Tolerance And Focus

I just had some thoughts running around my head today about tolerance and focus, in the context of doing some kind of social outreach. Sometimes you get various local religious groups partnering up with one another to use their resources more effectively in helping others.

That might be fine depending on the situation, but we need to remember to keep focused on the end goal.

The end goal is not to make people's lives better for a short time. Doing that is a means to demonstrate Christ's love to other people, but the intended end result of that demonstration should be that more souls turn to Christ! Remember that Jesus didn't do all those miracles just to heal people and improve their short lives here on earth -- he primarily did all those miracles to prove he was who he claimed to be.

So when partnering with others I think we really need to keep in mind how the gospel is going to be preached. We don't want to give the impression that all religions are equally valid and/or that's its really all about just doing the good works, because neither is true. So if Jesus is seen to be just one of the boys along with Buddha, Mohammed, Gandhi, and so on, that's a problem. Jesus is God in the flesh, come to earth to die as payment for the sins of the world. That message comes first and must not be blocked or distorted!

Imagine for a moment a diverse group of guys all working together at some event and someone says "hey you guys, tell me what you know about Jesus."

The Muslim dude speaks up: "He was a prophet like Moses."

The Catholic lady corrects him: "No, he was much more than that. He is God in the flesh and he was crucified to pay for our sins. He rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. Now let me tell you about the true church that he started while he was on earth..."

The Mormon guy breaks in: "You'll have to let me take it from here, because the church you belong to is not the one true church -- the church I belong to is the one true church. But before I talk about that I want to tell you about how Jesus actually came to the New World and about this guy named Joseph Smith..."

The Jewish guy interrupts: "What's wrong with you two? Jesus was a man just like any other. He claimed to be the Messiah, and he claimed to be God. He was crucified, and he died. He disciples probably stole his body to make it look like he rose from the dead. End of story!"

The Buddhist lady backs him up: "That's right. But still, he was a great moral teacher like Buddha. We can learn a lot from his teachings."

As the Jehovah's Witness guy starts to talk about Michael the archangel, the majority of the group notices the Christian guy walking back in from the front door. They see the other guy walking away down the street, obviously reading something in his hands.

"What did you tell him?" they all asked.

"I just told him the simple truth -- that I once I lived an empty, meaningless, and self-centered life, despite all that I had. I told him that Jesus is the one who showed me that sin, saved me, and gave me a new heart. Then I prayed with him for a moment. I also gave him a Bible and showed him where he can read more about Jesus. Why, what are you guys still talking about in here?"

Grace and Peace