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Have no idea what to put as the image, so here is a picture of nyan cat.
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I came from an un-christian family. My dad wasn't a christian, and neither was my mom. So naturally, I wasn't either. But everything changed when my brother became a christian. It was a normal thing for a younger brother to look up to his older brother, and I was a normal kid back then. So I looked up to him. I looked up to my older brother a lot. It was then when I came to know there was this invisible being who created us and died for us (at that time, I didn't know that Jesus and God are different). This was during my fifth grade. When people asked me, 'hey kid, what's your religion?' I would proudly answer 'I'm a christian!' without really understanding what being a christian really meant.
Fast forward a little bit to my Junior High School moment. I had always been a smart (read: nerdy) kid back then, so when I received my Religion exam paper back which had a large '59' written in red, I nearly cried. I held my tears in and asked my Religion teacher ways to get bonus point. To which she told me that if I were active in my school's Christian fellowship, she would curve my exam score up. So I joined my school's Christian fellowship. During this, I learned that God and Jesus were different. God sent his kid Jesus Christ to die and pay for our sins. When people asked me, 'hey kid, what's your religion?' I would meekly answer 'I'm a christian, a person whose sin was paid by Jesus.'
During my tenth grade, I finally joined a church (the same church that I currently go to every Sunday). It was during this time that I started to understand that a christian was someone who personally accepted Jesus Christ as his one and only savior. I think I personally accepted Jesus on April 2007. Or 2006... Or was it 2005? Whatever. So, really, when people asked me, 'hey, what's your religion?' I would answer 'I'm a christian, someone who has accepted Jesus Christ and believed that He died for him.'
I am seven years old in christian age. During these seven years, I have met a lot of christians. Believe it or not, I once met someone who would shun people who didn't go to church. I mean, what's the big deal with not going to church anyway? As Billy Sunday said:
'Going to a church doesn't make you a christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.'I was a christian, and meeting this one 'christian' greatly disappointed me. I wonder what people who don't believe in Jesus think if they actually meet these so-called 'christians'?
One thing that greatly disturbs me as well is what the Bible says about homosexuality. Okay, before you guys look at me that way. Some people think that I am gay, but trust me. I'm not. Have never been and will never be. The thought of a guy's ass perturbs me to no end. Although the Bible clearly opposes homosexuality (as written in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10), I don't. I believe that being gay is something that happens naturally and it's something that one can't control. And staying gay is their right. Imagine if you fall in love with a girl and then suddenly you're told that loving this one particular girl is a sin, what would you do?
I have talked to several christians and they believe that being gay is a sin. And when I asked them 'why?', most of them told me simply because 'the Bible said so.' As much as this annoys me, there is nothing that I can do about it. Since I have been taught that the Bible is the truth, the words that I have to follow to no end during my lifespan. I don't blame them for thinking that way, and in fact, there is no one to blame. However, I was a human before I became a christian. I don't believe in stepping on other people's happiness in order to follow a book. Even if the book is the Bible.
In the book 'The Knights Templar and the Protestant Reformation,' Stanley Jones, who was a missionary, once met with Mahatma Gandhi and asked him:
'Mr. Gandhi, though you quote the words of Christ often, why is that you appear to so adamantly reject becoming his follower?'To which Gandhi replied:
'Oh, I don't reject Christ. I love your Christ. What I don't like is your christians. So many of you christians are so unlike Christ.'I don't even know where I'm going with this. I guess the moral of this post is that I proudly declare that I am a christian. I believe in Jesus Christ and I believe that He had died for me and you and everyone else. He had died to cleanse us from our sins. But He does not judge. At least he doesn't until the very end of the day. So who are you to judge other people who don't want to go to church? Who are you to judge people who are gay/lesbian?
I'm a christian, but if being a christian means that I have to step on other people's happiness and opinions, I'll gladly be an atheist.
this is a thought-provoking post. i rly like it!
ReplyDeleteHaha thank you! This kind of comment really pushes me to write more and more :>
DeleteSo who are you to judge other people who don't want to go to church? Who are you to judge people who are gay/lesbian?
ReplyDeleteStuju kenttt!
I might start an argument with this, but as a Christian, we should always follow our conscience. Not saying that our conscience is always right, that is why we have to align our "suara hati" with our faith, or understanding of the bible. We should not see the Bible as a rule book, but as a guidance, for a rule book is concise, but the Bible is an eternal mystery...just as God is. Again, who are we to judge others? Who are we to say that when we are in the right, they are in the wrong. Humans are so polarized, we only know Right OR Wrong..seldom do we say Right and Right. And even to a lesser extent do we say...I don't know.
ReplyDeleteDon't give up on your faith, strive to find the right answer. Ask, question it, and pray for an answer!
Btw, I love your post. Makes me thing alot.
Exactly, I feel like far too many Christians just blindly follow the Bible. Thank you for your encouragement vin!
DeleteHi kent,
ReplyDeleteYour post is indeed interesting.
I just wonder.. Aren't we human so kind? We stand up for ours and others' happiness. Ours and others' rights.
But as you said you have read the bible, you know that humans' mere 'happiness' will get us nowhere. We tend to pursue happiness based on what we should get. What we should do. And what we must be in this life. Achievements. Status. Love. Possession.. If we go back to the centre of the bible (John 3:16), Jesus is the answer. It's a tough reality but let's face it we're all gonna die one day. And if Jesus says He is the only way to eternal life -- isn't that the most assuring and the very core of happiness? That's the only happiness that doesn't dependant on our feeling, mood, or life's unexpected situation.
