Today's Christianity, Part 3: Welcome to the Bible Buffet
Customer: Sure! What have you got?
Server: How about some grace? God's got lots of grace to extend to you today.
Customer: Of course...I'll take some grace...that's kind of like mercy. Sounds good.
Server: And how about some peace, love and joy? It's our special sampler platter.
Customer: Why, yes please.
Server: Would you like to donate some peace, love and joy to others today? It won't cost you anything extra.
Customer: Yes, let's do that.
Server: Okay...Now let's move on to the entrees...have you dug into the meat of the Bible yet?
Customer: What do you mean?
Server: Well, in 1 Corinthians, chapter 3, it's explained that when we're spiritual babies we need the basics like milk, but then we must move on to the solid food of godly subjects.
Customer: Well, I'm no spiritual baby! Been in church for 20 years. Give me some of that meat, but not too much.
Server: Fine, sir. Do you need some salt for your meat?
Customer: I'm not big on salt.
Server: You know, Matthew 5:13 says that as believers we are the salt of the earth. If we lose our flavor, who will be attracted to what we have?
Customer: Well, don't give me too much salt. Mine is a quiet faith. I don't want to be too verbal about Jesus.
Server: Alright, sir. Then I don't suppose you want something that helps you issue warnings to others...
Customer: Warnings? No, I certainly can't be active in doing that.
Server: Well, as God told the prophet Ezekiel many times, the person who believes in Him is supposed to warn others when they are taking the wrong path...
Customer: Oh, no! That's not well accepted today. People don't want to hear it and won't listen.
Server: Well, God says it doesn't matter if people listen, we're just supposed to tell them...always in a nice way, of course, seasoned with that salt; we're not supposed to be boastful about it or think we're better than them. The salt will help you do this the right way.
Customer: Well...I guess you're right, but people may hate me or criticize me for it.
Server: Jesus did tell Matthew, Mark, Luke and John that this would happen to all his followers. We're just supposed to keep loving those who hate us or ostracize us. Why don't you just think about it? You can come back to the Bible Buffet more than once.
Customer: Thanks. Let's move on for now. What have you got for dessert?
Server: How about a little forgiveness?
Customer: Oh, yes! I'll have a big helping of that.
Server: Great, sir. Please enjoy what you've got on your tray there. By the way, on the other side of the Banquet Hall, we also have a Gospel Lite Buffet.
Customer: What's that?
Server: That's for the people who only want to hear the good stuff in the Bible. You know, like in Timothy chapter 4, most people only want their ears "tickled" with things that make them happy and help them feel good about themselves.
Customer: Oh, I know a lot of people like that! Not myself, of course...I'll be sure to tell them about this place.
Server: Good! You have a nice day now, sir.
(Bible references: Ezekiel 3:1-10, 33:7-20; Matthew 10:22, 24:9; Mark 13:13, Luke 6:22-27; John 15:18; 1 Corinthians 3:1-2; 2 Timothy 4:3-4.)
Published by Sheryl Young - Featured Contributor in Politics
Freelance writer since 1997; Featured Political Contributor for Yahoo!; Tampa Tribune Community Columnist/Blogger; Chicken Soup for the Soul; Amy Foundation National Writing Award; happy wife, proud step-mom... View profile
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60 Comments
Post a CommentI like the format.
Very deftly done. Intriguing series. ;-)
This is cute, well written :)
Clever. Great points by Jesse and Tina.
"Why is the old line of "they may hate me" still used, it makes no sense to me. How someone can be the majority and still worry about what the "minority" thinks?" I'll take a crack at this one. I'm nominally Episcopalian by tradition, not actively devout by some standards. Yet even I see Christianity as a disliked majority. In some places, saying Merry Christmas is considered a frontal attack while other towns refuse to display nativity scenes. In schools, even Christmas productions are watered down so not to mention the word God or Jesus. Christmas is seen as a symbol of oppression while celebration of other holidays is seen as "embracing diversity." Look at it this way, in high school, the Mean Girls were popular, but upon closer examination, everyone secretly hated them.
"Let's face it, here's the reason why it's dying: As time progresses, Religion doesn't." Fundamental Judeo-Christian principles such as love your neighbor, thou shalt not lie, respect for the intrinsic value of human life are timeless, even for many who are not actively devout. If Christianity were to continually tinker itself to suit the current dictates of popular culture, it becomes diluted, losing the essence of what it is. To draw a parallel in politics, we've already seen this happening with living constitutionalism, resulting in the massive growth of government, increasing federal encroachments on states rights (which both parties have been guilty of in the past). Of course, by that's going way off topic.
(Dangit I hate not being able to "fix" problems lol- Sheryl! I apologize for misspelling your name)
(Again, Cheryl it is a question and I am not trying to slam on you at all.)
I have to ask (and this is meant with absolute sincerity) the United States is made up of a diverse religious background, however, professing Christians make up the largest percentage of people- Why is the old line of "they may hate me" still used, it makes no sense to me. How someone can be the majority and still worry about what the "minority" thinks?
It's funny that she made this Article, when she herself is guilty of taking a verse here and there for another Article she wrote...I don't know what to say...