Christian or Realist?

Share

Those of us who are Christians frequently make the claim that we desire to "follow Jesus." We want to "be like Christ." Indeed, the very name "Christian" means "little Christ," which carries the same implications. But often, I wonder if this is really what we want to do.

The tension between "following Jesus" and our actual actions often becomes painfully obvious during election years when political conversations are at the forefront of our minds. You frequently hear Christians defend their political stance by referring to how it is a "Christian," "conservative," "godly," or "moral" position, but rarely will you hear anyone make a defense by arguing "Jesus would do this."

Perhaps it's because we're often afraid of what Jesus would do were he physically walking around today in America. When I was in elementary school, WWJD bracelets became a major fad. WWJD, of course, stood for "What would Jesus do?" However, think about if we were to apply that basic question to our political debates:

"Would Jesus own a gun? Would Jesus use a gun against a home invader?"

"Would Jesus say the pledge of allegiance?"

"Would Jesus fight in a war?"

"Would Jesus execute a terrorist or murderer?"

"Would Jesus support tax breaks for the rich or for the poor? Would Jesus pay taxes at all?"

To be sure, some of these questions are immensely complicated and may not have a clear answer, but many of these questions would see the vast majority of Americans and Christians arrive at the same answer.

The fact that we don't ask these types of questions more frequently perhaps betrays that we fear many of the answers. We know they won't line up with our decisions and actions.

Now at this point, there are two common responses. People will either say, "These are modern questions that Jesus did not address, so we can't make an appeal to Jesus" or they'll say, "Yes, it may not be Christ-like, but it's necessary."

The first form of push-back ("It's a modern issue") seems to be disingenuous. We hear from pastors over and over again that the Bible is relevant and that the Gospel can be applied to the whole of life. Why not to our politics? There are countless issues not found directly in the Bible, and yet we make faith judgments about them. The modern concept of abortion is not directly addressed in the Bible, and yet it's easy to bring the Bible to bear on that issue. The modern idea of romantic same-sex attraction as an orientation is a far cry from the types of "homosexuality" referred to in the Bible, and yet most Christians have an opinion on the matter informed by the Bible. Why should we not turn to the teachings of Jesus, such as the Sermon on the Mount, to inform other modern debates, such as on guns, war, nationalism, death penalty, health insurance, sexual violence, poverty, economics, etc.?

However, I find the second argument the more common: "It's not realistic to live out these standards in a fallen, evil world." If someone brings up Jesus' words about "turning the other cheek" or "loving your enemies," the response is almost always, "Well that's great for Jesus, but let's be realistic..."

Reinhold Niebuhr, the father of "Christian Realism," a
position that states Jesus' ethics cannot be fully realized on
earth because of the sinful tendencies of society

When faced with the tension of Jesus' words and actions compared to our reality, we always rush to use these types of phrases. "That's not realistic..." "These [sub-Christian] actions are necessary..." "We have to be reasonable..." "That just won't work because..." The argument always seems to be that the ethics of Jesus won't work in the "real world."

But the problem I have with this is the incarnation. We cannot relegate Jesus to being some far-off, spiritual deity. He was a real human who lived in a real place at an actual point in history. He faced his own very real political realities and was ultimately executed for a political crime--treason. If Jesus lived out His ethics in the real world, why do we rush to believe that we (His followers) cannot?

The question I'll leave you with is simply this--How many times are we able to do what is "realistic" or "necessary" before we fail to live like Christ? At what point does our compromise on the ethics of God's Kingdom and the Gospel lead us to cease following Jesus? At what point do we forsake the name of "Christian"?

The reality is you are either following Jesus and seeking to imitate His life, or you are not. "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the Kingdom of God." Yes, following Jesus' example may seem foolish, stupid, or suicidal at times, but isn't that the way the Gospel works?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God.”

1 Cor. 1:25-30