So my dad and I recently had a fight. Normally it is about my views verses his views. I’m pretty sure they think I am a heretic. He showed me a YouTube video of Christians praying against homosexual marriage at some rally or something. The Christians were also singing a hymn and the gay people didn’t really like either so they started yelling and telling them to leave. It was quite a violent reaction. The Christians had to be escorted out by police. This was their proof that Christians were not being tolerated etc. I had a problem with this video and was dumb enough to share my problems with my dad. I don’t remember all the discussion points because it became quite heated but I’ll try to hit as many as I remember.
I asked the question why were the gay people so angry at the Christians. It is because they see them as hating them. Of course a good Christian can’t hate so they won’t admit that but to the gay people it looks the same. They can’t see the separation in, “ love the sinner hate the sin” when Christians are praying against them. Christians attack the lifestyle and you can’t attack the lifestyle without attacking the person. They say they don’t hate the homosexuals but it is hard to tell. I have been in church services and I have heard how Christians talk about gay people. It usually isn’t in a positive light. How can we say we love them if we call them names or make fun of them? It seems like a mixed message…
I asked my father how he would feel if people started picketing his business and tried to shut him down. (We have a costume/magic/tuxedo business by the way) There are some Christians who have problems with magic even though this is the sleight of hand variety and not the animal entrails kind. What if some well meaning Christians thought we were spreading witchcraft and evil and we can’t be polluting the people’s minds like that so they tried to get us to shut down. What if they tried to pass laws to run us out of town? They picket our store; silently pray against us. Form a circle around the store and pray to God we would close our doors. How would he feel? He had little to say…
One of my problems is with Christians who try to pass stupid laws like this. They are trying to ban gay marriage and I tried to ask my dad “to what end?” of course he couldn’t answer this. I doubt he knew. I asked what they were trying to accomplish. If they ban gay marriage will they stop being gay? Will they stop fighting and put down their signs and find the nearest person of the opposite sex to marry? Will they see the light and become Christians? Of course not. The only thing it will accomplish is it will make them hate Christians more. The fact that they hate them now was just proof that the Christians are right. To me it just said the Christians gave them good reason to hate them. Doesn’t mean the Christians were right. I asked him if Jesus would be in that picket line with the Christians. He said yes and I couldn’t control myself. I laughed a mighty, “B******t!” I couldn’t imagine Jesus praying AGAINST anyone. It doesn’t look like love. My father said it was love and it doesn’t matter what it looks like. Back to the hypothetical magic protesters, the people that would picket our store might say they have the best of intentions for us. They say they care for us and the people that we damage with our witchcraft. They are just showing it by fighting tooth and nail for our destruction. Would they be holding signs saying, “You are going to HELL!”? What love they have!
I see Jesus having dinner with these “sinners”, being their friend, loving on them, not picketing them and praying against them as strangers. There’s a point I didn’t think of till after… How did the sinners of Jesus day respond to Him? If these Christians are acting like Jesus sinners should respond likewise to Christians right? Of course the sinners of Jesus day hated him and yelled at him and fought with him… Oh wait! The sinners were his friends! He hung out with them and ate with them! Jesus was accused of being a sinner because of the people he hung out with and his reputation of being a glutton and a drunk! If Jesus were here today he would be accused of being gay or at the very least a gay supporter! How did Jesus treat the people who followed all the rules? He yelled at them and called them horrible names. (Matthew 3:7, 23:13-15, 23:25, 27,)
He brought up that homosexuality is a sin but the times it is mentioned in the Bible it is often right next to things Christian do all the time. In Leviticus it is right in there with things like eating shellfish and cutting the edges of your beard, or touching the skin of a dead pig (football) or eating meat with the blood still in it or wearing clothes of two different materials among lots of other things.
Why is homosexuality any worse than gluttony or greed? Why aren’t Christians picketing buffets and shopping malls? I asked him how many times Jesus mentions homosexuality. He didn’t know. He says he believes in his precious Bible and he doesn’t know. I told him not once. He said God hates it and we should hate the things God hates. I agree, but there are far more things than homosexuality. A quick word search of the Bible shows that God hates cross dressing. Yet we have helped several people in our own store dress up like the opposite sex. Sometimes for fun and sometimes they really were cross dressers. My fathers own son and daughters, (my siblings) have dressed up as the opposite sex and taken pictures in his store for fun and the only problem my father had was that they made a mess.
