You Can’t Say Both
I was on the way home from working out this week when I let a car go in front of me. We both stopped at the red light and then I saw something that made me more upset than I could immediately understand. The car had three bumper stickers. Two were Christian and one was “FJB” (which stands for “F@%# Joe Biden”) and had a stick figure performing a sex act on those initials. My face got hot. My mind began to race. I picked up my phone multiple times to post my objection to this on social media but thought better. I decided to cool down before I decided if I would post anything.
A couple of days passed, and then on my way home from working out, I got behind the car again (this time the other spouse was driving it). I couldn’t believe it. Once again the anger returned. I almost followed the person home to talk to them, but again thought better of it.
What made me so mad?
Here are the two messages the bumper stickers are declaring on the back of the car:
1. I am a Christian.
2. F@%# Joe Biden
You are only allowed to say one of those.
If you want to say, “I am a Christian”, you can’t say the other or forms of it like “Let’s Go Brandon.” If you want to say “F@%# Joe Biden”, then YOU MUST STOP SAYING YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN.
Followers of Jesus Christ do not act or speak that way. They follow Jesus’ example and commands. Jesus said this:
John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
I could quote a dozen more scriptures about turning the cheek, praying for your enemies, loving you enemies, etc., but I don’t think scripture is what you need. I think you need to examine your faith. Does Jesus set the bar for your conduct or does your political party?
Am I overreacting over one car? No. I recently said in a sermon at my church something along the lines of, “I know one thing Jesus would never say; Let’s go Brandon.” After service I had three separate people show me their “Let’s go Brandon” mugs they brought to church with them (they all felt convicted and were throwing them away). I’ve seen Christians post pictures of themselves with that phrase on t-shirts and hats. It has become an acceptable behavior and I can’t for the life of me figure out how.
So, again, what made me so mad?
Here’s my conclusion after a couple of days to meditate on it. This behavior dishonors my Savior and makes my job so much harder. I want to be clear when I say “job” that I’m not talking about my profession as a pastor (though it would be true of that too), but my calling as a Christian. When someone says the messages that they are both Christians and willing to speak so dishonorably of another person, it paints a bad picture of all Christians. That makes it hard for me because I have to work hard to show people I’m nothing like “those Christians” before I can even talk to them about Jesus. People also connect their image of Jesus to those who claim to follow Him. So, people that don’t know Jesus think He must condone saying F@%# Joe Biden. Why would someone want to follow a God like that?
One final side thought; Jesus really loves Joe Biden. He loves him so much that He died on the cross for his sin. Let that sink in when you say F@%# Joe Biden.
If you want to argue with my take on anything, I will only engage those that use scripture to show how Jesus would be ok with that phrase. I’m not interested in politics or freedom of speech. I surrendered those when I gave my life to Jesus.