“Christians are horrible, they are so mean.”
Not only is this sentiment too common today, but these were the words I heard from one of our varsity basketball players this morning. We had just finished a win over a Christian school who’s crowd began a personal verbal attack on the player over perceived rough defense. The 15 year-old player was left reeling from a crowd of adults screaming at her. As I overheard her talking to her mother on the phone, the words of dissappointment stung with each syllable.
“Christians are supposed to be the best, but they are the worse.”
Unfortunately this was the second Christian school in as many days who had behaved in a similar manner. I must confess my own behavior has not always been exemplary during close and heated games. The words this morning stung because it brought home how much my behavior represents Christ, too often in a negative way.
The United States went through a phase of t-shirts, bracelets, and other Christian merchandise that challenged us to ask”What Would Jesus Do?” or “WWJD?” when confronted with a decision. Apart from the superficial nature of t-shirt Christianity, I wonder if we would have been better served challenging believers to “LLJD” or “live like Jesus did.” I’m sure there was no room in Jesus’ life for screaming at a 15 year-old basketball player no matter how hard the foul.
Most stores have a lost and found department. It’s usually the last attempt to find a lost possession. We go there hoping that some kind, honest person has turned our lost item in. I call Luke chapter 15 the lost and found chapter. There resides three stories of things lost, one about a little lost sheep, one out of a hundred. “Then Jesus told them this parable. Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it. And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ’Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.” One of the most beautiful poems I have ever found was written by a lady by the name of Ethel M.C. Brazelton entitled, “POOR LIL’ BRACK SHEEP”. It depicts a conversation between a shepherd and his hired servant , the “hirelin”.
The Bible is at times so grand and the plot so complex it’s sometimes difficult for most of us to gather details about God’s will for us. We rely on scholars and theologians to interpret passages but because of disagreement among scholars we are forced to choose which we feel is most correct. That’s why it’s good to take an overview of the scriptures to discern the context; I describe this view as a “helicopter view.”
During my time in the Army, situations on the ground became much clearer when viewed from a position that permitted a view of the entire operation, not just one small perspective on the ground. This was done by finding high terrain, using unmanned arial vehicles (UAV), or jumping in a helicopter and seeing first hand the big view. This helicopter view is important when studying single scriptures to better understand the intent of the writer at that time to the recipients. The same can be said concerning the complete collection of biblical collection of writings. So what’s the story?