And what about divorce? We will admit adultery is a sin but divorce is ok. It is unfortunate but still acceptable. When Jesus himself says ,“He answered, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her.’” Mark 10:11. I know prominent members of my former church who have divorced and remarried and now have positions in the church. I don’t know the whole story and I am not judging anyone because I believe in grace, but when they pick something like homosexuality to damn someone and ignore their own damning sin it looks like the very definition of a double standard. If they have divorced and remarried they have committed adultery and by these Old Testament standards they hold they should be put to death. It’s a good thing we have the story of the woman caught in adultery when Jesus says those precious words, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." Christians might say that the homosexuals are not repenting from their sin but maybe it’s because they haven’t met Jesus yet…
My father also said you couldn’t be a homosexual and be a Christian and I asked why you could be a glutton or be greedy or a liar and still go to heaven? Every Christian is one or another and yet these are acceptable. These are good sins. He said you couldn’t continue to sin and be saved. I think I’ll stand on grace because I wouldn’t make it otherwise.
I asked him if he knew why Sodom was destroyed and he didn’t know. Again it seems like he doesn’t even know his Bible. Ezekiel 16:49-50 " 'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.”
Now homosexuality could be one of these detestable things, but if it were so important wouldn’t they mention it by name and maybe leave out “overfed” or “Did not help the poor and the needy?”. These sins seem familiar…
It tears me up inside to look into the eyes of my father and those like him and realize that he doesn't care about “love” he cares about "truth" whatever that is. He thinks that homosexuals need to know "you are going to hell", not Jesus. True or not shouldn't our heart be broken? This reminds me of a quote:
“Sometimes in an effort to remind people of the cost of the cross we withhold grace until we are sure they understand their sin but it’s in the giving of our grace that we remind people to go to Jesus to find their own. People understand their sin without our help, it’s grace that they need help understanding.”-Youtube video “Finding grace”
Why stand on the side of condemnation and being "right" rather than love? Why do we think we can condemn sin when the one who NEVER sinned didn't condemn (John 8 3:17)? Still doesn’t if I’m not mistaken...
I am not saying homosexuality is a sin or not. It probably is but my point is who cares!? It isn’t about this being a sin or not because all sins get you the same death. The sin of lying will condemn the homosexual just as much as homosexuality. You can change all the laws you want and it might get people to act more Christian but it won’t make them more Christ-like. Christ said it was all about the heart. He preached that if you have anger and hatred you have the same spirit of murder. If you have lust it is the same spirit as adultery. If we change the laws so no homosexual can be married or no one can get a legal abortion they might act a little better so Christians don’t freak out but the hearts will be the same.
To borrow the phrase "render unto Caesar" maybe we should focus less on politics and more on people. I am under the opinion that Christians should vote and have their say but to get overly involved in politics seems like this world is our home. Get involved in people’s lives, not bills and amendments.
What would Jesus do? As the tired phrase goes… Would he pray against the homosexuals? Would he start with, “God, please bless the homos”?
Thursday, May 21, 2009
“God, please bless the fagots” Original unedited version!
So my dad and I recently had a fight. Normally it is about my views verses his views. I’m pretty sure they think I am a heretic. He showed me a YouTube video of Christians praying against homosexual marriage at some rally or something. They were singing and the gay people didn’t really like this so they started yelling and telling them to leave. It was quite a violent reaction. The Christians had to be escorted out by police. This was their proof that Christians were not being tolerated etc. I had a problem with this video and was dumb enough to share my problems with my dad. I don’t remember all the discussion points because it became quite heated but I’ll try to hit as many as I remember.
