People have really given us Christians a bad name. When those on the outside look toward what they can see of Christendom, all those that claim to follow Christ, it is no wonder that they take offense if you blend together the worship extremes. On one end, you have enormous and opulent buildings with tradition steeped worship in Latin. At the other, there is a double wide trailer home somewhere in rural Mississippi that is full of people jumping and lurching, handling snakes and shouting, “Hallelujah!” (all to the not so blended melodies of “angelic speech” and electric guitar). Throw in the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition (nobody expected it), mass suicide, and the unending sexual misconduct by religious leaders. Sprinkle in the political clamor associated with guns, gays and abortion. Top it all off with a swirl of harsh judgment and hypocrisy. This is the hot plate of what has been dubbed, “Organized religion.” It is also the excuse people use to reject Christ.
What are we to do in view of this present climate? We go back to the beginning. Jesus began His teaching in the middle of a religious hot mess. He began teaching those that were not caught up in the religious rabble by saying, “Blessed are you…” (Matt. 5:2-12). Those blessed people are the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13). We often think of the salty people as those that allow God to stomach the sinful world. While there might be some truth to that, I would encourage you to look again. The emphasis is on mankind’s interaction with the salt. When no longer salty, “It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” Their religious observance is rejected as having no value. Like the light on a hill, mankind is to “see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:14-16).
The early church had to deal with false accusations and many misconceptions of who they were. It was also imperative that they live in such a way that they would be a blessing to any community. Peter wrote, “Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation” (1 Pet. 2:11-12). They were dealing with their own version of what continues to be a problem today.
Satan’s influence is at the heart of anything that pollutes, distorts or defiles any pure thing. That is why this will always be a battle that we fight. It is ours to not do anything that would contribute to the muddying of the waters. We need to stay salty, shiny and keep our behavior excellent.