The Sharpened Spoon

As of late, with the economic sky falling, and the "antichrist" being elected (which he wasn't) and all, I began the process of reexamining my faith. There are an awful lot of thought provoking arguments against the religion of Christianity. Which leads me to the conclusion: maybe I am not a Christian.

Before you freak out and call in the God Squad goons to pull me down off the ledge, hear me out. The term Christian wasn't coined by Jesus, or Paul or some first century Church Father. It came about because one local group of believers loved each other so much that the people around them recognized their love for each other closely resembled the love they had witnessed in the life of Jesus. They epitomized the self-sacrificing love of the Son of God!

So, no matter what bumper sticker I have on my car, who I voted for, what radio station or Itunes downloads I may pour into my brain. No matter how many times I read whatever book is on top of the best seller list or even my Bible from cover to cover, if it doesn't lead me to seek others ahead of myself, then I AM NOT A CHRISTIAN! Yes, I believe in Jesus, and on him for my salvation. I know that there is nothing I can do apart from him and nothing I can't do with him. I have absolutely no doubt that my soul is saved, but does that make me worthy of this title?

We have taken so much on ourselves. The right to judge others, the right to discern the truth, the ability to amass wealth (which the Bible strongly reccommends against) for "righteous" purposes. We rail against our enemies that Jesus said to pray for! (and I don't think he meant, the Father Forgive Them their sins type of prayer) We honor fighting men who kill in defense of a flag and denounce those that seek peace. We say that we are citizens of a world beyond this one while perpetually seeking a political foothold here. We are at best doubleminded! Jesus said that a doubleminded man was unstable in all his ways, and that he should not ask anything of God unless he truly expected it!

If our faith is in God, then why are we whining as he pulls down the altars of Mammon that have driven our society to the brink of destruction? Why are we so upset over losing this "stuff" that he told us point blank not to "store up" in the first place???!!! We have become like the unfaithful servant. In the guise of "stewardship" we have taken what rightfully belonged to God, and was given us for the benefit of all, and set it aside for our own future comfort while our neighbors go hungry!

How is it possible that we honestly believe that there is nothing oppressive about a system (capitalism) that leaves forty percent of its practitioners crying out to the government for basic sustenance! Get a job!! Hey, rich guy!! When's the last time you scrubbed floors for ten hours for minimum wage??!!! But the other side has their issues too. For instance, the problem is not how do we get what you have so we can be too comfortable to remember those who need our help, it ought rather to be how can we find ourselves in the place of the first century Church where no one had need of anything???!!! How do any of us go to bed with indigestion from gluttony while even one person goes hungry???!!! Wake the hell up people!!??? Think this is bad, this "worst economic downturn in the last three decades" it can and will get a lot worse if we don't call it what it is and repent of it! GREED! It's a sin, people, God forgive me of it!