Re:The Moral Order of Panera
by TimTheTinker on Thursday April 18, 2019 @07:10PM
(#19695586)
> When churches help people, they have an ulterior motive -- to convert the people they help to the church.
You might as well say God has an ulterior motive for providing for our needs - that we would come to know and love him. The two statements are analogous.
It’s true, churches that truly love people and believe the Bible will want people to be saved through belief in Jesus. Hell is so bad, nothing could be more unloving than to not care about people’s souls and offer them the gospel.
To be clear, the assumption that non-Christians are going to hell is not because of any moral superiority. All deserve hell, including Christians, because all have sinned. But free forgiveness is offered. It’s like a flag being waved over a well in the desert by a once-thirsty man who has found water. The statement “I’ve found water” or the assumption that we’re all in a desert carries no overtone of personal superiority.
At the same time, if people need help but don’t want to hear anything, fine. That is no reason to turn them away or treat them less favorably in charity/outreach.
You might as well say God has an ulterior motive for providing for our needs - that we would come to know and love him. The two statements are analogous.
It’s true, churches that truly love people and believe the Bible will want people to be saved through belief in Jesus. Hell is so bad, nothing could be more unloving than to not care about people’s souls and offer them the gospel.
To be clear, the assumption that non-Christians are going to hell is not because of any moral superiority. All deserve hell, including Christians, because all have sinned. But free forgiveness is offered. It’s like a flag being waved over a well in the desert by a once-thirsty man who has found water. The statement “I’ve found water” or the assumption that we’re all in a desert carries no overtone of personal superiority.
At the same time, if people need help but don’t want to hear anything, fine. That is no reason to turn them away or treat them less favorably in charity/outreach.