What Makes Christianity Unique

By:  Dale Weckbacher

1 Corinthians 13:1

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

(ESV)

One of the greatest deceptions I have observed in the heated rhetoric of our times is the portraying of Christianity as a religion of hatred towards anyone not adopting its beliefs.  This deception has led to the grouping of Christianity with other religions in the world, something even those not fans of Christianity have observed. (1)  The practice of grouping individuals of a certain ethnicity, economic class, race, gender, politics, or religion is not only racist but feeds the divide in our society that has now become violent and must stop.

The purpose of this posting is to bring to light what makes Christianity unique by not only looking at scripture but also at the numerous positive contributions Christianity has made to our society.  The truth about Christianity is that it,

1)      Is not based upon our own works but on what God has done (Ephesians 2:8-9) – Radical religions are able to coerce their followers to do many things they would never do on their own by using fear and promising a reward in the name of their God for their service.  This is how religions like radical Islam convince followers to commit acts of terrorism, usually resulting in their death, with a promise of some heavenly reward.  In Islam, jihad is physical warfare but as part of our modern deception it is characterized as an internal struggle.  Islam teaches one can fulfill jihad “1) with faith in his heart; 2) by preaching and proselytizing with his tongue; 3) by good deeds with his hands; and 4) by confronting unbelievers or enemies with the sword. In practice, the first three are part of the da'wa (missionary activity) actions that support jihad by the sword.” (2)  The lumping of Christianity in with these beliefs is the creation of a belief that fundamental Christians will resort to violence to win favor with God.  While John 3:16 is a verse many whether Christians or not can recite, when we look at what it says and couple it with John 3:17, we see the true message of Christianity.  To achieve eternal life all one must do is believe and the fact that Jesus did not come to condemn the world but to save it.  Anyone professing to be Christian and condoning violence to advance their religion is not following the Gospel as taught in scripture and following a deceptive belief that they must earn their right standing with God through works, not faith.

2)      Condones love and peace, not hate – Jesus first recorded message in scripture is the famous “Sermon on the Mount.”  At the beginning of His message Jesus presents the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:2-12).  There are nine verses in this passage of scripture that begin with the word blessed, which can also be translated as happy.  (3)  Since none of the things Jesus lists as what will bring his followers happiness is violence against anyone not adhering to the beliefs of Christianity, it is safe to assume Jesus never intended violence as a method of advancing His message, otherwise there would be a beatitude saying blessed are those wielding the sword in my names sake for great will be their reward in heaven.  In addition, when one of his disciples raised a sword to one of the soldiers arresting Jesus, Jesus sharply condemned him and even healed the wounded man (Luke 22:49-51).  Unfortunately, throughout church history there have been those declaring the Gospel absent a spirit of love and tarnished the loving message of the Gospel.  As 1 Corinthians 13:1 reminds us, failure to share the Gospel with a loving heart sounds like a noisy gong or cymbal which only serves to deafen the ears of the listener. 

3)      Has had a positive impact on society – Dinesh D’Souza wrote the following in his book: What’s So Great about Christianity”

Christianity is responsible for the way our society is organized and for the way we currently live. So extensive is the Christian contribution to our laws, our economics, our politics, our arts, our calendar, our holidays, and our moral and cultural priorities that historian J. M. Robers writes in The Triumph of the West, 'We could none of us today be what we are if a handful of Jews nearly two thousand years ago had not believed that they had known a great teacher, seen him crucified, dead, and buried, and then rise again.  (4)

While Islam has its own list of good works it has performed, (5) terrorism by radicals within the religion far outweigh any good and violence has become the legacy of this religion. (6) (7) Perhaps if the teachings of Mohammed spoke of peace and non-violence instead of use of the sword, this would not be so.  (7)

The uniqueness of Christianity lies in the fact that God became one of us, came to earth to live with us, and died in our place, providing reconciliation with him.  My prayer is that we as Christians would live lives of peace knowing our salvation in Christ is secure and seek happiness by living according to what Jesus said in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:2-12).  By doing this we can lift up Christ and draw men and women to seek a relationship with Jesus by accepting his gift of salvation (John 12:32). 

If you feel Jesus drawing you to him now and would like a personal relationship with him, I invite you to pray with me now,

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans 3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans 6:23).  I ask you to forgive me of my sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1 John 1:9).  I believe you died, was buried, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord of my life.

May God bless everyone reading this and fill your life with His joy, peace, and happiness. 

1. Markhumphrys.com. Christian Terrorism. markhumphrys.com. [Online] [Cited: July 4, 2017.] http://markhumphrys.com/christian.terrorism.html.

2. Bukay, David. The Religious Foundations of Suicide Bombings. www.meforum.org. [Online] Middle East Forum, Fall 2006. [Cited: July 4, 2017.] http://www.meforum.org/1003/the-religious-foundations-of-suicide-bombings.

3. Biblestudytools.com. Beatitudes. www.biblestudytools.com. [Online] [Cited: July 4, 2017.] http://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/beatitudes/.

4. Faith Facts. The Impact of Christianity. www.faithfacts.org. [Online] Faith Facts. [Cited: July 4, 2017.] http://www.faithfacts.org/christ-and-the-culture/the-impact-of-christianity.

5. Hamzat, Abdulrazaq O. ACHIEVEMENTS, IMPACTs AND CONTRIBUTION OF ISLAM TO WORLD CIVILIZATION. www.modernghana.com. [Online] Modern Ghana, August 1, 2013. [Cited: July 4, 2017.] https://www.modernghana.com/news/478976/1/achievements-impacts-and-contribution-of-islam-to-.html.

6. ALI, AYAAN HIRSI. Islam Is a Religion of Violence. foreignpolicy.com. [Online] Foreign Policy, November 9, 2015. [Cited: July 4, 2017.] http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/11/09/islam-is-a-religion-of-violence-ayaan-hirsi-ali-debate-islamic-state/.

7. Sameer, Abdullah. Islam and the legacy of violence. abdullahsameer.com. [Online] Abdullah Sameer, May 24, 2017. [Cited: July 4, 2017.] http://abdullahsameer.com/blog/islam-and-the-legacy-of-violence/.