Her questions and my responses are:
1. How is the Christian portrayed? Favorably or unfavorably? How is the Christ Follower portrayed? Favorably or unfavorably?
The Christian is portrayed as a stereo-typical Independent Fundamental type with a heavy stack of dry, boring books and rule manuals with KJV only Bible on top, and bumper stickers inside his suit so everyone will know he is a Christian. It's meant to be quite unfavorable. The Christ Follower is portrayed as cool and relevant, your best buddy, very likable and totally unencumbered by all the books and "stuff" of the fundamentalist. It's meant to be favorable and approachable.
2. What message is the video attempting to convey about those who use the name Christian?
Uncool, not relevant, reads too much, too interested in his image and wanting to be known as Christian. Not approachable. Proud, arrogant, etc. A Pharisee.
3. What audience is this video attempting to reach?
Young and/or disaffected with church or Christianity. Those who associate Christianity with the stereotype presented by the "Christian." To some extent I can agree with the sentiment behind this, for I think some groups have done damage to our witness by being too much like this stereotype and not as loving as we ought to be when sharing the Gospel. There is a group around here that stand on the corners around the "Historic Downtown" area and wear sandwich boards and wave KJVOnly Bibles and shout. I'm not real sure how effective this really is. There was someone like that in Gainesville when I was a student at the University of Florida who would do the same thing in the Plaza, and when we walked by on our way to class, he would point a finger at us (yes, at me once, too) and shout, "Slut! Jezebel!" I guess because I was wearing pants, and modest clothing, at that? Anyway, I used to think, "How dare he? I am a Child of the King, and he doesn't know me at all!" So, if I, a real Christian would bristle at this, how much more so someone who is still in rebellion to God and hasn't been reached with the Gospel? Then he would "preach" and all that I ever saw come about was that large groups of sceptics would crawl out of the woodwork to debate him. I never once heard honest discussion with someone who was under true conviction. So. Point being that I do understand the sentiment of wanting to reach out to the disenfranchised, but I do NOT think we should compromise on what the Bible says to do it.
4. Is this just a case of semantics? Are Christians, after all, simply Christ Followers? What do you think?
I guess a case could be made that it is a case of semantics - after all, Christians are to be followers of Christ. However, having read quite a bit of what is going on in the current postmodern scheme of doing church, I don't think that's really all that is meant by the term. What I'm seeing in most of the instances where this term is being thrown about is an attitude of, "Hey, we're all on this journey together. You follow Christ the way you see fit, and I'll do the same, and we'll agree to be tolerant of each other and agree to disagree on certain things." Also, I don't hear much talk at all about repentance, God's wrath (and no, it is NOT just an Old Testament concept!) or the need to die daily to ourselves and take up the cross and follow Him. The kind of following that seems to be alluded to is more a "let's all just get along, and it's okay if you want to live however you want as long as you are nice to people and claim to follow Jesus." I wouldn't presume to say that this particular church means that with their video, just that this is what I tend to see when people use these false types of comparisons.
I say false comparison, because there are many of us who truly believe that the Bible is God's Word and that we need to be reverent before a holy God, but who are not like the stereotype offered up in this video. I do think as we become more and more casual, we are losing our reverential awe and respect for God's absolute holiness. When one becomes a Christian, yes, he will ultimately become a Christ-follower in that as the Holy Spirit works in us we will begin the walk of sanctification that will lead to our behavior coming more and more in line with obedience to His Word. But here's what I tend to see among the post-modern type of thought portrayed by this hip, cool, casual approach: they tend to be fairly worldly in their approach. Yes, we should understand the culture we live in, but we should not embrace the things in that culture that dishonor God - coarse speech, flippant attitude toward holy things, loving the things of this world too much, and a willingness to not call sin what it is - sin. And that is what I tend to see. So, yes, there is a difference. A Christian is one who understands that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father apart from Him. A "Christ-follower" tends to be more open to discussion on what ought to be nonnegotiable things. There is something to be said about loving those we want to reach with the Gospel and trying to understand where they are coming from. But in doing so, we must not be just like them. We are different when we are in Christ, and we must be true to Him, not so in love with our liberty that we, in actuality become stumbling blocks by not looking any different than the unredeemed we seek to reach.
One more thing. In the video, the "Christ Follower" says to the Christian something along the lines of "That's a lot of reading." Kind of implying that we don't need all that, we just need to get about the business of following Jesus. Well, doctrine is important. Unless we do read the Bible and know what God has revealed about Himself, we can't really follow Christ. And, contrary to popular belief today, there are absolutes. That's not to say I understand everything I read in the Bible, but there are definitely knowable truths that aren't up for discussion. The Bible says what it says, and most of the time when people are wanting to quibble about meaning, I've found, it's over things that are pretty clear, but hard to accept. And therein is the crux of the issue, I believe. We don't want to admit we are totally depraved before a holy and righteous God. But that's what the Bible teaches.
"But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." 2 Timothy 3:1-8
Long post. Must now go and get about the mundane business of cleaning the house this morning.
1 comment:
Bravo and amen! :)
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