Christianity is true.

It isn’t necessarily ‘nice’.

It is almost never ‘safe’.

New Testament teaching is radical, uncomfortable and vulgar.

Understood properly, it will turn your stomach.

Sometimes, the gospel is completely inappropriate in a church setting.

Western Christians are a refined and cultured people.

Scripture is coarse and unpleasant.

So we’ve cleaned it up.

Sanitized it.

“…For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish…”

You can say ‘rubbish’ in any pulpit on any given Sunday.

You cannot say “shit”.

Though that’s what Paul said.

In comparison to Christ…

… our earthly accomplishments…

…our prestige…

…our piety…

…our education, ethics, and awards…

…shit.

Imagine the uproar Paul would create with that sermon!

 

“I don’t appreciate that kind of language!”

Precisely.

We don’t appreciate that language.

Which begs the question, “Do we appreciate scripture?”

We don’t use words like that because we’re proper.

 

Saying ‘rubbish’ makes us righteous.

 

 

Which is bulls***.

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9 Responses

  1. I love that Jesus doesn’t seem to let the idea that “you should be nice” keep him from addressing eternal things.
    Sometimes the call to be nice is just a tool to distract. And that is definitely not nice but nice is not necessary

  2. “Christianity is true. It isn’t necessarily ‘nice’.”

    You may know this already, but “nice” actually means foolish, stupid, ignorant, compliant, appeasing,and incapable. The old French was “silly,simple.” Latin was “ignorant,incompetent.”

    So Christians can be kind sometimes and Jesus Christ is certainly merciful, but “nice” is a word that never quite means what we think it does.

  3. People typically have referenced the prohibition on coarse joking in reference to vulgar language and sexual innuendos, but yeah, I really don’t think that’s what that passage is talking about. Seems more about degrading people.

    On a similar, yet tangential note, in recent years I have found it a fun anecdote to point people to the dick joke in I Kings 12:10 (Though to be fair, not everyone found it funny at that time, either ^_^)

    1. Ugh, I occasionally have that discussion about that verse… it truly drives home the point he’s trying make…Such that I’d rather not talk long about it, haha.

      I’d rather talk about b***shit. Er, bulls***. Sorry for the typo.

  4. Let’s not forget one of my favorite words: bastard. It is the misinformed which has rendered a meaning scripture never intended.

    The legalist thinks one cannot speak ‘purely’ and be a believer by using colorful words; equating ‘unwholesome words’ with unrighteousness. But yes, dung is a good word. Makes the point quite well.

    And I said recently: truth is a bitch. 😉

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