Jesus and Christianity


There is a difference

It always saddens me to find out that someone turned away from Jesus because of the off-putting behaviors of those who claim to follow Him. I can definitely understand the pain one might experience as a result of a Christian falling very short of displaying the love of God and I can understand the knee jerk reaction to no longer want to associate with some who say they are fellow Christians but... that has nothing to do with your own relationship with the Lord. I'll explain my view. I do not follow Jesus based on what my Pastor says on Sundays or based on how those around me who profess Christianity act and live. See, my relationship is not rooted in Christianity, it's rooted in the Christ. And when we find ourselves easily (or maybe not so easily) walking away from the One to Whom we've claimed to give our lives, we have to examine what/Who we were actually following and for what/Whom we were actually living.

Christianity is defined as the religion based on the person and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, or its beliefs and practices. But being in an intimate relationship with the God of the universe goes so much deeper than mere Christianity. Being in a relationship with God is having Him commune with you and allow you to do the same. It's having the power that rose Jesus from the dead alive in you. It's knowing that your hope of salvation cannot be shaken or taken from you-- and that Hope is Jesus. 'Christianity' is just the label that we gave based off of the name that the original followers of Jesus were called way back in the Bible days*. It seems as though the definition of Christianity gets changed so much depending on who you talk to and that's why we shouldn't be "following" Christianity. We should be following the Christ. Being a Christian is not just reading the Bible about what Jesus did but it's putting those truths into action. It's getting to know Him and not just about Him.

I've been hurt by Christians before, who hasn't? But my relationship with Jesus has nothing to do with them and what they did. The truth is, my relationship with the Lord is simply that, my relationship with Him. It has nothing to do with anyone else and everything to do with Him. And He has never failed me. The awful and hard things I've experienced in life have not deterred me from seeking after Jesus. There was a time when I was fearful of my closeness to the Lord but that is a different situation. What I am hopeful to drive home is that if there is something that anyone does that causes us to shrink away from Jesus or "Christianity", we need to look at what our hope was in. We can't allow the actions of others to turn us away from the true and living God, even when they claim to follow Him. If we have a good enough understanding of the Word and Spirit of God, then our attitude won't be one of "I want nothing to do with the God they serve". Instead, we would pray for those who seem to "give Christianity a bad name" or at the very least, just keep a healthy distance from those people.

It is an inevitability that people, whether Christian or not, will disappoint and wound us. And it is in those moments, or after them, that we must seek God harder to separate the difference in what they did and what Jesus would do. You know that now clichéd saying? Well even Christ followers won't always do it. But Jesus will always do what Jesus would do. Follow Jesus over everything else. And just because it sounds like Jesus, doesn't mean it is Him.


*Scripture references:
Acts 11:26

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

October 25, 2015

Image
Odd one out So I have always felt like the girl who didn't belong. In school growing up, at former churches (sad, I know), at work, I just felt like I could not fit in or "join" any group. I was always the odd one. I didn't, however, feel this way with my family; I felt fine around my mom and sister. Sure, I felt pressure and a heavy weight of responsibility but I didn't feel like an outcast. Not until October 25, 2015. You see that blue pencil up there? That was me after returning from Res, I was broken. I was broken and everyone around me knew it. I couldn't hide it or cover it up anymore. I was an alien compared to those closest to me, my brain and the way it worked was different. And the difference was so visible to me as I immersed myself back into "home" life. The way I related to food was so different than those who lived with me. It's hard to explain but I can feel the difference in myself, in my brain. I can tell how different I am c
Read more

No One Would Have Guessed

Image
Suicide Prevention Month Today is the first day of Suicide Prevention Month. This is so important to me because it can be so easy to pass by someone who is hurting and not even notice their pain because they hide it so well. The picture of me above is from 2014 (if I recall correctly), Christmas time. Something that everyone knows about me is that I love Christmas and it is the happiest time for me. And that's what you'd get from looking at this picture. You'd see how I was very thorough in making sure that I was dressed in accordance with the holiday, even down to a jingle bell ring on my finger out of picture. What you wouldn't see is the evidence of the tears I shed moments after having taken the pic. You wouldn't see the gripping pain that accompanied me out of the bathroom and downstairs to where my mom and sis waited. And you wouldn't guess that I wanted nothing more than to be done with life. Nope, you'd see a happy, excited and ready-for-Christ
Read more

For Me

Image
Never About ... Possibly triggering... It was never about trying to be Barbie's bff or about getting the attraction of Ken. I never wanted to appear like the malnourished looking models that "grace" our magazines or be as thin as the mannequins that modeled their fashion. But I have wanted the infamous thigh gap , just waaaay before those two words were ever used together. Way before it seemed to be a "trend". I never even called it that as I fantasized about having tinier thighs. I just remember looking at myself as a child and hating what I saw. I hated the way my legs touched. I wanted so much for them to be apart, so as to allow a small glimmer of light to shine between them when I stood or sat. I just wanted to be able to slip my hand between them easily without feeling their flesh brushing against my fingers. It was never about looking like those around me, but about strength. I had to be fit and toned and  strong. Everything on me needed to be pe
Read more