I woke up this morning with Jesus on my mind while reminiscing of all the “eccentric” people I have known over the years, many of which were Christians and many were not. Some questions arose within me such as what does it really mean to be a Christian? There must be a standard, and point of reference. A Christian is one who professes belief in the teachings of Jesus Christ according to Webster, yet I come across many who profess this yet do not live this. They deviate from the Biblical norm of Christianity.
Merriam-Webster dictionary states that eccentric means
a : deviating from an established or usual pattern or style
b : deviating from conventional or accepted usage or conduct especially in odd whimsical ways
b : deviating from conventional or accepted usage or conduct especially in odd whimsical ways
I’m ever amazed at peoples proud approach to living an eccentric lifestyle. While there is nothing necessarily wrong with living in such a manner, and I may have some eccentric ways about myself, it certainly can be off putting to those we rub shoulders with.
Christianity is a result of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Somehow we have a world of “Christians” that are living an eccentric Christianity lifestyle. They “deviate” from the established or usual patter or style. While in life this can be a adventuress and well excepted means of living I’m challenged as I write this by the Word of God:
And they continued stedfastly in the apostles doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. Acts 2:42
I’m not convinced that eccentric Christianity is the accepted practice according to the scripture. Modern day Christians need to go back to the Word of God, ask the relevant questions. What did the apostles teach? What was their message? Are all these new fades in Christianity acceptable?
There may be different forms of worship, different structure of a church service; some churches have a casual atmosphere (i.e. Jeans and t-shirts) others are more formal (i.e. Suit and tie). This is not what disturbs me, what disturbs me is the deviation from what the Apostles taught and preached. They were the original Christians! They were monotheistic in their views, they were more interested in people than temples, they were more concerned with spreading the Gospel (the good news of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection).
I leave you with this question, are you an Eccentric Christian or are you following the original, established patterns and conduct of the early church?
If this short thought challenges you to reinvestigate were you are at in your relationship with Christ, or you want to solidify your beliefs from the Word of God rather than from acceptance of what you have heard over a pulpit rather than seeing for yourself in the Bible, your welcome to follow this link and encouraged to complete the Bible study you’ll find on this page. (use Microsoft explorer or Google chrome)
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