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Question: What is the ratio of the number of passages in the New Testament of the Bible which command Christians to love one another, verses the number of passages which command us to be politically active? Sorry, it's a trick question. A computer programmer would tell you the answer would throw a "division by zero" error if entered into an equation. Even if you find a verse or two which might be able to be construed as endorsing political activism, they would certainly be outweighed by the dozens and dozens of commands to love and serve one another.
So why are so many Christians so zealous about politics, yet mum on showing kindness and compassion? Worse yet, being "socially compassionate" has been made into a bad thing among many Christian groups lately. How can this be?
Jesus said that He came for the sick, not the healthy.
After a morning of searching the Bible, I haven't been able to find anything indicating Christians should tell non-Christians how to live their lives. I have found many verses about serving, giving, loving, clothing, and caring, yet I don't see anyone writing about such things on SearchWarp.
I find this alarming. It seems to me that this is a perfect example of "straining out the gnat but swallowing the camel." (Matthew 23:24)
Great question Bruce--its why I stayed out of the political argument, not writing one article about it. I only got sucked in at the very end--darn. I think for the most part Christians were focused on this election for varied reasons. Everyone is at a different place in their walk with God and depending on personal experiences are passionate about different areas. That is why the body is called the body--together we are suposed to balance eachother out. But unfortunately that is not always the case. Thanks for bringing it back to what matters! May the Lord give us all balance and grace to live out His word. In love, in action, and in obedience--True the bible does not tell non-christians how to live, but it makes it very clear how we as people are to live if we claim to follow God. But you are right, if we lived it more than we preached it, it would go much further. It was my hope that we would stop hearing about the election afterward, but it is still going on. Hopefully your article will help change direction.
Hmmm. I don't think certain parts of the Body of Christ are called to love and serve and others are not. And I don't think there is a balance to love. I mean, what offsets love, hate? Are we only supposed to love to a certain point?
I'm not directing this at you, Teresa, but I'm trying to figure this out and I'm not seeing a legitimate explanation.
I don't really care about the election anymore either, but I think the issue of Christian servanthood greatly exceeds politics and I just can't figure out why we don't hear more about it.
I didn't mean to say that certain parts of the body are called to love and others not, in that statement, i was referring to why Christians were focused on the election.
In balance I was refering to keeping eachother in check and making sure we love in all we do and say at all times, no matter who, what, why, and where.
I am with you all the way and have always believed servanthood takes place over politics and I too hope we hear more about it. I will certainly do my part :-)
Bruce, I don't quite understand what you are trying to say here. Are you saying that Christians should be a bunch of loving and serving milquetoasts who never take a stand on anything? That was certainly the way Jesus lived, wasn't it? Well, yeah, if you don't count his throwing the money-changers out of the temple; calling the scribes and pharisees names; equating angry people with murders and the lusty-minded with adulterers; and harshly criticizing his disciples. Other than that, it was all love all the time.
By the way, was it wrong for Christians to speak up against slavery and abusive child labor? If the answer is no, then how could it be wrong for them to take a stand on various issues today?
Terry, of course I'm not saying Christians shouldn't take a stand. But the examples that you give are all Jesus rebuking religious people, which supports my point. That "strain out the gnat" is from what Jesus said to religious leaders, not 'worldly sinners'.
My point is that if you look at how much Jesus spent on different issues, he talked much less about sin in the World and much more about love and serving others than what we see today.
I'm trying to figure out why this is. Is sin much greater today? Is love less needed today? I don't think so. I think we're straining out the gnat and eating the camel.
Bruce, many of us have emphasized judgment over love and service. That is something we need to work on. However, it is equally a mistake to emphasize love and service over judgment. Contrary to what many want to believe, Jesus held love and judgment in equal esteem. Here is an example of Jesus speaking to the pharisees in the book of Luke:
"But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone."
Most churches today emphasize one and neglect the other. There should be a balance between the two. On one side, we have many fundamentalists, who claim to live in a way that's pleasing to God, but seemingly not caring about their fellow man. On the other side, we have folks like the United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalists who emphasize God's love but couldn't seem to care less about His other commandments.
