A little too much whitewashed tomb

As followers of Christ we are to serve as witnesses to God's love and grace. To love others as God loves us. We have the words of Jesus recorded for posterity in the canonical gospels. He summarized the commandments we are to live by as love God and love others. He offered no exceptions to the 'love others as you would wished to be loved by others' rule. Not even for those who hate or mistreat you. He harped on forgiveness. He taught his followers to pray for forgiveness for our sins by forgiving others. On the other hand Jesus was not a fan of our pretending to be God by judging others.

Please let me know if that synopsis misrepresented the gist of Jesus. The message seemed very straightforward to me.

Here is a story that should be viewed through that lens.

A few years bag, a courageous young man by the name of Matthew Vines bared his soul before a packed church and eventually an enormous YouTube audience. Vines is ardent follower of Christ. He was asking Christians not to treat him as morally inferior. Google Matthew Vines. The record is plain as day.

Your googling probably turned up a great deal of rebuke of Matthew Vines from some prominent Christian leaders. The most recent finger-wagging came from Albert Mohler Jr., a muckety-muck on the faculty of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Now if I understand the great Dr. Mohler correctly, we Christians are entitled to treat our brothers and sisters in Christ from the LGBT community with scorn and contempt.  In other words, we straight Christians are free to even shun them from places of worship. Lord Mohler calls Matthew Vines and others like him are satanic.

Preaching on this same passage, Chrysostom concluded of those who practiced homosexuality that “not only was their doctrine satanic, but their life was too.” This passage is of particular note, because Vines cites a portion of it (106), but he leaves out this section, claiming only that Chrysostom condemned “excessive” lust. This is no new argument (indeed it is a well-worn one). Vines’s contention suffers not merely from a common misreading of Romans 1, but from a failure to cite properly Chrysostom’s homily. Both the “doctrine” and the “life” of those who abandoned “what is according to nature” — i.e. those who embraced homosexual behavior — should be considered “satanic.” There is no stronger term by which one may identify sin than that.

Mohler further expounds on everything he finds contemptible in Matthew Vines and other like him. In fact, he pretty much wants to tear apart the body of Christ based on acceptance or rejection of same-sex unions.

AM: Among the vast majority of the Christians in the world – now estimated at more than 2 billion – this is not a controversial question. The question is localized largely in Europe and North America, and it is especially controversial now in the United States and the United Kingdom. In both of these nations it is clear that the question of gay unions and same-sex marriage (and the larger question of the morality of same-sex sexuality) will divide many churches and denominations, and at every level. This question lands right at the most basic teachings of the church on morality, biblical authority, and the gospel. Splits are inevitable.

So, in his interpretation of Scripture, he thinks it is ethical to cast words of stone at Matthew Vines and encourages the body of Christ to do likewise. Hell, he wants spiritual divorce from those with a different reading of the gospels about how we are to treat our brothers and sisters in Christ.

I resent being told by a prominent Christian leader than I do not have to love some of my brothers and sisters in Christ. That smells funny to me. A pungent mix of sulfur, putrefaction, and ripe dung. How generous of him to even offer to carve up the body of Christ.

Here are several curious emissions from the letter of the law crowd.

Exhibit A: Las Vegas.

Here is a city that outdoes Sodom and Gomorrah in every imaginable depravity. Gambling, intoxication, promiscuity, prostitution, and obscene displays of gluttony. Yet Mohler and other grand cultural warriors are silent about Las Vegas. Hardly a word about casinos popping up everywhere to feed those addicted to the rush of sheer debauchery. Fancy that. 

Exhibit B: Greed and materialism

Jesus said you cannot worship God and Mammon. Nary a word from the brave culture warriors on our culture's worship of greed, materialism, and self-centeredness. They even stand with politicians and corporate leaders that increase the suffering of the poor, sick, old, and disabled by slashing the government safety net. See Matthew 25 down around verse 40. Well, fancy that.

As I understand the ethics of the Christian culture warriors, I am bound to point out the sin of others and demand repentance. Fair enough. Jesus condemned the hypocrisy, misuse of the word of God, and profiteering in the name of God by the religious leaders of his day. He also warned that any shepherd that misleads his flock will be judged harshly on the day of Judgment. By Christian culture war rules, I would be remiss not to point out Christian leaders in danger of becoming little more than whitewashed tombs when the Messiah returns. 

Speaking out against injustices can make a difference

As followers of that rebellious Jew from Nazareth, we are called to be God's heart, hands, and voice for those in need. Recent events in Alabama provide clear evidence our voice is so important. 

Local news in Birmingham covered the story of a pastor who was harassed by the police for feeding the homeless from his truck. Here is the gist from the local ABC affiliate:

It's routine to serve the homeless every other Saturday for Minister Rick Wood with The Lords House of Prayer in Oneonta, but he was recently stopped by the Birmingham Police Department because of a new city ordinance aimed at regulating food trucks.  

Wood says the incident happened two weeks ago and he was shut down by police because they didn't have a permit from the city to serve food in Linn Park. He was told he needed a food truck and permit from the health department.  

"That makes me so mad," Wood said. "These people are hungry. They're starving. They need help from people. They can't afford to buy something from a food truck."

Within days of the incident, local ministries began serving food to the homeless from a local church. As the incident attracted more attention, the health department provided an exemption to non-profits feeding the homeless. 

"We are thankful that the Jefferson County Health Department has been able to give us guidance on how we can follow the law and their guidelines while still serving those in need. I have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of interest in finding a viable solution to this issue. Birmingham is a compassionate and caring city that will always rise to meet any challenge in a kind and thoughtful way, our historic legacy demands it," said Mayor Bell. 

It appears that the incident in Birmingham was merely an unintended consequence of an ordinance aimed at unlicensed food trucks rather than the homeless. The outcry from the public was instrumental in getting local officials to resolve the legal issue quickly. It also stimulated an outpouring of support for those serving the homeless population, including Pastor Rick Wood.

Unfortunately, we live in a nation where many cities have passed ordinances to criminalize living on the streets and penalize those who try to help the homeless. While the Birmingham case has been quickly resolved in favor of compassion, the ordinance in question was not intended the harm the vulnerable. Pushing back against laws that were specifically designed to increase the suffering of the poor has been far less successful. Our prosperity as a nation seems to have hardened our hearts. Calling us a Christian nation is to bear false witness to Christ.