I asked the question why were the gay people so angry at the Christians? It is because they see them as hating them. Of course a good Christian can’t hate so they won’t admit that but to the gay people it looks the same. You can’t separate love the sinner hate the sin when they are praying against you. Christians attack the lifestyle and you can’t attack the lifestyle without attacking the person. They say they don’t hate the homosexuals but it hard to tell. I have been in church services and I have heard how Christians talk about gay people. It usually isn’t in a positive light. How can we say we love them if we call them names or make fun of them? It seems like a mixed message…
I asked how would he feel if people started picketing his business and tried to shut him down. We have a costume/magic/tuxedo business by the way. There are some Christians who have problems with magic even though this is the sleight of hand variety and not the animal entrails kind. What if some well meaning Christians thought we were spreading witchcraft and we couldn’t be polluting the peoples minds like that so they tried to get us to shut down. They tried to pass laws to run us out of town. They picket our store, they silently pray against us. How would he feel?
One of my problems is with Christians who try to legislate stupid laws like this. They are trying to ban gay marriage and I tried to ask my dad “to what end?” of course he couldn’t answer this. I asked what they were trying to accomplish. If they ban gay marriage will they stop being gay? Will they stop fighting and put down their signs and find the nearest person of the opposite sex to marry? Will they see the light and become Christians? Of course not. The only thing it will accomplish is it will make them hate Christians more. Now the fact that they hate them now is just proof that the Christians are right. Uh huh. Yeah sure. I asked him if Jesus would be in that picket line with the Christians. He said yes and I couldn’t control myself. I laughed a mighty, “Bullshit!” He was angry at that. I shouldn’t swear in front of him but as they say, “I learned it from watching you!” I couldn’t imagine Jesus praying AGAINST anyone. Doesn’t look like love. I see Jesus having dinner with these “sinners”, being their friend. Loving on them, not picketing them and praying against them as strangers. There’s a point I didn’t think of till after… How did the sinners of Jesus day respond to Him? If these Christians are acting like Jesus sinners should respond likewise right? Of course the sinners of Jesus day hated him and yelled at him and fought with him… Oh wait! The sinners were his friends! He hung out with them and ate with them! Jesus was accused of being a sinner because of the people he hung out with and his reputation of being a glutton and a drunk! If Jesus were here today he would be accused of being gay or at the very least a gay supporter! How did Jesus treat the people who followed all the rules? He yelled at them and called them horrible names.
He brought up that it is a sin but the times it is mentioned in the Bible it is often right next to things Christian do all the time. In Leviticus it is next to things like eating shellfish and cutting the edges of your beard. Or touching the skin of a dead pig (football) or eating meat with the blood still in it or wearing clothes of two different materials among lots of other things.
Why is homosexuality any worse than gluttony or greed? Why aren’t Christians picketing buffets and Malls? I asked him how many times Jesus mentions homosexuality. He didn’t know. He says he believes in his precious Bible and he doesn’t know. Not once. He said you couldn’t be a homosexual and be a Christian and I asked why you could be a glutton or be greedy or a liar and still go to heaven? Every Christian is one or another and yet these are acceptable. These are good sins. He said you couldn’t continue to sin and be saved. I think I’ll stand on grace because I wouldn’t make it otherwise.
I asked him if he knew why Sodom was destroyed and he didn’t know. Again it seems like he doesn’t even know his Bible. Ezekiel 16:49-50 " 'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.”
Now homosexuality could be one of these detestable things, but if it were so important wouldn’t they mention it by name and maybe leave out “overfed” or “Did not help the poor and the needy?” . These sins seem familiar…
I am not saying homosexuality is a sin or not. It probably is but my point is who cares!? It isn’t about this being a sin or not because all sins get you the same death. You can change all the laws you want and it might get people to act more Christian but it won’t make them more Christ-like. Christ said it was all about the heart. He preached that if you have anger and hatred you have the same spirit of murder. If you have lust it is the same spirit as adultery. If we change the laws so no homosexual can be married or no one can get a legal abortion they might act a little better so Christians don’t freak out but the hearts will be the same. What would Jesus do as the tired phrase goes? Would he pray against the homosexuals? Would he start with, “God, please bless the fagots”?
