Before heading off to bed tonight, I went downstairs to eat a bagel. I flipped on the TV and there -- smack dab in the middle of the screen -- was a TV evangelist. This fellow's name is Kevin Gerald and he hails from Tacoma. I suppose it's nice to know we have a few shepherds for the lambs of the northwest. ;-)
Normally, I would immediately change the channel because I would prefer not to hear even a few seconds of this dribble. But Kevin Gerald said something that caught my attention, so I decided to grit my teeth and listen.
He was talking about poverty. He was ranting about how any form of welfare was a bad thing because it encourages people to be lazy. This perspective is nothing new; conservatives rant about it all the time. It's what he said next that caused me to write this entry before going off to slumber land.
He said that God doesn't like lazy people and said people are less likely to merit God's grace.
Whoa! In numerous discussions with fundamentalist Christians, the one message I hear over and over again is that a person's works do not earn grace; it is dispensed due to God's mercy. So, why should God care if you hold a full-time job or not?
What if there was a man or a woman who upheld all the ten commandments, but, for whatever reason, decided he/she didn't want to hold a job? Wouldn't that be preferable to a man or woman who held a job, but only held a few of the commandments or held them when it is convenient?
But this Gerald character wasn't done. He next stated that people who are confident and prosperous will receive more of God's grace. So, it seems that works DO matter after all. Those that have will receive more and those who have not will receive less or nothing -- God must really like capitalists!!
Of course, this fellow would promote such a message because his web site is all about selling you needless books and videos for a hefty price tag!
Normally, I would immediately change the channel because I would prefer not to hear even a few seconds of this dribble. But Kevin Gerald said something that caught my attention, so I decided to grit my teeth and listen.
He was talking about poverty. He was ranting about how any form of welfare was a bad thing because it encourages people to be lazy. This perspective is nothing new; conservatives rant about it all the time. It's what he said next that caused me to write this entry before going off to slumber land.
He said that God doesn't like lazy people and said people are less likely to merit God's grace.
Whoa! In numerous discussions with fundamentalist Christians, the one message I hear over and over again is that a person's works do not earn grace; it is dispensed due to God's mercy. So, why should God care if you hold a full-time job or not?
What if there was a man or a woman who upheld all the ten commandments, but, for whatever reason, decided he/she didn't want to hold a job? Wouldn't that be preferable to a man or woman who held a job, but only held a few of the commandments or held them when it is convenient?
But this Gerald character wasn't done. He next stated that people who are confident and prosperous will receive more of God's grace. So, it seems that works DO matter after all. Those that have will receive more and those who have not will receive less or nothing -- God must really like capitalists!!
Of course, this fellow would promote such a message because his web site is all about selling you needless books and videos for a hefty price tag!
Ah! I "love" it. How do people become self-confident?
ReplyDeleteGenerally you've got to have been born privileged in some fashion to become self-confident (loving parents, for instance).
Then God loves you for having what, in theory, he gave you at birth, and gives you more.
So, if someone was born with shitty luck, or not blessed by God to start with, he or she will never get a second look from the Almighty, because well, he likes confident people.
Not to put it bluntly but he's an idiot. And you know where I come from. Works merit nothing. There is nothing that you can give to God that is not already His.
ReplyDeleteAlso, a good example of this is found in the Bible that illustrates how God only considers the motives of your heart and not your works.
23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. Matthew 23:23
The Widow's Offering
41Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins,[a]worth only a fraction of a penny.[b]
43Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on." - Mark 12:38-44
These two passages clearly show that the Pharisees-(who were the epitome of religious nuts) were hypocrites! the deeds you do for God should not be done to earn rewards. It is your motive that is what makes the deeds special to God.
Faith in Christ as your Savior and Lord and belief that He died on the cross, rose again, and is the Son of God is the only thing that saves you.
If you are saved, you will do works. NOT the other way around.
But Tye, in the end, all motives are selfish! So I guess we're all screwed.
ReplyDeleteAll motives? what about love? is that a selfish motive? when a person sacrifices his own life for that of the one he loves what selfish motive was present?
ReplyDeletePeople love others in the hope it is returned.
ReplyDeleteAltruism -- The person may wish to be remembered in a positive light or he/she thinks they will earn brownie points with the almighty.
um too bad i already said it doesn't work that way. what if people don't treat other people the way they do in the hopes that they get treated the same back? Paul certainly didn't. he knew what they would do to him if he proclaimed God's message. He did it not to earn "brownie points" but because it was what God told him to do.
ReplyDeleteFrankly, I don't really care if you love me back as a Christian. I could care less. I'm on here because I hope that you or someone else who reads this might stop and think about Christianity.
Tye,
ReplyDeleteI spent my first 20 years or so "thinking about Christianity". It was all that thinking that convinced me it's nothing more than human-inspired (and dangerous) tripe. :)
Like i said, it's not just about you. and consequently, men like Norman Geisler have been thinking and debating Christianity for about 70 years now. written over 60-some books
ReplyDelete