As far as Christians "telling other people how to live their lives", that whole argument is a red herring. Christians (or anyone else) can't avoid such a thing if they even bother to vote. Every candidate and every ballot issue in essence dictates to people how they can live their lives. For example, a conservative candidate may attempt to restrict abortions, but a liberal candidate may attempt to force people to be more considerate of the environment. I defy anyone to give me an example of a candidate or ballot issue that does not attempt to tell people what they must or must not do.
Actually, I believe the passage you quote from Luke is the parallel
passage to the one in Matthew that I have been quoting here (Matthew
23:24) so it's funny to me that you quote it.
Matthew indicates the
discussion ended by Jesus saying to the pharisees that they strain out the gnat
and swallow the camel, by focusing on law and forgetting mercy.
Isn't
he saying that the pharisees were working hard to obey the minor
commands while ignoring the major commands? And that is exactly what
I'm saying with this article.
There's a balance, but it's not a 50/50
balance, it's more like the balance of a gnat and a camel. The problem
is that we continue to focus on the gnat while we're guilty of the
camel.
I think I fully understand and can appreciate your concern. However, I must say that as a Christian I believe I have written on themes of compassion and service to others: i.e. How to Respond to Tragedy, "All I Had Left Was My Attitude", Are You Preaching to the Choir?, Nurturing Your Child's Spiritual Sensitivity, How We Can Create Balance in our Child's LIfe, The Myth of Moral Superiority, How to be a Stay-at-Home Mom and Maintain Your Identity... Thanks for the needed reminder as to what the Gospel really means!
Good food for thought. I think, Bruce, that too many 'physical' attributes are read into Biblical writings by too many different views on any given verse.
Eveyone has their own take as to the meaning. Some people can interpret politics into most any statement. Just as when Jesus was thought by some to break the laws of keeping the sabbath holy (performing a miracle on a day of rest) when He cured the cripple; or in that he instructed the man to pick up his bed and walk. Do not most Christians believe it was a form of politics that ultimately sent Jesus to the Cross? The Bible is full of verses on 'witnessing' which can be construed as 'telling a non-Christian how to live'. And being as far as being 'socially compasionate', I wonder how much 'physical' emphasis we need put on that??? Could I not be socially compasionate without kissing someone on the mouth???? I think I could. There are other ways of showing love and servitude.
One of my articles promoting God's love and compassion drew this comment "....every other article I read is about God and for someone who just doesn't see God under every rock and twig, I just tend to loose interest...."
Think that might put a damper on our articles about God's love and compassion and kindness and giving? It shouldn't, but it hurts.
Now that I have probably gone so far out in left field here and bungled everybody's train of thought, I'll say 'Great article', Bruce and keep us hopping!
Sandra, I read that comment and it hurt me, too. I wasn't the author of the article. There have been others along those lines, too. I pray for them and use them as examples in articles written elsewhere.
The enemy will give you material so use it. That was the answer I got in prayer. :)
Bruce, I may be guilty of not writing about what you've asked to some degree but not entirely. I am with you 100%. I thought I had read such articles here, to be honest . . . and not just during Making the World A Better Place with $100 Contest, either. I write those kinds of articles for a church website and Christian magazine. I didn't know of your special interest in these for SearchWarp.
What you speak of is how I sincerely try to live, Bruce. It's easy to write about it when you're doing it day to day. I worship God but serve people. My parents were that way and I must say, all of my siblings are like them, even the one that went astray. We are tremendously blessed because of it, too! I must admit, too, that I haven't wanted to appear self-serving in the Community. I have used "I" but please know that it is not about "me" at all. God is so good to us. I pray daily that my life will impact someone . . . that I can give Christ to them in some way: food, clothing, shoes, money, a hug, kiss, smile, comforting scripture, gift. . . something. I feel incomplete when I do not. AND, I know I'm not the only Warpie who feels that way. We just don't write about it here, I guess.
Another reason for me, too. Many interpretations of the Holy Scriptures exist and it becomes divisive instead of unity. I won't argue the Scriptures; just live them.
Ooops, I'm making this an article! You and Jean are a lovely witness for Christ. You're appreciated by so many. Thank you and your team!
Its funny how we can read something that wants to make us say yes and no at the same time. Yes we cannot tell others how to live their lives especially non-believers. And no we cannot refuse to tell them when their own behavior opposes them.
Anyone with kids knows what I'm saying here. We have to tell them a lot about how their behavior can hurt them at the very same time we balance that with enough space for them to be themselves.
I understand this completely. Jesus was by far and away more of a Socialist.
