Certainly not! We are to be in the world but not of the world! We can't witness to the sinners if we aren't in their presence!
Okay. Well, but your ad here for Jesus indicates that that might not always be true?
Because Christians don't seem to be able to tolerate "unholy stuff." In fact, they seem to parade around yelling that anything and everything and everyone offends them. What gives?
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This is certainly one of the most vocalized false advertisements I've seen lately.
There have been many changes in the last few years with the advent of different lifestyles and passing of laws, and many Christians are none too impressed with such social and cultural shifts.
And the response is quite....how do I say it kindly? Lacking in maturity. There is covering of ears and eyes, stamping of feet, and cries of, "Don't allow that! I'm offended by that! YOU'RE PERSECUTING ME!!"
Kim Davis cried "persecution" when her job suddenly required her to issue marriage licenses to homosexual couples. It didn't matter that she could have graciously and humbly and QUIETLY abdicated her role as county clerk because she didn't feel right about the new law. She was being "persecuted" because the rules suddenly weren't what her specific religion condoned. No one beat her for her beliefs or tried to murder her or anything of the sort. She was expected to follow the law or remove herself. Instead of doing the hard thing and resigning, she shut herself in her office and refused to comply with the new law in an attempt to force her county to do things the way of her belief system.
Persecution this is not.
There are folks who run bakeries who feel "persecuted" because now they must bake cakes for gay weddings or risk losing business by publicly indicating that they don't serve homosexual customers. It's not fair! They're infringing on my beliefs! I shouldn't have to sacrifice my profits or my convictions!
Persecution this is not.
We aren't being persecuted because certain things that align with our faith didn't win out in a fair vote.
We are offended because the world doesn't play by our rules. The world isn't acting holy enough, and we can't handle it.
WAKE. UP.
We can decide to be offended or not. And I find it amusingly necessary to have to remind us all (including myself) that Christians shouldn't have to be babied!
By the nature of our beliefs, we swim upstream. It is a path we chose, and we should anticipate--nay, EXPECT!--opposition. If we're too busy cowering under the claim of pretend persecution, how will we ever be able to be a shining light for Jesus?! No one said this would be easy! And we aren't expected to be alone!
But we are expected to handle it better than we have.
The Bible tells us to be joyful always, especially when things are difficult and oppose us, not to cry and run away!
If you are firm in your convictions, great! What strength you must have! And you should never place yourself in a situation that is likely to cause you to fall. But you are not completely excused from dealing with offensive situations.
Dealing with vomit makes me ill to no end. But what kind of mother would I be if I refused to take care of Harlow when she got a stomach bug? What if I cried offense every time she was sick or did something wrong?
What kind of nurse would I be if I refused to ever take care of a patient who was infected? What if I refused to care for anything but people who were well?
The same kind of Christian I would be if I only dealt with people who had it all together and saw the world exactly as I do.
Worthless.
My job as a mother entails taking another human being who has no idea about the ways of the world and teaching her, nurturing her, and caring for her.
My job as a nurse is to help those who are unwell become healthy.
And my job as a Christian is to point the lost to Jesus.
We can't be comfortable all the time. If we are, the chances are high that we're not doing our job.
Consider when we are sick--no it isn't fun, and no we don't seek out sickness, but it isn't something we can avoid either, and in the end, the experience isn't worthless--we build antibodies and often immunities against it. Our bodies learn how to be prepared for it and handle it when we encounter it again. Our bodies gain wisdom from being in the presence of things that are toxic. No, it isn't the state our bodies are intended to be in, but it doesn't mean that the experience is entirely evil either.
What if being around someone or something "offensive" allowed you to gain insight into where that offense comes from? What if it put you on another level with the person? What if it allowed them to open up to you? What if it produced vulnerability?
Are we willing to be kind and gracious to someone even when they are offending us?
I think often of Elisabeth Elliot and her incredible testimony. She and her husband Jim were missionaries, and Jim was killed in 1956 by the Auca tribe in Ecuador while attempting to reach them for Christ. Instead of being angry or offended or crying persecution (which, in this case, it actually was persecution), she went there herself and took over ministering to the people who murdered her husband.
Were they holy? Nah.
Were they offensive? Yes.
But did she use those as reasons to write them off and stay away? No way.
I understand. I get that you don't enjoy when people curse. When they drink in front of you or talk about all of the sex they've had. When they talk about all of the social issues you can't support. When they're crude and vulgar.
I understand how easy it is to want to turn away and tell them to knock it off. To run away.
But if you can just look past it--endure it for a time if possible--you might see the soul beneath the offense. The one that deserves to be loved and deserves a chance. The one who needs to see someone live something better. The one that needs a hand to hold until they are well.
Don't be the Christian who only sits with the well--they don't need you.
Find ways to do your job--wherever that may take you.
I read a blog post recently about a woman who was invited to go to a strip club with the ladies of her church. They would take the dancers hot meals, give them smiles and warm words and leave. Eventually, the ladies placed a box for prayer requests backstage, and they started a Bible study for the women who worked there.
What's typically seen as a dirty and unholy place to Christians was seen as an opportunity to love on an oft-forgotten and shunned group of women.
There were no cries of offense or persecution for their scandalous lifestyles. They put aside whatever discomfort they might have felt for the purpose of loving others.
To be clear, I understand that there are certain situations that are triggers or much too tempting for certain believers, and you should take care to be wise in what areas of "offense" you choose to visit.
Otherwise, don't be afraid to dwell in the "depths," all while doing your best to keep true to your convictions and remaining as blameless as you can.
So, you find something offensive? Okay, then don't you do it! But don't necessarily stay away from the people who do.
Go where you find offense, and be what that offensive situation needs--someone who can show the light, love, and grace of Jesus.
You have written a great series. Thank you!
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