Monday, May 5, 2014

Red Letter Christians

Many people are starting to become red letter Christians. In attempts to justify certain attitudes and actions, these people give temporary authority to Scripture so that they can punctuate those things Jesus did not say as being the ultimate standard of absolute truth. Meanwhile, these same people also conveniently forget to give authority to the vast amount of things Jesus did say. You could call this Cherry-picking Theology.

The problem is, red letter Christians are not actually Christians at all.

These people will argue, "Jesus never said anything about smoking marijuana," or "Jesus never said anything about homosexuality," in attempts to find justification for the wrong they are committing. Jesus also never said anything about bestiality or pedophilia. Does that make them okay to commit? Absolutely not! There is more to the Bible than just the red letters. The entire Bible was inspired by the Holy Spirit. It is God's Word. Since Jesus is God, the entire Bible is His Word. Not just the red letters.

First of all, the Bible informs us that not everything said or done by Jesus has been recorded. So arguing that Jesus never said anything about something in particular is a foolish argument. Second of all, while something may not appear in the red letters, it is either addressed directly elsewhere or the principle behind it can be found elsewhere. Those who try to live by what is not found in the red letters are engaging in a corrupt form or reverse legalism.
"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it." Matthew 7:13-14
There is a principle to be gleaned from this passage. As Curtis Allen said, "When the majority of people are saying that something is good, best believe that is the wide gate that leads to destruction. So take the opposite perspective, though it will be hard, because it leads you to life everlasting." Legalizing marijuana, prostitution (bringing back brothels), and homosexuality does not make them okay, right, or correct. It does not matter what the majority of sinful wretches chase after and say is fine, the truth of the matter is that they are not fine. They are harmful to the individual, to those around them, and to society and culture as a whole.

Man does not know what is best for mankind. God does! The church needs to start being the guiding influence in the lives of those around them again, being the salt and the light. Salt preserves and light illuminates. The problem is, the church has lost its saltiness and its light has grown dim. When the church cannot discern right from wrong there is a problem. That should be evidence that the Holy Spirit is missing from those individuals and those churches. There needs to be repentance and a returning to the Lord via revival. May that revival start with ourselves and spread from there.