It is ironic how beliefs
have become such a private matter; most people are not outspoken about their
own. Preaching has become taboo in our everyday culture, especially in regular
conversation. The people who preach publicly (such
as those on college campuses) are considered crazy/extreme, or at the least
inconsiderate/annoying. But those are the people who actually reflect God’s commands/Jesus’
teachings with the intention of preaching His Word (whether they preach
correctly or not). In a ‘Christian nation’, I would expect to see Christians of
all denominations and degrees of devotion publicly preaching as the Apostles
are claimed to have done, as well as succeeding devotees/saints/martyrs. That
clearly is not the case. And there is not even the threat of
persecution in America. Instead, we have social norms pressuring people to
‘keep it to themselves’. This, to me, is an indication that Christianity could
not possibly represent a universal reality, since it has become so private and
subjective.
What is actually disheartening to me is the observation that many of those who claim to be Christian do not make an active effort to ‘save’ nonbelievers close to them. Believers do not want to ‘sound like they are preaching’ to their nonbeliever friends, but I do not understand why. If I were to believe in a Heaven where, in order to be admitted, you must recognize Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then I would unconditionally want to convince every one of my friends/relatives to recognize Jesus so that they may join me in Heaven. Otherwise, it would show that I did not care for them to be with me for eternity. And even more importantly, I would want to convince my friends/relatives as soon as possible with the realistic precautionary principle that (‘God forbid’) anyone could die tomorrow.
This is ironic in modern America because most Christians have instead adopted the virtue of religious tolerance. However, if one honestly holds this paradigm that there is anybody close to them who is doomed to a realm separate from God (especially Hell) then there should be no tolerance toward such a close nonbeliever. A believer should be doing everything in his/her power to evangelize to a nonbelieving friend/relative that Jesus Christ is ‘the way, the truth, and the life’, so that they may be able to share eternal life. I don't think leading by example is enough.
In my personal experience, no one close to me has actively engaged me on their own accord to express that I should strive to share their pursuit of a Heaven (and if your claim is that you have been praying for me to find God somehow, then that has apparently not had much of an impact). I have always had to be the one to initiate a discussion such as this, so that is what truly disheartens me.
So my conclusion is this: modern American Christians have come to allow social norms to pressure them into keeping their faith ‘to themselves’ and have adopted religious tolerance of their nonbelieving friends/relatives. This is an indication that their faith must represent a subjective and therefore selfish strive for one’s own desire to be with God in Heaven. And because one’s own faith has become such a private matter that differs person to person, it cannot represent a universal reality.
Please let me know if I am under a misconception.
What is actually disheartening to me is the observation that many of those who claim to be Christian do not make an active effort to ‘save’ nonbelievers close to them. Believers do not want to ‘sound like they are preaching’ to their nonbeliever friends, but I do not understand why. If I were to believe in a Heaven where, in order to be admitted, you must recognize Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then I would unconditionally want to convince every one of my friends/relatives to recognize Jesus so that they may join me in Heaven. Otherwise, it would show that I did not care for them to be with me for eternity. And even more importantly, I would want to convince my friends/relatives as soon as possible with the realistic precautionary principle that (‘God forbid’) anyone could die tomorrow.
This is ironic in modern America because most Christians have instead adopted the virtue of religious tolerance. However, if one honestly holds this paradigm that there is anybody close to them who is doomed to a realm separate from God (especially Hell) then there should be no tolerance toward such a close nonbeliever. A believer should be doing everything in his/her power to evangelize to a nonbelieving friend/relative that Jesus Christ is ‘the way, the truth, and the life’, so that they may be able to share eternal life. I don't think leading by example is enough.
In my personal experience, no one close to me has actively engaged me on their own accord to express that I should strive to share their pursuit of a Heaven (and if your claim is that you have been praying for me to find God somehow, then that has apparently not had much of an impact). I have always had to be the one to initiate a discussion such as this, so that is what truly disheartens me.
So my conclusion is this: modern American Christians have come to allow social norms to pressure them into keeping their faith ‘to themselves’ and have adopted religious tolerance of their nonbelieving friends/relatives. This is an indication that their faith must represent a subjective and therefore selfish strive for one’s own desire to be with God in Heaven. And because one’s own faith has become such a private matter that differs person to person, it cannot represent a universal reality.
Please let me know if I am under a misconception.
My response to this would be that most of the apostles were preaching to people who didn't yet know the message. There is a difference between informing the ignorant and correcting the misinformed or arguing with the informed. Wanting to convince someone enough will by no means guarantee that the person will be convinced. And in a culture where people are conditioned to zone out when you bring up the topic, it becomes less a matter of talk, and more a matter of actions.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, many people have given up trying to talk to people about it because it almost always turns into arguments, and leaves neither side better informed.