I recently read a Huffington Post article titled 6 Things Christians Should Stop Saying, written by the self-described “Author, Speaker, Thought Leader, and Spiritual Teacher,” Steve McSwain. I must say that for someone with so many titles I am completely underwhelmed. How someone who is supposedly so learned can be so ignorant of Christianity is quite risible. I have always heard it is better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. This man has eclipsed that by displaying his utter stupidity and unrighteous contempt for all to see in the printed word. Now we know that the Bible is not based on anything mystical, but it is true, documented history of a people who just happen to be celebrating Passover this week as they have for 3300 years, and a man who we know factually was crucified on the cross 2000 years ago just as we knew there was a Caesar of Augustus at that time. Now I understand how non-Christians may believe Jesus did not raise from the dead, and I have no problem with that because it is entirely possible he didn’t. But the testimony has been demonstrated to be trustworthy over the past two millennia, so it is at least reasonable to say that belief in Christ is warranted even if it cannot be exhaustively proved (and if you believe there are things that can be exhaustively proved, then I would challenge you to prove what you had for breakfast this morning exhaustively, as the only thing you can know exhaustively is what you are thinking this very instant).
Now if I have accepted Christianity based on reliable testimony, what can I do but accept what the Bible says? Am I supposed to impose my own interpretation on the Bible, or read it for what the author originally intended? If this McSwain, who calls himself a Christian, doesn’t believe what the Bible says or that it can be interpreted properly, then why does he believe that we can properly interpret his writing? Wouldn’t the same thing apply to this bombastic piece of so-called journalism? As a self-proclaimed Christian, he is misleading many people so I would hate that to be his legacy when he goes to meet St. Peter. I will take each point below and respond briefly, as I don’t want to spend too much time on this nut case, as follows:
- Point #1: If he doesn’t believe the Bible is infallible, then there really is no point in being a Christian because if Christ cannot ensure his words are accurately transmitted through the generations then we could hardly believe he raised from the dead. If you can’t trust parts of it, then you can’t trust any of it. It just doesn’t make sense and the only course of action is to look for some other explanation of how we got here and what it means to be a human person. Regarding the successful transmission of the authors’ ideas, we have literally thousands of partial texts and hundreds of complete texts dating back to the 100s. With that many copies and variation of no more than 0.5% across them all makes the Bible an astounding historical document without peer.
- Point #2: Why does he expect the Bible to be interpreted any differently from any other book? The Bible is a book of written history that is to be interpreted like any other book, and is a book with a number of genres such as poetry, apocalyptic, the gospels, wisdom, and the law. So you don’t interpret wisdom in the same way you interpret law, and you don’t interpret poetry the same as the gospels. The fact that this escapes this man is beyond me.
- Point #3: It is just utter foolishness to indicate that Christ indicated anything other than he as being the only way to heaven. Christ is clear on this, and so were his disciples. There is no interpretive “issue” here, or alternative reading. If McSwain cannot accept that the Bible says the only way to salvation is through Christ, since it was he that died on the cross for our sins, then McSwain should just ditch Christianity since he doesn’t believe what it clearly says. There is no crime in doing this, and shoehorning his personal views into biblical interpretation is one of the worst things any Christian can do. I think there is a special hell for people who do that because it is wholly dishonest and disingenuous.
- Point #4: The Bible is clear that no man knows the hour of Christ’s return, not even Lindsey or LaHaye. Christians are not automatons, so they don’t believe the Lindsey/LaHaye books just because they’re on printed paper. No sober Christian is out there predicting when Jesus comes. Perhaps this guy hangs out with Christians that are as dumb and uninformed as he is. For the average Christian, there is absolutely nothing wrong with waiting expectantly for Christ’s return knowing that there is no telling for sure when this will happen.
- Point #5: The Bible is clear on homosexuality. Again, it isn’t even debatable. My assertion is that we all struggle with sins of some sort and no one is immune from sin. For example, I have always struggled with anxiety. I was “born that way” because it was present in my earliest childhood behavior. Does that mean I should go around asking everyone to change because I tend to hurry things? Or should I learn to temper that tendency and be more patient and sober? I would argue the latter. Homosexuals are sinners like everyone else, so why this man thinks they should be treated special is being highly presumptuous and selfish. They have to deal with their sin, I have to deal with mine, and McSwain has to deal with his (which includes his animus towards fellow Christians). I am not going to encourage behavior that the Bible says is wrong and if it is lived as a lifestyle threatens a person’s very soul. That is spiritual malpractice. Christians who promote homosexuality are doing homosexuals no favors, and will be held to an ever greater account for teaching obvious falsehood when they reach the pearly gates (presuming they do after behavior that is anything but Christian).
- Point #6: Some Christians believe in a young earth, and some believe in an old earth. But this has NOTHING to do with salvation, and if this is something he wants to nitpick about, then the man really has way too much time on his hands. I believe in an old earth, but I will not disparage those who believe in a young earth. I will respectfully disagree and that’s it. Only a fool makes this a criticism of a Christian.
Finally, just look at how he ends his article on love. Did you see much love displayed in his article? I didn’t see any. I saw Christians, of whom he counts himself in the number, mocked, derided, and made out be bigots who are no more than Bible-thumping idiots simply for believing the same Bible as he. Hardly any love in that. Also, lest this fool forgot, since he says he is a Christian, Christ is co-eternal with God. So what God has done, Christ has done. And if Christ has not come back to change his views after 2000 years, then you can best believe he hasn’t changed them despite what McSwain and people of his ilk try to shove off on unsuspecting, low-information Christians. And as far as I know, God is not only a God of love but he is also a God of judgment. That’s why Christ died on a cross for our sins because God demanded a penalty for our sins. Christ paid the ultimate price unto eternity, and for that we should be most grateful. Of course, that small point seems lost on this fool as well. My recommendation is that he refrain from writing articles about subjects that are not within his domain of knowledge. He is someone that needs to first learn what Christianity is, and only then should he make judgments about what Christians should or should not do.
Anyway, Shalom, and Happy Easter. Don’t let people like McSwain who crawl out from under a rock spreading doubt every year at Easter discourage you.
Christ has risen!
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