Have Radicalized Christians Completely Forgotten Jesus?

Hate Thy Neighbor, Love Thyself

In the U.S., Christ’s teachings have been radicalized to the point that even God himself would not recognize them. Hate has replaced love. Political power has replaced faith. And we need to ask ourselves a hard question. Have radicalized Christians forgotten Jesus?

It appears they have.

“Love thy neighbor” has been replaced by “Hate people who are different, especially if they are poor, have dark skin or come from another country.”

Loud-mouthed arrogance has replaced the humility of Christ, and materialism has replaced spiritual riches.

Some people drape the American flag over a cross and preach a violent faith that idolizes flag and country rather than Christ. Many radicalized Christians forget the first two – and most important — commandments that God gave humanity:

“You must not have any other god but me,” and “You must not make for yourself any idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I am the Lord your God….” (NLT).

All too many Americans place money, power and nationalism over Christ. They have become more loyal to political leaders and their ideologies than to Jesus and his teachings.

Political power goes to their heads, and they enjoy “getting the libs.”

These radicalized Christians would be outraged to hear the truth, but their outrage would make the truth no less true.

A Foundation of Sand

How does radicalization take hold of people who genuinely believe they are devout Christians?

People may have been strong Christians at one point in their lives, but circumstances have changed them. Many fall prey to religious leaders who preach false doctrines. The twisted teachings give some followers a sense of power and superiority they have never known.

False teachers and preachers have, for example, convinced some followers that God has a covenant with America and Americans. Then, they tell their followers that God will destroy America if Americans do not support the leaders’ pet causes, i.e., banning gay marriages and outlawing abortions, among other things.

It’s more exciting to be God’s chosen nation and God’s chosen people than not. God has chosen them, but radicalized Christians have twisted the idea into something it isn’t.

The Bible says nothing about Americans or the U.S. It clearly states that the Jews are God’s chosen people, and the Lord’s covenant with Abraham – and by extension, Abraham’s descendants – will last forever (Genesis 7).

Scripture also talks of another covenant that promises people a new relationship with God through Jesus. It means God has a covenant with all Christians, regardless of their color, sexual orientation, country of origin, etc. It does not mean God has a covenant with Americans only or whites only. To say otherwise is unbiblical.

The idea that right-wing American Christians are now the chosen ones was created by false teachers who based their beliefs on a foundation of sand rather than truth.

Politics and Religion

Yet there’s another reason many Americans become radicalized. They are not critical thinkers. They easily fall under the spell of false teachers and preachers who lead them away from Christ. Church services become political rallies, and congregations become little more than lobbyists for dangerous right-wing causes.

Followers also feed off other followers’ beliefs, share information online and drift farther and farther away from Jesus. I have written about some of the dangers that arise when churches mix politics and faith, one of which is, “Should We Have Politics in America’s Pulpits?” Lee Ann B. Marino’s article, “How Abortion Became the Poster-Child for the Right,” on Patheos also is worth reading.

Challenging Religious Teachings

But there’s more. Some people will not challenge the religious teachings they hear because they don’t want to lose their sense of community, identity and purpose. When they hear that Jews, blacks or gays are responsible for their various problems, they readily accept the extremism.

Radicalized Christians focus on judging and excluding scapegoats rather than loving them as Christ taught us to do. They forget that Jesus preached about being a good Samaritan and doing unto others as we would have others to do unto us.

They also forget or argue the fact that Jesus, himself, was a poor, displaced immigrant. His family fled from their homeland and into Egypt when King Herod threatened the Christ child’s very existence. Later, Jesus was an itinerant preacher,

Radical Christian beliefs aren’t in line with Christ’s teachings about love, as described in the Bible.

A Radicalized Savior

Yet, being a radical isn’t always bad. Jesus was a radical in a good sense. He was radically good and kind as he sought out and ministered to the marginalized people of his day. What a refreshing idea!

Let’s look at several examples of Christ’s radical kindness:

Christ chose Matthew — a hated tax collector for Rome — to become one of his original disciples. He could easily have ignored or rejected Matthew because society saw tax collectors for Rome as traitors and extortionists, but Jesus didn’t. He saw a child of God and set an example of radical goodness.

Jesus talked with a Samaritan woman at a well, and in doing so, crossed several societal barriers. He crossed religious and racial boundaries when he – a Jewish man — talked to a Samaritan woman. After all, Jews despised Samaritans.

Jewish men did not start conversations in public with women who were not their relatives. Christ also crossed a boundary because the woman had a bad reputation. She was an outcast who been married several times and was living with a man who was not her husband.

The woman began to realize that Jesus was no ordinary man.  As they talked, she began to see him as a prophet and finally, as the Messiah. And she not only believed but also led others to share her belief.

The Bible records other stories that show Christ’s radical goodness. Stories tell about Jesus healing several people on the Sabbath. In one story, Jesus heals a man with a deformed hand in a synagogue (Luke 6:9).

The Pharisees, who were rule-loving religious leaders in Christ’s time, were quick to criticize Christ for breaking the Sabbath. They said he was working, which was forbidden in Jewish society. But Jesus uncovered their hypocrisy and continued his ministry despite the Pharisees’ criticism (Luke 6).

Jesus prioritized poor people and preached that God’s kingdom was open to them. He preached the good news – that is, the gospel — to the poor (Luke 4:18-19) and also identified himself with those who are hungry, thirsty, naked, and sick, etc. (Matthew 25:31-46).

In an astonishing statement taken from the latter Scripture, Jesus says, “Whatever you do for one of the least of these, you do for me” (Matthew 25:40).

Whatever we do for or against the lowest of the low in society, we also do for or against the Son of God.

Let those words sink in. Try to explain them away if you can… not to my satisfaction or the satisfaction of others, but to God’s.