In Between the Sinner's Prayer Gospel and the Gospel of Guilt

In Christian circles, the term "gospel" is often thrown around as if it has some sort of self-evident meaning. It doesn't, and as far as I know the term isn't found in the Bible much. The literal meaning is "the good news," which most of us can figure is at least a complex pursuit. If I weren't a Christian and I read the Bible objectively, about the last conclusion in the world that I would draw is that the Bible was free of contradictions. Even if we read the Bible as an anthology that spans several genres of literature over thousands of years instead of a "how-to" manual, we at least must acknowledge that the book possesses tons of tension.

But for the dozens of churches I have attended throughout my life and the hundreds of denominations that exist, I'm beginning to notice one big divide. I'll have to generalize here (which means yes, there will be exceptions to my observations), but I'd be surprised if your experience does not fit somewhere my analysis.

The first category of church I will discuss is the type I grew up in. The gospel for these churches seems to indicate that if you say a "sinner's prayer" at some point in your life that you will be "saved" from this world and Hell and get to escape to Heaven someday when God "raptures" all the Christians. If you've read the Bible and you're wondering where that came from, that's because the idea really isn't in there much. Because of these next-life values, this gospel places more value on the work of missionaries and evangelists than it does on the work of writing and waitressing.

This sinner's prayer gospel tends to vote Republican, and most members aren't fans of Mormons, Muslims, Catholics, intellectuals, or gays. They're amazingly complicit in America's wars. They love to quote fire-and-brimstone passages, while explaining away the beatitudes and Matthew 25. It becomes a big in-out game in which someone's after-life status is a constant source of concern. I have a friend who lost a clergy job because (among other reasons) he admitted he still sins and always will.

This group reads "Christian" books, listens to "Christian" music, and watches "Christian" movies. In the more extreme fringes of this sinner's prayer Gospel are those think that not only are you "saved" into Heaven, but that when you become a Christian, you will be blessed with material prosperity if you just believe hard enough live righteously.

Lest this post turn into a bashing session of that gospel alone, allow me to get to the other gospel. Admittedly, this other gospel is the one I have leaned toward during my adult years, but it is just as problematic. This is a different sub-set of churches whose gospel seems to mean something much different. You will hear vague statements like, "The most important thing is to love." They quote verses about not judging a lot and seem to embrace an "anything goes" sort of sexuality.

But nonetheless, these hippies, hipsters, and suburban leftists do judge; they just judge in different areas. While living among such a group, my sister once said, "I felt judged if I drank a can of pop." Yes, those are the actions for which this group judges. Are you eating the right food? Are you reading the right books? Are you watching the trendy television show, listening to the latest Indy music? Do you drink local beer?

For this group, your work is of higher value if you are a social worker with the mentally ill than if you represent your region in the state government.

This second gospel trumpets diversity, but they are not very diverse themselves. They criticize technology and consumerism, but many of them carry iPhones and iPads.

They love to reference the passage in the New Testament where Jesus tells the rich man to give away his possessions and give them to the poor. Meanwhile, they ignore or explain away the fact that God blessed Job, Joseph, and Daniel with great wealth and power. The same tension is there with war. They love "Blessed are the peacemakers" but explain away "I come not to bring peace, but a sword."

While both sides embrace their own neat little boxes and categories for God, neither side seems all that comfortable with God as sovereign. That seems too risky, too uncertain, too mysterious. Meanwhile, these two groups often stand on opposite sides of an ideological fence and shout at each other, telling each other how wrong they are, and proof-texting their verses of choice. It can be a pretty ugly picture for a bunch of people who claim to follow the same Christ.

Is there any hope for unity, reconciliation, or more congruence? What is the actual (true?) gospel? About the only answer I have is, Lord, have mercy...