I just became aware of the film “Beware of Christians.” The title is meant to grab attention … and it does. It is a film made by Christians to challenge the typical notions of what it means to follow Jesus. Based on the preview I saw, it could be helpful in a dialogue on the Christian faith in our culture.
Having not seen it in its entirety, I hesitate to endorse the movie or to bash it. On the surface, I’m glad that the issue is being talked about. It is easy for the Christian faith to be co-opted by the culture. It is easy to shape our faith to suit our needs rather than have our faith shape us. Perhaps Muslims in Afghanistan equate Christianity with America, but it far from the same thing! What does it mean to follow Jesus as a high school student, a college student, a young professional, a wife or husband? These issues are worth discussing.
The vision of our church is expressed in three words: Believe, Belong, and Become. We want people to believe in Jesus and grow in their faith; belong to a small group where they can get the encouragement and accountability they need; and become more like Jesus daily in their attitudes and actions. But I grew up with the attitude of Believe, Belong and Behave! It was about performance, checking off the right boxes – that defined for me what it meant to be a Christian.
I’ll post more on this later. I’m glad the conversation is started. Wouldn’t it be great if we could have a civil, thoughtful, and biblical discussion of what it means to follow Jesus in 21st century America? You can check out the video preview below.
Be Transformed 