I was raised as a cultural Christian with little understanding of what being a follower of Jesus really meant. I felt the call to ministry when I was 16, and my faith and theology was pretty much what someone that age would believe; it was shallow and immature. Still, I was open to the Spirit’s guidance, hoping to become more like Jesus in my life. That process continues. Over the years, I have had thousands of conversations with people who were considering becoming a Christian. Not a Christian in name only – not a Christian on some church membership list – a Christian who took their faith seriously and tried to follow Jesus. This means that we often have to reject some of the ways we were raised, whether it be the shreds of Christian Nationalism that have define the faith throughout history, or some of the doctrines of our denominations that aren’t true. And I am not naive enough to believe that any of us can follow Jesus 100%; that bar is pretty high. But we need to do our best to allow God to work through us in ways we might not want.
My question to these people I have spoken with over the years – and to you reading this – is, “what kind of Christian (or Jew, Hindu, Muslim, etc.) will you be?” There are a lot of ways to believe, and they can all be right and wrong in their own ways; but no – to be more specific – do you want to be a Mr. Rogers or Dolly Parton Christian, or a Franklin Graham or Paula White Christian? Are you focused on wealth as a sign of God’s favor, or do you believe that faith is about being generous? Are you a Charlie Kirk Christian who believes women should obey and serve men, or a Jimmy Carter Christian who believes women should be welcome in the pulpit and behind the communion table? Are you the hateful Pete Hegseth, or the giving Mother Teresa kind? It really matters which kind of people of faith we want to be. Do you follow the egalitarian teachings of Jesus, or the sexism and misogyny of the men who hijacked the church at the end of the 1st century? I will warn you that the sexist, racist kind of christian is far more prevalent – and popular – than those who believe in inequality, so you won’t be in the majority.
I don’t think any of us get it 100% right, and I absolutely don’t believe that any of us are perfect. That designation is for Jesus alone. I do think, however, that John Wesley got it partly right; we are all either moving towards perfection, or being better, or we are backsliding, allowing our personal biases to control our lives. I treat every day as if it were my last, and not in a dramatic way. I don’t worry I will expire in some heroic way. For me, doing my best today matters, because I might not get a chance to do it tomorrow. I will never complete it all, but I will die trying. Are we giving kinds of Christians, or takers? I think that matters to God, and it should matter to each one of us. The world is watching, and we Christians are largely failing. Which kind are you?
Prayer – Holy God, may the light that shines from You be reflected in our lives. Amen.
Today’s art is “Small Acts of Kindness” by Gabby Heller.