The Wrong Kind of Publicity

Dear Crosswalkers,
Two items of religious note have been flooding the news this past week.  One is the controversy surrounding the plan to build a Mosque/Islamic Community Center near ground zero in New York, and the other is the small Pentecostal Church in Florida that plans to burn copies of the Qur’an on Saturday, September 11.  There have been so many pixels produced about these events I hesitate to add more, but I see two very important biblical principles that should be applied to both these situations.

The first is 1 Corinthians 10:23 - You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial.

In this entire section, the Apostle Paul indicates that just because we are free to do something, or in American jargon, just because we have the right to do something, doesn’t mean we should do it!  The point is to act in love and do what is beneficial.  Of course in America those who want to build a Mosque near ground zero and those who want to burn Qur’ans have the “right” to do so.  But is it beneficial?  Here godly people can disagree, but in both cases, I would argue that it is probably not beneficial (although of course one cannot expect Muslims to apply biblical wisdom in their situation).

A second biblical principle is found in 1 Peter 3:15-16 – Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it.  But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.

The news seems to change every day regarding the proposed Qur’an burning.  Will he or won’t he? is the question being asked of Pastor Terry Jones and his congregation.  As of this writing, the burning has been suspended.  Unfortunately, some other small congregations are taking up the slack.  One confused congregation plans to burn both the Qur’an and the American flag!  What happened to our charge to “love our enemies”? And what about the verse quoted above that says to explain your Christian hope to a confused world, but “do this in a gentle and respectful way”?  Burning the Qur’an is clearly disrespectful, and it not only dishonors our Lord and is counter-productive to an authentic Christian witness; but it puts the lives of missionaries, Jesus followers, and even American troops living and serving in Muslim countries at risk.

In our everyday lives, these are two lessons to live by:  1. Just because we have the right to do something doesn’t mean we should do it; and 2.  May we take our stand for Jesus in a firm, unyielding, but respectful way.  Then we shine with his light!

I hasten to add that while this Qur’an burning event is the wrong kind of publicity for the cause of Christ, there are opportunities here to show clearly the differences between Christian and Muslim worldviews.  Here’s just one example:  Muslims seem to hold that printed copies of the Qur’an are more holy than human life!  Riots and death ensue across the globe whenever Muslim sensibilities get offended.  Christians hold that the Bible is holy, but not the printed paper.  What is holy is the living and active word of God!  Human life is also holy, because people are made in the image and likeness of God.  Therefore when Muslims burn Bibles and crosses, there will be no riots and death threats.  Of course, there are many other points of contrasts as well.

May God bless our thoughtful witness for his glory!

Love in Jesus,

Pastor John


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