I think it is a big issue in the church today that we have
not done the best job at mixing with the culture of America. Personally I don’t
think that the WWJD? bracelets were a stupid thing, but we do have to take into
account that Christians tried to market Jesus. Christians in America, up until
recently, have done a terrible job at creating good art and music. To top it
off, an increase of cheesy t-shirts and clothing started to appear in the
shelves. I think that the problem isn’t necessarily that there are Christian
T-shirts, but the fact that they aren’t worth buying. Granted I have seen some
that I thought were good or even fun, but most are really just ridiculous. It
opens the door for people to think that they have to have a shirt with a Cross
on it that says “I’m not perfect, I’m just forgiven”, which brings me to my
next point. We have to be very careful when we do make these different things
like hats and shirts because in the end we may be giving off the wrong message
about Christ.
The fact of the matter is that the Church has watered down the Gospel to make it appealing to a "marketing world" and to fit "Americanism". It does not help that there are those within the church that cry out "We ain't religious! We're Christians!", which is a false understand of what "religion" really is. Religion is faith lived out. As it is said in the Scriptures, "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." James 1:27 Our faith is reflected in how we live our lives, in how we worship, in how we approach each and every situation that we must deal with in our lives. It's how we interact with others, how we do business, and it can even be seen within our art and architectural...it is the foundation of our philosophies...whether we claim a religious perspective or not. So yea..."What Would Jesus Do?"...but the next question is "What Are You Going to Do?" We ARE Christianity, and we reflect Him. We may mess up and have to go back before our gracious God in repentance, but even in our brokenness we reflect God and we live as a catalyst to the world, mediators between the Light and the Darkness. Wake up Church...your Husband has called you to a higher standard and He has given you a great purpose..to live life to the fullest in awe and loving worship of a good, glorious, and just God.
First, I just had a conversation last night with MB about how I don't like "Christian" music, movies, and other media. I say "Christian" in quotation marks because I believe that if it isn't well done, it isn't really Christian in its orientation.
ReplyDeleteMy point was that whenever one listens to a "Christian" song, or watches a "Christian" movie, their natural response goes something like "That was pretty good, for a Christian movie..."
I simply question why we allow the standard to be lowered for "Christian" art and media. Until the enlightenment, and perhaps even some time after it, Christians were leaders in art and media- we wrote the best books, songs, and scripts; and painted and sculpted the best works of visual art.
If the art isn't beautiful, does it truly honor the God of beauty? If it isn't good, can it truly honor the Source of all goodness?
Second, I simply wish to thank my brother for this post, and in particular for his proper understanding of religion. Little in this universe bothers me more than the sin of hijacking holy words and assigning them evil meanings. I wonder how those hijackers would feel if I said "We're not Christians. A Christian is someone who goes around biting the heads off of small furry woodland creatures!"
Just because you say something means what you want it to mean, doesn't make it so. And it makes you look like an idiot, and it makes normal people angry.
Thanks again, brother!