​105. Tangled in the Web

I’m at a point in my Christian walk where I’m finally looking up and noticing something: we are not all the same.

We are not merely believers.

We are believers who have categorized ourselves so ruthlessly that there’s hardly any room for someone to stand next to us.

To read the breakdown of the theological adherence of one pastor versus another is like reading the label of an overly-processed cereal brand.

It’s ridiculous.

Paul said it best:

“Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, ‘I am of Paul,’ and ‘I of Apollos,’ and ‘I of Cephas,’ and ‘I of Christ.’

Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?”

This sentiment still rings true. We divide ourselves between schools of thought and different teachers to the point that the very thing that should remain un-muddied is: the Gospel.

And it’s not just these divisions but also the ones that come when vaccinations are concerned that further hinder our way.

I’m not sure who started the “good Christians don’t get vaccinated rumor,” but I highly recommend a visit to Romans 14 and 15. We are to follow the authorities God has put into power and are also to make choices upon the conviction of our own minds. And our choices won’t necessarily look like our brother’s or sister’s.

“The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not to judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him.

Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.”

It’s time we stop focusing inward and look outward. There’s a whole sea of people who need to hear the Good News, yet we’re too busy getting tangled in the web of manmade interpretations and self-righteous judgment.

All we need is God’s Word and each other to face the dark days ahead.

But when will we begin to acknowledge that?