Humans are amusing.
I find it quite amusing how quick we as humans find a product / person / philosophy we like and then stick to it. And the worst part, we don’t just stick with it – we defend it like there’s no tomorrow.
It’s like we’re creating our own seasons of thinking. We like what this or that guy teaches about Jesus, but we very seldom go back and really listen to what Jesus himself said. We forget that even Jesus always referred to the will of his Father. If we claim to follow Jesus, why are we rather following the ideas & thoughts of humans about Jesus, when we should be following the words/life of Jesus.
All the so-called big teachers have so many followers/defenders – name them all – Rob Bell, John Piper, Stephan Joubert, Peter Rollins, Leonard Sweet, (insert any ‘teacher’s’ name here)…
Are we idolizing the teachers or are we really in love with the Lover of our souls, Jesus Christ?
Paul really gets furious about this in the Corinthians Letter:
3) As long as you grab for what makes you feel good or makes you look important, are you really much different than a babe at the breast, content only when everything’s going your way?
4 ) When one of you says, “I’m on Paul’s side,” and another says, “I’m for Apollos,” aren’t you being totally infantile?
5 ) Who do you think Paul is, anyway? Or Apollos, for that matter? Servants, both of us-servants who waited on you as you gradually learned to entrust your lives to our mutual Master. We each carried out our servant assignment .6 ) I planted the seed, Apollos watered the plants, but God made you grow. 7) It’s not the one who plants or the one who waters who is at the center of this process but God, who makes things grow. 8) Planting and watering are menial servant jobs at minimum wages.
1 Corinthians 3:3-8
I think ‘Christians’s’ biggest problem is that we’re in love with the idea of Jesus, and not in love with Jesus himself. Jesus’ heart desire is to know us intimately – are we liking the idea of that, or are we really embracing it to the fullest?
People find safety in numbers. If we can identify ourselves with a group or with someone who has established credibility, it makes us feel more significant. It is the same mentality that prompts people to identify themselves with the stickers on the back window of their car. Your point is valid. It’s like Pink Floyd sang in their song “One Slip,” “Was it love, or was it the idea of being in love?” Do we seek Jesus, or just our idea of Jesus. It really is a form of legalism when we say, “This is Jesus, and only this”…it is also a form of idolatry.
If a teacher teaches the truth, then certainly, stand with them. Defend the truth. But that will require us to do some work ourselves as we seek God’s immutable, unchanging truth through the scriptures. That, I think, is the problem. We are complacent; content to be spoon fed instead of working the soil ourselves. It is the consumer mentality that prompts us to pay as little as possible for what we want and unfortunately we often wind up with a counterfeit – a cheaper version of the real thing. This is no fault of any of these teachers as they seek to point people to Jesus. It is shallow Christians who find something they like, check a duty off the list, and are content to settle for that rather than seeking Jesus for who He is with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.
Thank you. I appreciate your thoughts. May God bless your offering.
With you in His service,
michael
http://www.TheEconomyOfTheSoul.com