has anyone ever said that to you? = "that's easy for you to say". it's usually when you're far removed from the context of a situation and say something insensitive like "oh just do A + B" and the other person who is in the middle of the situation is like "that's easy for you to say. try walking a mile in my shoes..." or something like that.
i heard something recently that made me cringe a little. & i wanted to shake the guy who said it and say "that's easy for you to say!" way too easy to say because you are so far removed.
unfortunately the comment came from a very famous/well known Christian leader (who will definitely remain nameless). i have actually met this person and believe he loves Jesus... but is misguided sometimes... like all of us are.
here's what he said:
"The only reason Jesus came was to save people from hell..."
(WOW! that's a pretty big blanket statement right off the bat. the ONLY reason? really? he didn't stop there...)"Jesus had no social agenda...[He didn't come to eliminate poverty or slavery or] fix something in somebody's life for the little moment they live on this earth."
my immediate reaction = "Why would he say that?!?" and then i kind of wanted to punch him because i was angry. [that was not a great reaction, but i'm just being honest.]
1st of all i find his whole theology a little ludicrous based on... well... the Bible for one. even Jesus' very 1st public message in Luke 4:14-20 tells His "reason" for coming... and it's WAY off from the above quote. (surely this guy has read it. it's fascinating to me that he would ignore Jesus' own words in favor of his own little American idealistic 20th century theology.)
This guy is one of the most popular authors, pastors, speakers in the whole world of conservative evangelicalism. i'm not sure how he can make statements like that?
& where in the world does he get off saying "fix something in somebody's life for the LITTLE MOMENT they live on this earth."
wow. "THAT'S easy for him to say."
i wonder what the single mother of 5 living in poverty in Africa would say?
i wonder what the man with no hope dying of AIDS would say?
i wonder what the orphaned child with nothing to eat or drink dying of a PREVENTABLE disease would say? (and btw, there are 26,500 of those children who will die today.)
it's easy to dismiss the "little moment here on earth" when your little moment is nice & cushy. probably doesn't seem like a "little moment" for the billions living in poverty.
Thankfully, Jesus had A LOT to say about these people and the "little moment they live on this earth"! somehow our famous Bible scholar friend must have missed that?
OK, now i'm kind of angry again, so i better cool down. although, i wonder if statements like that make God really angry too? probably.
i'll sum up with a great quote that came to mind from a friend of mine that i think is a perfect response to this. i posted it on renown long ago in "Quotes of the Week":
"rich american white boys saying that people need the gospel more than they need drinking water is absurd unless we are willing to take our wealth and share it with our fellow humans..." - Kris Hassanpour
that seems to be essentially what our famous author friend above was saying. although, i would just like to add that giving people drinking water who need it IS also the gospel.
