LRC, Houston - the weekends-free church in Houston, Texas

We have all been taught many things over the years. Some were in direct conflict with other things we were taught. So, how did we, or how have you reconciled those cointradictions? Or have you? On January 13th Richard Rohr will speak to us about that tension. How does one hold two opposite concepts and stay sane, make sense of it all? Do you have your ticket purchased? Anyway, the purpose of todays commentary is to share some things I was taught and see if you’ve been down that same road that I walked.

Here’s a some of what I was taught in either Sunday School, Bible class, religion classes, or by pastors and scholars of the Word.

1-Jesus came to earth to die for my sins.
2-He did so that I might have eternal life with Him.
3-Jesus was an exact representation of God the Father.
4-Love was the summation of all of Gods lawas and commands- God is love!
5-Once a person died there was no second chance to get things right.
6-There were two destinies: heaven or hell: both were eternal.
7-Hitler was going to hell as were all Jews who did not confess Jesus as Lord.
8-All Catholics were going to hell because they had made an idol out of Mary.

When you compare #4 with #7 or #8, you have to wonder just how that jives. I did!

And then there were the Baptist theologians who taught me that Jesus died just for the “elect“, while the Methodist theologians who told me that Jesus died for “all“. Both couldn’t be right, but could both be wrong? Was I hearing, understanding correctly? What’s a person who loves Jesus supposed to do anyway considering there are literally thousands of denominations with their own contradictory theology and belief systems.

If all of that wasn’t confusing enough, along came TBN!

As they sang in the movie Ghostbusters, “Who you gonna call“? Who can a person believe?

Could it be that it is time for another major reformation, or transformation to take place within the church: for those people who say they are Christians? The church needed to be and was to some extent reformed 500 years ago. But the Protestants basically just changed the color of paint, removed some of the Catholic wallpaper, and replaced the carpet with hard wood floors. Otherwise the house went unchanged, if you get my drift. As Richard Rohr, a Franciscan, says often, “I wished the Protestants would have reformed us, but they didn’t”. Can you see, acknowledge that the church isn’t always right? All too often not right!

Could it be that we’re seeing that (beginnings of another reformation) happening right now? God, I pray!

And if so, why are we, as Paul said, seemingly “kicking against the pricks”?