Why do I feel like Jesus is slowly but surely being taken out of Christianity?

[Beanieboy]

Sorry I'm going on so much, but I wanted to weigh in for me. In 84, annoyed with Churches saying GLBTQ were not welcome, I quit Church. I quit in the disgust of condemnation from Christians towards those with AIDS, rather than any compassion. And when I did, I understood God on a much, much deeper level. At 18, I was baptised by the Spirit, and spoke in tongues, so I knew God was real. I remember having long talks with God since I was 4. So I put aside what I was told by my congregation I have to believe, and went out in the wilderness in search of who God is. I showed me.

God was not the angry dad on a throne keeping track of every sin, but was life itself, love itself, I was an expression of the Father and saw it in all people, all life, even the stars.

I realized some people are spiritual, some are religious. Religious people are preoccupied by dogma. They have rules, and the rules must be followed. They may fast to suffer for God, thinking the very joys of the world are sins. This allows them to have control. They become judge and jury to anyone who disagrees with their truth, they dare claim is God's Word.

Spiritual people, on the other hand, seek God, seek the Spirit. They realizethat by loving your neighbor, the laws are fulfilled, and you love God. They acknowledge they may be in error, and don't demand others agree with them. They are ok saying "I don't know" sometimes. But above all, they focus on love and kindness for others, and a relationship with God

I put away the idea that "I would die for Christ", and replaced it with the choice to live for Him instead.

 

[lismore]

Can you be more specific? Christ commanded us to love our neighbor as ourselves, and in so, love God.

I agree with you that the church should love it's neighbours and not bully people. An example of what I'm talking about would be here on the Wee Flea Blog (The Wee Flea is the former Moderator of the Free Church of Scotland)

One of the most astonishing conversations I ever had in St Peters was with an elder from a village church in Angus. He didn’t know who I was but told me quite proudly that he belonged to a church where the minister did not teach the bible. When I asked him why he replied, ”because it doesn’t attract the young people”. When I then asked him how many young people were in his church – he said ‘none’.
The Slow Death of the Church of Scotland – Accelerates – TheWeeFlea.com

The church very often doesn't share a Christian perspective on topical issues because it does not know what the Christian perspective is. The gospel and the scriptures are being systematically elbowed out of church. An answer from an Evangelical leader might rely more on secular philosophy than the bible and a Charismatic leader on subjective 'new revelation' rather than the bible. The difference now is foundational, in past centuries there was a voice from the church standing up against evil, these days when evil raises it's head there is silence. Love your neighbour, tell him the truth.
God Bless

 

[John Helpher]

I just feel like, for instance, through Church services, and any other forum of Christanity, that Jesus is slowly being forgotten. I just feel like Jesus is being watered down a lot. Can't just be me?

Jesus said much the same, i.e. "the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief corner stone".

A cornerstone is a practical tool used for measuring right angels and straight walls when constructing a building. It is a measurement for the successful, strong, true, integral foundation of a building.

That is what the teachings of Jesus are. He said these teachings will be rejected by the "builders" (or religious leaders). Christians are the leaders (or builders) of Christianity, so Jesus was trying to say that there will be many people claiming to be Christian who actually reject his teachings, and i think the reality bears this out.

For example, did you know Jesus said we should not make promises for any reason? Did you know he said we should pray, fast, and give to charity in secret? Did you know Jesus said we should not use special titles like father, Mir, and Sir? Did you know he said we should be wary of people who wear special clothing? Did you know he said we cannot work for God and money at the same time without cheating on one or the other and that our new, full-time job is to work for God's kingdom of love, by going into all the world to preach the gospel, first?

There are so many teachings of Jesus which are ignored by most Christians today.

 

[lismore]

There are so many teachings of Jesus which are ignored by most Christians today.

Agree! God Bless You