He taught us to care for the poor, both financially and in spirit. I'm sure that he would consider healthcare a basic human right and decency, for example..
Bruce, there is a saying, “people who have been to war don’t talk about war”. Many people I know who work behind the scenes of humanity with true compassion and kindness, don’t usually talk about it. While many articles on politics are mostly about people showing their grasp of the subject, people telling others the “right way” to live their lives, people analyzing what’s so wrong with government, and offering their two cent solutions, acts of kindness and compassion are very personal -- something between one and one’s God.
When writing about acts of love, kindness or compassion, it so easy to cross the line between doing it for self validation or reassurance, and doing it to inspire others to kindness and compassion. I’ve written a few articles in which I did something because it was the right thing to do, and felt guilty reading comments that said what a loving, kind, strong, compassionate, good, etc person I am. I tried to make it clear that the article is not about me but about the opportunity the other person offered me to show love... but the applause and praises just kept coming. Someone even said "I do not know how to receive compliments". I had to apologize for my "insensitivity". A few times I've regretted writing the article because it became about me and my "good-ness'.
I think that it’s great for people to share their faith as a way of strengthening each other, I just wish there was more of being our brother’s keepers than our brother’s accusers, judges, and executioners all rolled in one.
We were never given a mandate from God to force our beliefs and faith down people's throats. I don’t believe Jesus wants anybody to be forced to love Him or for me to threaten people with hell if they don’t embrace my beliefs and faith. I’ve found that I am more effective in “spreading the gospel” when how I live my life causes others to wonder what “cool aid’ I am drinking, and want some of it.
i think people, such as myself, get so intwined with their work, and families, and bills, that they forget about the most important things, such as serving, living, loving, clothing, caring, and God's presence in our lives. it's not right, but it's true.
then when things get really bad, we remember, we turn to God, and remember that there are loving, caring people of which we can write about.
In John 13:35 it says, "This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
The world will recognize the followers of Christ by the love they have for one another. It's not, "Oh, your a Christian. You are the guys that hate gays." It's not, "Oh you're a Christian. You guys are the ones that hate abortion and some of you even murder abortion doctors." The way I read it, Christians are recognized as Christians, not by their theological positions, not by what they condemn, not for their intolerance, but by the love the have for one another. Apparently the love Jesus is suggesting is not private love in the heart, but love that is obvious and visible to those that are around, in the area, passing acantances.
As GB Shaw has said, "Christianity might be a good thing if anyone ever tried it." Of course some have, and do, and sometimes the love among some believers is easily detected. Wish it happened more often.
Hi Tex, thanks for echoing my thoughts.... I was starting to think that I am such a poor communicator that readers just weren't understanding what I was saying with this article. Because I'm a numbers guy and a programmer, I tend to try to break things down into numbers and patterns, so I that is why I often think about how much time Jesus spent telling His followers to love verses to be judgmental. You have explained it much better than I did.
I also think that if you've ever been the one whom the pharisees wanted to stone, like the woman at the well, or the one who was declared "unclean" and then isolated by religious people, you will look at the Gospels completely differently. At least I know I do, and I guess that's why I believe it is important to understand this "ratio".
I don't think you are necessarily a poor communicator, but maybe you are a poor listener? I don't think that any of the comments above are off the mark. We are simply taking excerpts that grab our attention, and perhaps taking them one step further. I hope you will consider this.
Bruce, maybe we don't focus on servanthood because of our religious leaders. When was the last time you turned on the television and saw a televangelist preaching on how to better serve our fellow man? These days it's more about "God wants you to prosper and all you have to do is claim it by faith." While we are taught to discover the truths of Scripture for ourselves, many take their religious mentors at their word and accept that what they say is Scripturally correct, and move on from there. Until these leaders move away from their name-it-claim-it "gospel" and start preaching about servanthood, I don't believe we're going to see much of a change.
» left by Rick K. from Rincon Ga. (349 days 19 hours ago.)
Hi Bruce,
Thanks for the reminder on servanthood. I have to think that it is human nature for us to look out for ourselves. That is why we spent so much time on politics(what is in it for us). It is no different with us christians. When we were save God did not see fit to take away these bodies we live in. Oh how many times I wish He had. No, we still sin and still look out only for ourselves. I am going to make an effort today to serve someone in need. Thanks Bruce
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