Religion Examined

If you were to walk up to me and ask me what I believe, I would probably start out by telling you that I am a Seventh-day Adventist Christian. Then I would move on to tell you why I am a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, with all the Bible verses and stories to back it up. In the end, I might slip in what it actually means to be a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, the love, the grace, the obedience to God’s Law. But actually that would be a very backwards way of explaining my beliefs.

Just recently I realized that when teaching my children about Christianity, I have been laying out fundamental beliefs. I have been explaining the whats of Christianity. We talk about loving each other. We discuss creation and all that was poured into this world. We marvel at the perfectly formed human being and the stars that shine down just for us. I talk about how sad God is when we choose to sin but how loving he s when he forgives that same sin.

As they have been getting older, they have begun to ask questions. We have moved on to the whys of what we believe. Now, creation becomes a story of a gift given to us by an almighty God. The love that we share with one another, was shown to us by an earthbound Jesus that took on our sin for eternal salvation. The human body is examined as a work of art by a loving and omnipotent God.

Someday, when they are truly versed in the foundations of Christian life and Biblical principle, then and only then will they be ready to put a title on their beliefs. Denominations create lines in the sand that we are afraid to cross. I don’t want my children to be afraid of the world, of their friends and neighbors. Instead, I want them to walk tall and proud in the knowledge that they have of their Mighty God. When they know this truth and why they believe it, they won’t be afraid to stand up for their faith, even their denomination, because it will no longer divide, it will invite.