I think some self righteous and hateful Christians have given Christianity a bad name. For example often there are Christians protesting gays with signs such as you are going to hell or burn in hell fag. Consider if Jesus was here would He pick up a sign to protest homosexuals, bad mouth them, treat them as the scourge of the earth or would He dine with them?

Christians often act like God hates homosexuality worse than any other sin. Oh not so. God hates all sins. My guess is God hates pride and self righteousness as much as any sin. So many Christians are pharisaical and self righteous. Is it any wonder people don't like them?

Christians seem to be more concerned about the offending sin than the welfare of the offender. How unlike Jesus who ate with sinners. I wonder how many present day evangelicals would be shocked like the Pharisees of Jesus' day if Jesus attended a gay rally and ate with them?

I think if Christians were more humble and realized that they struggle with sin they might stop looking past the log in their own eyes before they condemned others.

Paul talks about speaking the truth in love. I don't see any love in those pharisaical protests. Protesting is not the way to reach homosexuals. If love is not the motive for reaching out to homosexuals then the Christian ought to keep silent.

Christians will better reflect God by showing love than carrying on self appointed, self righteous, hate filled, pharisaical, and finger pointing protests. My how they feel righteous because they are not guilty of that sin?

Oh Christian deal with your own sins before going after others.

The Holy God came down to earth and dwelt with sinners. He had compassion on sinners. He seemed to be angrier at the self righteous Pharisees than he was with sinners.

Matthew 9:9-13 (NASB): As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew, sitting in the tax collector's booth; and He said to him, "Follow Me!" And he got up and followed Him. Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, "Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?" But when Jesus heard this, He said, "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.” But go and learn what this means: `I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,' for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Christians need to remember that they were not called to condemn or finger point. They are called to be light and to minister to sinners.

Nobody is saying Christians are to ignore sin but the motive and the method of dealing with sin has to be love for the sinner not anger over the sin.

Billy Graham is thought well of in the Christian and non Christian world. Why is that? He is humble and unpretentious and He didn't go out of his way to self righteously point out people's sin rather he preached the gospel. Now consider some well known national evangelical leaders, whom I will not name, they spew out anti homosexual rhetoric. Who do you think people liken Christians to? Unfortunately they see the outspoken national evangelical leaders as the face of Christianity. No wonder non Christians want nothing to do with Christianity. They see a God who is angry and hates sin and sinners. Billy Graham on the other hand presents the God who does not like sin and who cares about sinners.

To the non Christian world Christians are bigots, self righteous, hate filled people, more concerned about sin than the sinner, the Pharisee, the legalist. In short the ugly self righteous Christian is seen as the typical Christian.

Two characteristics of Jesus are truth and grace.

John 1:14 (NASB): And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

I see lots of truth being spouted by Christians but I don't see much grace demonstrated towards sinners.

Christians in America think they are being persecuted because non Christians don't want prayer forced on them in schools or in public places or have the Ten Commandments posted in court rooms. To call that persecution is laughable. The Apostle Paul was persecuted by Jews because He claimed faith in Jesus was all that was necessary for eternal life. He was jailed and beaten and ultimately lost his life because he cared about sinners. He was an Apostle and yet he didn't complain about being persecuted. He was glad to suffer for the proclamation of the gospel. How unlike Paul are American Christians who are indignant that non believers don't want Christianity forced on them.

Self righteous protesting Christians give Christianity a bad name. Ministry to sinners not protesting is the calling of Christians. They are called to be humble servants.

Jesus is the model for humility.

Philippians 2:3-8 (NASB): Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

If anyone could be indignant about sin it is Jesus and yet He cared for, wooed, spent time with, ate with, ministered to, reached out to, endured suffering from, loved and died for sinners.

Jesus is the God of truth and grace, righteousness and compassion, power and gentleness, holiness and mercy, creator and servant. Oh that Christians would learn to imitate Him.

Sinners loved Jesus and were drawn to Him. To be sure many hated Him. Think about this who put Him to death? It was the self righteous religious leaders. Jesus offered forgiveness to sinners while the religious leaders offered rules and guilt and condemnation.

Do non Christians see Jesus or Pharisees in today's Christian? Do sinners see Christians as gracious and caring about them or moralists concerned about behavior? Go ask any homosexual, pro choice advocate or non believer what Christianity is about. I bet most will say it is about a God of rules rather than a God of love who wants them.

Grace leads to faith which leads to obedience.