Christians feel ashamed

If you have seen the images of the Christians fighting in the Holy Sepulchre then like me you may well be feeling ashamed. This is not the kind of image that any Christian wants to present to the world and just adds fuel to the critics.

If you haven’t seen it yet then you can on youtube.

However this is an excellent example of the kind of behaviour that causes many Christians to leave the church. You won’t witness many fights within the Christian church but you will witness many conflicts and, it has to be said, over some very trivial matters.

I understand the fight in the Sepulchre broke out over who gets to stand where during a worship service. Satan must love this stuff.

When will the churches wake up to the wickedness of what they do and make an effort to change. It is the experience of many Christians that people outside the church are less aggressive and more tolerant than people within – surely this is the wrong way around.

What ever happened to turning the other cheek? and being salt and light to the world. I guess the world would probably want us to hide ourselves away at the moment so they can get on with stuff.

It’s time to stop pretending that everything is ok. It’s time to stop playing at being Christians. It’s time to stop this kind of thing ever being seen again.

May God have mercy on us and forgive us.

On behalf of Christians everywhere I apologise for what you had to witness.

What is the meaning of the cross?

Scholars bebate the meaning of the cross of Jesus in great detail. They argue about the nature of it and what was happening. However, as Martin Luther once pointed out, you can’t understand the cross only with your brain. The cross is doing something far more important than providing something to debate.

I think the truth is that many different things were happening during the crucifixion. Some of them obvious and others more hidden but ultimately its not what it does to your head that matters its how it touches your soul and your heart. Scholars who insist on reducing the cross to one meaning are just plain wrong.

But then we should be used to things having multiple meanings. If I can take a trivial personal example first here. I go running every morning. I have lots of reasons for doing it. I want to get fit, I need to lose weight, I want to try and avoid some illnesses, I want to be fit to enjoy my walking hobby and I want to be an example for my children. Now if anyone were to reduce the meaning to just one of these they would be right in saying that this is what was happening but would also be very wrong because it means so much more.

If we reduce the cross to just one meaning then we might be right in what we say about that one meaning but we are so very wrong if we think that is the end of the story.

Was Jesus dying for us? Yes. Was Jesus taking away the sin of the world? Yes. Was it a moral example to inspire us to better things? Yes. Was Jesus the lamb of God? Yes. And so I could continue.

But ultimately you can’t understand the cross without feeling it. It’s only when you can stand at the foot of the cross yourself, and see your Saviour suffering and bleeding, and dying with your name on his lips, and understand that it should be you up there, that you get what it means.

It means so much and yet the message is simple – God loves you.

How willing are you for God to use you?

I’m sure at some point every Christian has told God that they are willing to be used by Him. But do we really mean it when we say it?

It takes a lot to submit to God’s will completely. For instance how happy would you be if to follow His will you had to be poor for the rest of your life? Or how willing if you knew it would cause you conflict with the people you love the most?

Jesus once asked a rich young ruler to give up the thing he loved the most (his money) before he could follow Jesus. All we know is the young man went away feeling sad. He wanted to follow Jesus but the cost was too great.

I don’t believe it is God’s will for everyone to be poor or that the point of this story is that you have to give away all your stuff to the poor before you can follow Jesus. I think the point is that if we are really going to follow Christ we should be willing to go this far.

I want God to use me but I hope he includes a comfortable life for me as well. So far the comfortable life part (that’s the bit I want) has never materialised. Should this mean I stop following Christ? Well ultimately that’s my choice but so far I think not.

What are you willing to give up to follow Christ?