Its like that old Catholic/Protestant argument--can you lose your salvation, or is it once saved always saved? Protestants with the OSAS belief point out (rightly) that none of us can ever do enough to earn salvation--it is a gift from God. We point out that if your faith isn't manifested in your life, it doesn't really exist, and that unless you are saying that at some point Christians lose their free will, it doesn't make sense to say that we can't choose to leave God and live a life antithetical to His will, and we accept that having that choice may mean we make it--and suffer the consequences.
There is a stream of thought that looks at Christianity as a series of rules--many of which for most of us revolve around carnal issues as most people don't have major problems avoiding murdering their neighbors or stealing from them--don't do this or you will go to Hell (and if it is something you struggle with and I don't it is a lot easier to put it in the mortal sin category) . There is another stream that looks at what you do do--the "be nice" folks or social justice warriors who point out that Jesus told us to take care of people, and not just people who were just like us. Both streams have some truth, and yet both are incomplete.
This is practically a post in itself. "If it is something you struggle with and I don't it is a lot easier to put it in the mortal sin category" - that's brilliant! That's why I think, at least in part, abortion has become such a preeminent issue--because it's not one that W.E. struggle with, so it's easy to paint it as good guys vs. bad guys. Where questions of stewardship of creation would require us to change things that impact our own comfort, so even though collectively, these things impact life and lead to the death of human beings, it isn't viewed as an assault on life. And even though systems of injustice cause the desperation that drives a lot of the crime in lower socioeconomic areas, that too isn't close to me, and fixing it would require me to confront things I don't want to confront, so even though that impacts human life and dignity, it isn't viewed as an assault on life either. Lots to think about.
But you're right, I hadn't thought of the argument you put in your first paragraph. I guess there are a lot of these both/and questions in the pursuit of discipleship.
Its like that old Catholic/Protestant argument--can you lose your salvation, or is it once saved always saved? Protestants with the OSAS belief point out (rightly) that none of us can ever do enough to earn salvation--it is a gift from God. We point out that if your faith isn't manifested in your life, it doesn't really exist, and that unless you are saying that at some point Christians lose their free will, it doesn't make sense to say that we can't choose to leave God and live a life antithetical to His will, and we accept that having that choice may mean we make it--and suffer the consequences.
There is a stream of thought that looks at Christianity as a series of rules--many of which for most of us revolve around carnal issues as most people don't have major problems avoiding murdering their neighbors or stealing from them--don't do this or you will go to Hell (and if it is something you struggle with and I don't it is a lot easier to put it in the mortal sin category) . There is another stream that looks at what you do do--the "be nice" folks or social justice warriors who point out that Jesus told us to take care of people, and not just people who were just like us. Both streams have some truth, and yet both are incomplete.
This is practically a post in itself. "If it is something you struggle with and I don't it is a lot easier to put it in the mortal sin category" - that's brilliant! That's why I think, at least in part, abortion has become such a preeminent issue--because it's not one that W.E. struggle with, so it's easy to paint it as good guys vs. bad guys. Where questions of stewardship of creation would require us to change things that impact our own comfort, so even though collectively, these things impact life and lead to the death of human beings, it isn't viewed as an assault on life. And even though systems of injustice cause the desperation that drives a lot of the crime in lower socioeconomic areas, that too isn't close to me, and fixing it would require me to confront things I don't want to confront, so even though that impacts human life and dignity, it isn't viewed as an assault on life either. Lots to think about.
But you're right, I hadn't thought of the argument you put in your first paragraph. I guess there are a lot of these both/and questions in the pursuit of discipleship.