Christ In Disagreements

With same sex marriage being legalized in the United States, there are many Christians who are rightfully upset. If you read your Facebook or twitter feeds, you can see the anger on both sides of the debate as they argue back and forth. Each saying they are being loving, but many times not showing it in their words and actions. As a follower of Jesus, I want to give you a few ways we can show Christ in our interactions with those we disagree with.

Be Light – Jesus is called the true light in John 1. It says that he enlightens everyone. He brings to light their sin and points them to another way. We are also called to be light in a dark world in Matthew 5:14-16. Part of this is separating yourself from darkness, the sin of the world. There is nothing wrong with letting people know that you disagree with their lifestyle and that you believe it is a sin.

Bring Hope – Not only did Jesus bring to light the sin around him, he also brought hope. In John 4 Jesus has an interaction with a Samaritan woman who was deep in sexual sin. He brought it to light, but also shared with her the hope she can have in Him, eternal life. Jesus tells us in John 3:17 that he didn’t come to condemn, but to save. Jesus always showed the hope people can have in Him. You were without hope before you became a follower of Jesus. As a christians we should be sharing the hope we received when we started following Jesus.

Point To Jesus – We can too often get caught up in our feelings and what we think is right. Our goal can become to be right, instead of bringing people into a relationship with Jesus. Let us not forget this! Let us be like John the Baptist who pointed to Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world in John 1. Or, the Apostle Paul who came preaching Christ crucified in 1 Corinthians 1 and 2.

Remember The Future – Lastly, we need to remember that we are not yet in heaven (1 Peter 2:11). America is not ruled by God and the Bible and never was, nor will it ever be. Our hope is not that we can turn a place on this planet into a heaven, but that we will spend eternity with the true King in the coming future. He will be the one who rules justly and without sin.