looooooooove!

 

Passed over Scriptures

Matthew 23:15 (New International Version)
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

I am struggling to understand the meaning of the words of Jesus (above) and how they pertain to us today. I have often said I believe that the Pharisees are equal to modern day Christians.

I grew up in the church, so I can only speak from my own experiences. In all my years in church, I can name less than six people who actually modeled themselves after Christ. Who actually taught me about God's very nature. Someday soon, I will write about these six people. Without them, I would have turned my back on the whole notion of Christianity long ago.

The Pharisees knew Gods Word inside and out.
They prided themselves on being pure and untouched by worldly things.
The Pharisees used the scriptures to manipulate people and gain control, they used the scriptures as a smorgasbord, they took what they liked and hid what they didn't like.
They encouraged buying and selling in God's temple.
The Pharisees used scripture to put themselves on a pedestal.
They loved to greet each other in the marketplace and show to all how holy they were.

(Matt 23)

Does any of this sound familiar to you? I feel like I am talking about people in a couple of local churches in my area. Maybe I am.

In Matt 7, Jesus said: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'"

Its all spelled out in His words. Why why why is it being ignored? My heart is heavy and mourns for so many of the people I have known over the years. I am sorrowful because I don't know how to minister to them. Their hearts are hardened and they don't even realize it.


"The church is in great danger from modern Phariseeism. The problem with fighting it, is that it looks so good. Like the original Pharisees, legalists in the modern church say and do so many good things. It is hard to criticize them without being accused of "un-Christ like behavior." But the "good" of legalism/Phariseeism, is strictly superficial. It masks a deadly commitment to human law-making and superficial religion that will destroy many who fall into its clutches. Very few are able to escape legalism."

Growing Pains

I am aware that often my criticisms of Christian culture can be wearisome. I know also from experience that my beliefs can be deeply offensive to some as well. My goal is not to disparage irrisponsibly every Christian culture facet, but instead I wish I could beg and plead with people to really read their bibles. To really see what Jesus was all about. I am sometimes so horrified and discouraged at how far the modern "church" has come from the basics of the gospel that I do come off as harsh or judgmental. I long for others to step out of their self congragalatory church circles and actually reach out to a hurting world. To get down in the trenches with a person with AIDS, even if it means they are gay. To offer their love and support to someone who might have had pre-martial sex or gotten a divorce.
I hear Christians all the time talk about how they are called to make disciples of all men. Many seem to think that the best way to do this, is find someone who looks like they clearly need help (lets take a homeless person as an example) and give them a track and offer to pray of them, the end. There was no relationship formed with the homeless person. No practical ministering to that persons particular need. You can ask any non Christian who has recieved one of these tracks how they felt about it, and the answer would be the same. They felt assaulted by a drive by "do gooder". They felt angry that the person didn't make any effort to actually help them, but expected a 12 page instructional booklet to do the trick. Most Christians don't know this, because they never speak to the person after delivering the tiny missive. The only other thing that they could do that might possibly be worse is offer an airy "I'll pray for you" before jetting off to their next project.
Its examples like these that make me seem like I am antagonistic towards Christians.
I wish for nothing more than to encourage my fellow Christians to stop for just a moment, and think about what Jesus would think about their approach. Really seek his will. For just a few minutes, tune out what your pastors at your church are saying, put on hold what your peers are telling you, let go of your doctrines and and canons and seek out God's voice.
I think your answer might be different than what you expect.