Jan 24, 2008
WHAT THE HELL!!!
Well, I’m probably gonna catch some crap on this one!!! Oh well, won’t be the first time…
This morning, while taking a shower, I was pondering the use of the words, “What The Hell”…
Really, when you think about it, the statement “What the Hell”, in and of itself makes no sense…it is a set of words that others have heard said and simply repeat without considering the validity, or even the nonsensical point of the statement….They just say it because that is the way it has been done in the past…
It’s human nature to do things because “that’s the way they are done” …Not necessarily considering the reason that it is done that way or the fact that it is not relevant or even if it makes sense…
Then it hit me, “Welcome to the modern day church”…I have heard pastors say, lets get back to that “Old time religion”, or “if the King James Bible was good enough for my grand parents, it’s good enough for me”, or “Our church has always done things this way and we aint about to try to teach an old dog new tricks”…(Ironically, and maybe a little humorously, the thought that came to me while writing those nonsensical statements that people say without even considering the weight or ignorance of their statement was “what the hell”… Do you see the parallel?)
Please understand, I am not using the statement “what the hell” for cursing sake, but for impact and to make a legitimate point, and I would be willing to use it in the pulpit to make the same point or impact…So please do not use this for an opportunity of judgment. Those who know me, know that I am not one who recklessly throws around vulgarity or intentionally offensive language…But for those mature enough to see the point here I trust you will understand my reasoning…
In Mark Chapter 2 Jesus speaks to his disciples AND the Pharisees (those who were being taught the new and those who clung to the old way of doing things) along the same subject lines…Both questioned him as to why he did things differently than they had been done in the past and Jesus basically explains to them that he didn’t come to do things as they had always been done but to do a new thing…
I believe that there is importance to recognizing and remembering the old…I’m the kind of guy that loves nostalgia…I bought a Harley Davidson Road King CLASSIC, because it reminded me of the OLD BIKES with white walled tires and big fenders…but I do not overlook the new for the sake of the old…Overlooking the new for the sake of the old is what I would term “Amish”
The Amish will accept progress to a certain point in history and then disregard anything more progressive than that point in history…I believe that God is always doing new things, and revealing deeper things about himself… The church needs to look toward being progressive and relevant or they will be viewed “Amish” by the next generation and will lose them…this doesn’t mean that we forget everything about the past…naturally, if we do not learn from history, then we are destined to repeat it…and the “older” things hold much merit! But we have to look ahead…The bible says, For lack of vision, God’s people perish.
To solidify my point I will make it very simple…The King James Bible was and is wonderful…it was a tool that has been used for centuries to change peoples lives…but the fact remains that it is not as easily understood as more recently translated versions of the bible…Does this mean we simply disregard the old because there is something new? Of course not! But we need to be progressively minded and not disregard the NEW thing for the sake of clinging to the old…That’s Amish!
How you wear your hair, your choice in clothing, what you wear to church, etc…these are rooted in tradition and really hold no merit in the grand scheme of things…So lets appreciate where God has brought us from, with our roots and traditions, but lets not hold so tightly to them that it hampers our progress and ministry to future generationS! God IS doing a new thing and our relationship with him (which is the most important thing) really is not contingent on how church was done yesteryear…
Let people be people, If you want to wear your suits and dresses to church, More power to ya! But also be willing to allow others to be themselves, Dressing and wearing their hair the way that they are comfortable when they attend your church …and if you don’t like their tattoos or piercings, DON’T GET ANY YOURSELF…but have enough insight to realize that not everyone will do everything just like you, but we all are God’s children and deserve individual respect…You stand a much better chance of reaching people if you do not turn them away with judgment before you even get to know how wonderful they really are…Most people just want you to respect them as individuals even if you don’t like something about them…and when you give them that respect, most will reciprocate…and isn’t the world a nicer place when people respect each other? (if you didn’t sense the sarcasm in that last statement, re-read it with a sarcastic tone) 😉
I Love ya…even if I wouldn’t like ya!… HA!
Aaron
You make an interesting point. I say “what the hell” all the time and now after reading this I think to myself why? Just like when we say “what the &*$#”. I would like to know the first person to say that was? Maybe it’s worth googleing some time. Of course he or she is probably no longer living because I think that phrase has been used for a looong time. At least I’m sure people have said that before my lifetime.