I asked the question why were the gay people so angry at the Christians? It is because they see them as hating them. Of course a good Christian can’t hate so they won’t admit that but to the gay people it looks the same. You can’t separate love the sinner hate the sin when they are praying against you. Christians attack the lifestyle and you can’t attack the lifestyle without attacking the person. They say they don’t hate the homosexuals but it hard to tell. I have been in church services and I have heard how Christians talk about gay people. It usually isn’t in a positive light. How can we say we love them if we call them names or make fun of them? It seems like a mixed message…
I asked how would he feel if people started picketing his business and tried to shut him down. We have a costume/magic/tuxedo business by the way. There are some Christians who have problems with magic even though this is the sleight of hand variety and not the animal entrails kind. What if some well meaning Christians thought we were spreading witchcraft and we couldn’t be polluting the peoples minds like that so they tried to get us to shut down. They tried to pass laws to run us out of town. They picket our store, they silently pray against us. How would he feel?
One of my problems is with Christians who try to legislate stupid laws like this. They are trying to ban gay marriage and I tried to ask my dad “to what end?” of course he couldn’t answer this. I asked what they were trying to accomplish. If they ban gay marriage will they stop being gay? Will they stop fighting and put down their signs and find the nearest person of the opposite sex to marry? Will they see the light and become Christians? Of course not. The only thing it will accomplish is it will make them hate Christians more. Now the fact that they hate them now is just proof that the Christians are right. Uh huh. Yeah sure. I asked him if Jesus would be in that picket line with the Christians. He said yes and I couldn’t control myself. I laughed a mighty, “Bullshit!” He was angry at that. I shouldn’t swear in front of him but as they say, “I learned it from watching you!” I couldn’t imagine Jesus praying AGAINST anyone. Doesn’t look like love. I see Jesus having dinner with these “sinners”, being their friend. Loving on them, not picketing them and praying against them as strangers. There’s a point I didn’t think of till after… How did the sinners of Jesus day respond to Him? If these Christians are acting like Jesus sinners should respond likewise right? Of course the sinners of Jesus day hated him and yelled at him and fought with him… Oh wait! The sinners were his friends! He hung out with them and ate with them! Jesus was accused of being a sinner because of the people he hung out with and his reputation of being a glutton and a drunk! If Jesus were here today he would be accused of being gay or at the very least a gay supporter! How did Jesus treat the people who followed all the rules? He yelled at them and called them horrible names.
He brought up that it is a sin but the times it is mentioned in the Bible it is often right next to things Christian do all the time. In Leviticus it is next to things like eating shellfish and cutting the edges of your beard. Or touching the skin of a dead pig (football) or eating meat with the blood still in it or wearing clothes of two different materials among lots of other things.
Why is homosexuality any worse than gluttony or greed? Why aren’t Christians picketing buffets and Malls? I asked him how many times Jesus mentions homosexuality. He didn’t know. He says he believes in his precious Bible and he doesn’t know. Not once. He said you couldn’t be a homosexual and be a Christian and I asked why you could be a glutton or be greedy or a liar and still go to heaven? Every Christian is one or another and yet these are acceptable. These are good sins. He said you couldn’t continue to sin and be saved. I think I’ll stand on grace because I wouldn’t make it otherwise.
I asked him if he knew why Sodom was destroyed and he didn’t know. Again it seems like he doesn’t even know his Bible. Ezekiel 16:49-50 " 'Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen.”
Now homosexuality could be one of these detestable things, but if it were so important wouldn’t they mention it by name and maybe leave out “overfed” or “Did not help the poor and the needy?” . These sins seem familiar…
I am not saying homosexuality is a sin or not. It probably is but my point is who cares!? It isn’t about this being a sin or not because all sins get you the same death. You can change all the laws you want and it might get people to act more Christian but it won’t make them more Christ-like. Christ said it was all about the heart. He preached that if you have anger and hatred you have the same spirit of murder. If you have lust it is the same spirit as adultery. If we change the laws so no homosexual can be married or no one can get a legal abortion they might act a little better so Christians don’t freak out but the hearts will be the same. What would Jesus do as the tired phrase goes? Would he pray against the homosexuals? Would he start with, “God, please bless the fagots”?
