Have you ever looked through an old window whose glass has become distorted with age? 
When we look at the world through an aged window or through the side of a glass bottle, our vision is distorted due to the fact that we have added an inconsistent filter between us and the world we are viewing. An inconsistent filter gives inconsistent images… leading to wrong ideas about the “shape” of something. To see things properly, we have to change the filter we are looking through.
And bottles aren’t the only inconsistent filter!
Our own families, our education, our culture, our society… all of these are filters that prompt us to “look at” (& think about) the world around us in a certain way. How we think about people, about money, about entertainment… these filters color our perception and understanding. And unless we are aware of this, we won’t even know that we are looking at things through a lens that distorts.
So what we end up doing is looking at everything, even the Word of God, through the filter of American society, instead of looking at American society through the filter of God’s Word.
And since we are using a distorting lens, we Christians in America end up distorting the truths of God’s Word. We have somehow molded our understanding of the Scriptures around our American beliefs, such that we have distorted God’s teachings to help them “line-up” with American society. This leads to us having inconsistent lives and beliefs. And then we wonder why people who aren’t Christians have a hard time understanding God’s Word. What are some ways we do this?
When we pray more for the poor physical health of other Christians than we do for people who don’t yet know Jesus (and therefore already have “poor” spiritual health), then we have distorted why Jesus came to this earth.
When we are more focused on our entertainment (watching our TV, reading our novels, engaging in our outdoor recreational activities) than on reading God’s Word and talking to Him about it, then we have distorted how to develop a deep relationship with God.
When we consider our disobedience to God as “not that bad” because we are comparing them to the “worse” sins of others, instead of deciding to see how close we can have our lives line up with Jesus’, then we have distorted what it means to be a disciple.
When we have become so fixated on money and image that we will give our waiters and waitresses 20% tips so they think we are nice people, and buy houses and cars and “stuff” that cost exorbitant amounts to impress people we don’t know, and go into debt just so we can keep up with the “Joneses,” though we don’t even come close to giving 10% of our income to God, then we have distorted our understanding of God as provider and have worshiped the idol of the almighty dollar and the American dream above our Heavenly Father.
When pastors learn to become professionals who can run a church as a CEO and have everything their hearts’ desire without ever really seeking God’s face for direction, then we have distorted what it means to be a shepherd of God’s church.
When we believe that discussing politics, boycotting places that don’t share our beliefs, and calling & writing our senators about their political agendas are more important than telling our neighbors about Jesus and more important than discipling less mature Christians, then we have distorted our understanding of the Great Commission.
When we are more fixated on pleasing ourselves, on obtaining the American dream, about having blessings and comfort and security, then we have distorted what our freedom and liberty in Christ are all about.
You are not free to do whatever you would like.
You are free to do whatever Jesus would like.
You were bought with a price… by Him.
What will you do to help reorient yourself to a healthier (and less distorted) Biblical understanding of discipleship?
Can you think of other areas of Christianity that we have distorted?
When we look at the world through an aged window or through the side of a glass bottle, our vision is distorted due to the fact that we have added an inconsistent filter between us and the world we are viewing. An inconsistent filter gives inconsistent images… leading to wrong ideas about the “shape” of something. To see things properly, we have to change the filter we are looking through.