Tuesday Review: unChristian – Chapter 9: From UnChristian to Christian & Afterword: The New Perceptions

So here it is, the last two chapters of UnChristian:


Chapter 9: From UnChristian to Christian

…be more concerned with what happens in you than what happens to you (208).

…as I analyze the research, I realize that this is not just the nation’s problem, it’s mine. On close examination, my own spirituality looks self-oriented and threadbare.

The passage of Isaiah describes one simple yet difficult solution: to rebuild our lives and restore our nation, we have to recover love and concern for others.

I believe part of the reason Christians are known as unChristian is because the church has lost its ability to love and accept people who are not part of the “insider” club. This failure is draining the vigor from our faith. We say we love outsiders, but in many cases we show love only if it is on our terms, if they are interested in coming to our church, or if they respect our way of life.

We want young generations to participate in our churches, but we expect them to play by the rules, look the part, embrace the music, and use the right language. We condemn the moral compromises of Mosaics and Busters, but we lack the patience to restore them. We want them to become mature Christ followers, though we are unwilling to submit to the significant task of our won spiritual formation (219).

Afterword: The New Perceptions

I absolutely know we need Christian community, but we have swung the pendulum so far into Christian “community” that we now live in more of an isolated world. Our time is filled with Christian activities and busyness in the church, taking us away from building normal and healthy friendships with those in the world.
- Dan Kimball (pastor and author)

I would hope people would look at us and say, “Those Christians are the ones who run in when everyone else is running out. Those Christians are the ones who didn’t give up on the crumbling inner cities. Those Christians are the one who brought peace to Darfur. Those Christians are the ones who put an end to human trafficking. Those Christians are the ones who helped win the war on AIDS around the world. Those Christians are the ones who write those incredible lyrics, pen those unforgettable books, and create artwork that’s mesmerizing. Those Christians are the ones who helped my mother when she got Alzheimer’s. Those Christians are the one who were kind to me when I was new to the area. Those Christians are the ones that made me want to believe in God.”
- Margaret Feinberg (author and speaker)

Chesterton’s words give me great comfort. He said, “I came to the conclusion that the optimist thought everything good except the pessimist, and that the pessimist thought everything bad except himself.” We can learn from this that Christians should be neither optimists nor pessimists, but both. Christians must have the right balance and be pessimistic enough to see the sin of man. But they must be optimistic enough to know that God is sovereign, and he will have his way (236).
- Chuck Colson (founder, Prison Fellowship)

My dream is that thirty years from now, the church will be known more by what it is for than what it is against. For some time now, the hands and feet of the body of Christ have been amputated, and we’ve been pretty much reduced to a big mouth. We talk for more than we do. It’s time to reattach the limbs and let the church be the church in the twenty-first century.
- Dr. Rick Warren (www.pastors.com)