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Easter
So Easter just came and went. This is the first Easter in my life that I did not go to a church service. I wasn’t one of those people who only went on Christmas and Easter either. I went several times a week for a practice or service or meeting or group or something, until last year when I dropped out. I won’t bore you with the details but basically it boils down to the fact that I don’t see the institutional system called “Church” to be what it was supposed to be. I still love Christ I just hate the religion that stole His name. So I quit. I went to the same church for as long as could remember but the first Easter that came along after I quit I went to a service to my in-laws church. The pastor there eventually left after he started preaching some wacky ideas about not needing the building and how most of this Christianity is traditions and not in the Bible. I knew I liked him. As soon as I heard about some of the stuff he was preaching I knew he was out the door. Religious types can’t stand that kind of talk. Any ways, this Easter I wasn’t going. Ironically enough it’s against my religion. Not the celebrating the risen Lord and Savior part but the hierarchy part and the religious obligations part and the total lack of real relationships in exchange for fake three hour relationships part. To me it is a service. It is a performance. It is an act. It is on par with going to a lecture or concert or drive through religious theme ride. Which is fine I guess but when people call it “church” and it pisses me off. It is not the church the Bible talks about. We’re supposed to meet together anywhere and share things and talk and have a relationship not a stuffy meeting where only a couple people are talking. If I want to go to a concert I’ll go to a concert. If I want to hear a speaker I’ll go to a lecture. If I want to see play I’ll go to a play. It’ll be cheaper. They don’t ask for 10% of my income. Now how do I get off this soap box? Ah here we go…a day or two before Easter my father, who is entrenched in institutional Christianity, asked me if I was going to “church” on Easter. I asked him why I would. Why would I go on the busiest church day of the year to hear a sermon I’ve heard twenty some odd times when I refused to go any other Sunday? If you’re smart you don’t go to Wal-Mart on Saturday afternoon, you go to Wal-Mart on a Tuesday at 12:30 P.M. with your mother in law. There’s more parking and less kids playing in the aisle. Besides that, what are the reasons anyone goes to Easter service? Especially people that don’t believe in Jesus in the first place. I’m not talking about atheists or anything I’m talking about the average Joe who is dragged along with his wife or mom or whatever. They don’t care one way or the other about God and would rather sleep in on Sunday or play their PS3’s . They go because they think they are supposed to. They have an obligation to go. Now the “good church go-ers” that go every Sunday will criticize this type of church go-er. There are jokes about it. They mock them. Like the church go-er is really better off. Now why shouldn’t they go twice a year? Is it because they think, “If I have to go all the time you should have to go all the time.”? Maybe. Or maybe it’s because it isn’t about church. If the average “church go-er” were honest they would say that it isn’t about a religious obligation. It isn’t that you have to do something for God to like you. If you go to “church” and don’t love God then going to “church” doesn’t do you a bit of good. I will give you that some people get something out of services and if you do I’m glad, but I could not do it anymore. Hopefully the people that stay can admit that it was for freedom that Christ died. It is ironic that we say this yet live a life of obligation and slavery to a system or building or preacher. If we are truly free couldn’t we not go to a “church service” if we so desired? Or are we as free as the governing body of the “church” let’s us? That doesn’t sound free to me. This reminds me of an illustration using dogs. There are the dogs you chain up and fence in and they stick around, because they have to. They can’t get out. If the gate is left open or they get off their leash they are gone. They run and they never come back. Then there are the dogs that don’t have a leash and don’t have a fence. They sit on the porch and stay with their master. Even if they leave they come back and you know who the dog belongs to. If the dog that escapes never comes back was it ever yours in the first place? Or was it your slave? Was it your prisoner? The Institutional church often puts up invisible barriers of guilt and manipulation. They make you think that the people that are at every service are more Godly. This might be the case but it has nothing to do with the amount of services you go to. They make you think that if you volunteer more then you are a better Christian, but from someone that’s been there it’s more often true that the people that volunteer more often hate being in service. Best way to get out of sitting through a boring sermon is run the sound or watch some kids or be an usher. They make you think that good little Christians go to church yet they don’t mention that lots of people go to church aren’t Christians and lots of people who don’t go to church are very strong Christians. They will dismiss Christians that don’t go to church as rebellious. Maybe they are considered rebellious because they are the ones in charge. They are the head of the church. But wait… Isn’t Christ supposed to be the head? Like it or not the modern day institutional church is a man made system that evolved from the early church. The early church was organic and relational and real. The modern church has turned into a religious circus. A system. A service. An institution. It is mechanical. Dead. It moves but it is not alive. It functions but does not breathe. It is the difference between a real flower