In our society, church is viewed in many different ways, according to the individuals experience with it and the biases that media and relationships place on them.
“Some go to church to see and be seen, Some go there to say they have been, Some go there to sleep and nod, But few go there to worship God” - Anonymous
"We therefore have a misunderstanding: [...] a church order with priesthood, theology, cult and sacraments; shortly, everything Jesus of Nazareth fought against."
- Friedrich Nietzsche
"I was afraid of a united Church; it makes a mighty power, the mightiest conceivable, and then when it by and by gets into selfish hands, as it is always bound to do, it means death to human liberty, and paralysis to human thought" - Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
"Every day people are straying away from the church and going back to God.” - Lenny Bruce
"People should be able to look at the church and see what it’s like to live under the reign of God. The People of our day need more than tight, logical arguments and proof. They need to see a demonstration of the kingdom lived out before them so that they might see, experience, and enter it." - Glenn Marshall
"Viewed from the biblical perspective, the church is “people”.
But not just any people. The church is a special people, a
people whom the Spirit is forming together into a community." - Stanley J. Grenz
“Why did men worship in churches, locking themselves away in the dark, when the world lay beyond its doors in all its real glory?” - Charles de Lint
"And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it." - Jesus (Mt 16:18, Revised Standard Version)
Interestingly enough, the whole world reveres Jesus as absolutely amazing. Religions look to His teachings as guidance for living a good life. Even those who are dedicated atheists have at least some interest in this mysterious figure in history. They know Jesus is amazing and add Him in support of any religion. Jesus is considered a prophet or a very wise man in many religions around the world.
"Even those who have renounced Christianity and attack it, in their inmost being still follow the Christian ideal, for hitherto neither their subtlety nor the ardour of their hearts has been able to create a higher ideal of man and of virtue than the ideal given by Christ of old." - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
"People were really drawn to Him. He was like a magnet.” - Pat Williams
"I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I, founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded His empire upon love; and at this hour millions of people would die for Him." - Napoleon Bonaparte
"Jesus Christ is to me the outstanding personality of all time, all history, both as Son of God and as Son of Man. Everything he ever said or did has value for us today and that is something you can say of no other man, dead or alive. There is no easy middle ground to stroll upon. You either accept Jesus or reject him." - Sholem Asch
"I am an historian, I am not a believer, but I must confess as a historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very center of history. Jesus Christ is easily the most dominant figure in all history." - H.G. Wells
"If Christ were here now there is one thing he would not be — a Christian." - Mark Twain
"A man who was completely innocent, offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of others, including his enemies, and became the ransom of the world. It was a perfect act." - Mahatma Gandhi
"As a child I received instruction both in the Bible and in the Talmud. I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene....No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life." - Albert Einstein
“To portray Jesus as a terrorist is extremely offensive to Muslims everywhere. Yeah, there's something called freedom of speech, but at least have a little bit of respect.” - Hussain Shihab
“Jesus is the God whom we can approach without pride and before whom we can humble ourselves without despair.” - Blaise Pascal
"No one else holds or has held the place in the heart of the world which Jesus holds. Other gods have been as devoutly worshipped; no other man has been so devoutly loved." - John Knox
"Nineteen wide centuries have come and gone and today He is the Centerpiece of the human race and the Leader of the column of progress. I am within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that ever were built, and all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that One Solitary Life." - James C. Hefley
"There is something so pure and frank and noble about Him that to doubt His sincerity would be like doubting the brightness of the sun." - Charles Edward Jefferson
"People talk about imitating Christ, and imitate Him in the little trifling formal things, such as washing the feet, saying His prayer, and so on; but if anyone attempts the real imitation of Him, there are no bounds to the outcry with which the presumption of that person is condemned." - Florence Nightingale
"The message of Christ is not Christianity. The message of Christ is Christ." - Gary Amirault
"Christ said "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself" and when asked "who is thy neighbour? went on to the parable of the Good Samaritan. If you wish to understand this parable as it was understood by his hearers, you should substitute "Germans and Japanese" for Samaritan. I fear my modern day Christians would resent such a substitution, because it would compel them to realize how far they have departed from the teachings of the founder of their religion." - Bertrand Russell
It's very sad to me that the church is seen as almost an enemy to the true way of Christ. And yet, I agree. We, mostly in North America, have become what culture would say is unaccepting and unloving. In a world that is crying out to be loved, the church is not where people would go to find that love. And you want to know what's really sad? We are supposed to be Jesus to the world. The church is supposed to be Jesus' body, doing His work! But as a a whole, that is not the case. I would like to challenge myself and anyone who reads this to try and not just GO to church but to BE the church. That those who talk with me can see Jesus in how I am. I will make more mistakes than I can imagine; but I will try.
As a poem that I love dearly states:
"Christ has no hands but our hands/To do His work today."
<3
No comments:
Post a Comment