More paradigm shift!

Too often, in "the church" we segragate people and not just based on race and ethnicity. We do it by what we "believe". Last night we had a great meeting that really challenged us/me to re-think how we share with people. In the past, it has been Christians that put up the walls between "saved" and "unsaved", "Christian" and "Non-Christian". So much so that now, when we try to break down the walls, the "world" puts them back up( I've used a lot of Christianese jargon here and I hope it is blaring you in the face because it is for me).

"Let me explain, no, it's too much, let me sum up..." We've got to stop looking at faith as "us vs. them" and realize it's all of us together, we're just on different journeys. We're either moving towards God or away from him. In the context of historical "Christianity" there is no such thing as a "christian". That word never shows up in the Bible. Jews at that time in the New Testament, if they believed Jesus were called "believers in Jesus" or "followers of Jesus or of the Way." When we realize that the only thing separating "us from "them" is belief, it simplifies things. We stop focusing on behaviors or "sins" and just focus on building relationships with people. From there, we "earn" the right or the privilege to speak truth into people's lives and create the opportunity for God to change lives.