Love and Understanding

Daily writing prompt

Share a lesson you wish you had learned earlier in life.

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I sometimes think of this section from Baker Street:

You used to think that it was so easy, you'd say that it was so easy, but you're trying, you're trying now
Another year and then you'll be happy, just one more year and then you'll be happy, but you're crying, you're crying now.

So, in church life, if some are reluctant to get deeply involved or don’t attend very regularly, I’d be less inclined to classify them as weaker Christians or nominal Christians. Zealous people in any movement can be a bit annoying or overbearing, so I can understand why people give them a wide berth 😀. My ideal church nowadays is one that gives people plenty of freedom on the level of involvement and doesn’t constantly hound people to donate more or do more to build up the church, movement, or empire.

Likewise, some might be more conservative in their theology than others. When I was younger, I tended to see people who held conservative views as stronger, so I tended to adopt conservative views. I’m still quite conservative, but just because someone has a different outlook on issues such as creation verses evolution doesn’t mean that they’re weaker Christians. In my earlier days, I tended to align myself with the teaching of specific preachers or movements and categorize others as a bit “wishy washy” or whatever. Now, I think I’m more willing to scrutinize things and more willing to think that maybe a certain point of view is 60% more likely to be correct rather than 100% correct. I sometimes feel that I’m somehow betraying my younger self. I don’t think I’m all that different. But I can see now why older people thought I was a little bit too arrogant and opinionated. But then again, I like to listen to people who have strong opinions. I enjoy books where you have several people setting out their views on issues and others responding. Here are some examples:

These are from the Zondervan Counterpoints series. Some of the audio versions are on Spotify now.

I’d probably still generally be on the side of the most conservative writer, but nowadays, I’d be inclined to listen to other points of view rather than dismiss them. Much of my older mentality comes from misunderstanding the apostle Paul’s position in the New Testament, when he was dealing with heretics. The heretics in the New Testament were people who rejected the apostles’ authority and piggy-backed on the church with the intention of starting their own movement. So, the apostles would ask people to have nothing to do with them, or at least not include them in the Christian church

Galatians 1:7
“Some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.”

Jude 1:4
“Certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God.”

2 Timothy 4:3–4
“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine… They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.”

But when we deal with others who accept the authority of the Bible, but interpret it differently nowadays, we shouldn’t be so quick to ostracize them. Maybe in practice, I wouldn’t want to attend a church that was very different from my outlook, but if I hear a chap arguing for the “prosperity gospel” or some other point of view that I regard as silly or sinister, I should at least listen. He might be making some valid points amidst all the silliness. And likewise, if I’m reading a Roman Catholic or modernist book, I should accept that valid points might be expressed, even if I’m not aligned to these movements. Likewise, people of other religions might have interesting and valid things to say. I spent a good number of years listening to the Unbelievable podcast, which featured atheists and people of other faiths debating with Christians, or sometimes Christians debating with each other. I liked how participants generally were so respectful to each other.

I remember watching Christopher Lee playing Lucas de Beaumanoir, Grand Master of the Knights Templar, in the 1997 TV series, Ivanhoe. He put an innocent Jewish lady on trial for witchcraft. During the trial, he warned people not to listen to her because he believed her words might be influenced by sorcery.

It struck a chord with me. I’ve been a bit of a heresy hunter at times, but hopefully nowhere as bad as Lucas de Beaumanoir 😀. I’m simply not a very scary person. We don’t burn witches nowadays, but religion can be a stick to beat people with. So, we need to learn to accept differences of opinion without demonizing people. You’ll find plenty of New Testament verses that encourage us to be nice to each other.

Romans 14:1
“Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.”

James 1:19
“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.”

Philippians 2:3
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.”

Romans 14:3-6
“The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. 4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand. 5 One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. 6 Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.”

You can obviously argue that some issues are more serious and fundamental than others. For example, a church might have a statement of faith outlining fundamental beliefs that all members must accept. But that doesn’t mean that you should demonize everyone with a different point of view, even if they’re wrong about things. Many of the negative references in the New Testament were directed towards people who were power- and money-hungry and who’d come into new fellowships and attempt to send them off in a completely different direction. The apostles were warmer towards those who merely misunderstood teachings at times, which is surely true of any student.