “ From that point on they will go on and proclaim something that usually has more to do with personal preference or personal agenda than anything else. In the old days it was more behavioristic, “You should not smoke, drink or chew or run with those that do.” These days it is usually more subtle, and more along the line of browbeating or guilt-tripping .
“You really need to go on this spiritual retreat”
“If you want to grow spiritually you will read this book.”
“You really need to have your devotions when you first get up, if you wait to the middle of the day or before you go to bed you have missed out”.
Some try to tell us that we have gotten too intellectual in our walk while others say we are two emotional or not emotional enough. Some have tried to equate political issues with the gospel of Christ. “If you are really a Christian you will vote this way.” Now, my relationship with Christ absolutely effects the way I think, behave and even the way I vote, however it is my relationship with Christ that effects those things NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND!
Here is an example, I really cannot understand how someone who claims to follow Christ will continually vote for people who not only refuse to protect the rights of the unborn but they actively participate in the killing of unborn human beings. It may be my responsibility as a Christian to lovingly attempt to show them why as a follower of Christ I cannot support a political candidate that supports abortion. But what if they don’t agree with me? Do I pull out my hell card and say “well if you don’t vote this way you can not be a Christian?” This happens every day with all types of issues. There has to be a point where I say, I told you what the Bible says on that issue, now I have to stand aside and let the Holy Spirit do its job. I will be the first to tell you that I have not always been able to do that. There is more I ‘d like to say on this but I can’t right now, except to say that there is an awful lot of that type of thing happening on all sides of the political spectrum. Someone recently tried to make the claim that people who believe ( such and such ) on a particular political issue, did not understand the Gospel of Christ. Now the particular issue he was talking about, to be honest, did not have anything to do with one’s final destination. How I come down on either side of that particular issue will not have anything to do with my position in Christ. So why did he try to make so? I am not real sure, I suspect he did not really think about what he said. If I were more cynical ( me a cynic? may it never be ;)) I would say he couched his statement so that one would have no choice but to agree with his statement.
You are more than welcome to disagree with me; but if you do, do not claim that I do not understand the Gospel of Christ, I understand it very well thank you! It is simply:
‘…Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: ‘ I Corinthians 15: 3b & 4
Paul tells us in the verses preceding that If we hold fast to this teaching we will be saved, “unless we have believed in vain”. Is it possible to believe in vain? I don’t know but I do know that it has nothing to do with, “opposing abortion, supporting the poor, woman’s rights, immigrant rights or any of the other things we like to argue about these days. Perhaps a Christian should come down on one side or other on those issues but it has nothing to do with the gospel.
I don’t know about all that other ‘stuff’, but this one thing I do know, Jesus Christ Died for my sins according to the scriptures, and I expect to swing out into eternity resting on that fact.
And that is why I do not care what you think about me!
Stay thirsty my friend.
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