Okay, this is interesting. One News Now reported (9/9/08) that a survey conducted by Ellison Research found that many Americans couldn't define the term "evangelical Christian." In the report, Ron Sellers, president of Ellison Research noted that almost everyone used the tag but very few could define it. He said, “We were not asking people what they think about evangelicals. We were simply asking them to define evangelicals -- and yet people used terms like idiots, nut cases, delusional, illiterate, simpleton, screaming loons, 
We were told by one person that they're much more conservative in their beliefs and they tend to be less intelligent than the more moderate Christians."
If you want to know why people use terms like idiots, nut cases, delusional, illiterate, simpleton, and screaming loons to describe evangelicals, it's probably because so many evangelicals act like delusional, illiterate, simpletons, idiots, nut cases, and screaming loons.
Francis Schaefer recognized and lamented this error of evangelical accommodation in his insightful book, “The Great Evangelical Disaster.” In the early days of evangelicalism, for the most part, “evangelicals” were basically fundamentalists who had sincere passions for reaching the lost with the Gospel. But with their passion for evangelization, they neglected the necessity of separation from error and unbelief.
I have developed a real disdain for the term. It seems to me that it has become too widely employed and broadly applied to almost everything that calls itself Christian. If it means everything, then it means nothing. Parenthetically, I guess the same thing could be said about labels like “Christian,” “born again,” “Bible-believing,” and “believers.”
Other perfectly good terms like “fundamentalist,” “reformed,” and “Calvinist” have been unfairly defined and subsequently vilified or demonized by the majority of the Christian community.
Is there a name that we can use that has not been co-opted or denigrated by the new, angry, emerging, ecumenical, all-encompassing breed of worshipers of a boutique god of their own design?
Yes, I think there is. It is Scriptural. It is used by God in reference to His people and it was used by Jesus Christ in reference to His sheep. But it is a term that is sure to irritate, abrade, and anger most nominal Christians. The term is “ELECT.” Use it if you dare and be prepared to get beat up.
We were told by one person that they're much more conservative in their beliefs and they tend to be less intelligent than the more moderate Christians."If you want to know why people use terms like idiots, nut cases, delusional, illiterate, simpleton, and screaming loons to describe evangelicals, it's probably because so many evangelicals act like delusional, illiterate, simpletons, idiots, nut cases, and screaming loons.
Francis Schaefer recognized and lamented this error of evangelical accommodation in his insightful book, “The Great Evangelical Disaster.” In the early days of evangelicalism, for the most part, “evangelicals” were basically fundamentalists who had sincere passions for reaching the lost with the Gospel. But with their passion for evangelization, they neglected the necessity of separation from error and unbelief.
I have developed a real disdain for the term. It seems to me that it has become too widely employed and broadly applied to almost everything that calls itself Christian. If it means everything, then it means nothing. Parenthetically, I guess the same thing could be said about labels like “Christian,” “born again,” “Bible-believing,” and “believers.”
Other perfectly good terms like “fundamentalist,” “reformed,” and “Calvinist” have been unfairly defined and subsequently vilified or demonized by the majority of the Christian community.
Is there a name that we can use that has not been co-opted or denigrated by the new, angry, emerging, ecumenical, all-encompassing breed of worshipers of a boutique god of their own design?
Yes, I think there is. It is Scriptural. It is used by God in reference to His people and it was used by Jesus Christ in reference to His sheep. But it is a term that is sure to irritate, abrade, and anger most nominal Christians. The term is “ELECT.” Use it if you dare and be prepared to get beat up.
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2 comments:
I like your term of "Elect" and I think you are right when you say use it and "be prepared to get beat up".
In my "world travels," I found that the church in Romania uses the term "repenters" for those who follow Christ, instead of the term "Christian" that we often use. I like the Romanian term as well. You could get beat up using that one too!
Sometimes I can get extremely motivated and go on to accomplish great things. Other times I'll find myself sitting around the house for days listening to that ringing sound in my ears and doing absolutely nothing. Sometimes I believe that what I'm doing is going to change the world, and other times I don't think it will make a dent in my own city. I can be super positive and incredibly negative, all in the space of thirty minutes. There are days that I go into a convenience store and I look deep into the eyes of everyone around me and sincerely love them with all that I am. Other days I won't even look up at the casher.
Some days I get depressed to the point where I can barely life my head. Other days I have a joy and peace that surpasses understanding. I get angry, insecure, hopeless, lustful, greedy, isolated, violent, vengeful and arrogant. I hate racism! However I'm a racist. I despise control freaks, yet I am one of them. I believe in love. I believe that God is love. Sometimes I still find myself hating people. I believe in encouraging people and I love to watch them succeed. Ironically at the same time I enjoy watching some people fail. I can be the most holy person I know and the wickedest person I know all at the same time.
When I look at a woman I see her heart. I also see her breasts. I can't imagine ever hurting a woman, but I've done it many times in my life. I respect women but sometimes I'm a chauvinist. I am an animal lover. I've also killed a bunch of them. The other day I stepped on a beetle in front of my house and I felt nothing in my heart as I heard the crunching sound under my tennis shoes. I think birds are beautiful and wondrous, but I laugh when one accidentally fly's into the grill of my car when I'm doing 95 on the freeway.
I break the law all the time. If no one is around, I run through stop signs, and go over the speed limit. I've even been known to tear off the label on my mattress. I'm the best parent I know and the worst. I never raise my voice to my children but I yell at them all the time. Sometimes I know they need to be held and I push them away. Other times they need time alone and I force them to be held because I am stronger. I think all children are beautiful, but there are a lot who are down right ugly.
I can be very spiritual and fathom all the deep things of God. I can also retreat to a dark fleshy place and stay there for hours. I know how to think from my heart and I am committed to being a heart person. I can also be the most heartless person I know. I gasp and mourn over starving children in other countries. I laugh at dirty jokes and sometimes make fun of people who can't help themselves. When I pray, I know He hears me and is with me. Sometimes I don't talk to him for a week straight. I believe in God. I'm an atheist. I know where I stand with God. I am more lost than I've ever been. I'm happy, sad, peaceful, disturbed, patient, angry, confident, insecure, pure, vulgar, loving, vengeful, hopeful and hopeless.
I am a Christian.
Darin Hufford
Visit www.freebelievers.com
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