I think if we use that leave-them-alone-and-let-them-be-happy reason to blame God, but there would be more questions to follow. Why wars happen? Why poverty? Why death? I don't know about you, but all those reminds me of our fall in genesis 3. And these grieve me, yet makes me long to Jesus' return when he will renew all things (rev 21)
And about judgmental christians.. I'm sorry you met them, but all the more I'm more sorry you met them without first understanding all humans are failures, naturally sinful.
One thing we might miss out here (about the homosexuality) is Paul saying that some of the corinthians were people who did that sins in 1 Cor 6:9-10, all sins are equal, (God wouldn't measure how big/small your sin is, sin is sin) but yet Jesus washed them clean generously.
But well.. maybe the core is whether we believe God's word or not. Whether we depend and cling and rely on God's faithfulness; or peoples' wavy opinions and characters.
And kent- im one of your acquaintances and sad to read your post. My comment would be worthless and powerless - because God is the one who works in people's hearts. So I decided to pray for you instead, and I have prayed. :) That you'll again see who God is, and who you are.
Hi and thanks for your response!
DeletePlease know that I don't blame God. In fact, I'm not blaming anyone in this post. Well if I am, probably it's those judgmental christians. But really, I'm writing this without depreciating anyone's belief and I'm really sorry if I have offended you to some extent. I believe in God and I know that His plans are -- to a much greater extent -- better than mine.
I believe that God has His own reasons to let John wrote Corinthians that way. I just haven't seen His reason as to why we should detest gay/lesbians simply because the Bible says so. I personally believe it's their much-deserved happiness and we should not judge.
--kent
Hey Kent, we know that God didn't create Adam and Steve in Genesis.. But yea with the judgmental christians who are still weak in understanding that homosexuals are actually the same with other sinners and no worse, and need to be shown love so they should see Christ.. I guess what we can do is to rebuke them with the truth and to be prayerful for them isn't it?
DeleteOh sorry if I was anything to show that I was angry or smth. I wasn't offended at all. I've heard much worse mockeries of God (not that I'm saying you are) at my workplace, yet I know God's greatness is immovable even with people's worst opposing or accuses and it only left me to be saddened by the fact that they don't know who they reject. Rejecting Obama or the Queen could be very serious, moreover rejecting God.. So yea. :) Good to know you still believe in God, maybe I misunderstood the last line about being an atheist.
Like this!!
ReplyDelete:)
ReplyDeleteHi!
ReplyDeleteBefore everything, I'd like to compliment you for being such an interesting writer. Keep it up! :)
So... I'd like to share a little point of view to what you already have.
If you refer to 1 Corinthians 6 on LGBT (lesbian gay bisexual transgender) issue, don't stop at verse 10, because verse 11 actually says: "And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."
Our God is a forgiving and loving God, but He does not compromise with sin. Yet, no sin is unforgivable in His love. Born in this sinful world, we, humans, are originally sinners. And do note that no sin is greater than any other, they are all the same; sin are sin, regardless how bad human norms view it. However, as we came to learn about Jesus who died to wash away our sins, and as we accepted Him as our one and only God, we became Christians, we were forgiven from our sins. And that is not the end to it! If we claim we are Christians, we have to live as how a Christian should be. The Bible actually has it all. Of course, as you have put it, we don't blindly read the Bible; we also need to put the effort of understanding it (its background, literature, context). And when you don't live as a Christian as how the Bible refers to and as how the Bible really means it, we might be stumbling-stone to non-Christians and disappoint other Christians.
Given that all sins are the same and none is worse than the other, LGBT issue is also a result of human's sinful nature. Therefore, when we are conquered by pride, when we envy, when we lie, and as mere as being lazy, we are committing the same sin with the people who are having an LGBT issue.
I believe that being a good Christian is an everyday-struggle, as humans are naturally sinners and yet, we are trying to fight worldliness and be holy, be like Jesus (in a role model manner). And as some people adopt the belief that LGBT is inborn, and have eventually became it, I believe it would be extremely hard for them to get out of it.
However, nothing is impossible for our God.
It is hard to be not lazy (I'm quite sure of this as laziness is also in my blood). But when I learned that being lazy is not appreciating the time that God has been giving to us, and the Bible actually told us to count our days so that we may be wise, I started praying to God, asking for strength whenever laziness strikes. And sometimes in my cell group, my friend and I would support each other in prayers, for combating laziness.
And this should be the same with LGBT. It is a sin that we should put in prayers to God, so that people with LGBT can move on from it. If we are reasoning that "it is their right to be happy", then it is the same by letting people got stuck in their sin. As humans with sinful nature, of course we feel a very worldly happiness when doing sin; just like a fish being happy when it is swimming. But as Christians, we have learned that TRUE happiness can only be found in Christ. Thus, I wonder if letting them (people with LGBT issue) be, when you have the chance to share the Gospel, is Christ-like at all?
All humans, who believe in Jesus, accepts Him as their one and only Savior and follow His Words, have the same right to the grace that have granted us salvation in Him. All humans, including those people, struggling with LGBT. If we, as Christians, have known this truth, and yet, we are letting them be, aren't we becoming disappointing Christians?
Hope it's not too lengthy. God bless! :)
-Feling
Definitely agree with this>>
ReplyDeleteSo who are you to judge other people who don't want to go to church? Who are you to judge people who are gay/lesbian?
I'm a christian, but if being a christian means that I have to step on other people's happiness and opinions, I'll gladly be an atheist.