Bridge of Reason

  I used to play this trick where I took a handful of change from my pocket and asked someone to count it for me before I used it as an illustration. They would come back with a number and I would look puzzled and ask, ’Are you sure?’ I would then count the change for myself, taking out all the foreign coins that looked like British currency. ‘That,’ I would say, ‘is how easy it is to fool someone. With blinding familiarity and an unsuspecting mark.’ So it is that along comes a Jehovah’s Witness, pointing out the Bible clearly says, ‘You are my witnesses,’ declares Jehovah.’ Isaiah 43:10, and our mark, thinking this an insight, and feeling how clever of him to see it, says, ‘Oh, yes! Tell me more.’ So, too, a Mormon comes along and says, ‘The true church is built on a foundation of apostles and prophets.’ Eph esians 2:20; 1 Co rinthi a ns 12:28; Eph esians 4:11-14, and our mark, thinking he knows something now, and how clever he is to know it, says, ‘Oh, yes! Tell me more.’ ...

How often have we heard this charge that Christians are hypocrites? In an effort to find common ground, build bridges, and identify with non-Christians we are tempted to say, “I know what you mean but...” However, I don’t believe I do know what people mean when they say this. I consider myself fortunate to know many Christians across denominations and from different cultures who are not hypocrites but humble, caring people who live a life of sacrifice and service within the church and in the wider community. I do wonder why my Christian friends seem invisible to those who see nothing but hypocrisy in the Church. The Bible has a lot to teach us about this problem.   Wheat and Weeds We start with a parable, one of Jesus’ stories designed to illustrate an important truth. In the parable of the weeds (Matthew 13:25-30) Jesus tells of a man who sowed good seed in his field, but when his men were sleeping an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat. When the plants grew they saw ...