and a silk one. They look similar but are very different. The Church is the people. We’ve turned it into a building. It’s now an event. Not a life. We want everyone to come to Christ so we water things down until they all can be called “Christians”. Then we complain that there are all these people calling themselves Christians yet doesn’t act like it. We created them. These are the ones who come on Easter and Christmas. Then we criticize them... I say “screw it”. “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t”. If I go to “church” every Sunday then I should help more. If I help more then I get burned out and people say you work too hard and should let others do it. Then you realize you have another job in which you don’t get paid and you have no real relationships. When you realize this they criticize you for not working harder at building relationships. Maybe if we didn’t have to do all this work for a service or meeting… If I go on Christmas and Easter then I am definitely not doing enough and I should be ashamed for not fulfilling my obligation of church going. And if I don’t go to any service ever then I am a heathen and don’t have a relationship with God. Whatever you say… At least if I’m a heathen I get to sleep in and play my PS3 if I want to…
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Antithetitudes
"If we were to set out to establish a religion in polar opposition to the Beatitudes Jesus taught, it would look strikingly similar to the pop Christianity that has taken over the airwaves of North America."Tony Campolo
I wrote this because I see that the Christianity we see today has taken a name and then done whatever they want with it. We say we follow Christ but we often don't know what He said or follow it. Or worse yet we interpret Christ's words to mean whatever we want and justify our beliefs. God help us all.
Antithetitudes
Blessed are the rich for God bestows financial gifts on those He loves and withholds blessings from those who displease Him.
Blessed are the prideful for God raises some above others and the prideful know it.
Blessed are those who have all of the answers for God loves those who have Him all figured out.
Blessed are those who give others what they deserve for this is how God treats us.
Blessed are those who can hide their mistakes from others for appearance is everything.
Blessed are the violent and the war makers for good should be accomplished by any means necessary and the end justifies the means.
Blessed are those who persecute for righteousness sake for the wicked will never know God unless they know He hates them and their actions.
We are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Pour yourselves onto people and blind them with your light. They don't know what is good for them so we must force them to taste and see the truth.
You have heard that it was said "Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you."
But I say, "Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth"
You have heard that it was said "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" but I tell you keep, "Loving your neighbor and hating your enemy."
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. If you aren't perfect just keep pretending.
Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, without being seen. Others will be impressed by your Godliness.
And when you pray, pray standing in the churches and the sanctuaries to be seen by men. Do not go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, for no one will know you are righteous unless they see you. And when you pray, ramble on and on for God doesn't hear you unless you repeat yourselves.
This, then, is how you should pray:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed is our name,
our kingdom come,
our will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us forever our daily bread, as well as enough to be among the richest in the world.
Forgive us our debts,
for we have many
and forgive us for falling into temptation over and over,
and deliver us from the evil one, even though we keep following him around.
If you do not forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.
Store up for yourselves treasures on earth, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money but you can pretend God has blessed you with money so you can justifiably live whatever lifestyle you wish.
Worry about your life, what you will eat or drink and about your body, and what you will wear. God wants to give you your plan for your life. God wants you to live the best life now so enjoy the things on earth and show off your Sunday best at your services.
Judge others because they are judging you. Judging is natural and normal and a way to exclude those different than you.
If you see something in your brothers eye attack him and rip it out. For this is the job of the righteous.
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. If you do not get what you want take it anyways for God helps those who help themselves.
Do to others what they do to you, for what goes around comes around.
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. If those who don?t deserve to find the road do find it be sure to get them off as quickly as possible for only those who deserve life should receive it.
Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. Good fruit comes in the form of large congregations?, successful programs and many earthly riches. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
"Not everyone who says to the Lord, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who follows all the rules and goes to church and pays their tithes.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
I wrote this because I see that the Christianity we see today has taken a name and then done whatever they want with it. We say we follow Christ but we often don't know what He said or follow it. Or worse yet we interpret Christ's words to mean whatever we want and justify our beliefs. God help us all.
