 Is Jesus Christ the face of Christianity? I am getting increasingly uncomfortable with the reality that He may not be. Let me explain. In a culture obsessed with Hollywood stars, athletic heroes and charismatic leaders, I sense a trend within the Christian subculture that uplifts, venerates and idolizes our Christian superstars.
At the same time, it is a perfectly natural, benign human desire to find people we admire, respect and appreciate. But where do we draw the line between simple admiration and hero worship? Is it possible that in an American culture heavily influenced by a media preoccupation with stars, that we have replaced Jesus with our own Christian stars? As I observe this troubling reality, I have numerous concerns regarding the implications of the fascination amongst Christians to be defined by their superstars. A few of these I will outline below.
First, in a culture defined by media exposure, what message are we sending to a society with an increasingly complicated understanding of the defining, central message of Christianity? By uplifting and celebrating Christian athletes, televangelists, influential pastors, musicians, and movie stars are we making these individuals the face and message of Christianity? When the world looks upon the message we convey, do they begin to believe that these individuals are the spokesmen and women of our faith? Has the greyscale of their arbitrary, fringe beliefs now become central claims of Christianity to others who may be looking on?
A core value of our faith is true, substantial transformation rooted in the grace of Jesus Christ which is NOT derived from our morality. Yet the people we uplift on a national stage are incredibly gifted, sometimes provocative or image conscious individuals. These individuals are always moralized to the point of exhibiting no flaws. Is a clean cut, moral, family man with a carefully cultivated image of flawlessness the image of Christianity? Are we denying the messiness of our faith in order to supress our fears of being exposed as vulnerable human beings who are heavily reliant on the grace of God to transform our darkness? These individuals could very well be fully devoted, humble followers of Jesus Christ. But is it possible we could setting them up for failure? Is it possible that we observe the heroes of our culture and become Egyptian magicians trying to match miracle for miracle or hero for hero? Have we forgotten the template for how God moves in 1 Corinthians 2:26 31?
The second main concern is one for the idols we promote. Pastors, athletes, televangelists, politicians, movie stars, musicians, etc. are all PEOPLE. These individuals may claim to follow Jesus Christ, but they are still human not superhumans. They too have real insecurities, sin they struggle with, demons from their past they still have guilt from, along with incredible gifts granted from God mixed with glaring deficiencies....because they are human. But by making them something they are not, is it possible that we set them up for failure when they inevitably do make a mistake? For the most part, these people who are in the national eye, are not people we know personally. Yet we act as if we do because we desperately need to find our own heros. If we can admit that not every individual that goes to a Christian university is not necessarily a Christ follower, why are we so quick to coronate individuals we do not know as ours? Then, when they do fall from grace, we are extremely quick to trample them and bury them in the midst of their humiliation. Could these individuals be restored to a more powerful story when they receive the grace from the very people that claimed them as their own in the first place? Are we sending a message to the world that we adore people for their gifts because they make our message more attractive, but as soon as they make a misstep, they are no longer one of us?
Somtimes we uplift someone that does not want the spotlight. Somtimes individuals uplift themselves into the spotlight because they crave the attention. And other times it could be a combination of both. But when we begin to ask questions or serve comments such as, did you know this athlete is a Christian? Or Wow, what a phenomenal man of God, I can see why God has blessed his ministry to be so expansive. We make serious implications about that individual and what our God values that help to mold and formulate perceptions for the surrounding culture.
I long and desire for our society to see Christians only through the lens of Jesus Christ and not received mixed messages on who speaks for us. Christ makes it clear that we are responsible for the messages we convey, we cannot ignore our role by blaming it on others. This may be an oversimplified vision, but it is within this basic, return to Jesus being our only face that can provide the complex, applicational answers which paint the portrait we are put putting on display to others about our faith. |
