5 Things Christians Need to Stop Saying

In a nation where over 70% of the population considers themselves to be one denomination of Christianity or another, you would think there would be more to show for it. Murder, rape, abuse, abortion, homelessness, hunger, and theft are daily occurrences in this country. Why? It’s not because only non-Christians commit crimes. There are a lot of Christians that go in and out of prison. Many Christians also see homeless or hungry people and do nothing to help. We pray, but that’s all most of us do. We need to do more and I think that there are some things we’re saying to ourselves, or hearing from other Christians, that is keeping us from being better Christians.

1.   “I go to church every Sunday.”

I know that many Christians want to believe that this is the most important part of being a Christian, but church attendance is NOT what makes you a Christian. Yes, we are called to fellowship, but fellowshipping isn’t part of our salvation. It is something that we do for ourselves. By meeting with other Christians we should be encouraging each other to act righteously and emulate Christ. I don’t recall the last time I got that out of attending church. Most church services start with listening to music, prayer, and a lecture about paying tithes. Then you hear one or two verses from the Bible in which the preacher follows up with his opinion and thoughts on the verses. The verses chosen to be discussed depend on the preacher and interaction with the attendees is typically low. Then more music is played, followed by a closing prayer. In what way is that fellowshipping? The only true fellowship that occurs in most churches happens before and after the service. Unfortunately, few Christians are actually talking about God or Christ at this time. We need to bring back true fellowship. The kind spoken of in the New Testament.

2.   “Once saved, always saved.”

Coupled with this phrase would be, “Do you know where you’ll go when you die?” and “I know I’m saved.” No one knows if they’re saved and, true or not, we need to stop saying this. I, personally, don’t believe this to be true (see this blog on salvation) but, that’s not important. This phrase keeps many Christians from doing anything to help others. When something is guaranteed or handed to you without effort most of us don’t work for it. The Bible tells us what we must do to be saved. Many people point to a few short verses that talk of baptism and proclaiming faith in Christ. How wonderful would it be if all we had to do was say “I believe Christ died for my sins” and get dunked in some water? Most people don’t understand what faith is. They think that it is the same as believe. The Bible tells us what faith is. It’s obedience. In order to show faith in Christ we must be obedient to the commands He gave us. There were two simple commands given by Christ: love God and love your neighbor. We’re also given many parables and allegories about losing salvation. When trees stop producing fruit they’re chopped down and thrown in the fire. Every Christian should recognize that line. Why do we assume that it no longer applies to us since we were baptized and verbally announced that we believe in Christ’s sacrifice? We still must produce fruit.

3.   “I’ll pray for you.”

As nice as this sounds this phrase is well overused. Why do so many of us say this? We’re told to keep prayer between us and God. Don’t make a show of it. Don’t announce it to the world who you will or won’t pray for. If you want it to mean something to the person you’re talking to then pray with them. As uncomfortable as it might make us prayer is about our relationship with God, not our personal level of comfort. Even as new Christians, when someone truly needs prayer, we should not be embarrassed, or ashamed, to take them by the hand and reach out verbally to God. This phrase is also frequently used where prayer doesn’t apply. If you have the means to physically, or emotionally, help the person you intend to pray for then you should skip the prayer and actually help them. The hungry can be fed if we stop praying and start offering them food. The homeless can be taken in if we stop praying and start pulling our resources as Christians to offer them a place to stay. Why not house them in churches? There’s plenty of space. They would be kept warm and off of the streets. They could help with menial tasks to reduce operational expenses. Who knows, maybe they might even attend services and meet new people that can help them get on their feet. Even during times of disaster I rarely see churches open their doors to people within the community. We act as if churches are only there for church service. Is helping the hungry, homeless, or otherwise in need people doing God’s work?

4.   “Jesus would be a insert political party here.”

Especially during elections this is a popular quote among voters. I can’t count how many times I’ve been told that Jesus would be a Republican or a Democrat. Why do we always think that Jesus would be exactly like us? He was/is perfect. I am not. I have many flaws. However, even with my flaws, I can see that lapse in logic of claiming that Jesus would be a Republican or Democrat. Democrats typically support abortion, forced participation in things like health insurance and vaccinations, open sexuality, drug use, suicide, close involvement in the raising of other people’s children, and strictly controlled education of children. Republicans typically support isolationism in the form of strict foreign policies or building physical barriers, the death penalty, terminating or restricting programs that help those in need, increased military spending, murder in self-defense, and extended punishments for most crimes. Christ supported personal freedom. He didn’t force others to be like Him, but He did encourage it. He didn’t support killing others whether in the womb, walking freely, or yourself. He promoted forgiveness, non-violence, and helping others. Why do we pretend anything differently than that? Because we want to justify our own thoughts and opinions by telling ourselves that Jesus would agree.

5.   “I’m a insert denomination here.”

There are hundreds of Christian denominations. When I speak with Christians, regardless of their denomination, I tell them that I am a believer in Christ. I am nothing more and nothing less. Many denominations believe that you have to follow their instruction in order to be saved. That’s not what the Bible says. In fact, the Bible tells us not to build on the foundation of others and to not divide ourselves in such ways. When we say that we’re Evangelicals, Lutherans, Baptists, 7^th Day Adventists, etc. we’re claiming to be followers of the individuals that founded those denominations. I know that we all think that we know the truth, but we will never learn the truth if we constantly divide ourselves and close ourselves off to alternative views and opinions. True fellowship would open us to differing thoughts and allow us to learn more about God and Christ. Modern church doesn’t allow for fellowshipping. You either agree with the preacher or find a new church to go to. Why can’t we just meet and discuss the Bible openly without a preacher?

When you go out into the world today choose your words a little more carefully. Retrain your brain and think about Christ, and Christianity, differently. Do more to help those around you and do more to understand God. If we can all refrain from using these phrases we can retrain ourselves to be better Christians.