Antithetitudes
Blessed are the rich for God bestows financial gifts on those He loves and withholds blessings from those who displease Him.
Blessed are the prideful for God raises some above others and the prideful know it.
Blessed are those who have all of the answers for God loves those who have Him all figured out.
Blessed are those who give others what they deserve for this is how God treats us.
Blessed are those who can hide their mistakes from others for appearance is everything.
Blessed are the violent and the war makers for good should be accomplished by any means necessary and the end justifies the means.
Blessed are those who persecute for righteousness sake for the wicked will never know God unless they know He hates them and their actions.
We are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Pour yourselves onto people and blind them with your light. They don't know what is good for them so we must force them to taste and see the truth.
You have heard that it was said "Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you."
But I say, "Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth"
You have heard that it was said "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" but I tell you keep, "Loving your neighbor and hating your enemy."
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. If you aren't perfect just keep pretending.
Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, without being seen. Others will be impressed by your Godliness.
And when you pray, pray standing in the churches and the sanctuaries to be seen by men. Do not go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, for no one will know you are righteous unless they see you. And when you pray, ramble on and on for God doesn't hear you unless you repeat yourselves.
This, then, is how you should pray:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed is our name,
our kingdom come,
our will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us forever our daily bread, as well as enough to be among the richest in the world.
Forgive us our debts,
for we have many
and forgive us for falling into temptation over and over,
and deliver us from the evil one, even though we keep following him around.
If you do not forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.
Store up for yourselves treasures on earth, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money but you can pretend God has blessed you with money so you can justifiably live whatever lifestyle you wish.
Worry about your life, what you will eat or drink and about your body, and what you will wear. God wants to give you your plan for your life. God wants you to live the best life now so enjoy the things on earth and show off your Sunday best at your services.
Judge others because they are judging you. Judging is natural and normal and a way to exclude those different than you.
If you see something in your brothers eye attack him and rip it out. For this is the job of the righteous.
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. If you do not get what you want take it anyways for God helps those who help themselves.
Do to others what they do to you, for what goes around comes around.
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. If those who don?t deserve to find the road do find it be sure to get them off as quickly as possible for only those who deserve life should receive it.
Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. Good fruit comes in the form of large congregations?, successful programs and many earthly riches. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
"Not everyone who says to the Lord, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who follows all the rules and goes to church and pays their tithes.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Pullin' Threads
I really HATE sweaters. Not really. I'm just a guy who hates religion. To add to the confusion: I love Jesus. To the outsider that seems like a contradiction, but to the formerly religious it makes perfect sense. To the currently religious it makes no sense. I grew up in church and I have recently come to the fact that all the dressings we add to Christianity are just religion. The relationships we have in life is true Christianity. Modern Institutional Christianity has cheapened everything. They have taken something pure and true and beautiful and turned it into a formula. They turned it into a performance. It's all an act. Granted it was probably all out of pure motives, but the end result is still a bastard. Bastard. Interesting imagery. Where is Institutional Christianity father? Is it Christ? Read Christs words. Read the sermon on the mount. Read the Beatitudes. Tell me if modern Christianity is there. I don't see it. To clarify I am not attacking the people in the institutions but the institutions themselves. I love the people but they've been lied to. This is my way of trying to tell them the truth. Not that I have it all right. I know I'm still on the journey. I'm still learning. I know I am wrong about some things, i just can't tell you about what. But that is the point. You are on a journey as well and you are not all right or wrong. Ask questions. Think about what you believe. Learn things. The more information you have the more of an informed decision you can make. I used to have opinions on things and the only information I had was from one person. If a person wanted me to have an opinion like his they would only give me information they wanted me to have. I want people to have the other side. Make your own decisions. Don't be afraid to be wrong. You can change later. You can grow. Not making decisions for fear of being wrong stunts your growth. The most mature people have made the most mistakes.
To those who think I am just bitter or that I have been hurt by the church let me assure you that that is only partially true. I didn't leave the institutional Church because someone let me down or hurt me or lied to me. I left because I found out it was a lie. Things held so dearly were made up traditions. We were all playing make believe. I always thought that something was wrong. I never thought I would find out that it actually was! In hindsight I am a little bitter. People did let me down and hurt me. They did lie. I didn't know it at the time but looking back i see them. After learning things for myself I see now that there were lies. They may have been unintentional or even with the best of intentions but a lie is a lie is a lie.
