As a Christian who prays for the world to know and love God, I often find myself nearly horrified at some of the zealous attempts to win unbelievers over to Christ. Some of the tactics used are ineffective at best but can be dangerously counterproductive.

When I study the life of Jesus Christ, it is clear to me that He did not force his faith on anyone. He did not show contempt for the sinner, only the sin. And he did not sing his song of hope to the choir of those who already believed.

Christ warned us to be wise as serpents, harmless as doves when spreading His Good News. We are to share His Word with those who will listen but not "throw pearls to swine" by trying to intimidate those who will not listen. God gave us choice when He gave us freewill. He accepts our choice to believe Him or not and we as Christians should accept the unbeliever's choice. We do not have the power to save another human being. They have been given that power in themselves when Christ died on the cross for us. All they have to do is receive the gift of salvation that is being offered. If they choose not to then they are responsible for their choices.

A few things I find terribly wrong with modern Christianity are lack of intellectual knowledge of our own religious beliefs, pier pressure to tithe, and hypocritical behavior.

Most Christians do not know the history of Christianity; many have not even read the bible. We are called to be ready to defend our faith but how can we if we don't know the first thing about it except for what our parents have told us. While there is reportedly more documentation to support the existence of Jesus than there is to support the existence of Napoleon Bonapart, most Christians do not have the intellectual ability to argue their faith.

Tithing is the number one reasons for self-proclaimed believers not attending church. According to the bible, tithing out of a sense of duty and tradition is worthless to God. While 10% is the old testament requirement, the new testament makes it clear that tithing what you can out of a loving desire to please God, even if it's two pennies, is more pleasing than tithing half your great riches because you were told you had to. Churches survive on the tithes of its members. While it is not wrong for churches to grow invest money in the programs and ministries they offer, it can't be right to guilt the attendees into giving their money. Tithing is an act of loving obedience; it's meant to be one of those free will choices God has allowed us to have. He doesn't need your money because it's already His. He just wants us to show Him that we know we are merely stewards of all that He blesses us with.

Jesus was often criticized for spending his time with sinners. His response was that a physician doesn't come to heal the healthy. He didn't come to save the righteous. Often, however, Christians judge the unbelievers, the poor, and even each other. With all the WWJD bracelets it seems impossible not to remember to strive to live in a Christ-like manner but it still happens. These self-righteous forget they are also sinners and not good enough for the precious gift of grace given to us by our Lord. None of us are good enough but Jesus is.

Please, Christian brothers and sisters, spread the Word. But when you do, be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. And don't spread what you haven't read.

Learn more about this author, Holli Yargo Hearne.
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