Um… could you NOT tell people you are a Christian?

I performed my first wedding last Saturday. It was odd to be on the other side of it all. I have been a groomsman, best man, and a groom before, and I can honestly say they are each and everyone different. The wedding was beautiful and as I married these two, I prayed that God would strengthen their marriage.

The wedding made me think of another one I was a groomsman in. Particularly the bachelor’s party. When my best friend got married, we took him to his favorite restaurant, Buffalo Wild Wings. There were about 30 men invited to this meal as we were each giving advice to him about what we have learned about marriage and what the Bible says about marriage. Now, 30 men in a restaurant all being loud, laughing, and generally having a good time tends to make a scene. The waitress, who was a nice, attractive young lady, asked, “What are all of you celebrating?” “It’s this guy’s bachelor party” I said motioning to the groom. “Oh great! So are you guys all going to the strip club after leavening here?” She asked.

Now, I guess this is the kinda the worldly view of what everyone does at their bachelor party, but the group of men gathered there were all Godly men who I have the utmost respect for. The highest to this day being the groom whom I have known for quite sometime. So my response was, “No, we are all Christians.” The words that came out of her mouth next flat out shocked me.

“So am I, but I still go to strip clubs all the time.”

Let me give that a minute to set in…………….

For a moment, I was speechless. For a moment. But for any of you who know me, I could not just let that go! “Um, excuse me miss” I said after re-gathering my thoughts, “why do you go to a strip club?” I guess I still like to believe that people are inherently good. “Oh, my friend works on stage there, and when I go she gets me free drinks.” Ok, that dispels the first thought I had at least. “And you don’t see a problem with that?” I asked. “No.” She replied. So I just shook my head and she moved on to the next person’s order.

I looked at the guy sitting next to me, who had laughed all the way through our conversation, and said, “Um, could you not tell people that you are a Christian?”

There are tons of people who claim they are Christians, but the reality is they don’t have a clue. And when you say you are a Christian, what do you mean? Let’s define “Christian” shall we? The root of the word is “Christ,” so we can see that it is actually centered around Christ. Now, the only “Christ” I know is Jesus Christ. The suffix “ian” means “like, related to, or belonging to.” So, to say you are a “Christian,” means you are Christ-like, or related to Christ, or that you BELONG to Christ. But just because someone says they are, doesn’t make it so. Look at what Jesus said:

You'll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can't produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn't produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So you'll recognize them by their fruit.

-Matthew 7:16-20

So how are you presenting yourself? Do people look at you and say, “That person really loves Jesus!” Or do people look at you and think you’re fake? Whether we like it or not, there will always be people watching. What message are you sending? Are people saying behind your back, “Um, could you not tell people you are a Christian?”

Wanna talk? jon@crossroadsnewport.com