Definitely not the job. But maybe one of the side-effects of living a certain way. There are numerous examples of others feeling judged simply because someone else in the room ISN'T doing what they're doing. Human nature seems to feel easily judged.
OK. I hear what you're saying and I agree with you. However, I'm a little reluctant to let all of us off the hook so easily. I sense that the perceived judgment too often stems from something active rather than something passive.
Do you believe we should be making disciples? Don't get me wrong, I DO believe in encouraging people to be disciples of Christ (not of a denomination) ... just curious as to where you stand and your thoughts on how to accomplish the shaping of disciples if you believe we should be?
Yes, I do. However, too many corners of modern Christianity seem to be unmotivated in this direction. As a Christian, I am a part of this problem.
YES, agreed! That is a death nail to ANY person, the lack of ideas that differ from their own. But so many Christians have such limited knowledge of either their own denomination, anyone else’s denomination OR even just the Bible that we certainly cannot pinpoint SDA's here. In fact I've found a broader knowledge of other "options" (and the Bible in general) in SDAism then in other denominations (perhaps due to the schooling most SDA's come through which will often include a class on world religion.)
I haven't found that to be true in the corner of SDAism with which I'm most familiar, but I will say that I've found a disturbing amount of closed mindedness throughout various aspects of Christianity. The SDAism with which I am familiar is plagued with problems that run much deeper than being mislabeled and misunderstood. However, I've found that SDAism does not have a corner on the market when it comes to dysfunction.
Because something makes either or BOTH parties uncomfortable doesn't mean it should be tossed out. I feel the explanation DOES make a sincere Christian uncomfortable. No one, truly interested in another, likes to make them uncomfortable, but isn't eternal life more important?
I think it's valuable to understand how Christians are perceived. These perceptions aren't easy for Christians to hear, but I suspect they are based on something quite real. This isn't about compromising truth. It's about understanding the unintended things we're doing in the name of truth.
Let me clarify here that I don't believe anything we DO earns us eternal life...that's a gift and is by faith alone just as your moniker says. BUT there is a saying 'We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone.' -ML. So having received that gift ... well, you can't serve two masters. So I do believe it will show if you've accepted Christ and will manifest itself as it did in Jesus' life.
My name is merely that, a name. It was coined many years ago when I began posting in online forums. However, I will say that, if salvation is based on something other than grace through faith, Christ died for nothing. We may already agree on this point.
Great point! So call it predatory, call it over-caring, the end result is people are turned off. So what do we do? How do we draw disciples to Christ without getting swept under the rug!
We start by getting very real with ourselves about our own lifelong addiction to sin. This reality check will make us very aware of the beam that is in our own eye and it will motivate us to be compassionate toward others whose transgressions pale in comparison with our own (at least in our own minds). Rather than worrying about whether our goodness will cause others to feel judged, we will realize that--apart from Jesus Christ--there is no goodness in us. Out of gratitude for that which we know we do not deserve, we will be moved to demonstrate genuine love, the kind of love that we've been shown despite the mess we've made. When we look at a homosexual, we won't love the sinner and hate the sin. Instead, we will merely love the sinner as we love ourselves. We will not be focused on the sin of another. When we look at an addict, we will see a person beloved by God rather than a dreadful sinner. Rather than preaching sermons on how we can become better people, we will preach sermons on the ways in which God makes us new. Our whole outlook on humanity will be an outgrowth of the grace and mercy that we've been shown.
I think the answer is also found in befriending those who look, sound, smell and talk very differently than we do. It's amazing how many blind spots are revealed when we take these kinds of risks.
BFA