That leads me to now. I still have people I love on the inside. I still have people I love leading the inside. They probably think I am out to get them but I just want them free. Too many people are burdened with obligations or sacrifices or to be a good little boy or girl to make God love them. Wouldn't life be so much more free if they actually believed that God already loved them? That they didn't have to try so hard? That the sweater of religion they are wearing is suffocating them? It is a beautiful sunshiny day and some are wearing a sweater. Some sweaters are thick and some are thin but it is still unbearably hot in that thing.
In the Old Testament it was cold and lonely and we had to dress warm to get to God. God was around us but not inside of us. In the New Testament we have God in us. Everything is more beautiful. We are made warm by God. Some of us still want to get warm on our own. We want to get to Gods warmth by our own power. With our own sweater. Even though we can be perfectly fine without it. Are you still trying to get to God on your own? Are you still trying to perform to get God to notice you? To get others to notice you? It's OK. God sees you. God loves you. God wants you to take off the sweater. It probably won't come off all at once though. A sweater like religion is knitted right on your body and often wrapped too tightly. It has to be taken apart one thread at a time. And if it did come right off it would be too easy to put it back on. It's a little harder when its a mess of thread piled on the floor. Darin Hufford gets the thanks for starting me out with this analogy. After messing with some religious minds I had a conversation with him. I was struggling with whether or not to keep asking religious people questions or just leave them where they are.
He told me, "this stuff kind of reminds me of a loose thread on a sweater. When you start pulling at it, the entire sweater comes unraveled. One question leads to another and another and another. Before you know it, your entire religion is laying on the floor in a pile.
I've found two kinds of people in this world. Thread pullers like you and me, and nonthread pullers."
So say goodbye to your sweaters. I'm comin' for them...
To those who think I am just bitter or that I have been hurt by the church let me assure you that that is only partially true. I didn't leave the institutional Church because someone let me down or hurt me or lied to me. I left because I found out it was a lie. Things held so dearly were made up traditions. We were all playing make believe. I always thought that something was wrong. I never thought I would find out that it actually was! In hindsight I am a little bitter. People did let me down and hurt me. They did lie. I didn't know it at the time but looking back i see them. After learning things for myself I see now that there were lies. They may have been unintentional or even with the best of intentions but a lie is a lie is a lie.
That leads me to now. I still have people I love on the inside. I still have people I love leading the inside. They probably think I am out to get them but I just want them free. Too many people are burdened with obligations or sacrifices or to be a good little boy or girl to make God love them. Wouldn't life be so much more free if they actually believed that God already loved them? That they didn't have to try so hard? That the sweater of religion they are wearing is suffocating them? It is a beautiful sunshiny day and some are wearing a sweater. Some sweaters are thick and some are thin but it is still unbearably hot in that thing.
In the Old Testament it was cold and lonely and we had to dress warm to get to God. God was around us but not inside of us. In the New Testament we have God in us. Everything is more beautiful. We are made warm by God. Some of us still want to get warm on our own. We want to get to Gods warmth by our own power. With our own sweater. Even though we can be perfectly fine without it. Are you still trying to get to God on your own? Are you still trying to perform to get God to notice you? To get others to notice you? It's OK. God sees you. God loves you. God wants you to take off the sweater. It probably won't come off all at once though. A sweater like religion is knitted right on your body and often wrapped too tightly. It has to be taken apart one thread at a time. And if it did come right off it would be too easy to put it back on. It's a little harder when its a mess of thread piled on the floor. Darin Hufford gets the thanks for starting me out with this analogy. After messing with some religious minds I had a conversation with him. I was struggling with whether or not to keep asking religious people questions or just leave them where they are.
He told me, "this stuff kind of reminds me of a loose thread on a sweater. When you start pulling at it, the entire sweater comes unraveled. One question leads to another and another and another. Before you know it, your entire religion is laying on the floor in a pile.
I've found two kinds of people in this world. Thread pullers like you and me, and nonthread pullers."
So say goodbye to your sweaters. I'm comin' for them...
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