"When you preach Hell-fire and brimstone, you are teaching fear and condemnation, When you preach worldly riches and glory you are merchandising the Christ. For Christ came to liberate and to set free. Not to terrorize, not to subjugate. Not to puff you up nor to tear down. He came that we may know who we are, he came that we enter into the glorious transformation that God our father desires for us. He came to set us FREE. Freedom from chains, freedom from shackles, freedom from bondage, freedom from fear. But still we preach and teach beggarhood not brotherhood."
Self righteousness is the greatest stumbling block for self realization. 2000 years after Christs death on the cross there are about 2.3 billions Christians the world over. Of the 2.3 billion Christians how many Christs are there? The entire world bowed in awe before a scrawny little lady who worked the streets of Calcutta, India, binding wounds and kissing lepers. She inspired many a generation to work with the poor. There are many other saints some of whom even took on the wounds of Christ like Padre Pio and seemed to live in that realm where earth meets heaven. We have mighty preachers who give thunderous sermons to en-rapt audiences watching miracles taking place in scores. We also have divisions after divisions and splits after splits and splinters after splinters disintegrating doctrine and dividing the church of Christ.
We see the Holy Spirit at work in Protestant conventions, Pentecostal revivalist missions as well as in Catholic Charismatic retreats. We see a non partisan God but strive to make our differences seem bigger than they are and work hard to keep it that way.
In day to day life we the 2.3 billion Christians of the world live a life largely not too different from our non christian brothers and sisters.
We the 2.3 billion Christians have the same pain, the same woes, the same concerns, the same fears and the same powerlessness as our non christian brothers and sisters.
We denigrate Christianity to such an extent that Christ has been reduced to ' a way' rather than 'the way'.
For us the cross and the one crucified has become the solution to our material problems and material desires and needs. We have supermarketised Christianity and try to lure others in. We peddle fear and condemnation freely, hoping to lure souls for the sake of an escape from eternal damnation in the afterlife without even casting a second thought to their present life as long as they join and subscribe and pay obeisance to our group or version of doctrine. We, together with them live a wretched existence in this life hoping for a glorious existence in the next. Or alternatively we preach the great riches and glory and wealth that comes from following the promises of the bible. We encourage and applaud the pursuit of wealth as righteousness as long as the faithful tithe fills our coffers.
Somewhere along the way we have lost THE WAY. No doubt.
To be contd
Self righteousness is the greatest stumbling block for self realization. 2000 years after Christs death on the cross there are about 2.3 billions Christians the world over. Of the 2.3 billion Christians how many Christs are there? The entire world bowed in awe before a scrawny little lady who worked the streets of Calcutta, India, binding wounds and kissing lepers. She inspired many a generation to work with the poor. There are many other saints some of whom even took on the wounds of Christ like Padre Pio and seemed to live in that realm where earth meets heaven. We have mighty preachers who give thunderous sermons to en-rapt audiences watching miracles taking place in scores. We also have divisions after divisions and splits after splits and splinters after splinters disintegrating doctrine and dividing the church of Christ.
We see the Holy Spirit at work in Protestant conventions, Pentecostal revivalist missions as well as in Catholic Charismatic retreats. We see a non partisan God but strive to make our differences seem bigger than they are and work hard to keep it that way.
In day to day life we the 2.3 billion Christians of the world live a life largely not too different from our non christian brothers and sisters.
We the 2.3 billion Christians have the same pain, the same woes, the same concerns, the same fears and the same powerlessness as our non christian brothers and sisters.
We denigrate Christianity to such an extent that Christ has been reduced to ' a way' rather than 'the way'.
For us the cross and the one crucified has become the solution to our material problems and material desires and needs. We have supermarketised Christianity and try to lure others in. We peddle fear and condemnation freely, hoping to lure souls for the sake of an escape from eternal damnation in the afterlife without even casting a second thought to their present life as long as they join and subscribe and pay obeisance to our group or version of doctrine. We, together with them live a wretched existence in this life hoping for a glorious existence in the next. Or alternatively we preach the great riches and glory and wealth that comes from following the promises of the bible. We encourage and applaud the pursuit of wealth as righteousness as long as the faithful tithe fills our coffers.
Somewhere along the way we have lost THE WAY. No doubt.
To be contd
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