The Uncommon Christian

We don’t truly know what the first sin was, but the first sin spoken of in the Bible was the decision made by Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. From this point on, the Bible is filled with countless stories of sin against God. As humans, our depravity grows stronger and more twisted than we could possibly imagine. Multiple times it becomes so bad that God destroys entire cities. Discrimination is not new. It has become popular in modern times because we can look to our recent past. Unfortunately, we don’t learn from our past. People complain about American enslavement of Africans in the late 1800s and atrocities that Africans living in the United States faced before and after the Civil Rights movement. I understand the injustice that was American history. Those people did not deserve to be put through what they were. No one deserves that. But when are we going to stop repeating history? Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual, or group, by ...

Virtually all people, Christian or not, understand that a crucifix is used as a symbol of belief in Christ. It’s engraved on rings, worn around necks, and even tattooed into people’s flesh so that they can carry the symbol of Christianity wherever they go. We have come to recognize places of worship based on the religious symbol attached to the building. Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and so on; Each religion has a unique identifier. In some cases, we will even become aggressive or outright violent, in defense of our religious symbols. Why, though? Is it right to attach these symbols to our faith and hold them above all else in our life? Is that not a form of idolatry? Exodus 20:3-6 “You are to have no other gods before me.  You are not to make for yourselves a carved image or any kind of representation of anything in heaven above, on the earth beneath or in the water below the shoreline.  You are not to bow down to them or serve them; for I,  Adon...

You may not be able to recite all 7 deadly sins, but I’m sure you’ve at least heard of them once or twice. Regardless of what denomination you consider yourself to be, Christians typically only talk about the ten commandments or the 7 deadly sins when it comes to being obedient to God. I remember a few “fire and brimstone” sermons from my childhood that discussed damnation to hell.  My father was Catholic and brought me and my siblings to church with him on occasion. Usually the mass would precede games, food, or some other celebratory event. It was rare to hear anything about hell or displeasing God, but the 7 deadly sins were almost a guarantee if the priest was trying to scare you into being obedient to God. As a young child it made perfect sense to me. If you believe in God you have to avoid doing 7 things or you will die. However, I didn’t believe in God at the time and didn’t care to learn more about Him or His commandments. 1.        Prid...

The Roman Catholic Church has around 1.285 billion members worldwide, is the largest Christian denomination, and is one of the oldest religions. Like other Christian denominations, the Roman Catholic Church believes that Christ died for our sins; however, there are a few distinct differences between Catholicism and other Christian denominations. The one I want to discuss today is the leadership of the Roman Catholic Church. Most people, Christian or not, have heard of Pope Francis. He is the 266 th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and is easily the most well-known leader of any Christian denomination. However, how many people are aware that most Christian denominations have similar hierarchies? Evangelicals have Geoff Tunnicliffe who is responsible for leading the World Evangelical Alliance. The churches that are part of the World Evangelical Alliance have over 600 million members and was founded in the mid-1800s. The World Communion of Reformed Churches has Jerry Pillay. You may n...

With 80% of the nation considering themselves to be Christian in some form or fashion I assume that many Americans participate in Lent. My family and I have attended numerous churches, 12+ churches of varying denominations, and all have encouraged participation in Lent. Not only is participation encouraged, but advertisement of what is being sacrificed, or given up, for lent is expected. Most people taking part ask the ever popular question, “What are you giving up for lent this year?” Lent is meant to be a ritual commemorating the sacrifices made by Jesus as he wandered the desert for 40 days. He had no luxuries and fasted for those 40 days. Traditionally, lent was a 40 day long fast in which most foods were given up and additional luxuries were sacrificed. Today, most people choose one thing to refrain from for 40 days. I myself am guilty of this. The one time I participated in Lent I gave up added sugars. That’s all. There are many reasons to fast; mourning, celebration, honor...

“We’re not under the law anymore. Now, we’re under grace.”  I hear this a lot from practicing Christians. Even preachers have said similar things. Both while delivering sermons and while speaking with me one-on-one. We have songs dedicated to God’s grace and how we’re no longer bound by the law. I can’t say that this has always bothered me because I haven’t always known what I do now. However, having learned more about God, and Christ, that style of thinking makes less sense to me. To fully understand, I think that it’s important for Christians to know what grace is. We seem to think that grace is synonymous with love. Even online definitions of the term refer to grace as unmerited favor or the act of being favored by God. However, multiple times throughout the Bible grace is made synonymous with pity. Being favored indicates that you have approval. What is bestowed on you is a sign of support. Pity is a sign of compassion. Although our actions don’t merit God’s approval,...

Is war biblical? Perhaps. However, is it Christ like? According to a 2018 poll reported by ABC News, 83% of Americans believe in Christ and consider themselves to be Christian in some form or fashion. This number fluctuates from poll to poll because it’s based on calls to a fraction of all US homes. However, I think that it is safe to say that roughly 80% of US adults consider themselves Christians. According to Gallup polls, a total of 72% of US adults supported the Iraq war. This means that, even if all non-Christian adults supported the Iraq war you still have 52% of all US adults supporting a war while considering themselves to be Christian. So, it looks like almost all US adult Christians support war or can view it as justifiable in some cases. Although God could rightly be referred to as the god of war can we really say that Christians should support war or justify it? There are many instances in which God promoted war, but are we bound by Old Testament law? Are we not under ...