Currently Reading Ten Thousand Sorrows : The Extraordinary Journey of a Korean War Orphan By Elizabeth Kim see related

Ungrace

Question: What's the biggest reason that Christianity is looked down upon by so many Americans and other westerners today?

Answer: Simple, its because of the Christians themselves

A lot of westerners and atheists do not believe in the God because of intellectual, reasoning and otherwise scientific reasons.  I think that many of these ideas can be assuaged if are able to intelligably speak about science, reasoning, philosophy and history, and if unbelievers could read the Bible with an open heart and mind (many I know refuse to do this step, either purposely or not).

That leads to what I believe is the biggest reason that many in the western world will not believe in Christ: its because of the Christians.  We are representatives of Christ who, unfortunately, live lives of ungrace for all the world to see.  And we paint a picture of Christianity that isn't pretty.  In fact, its quite ugly.  And it misrepresents our God.

Like it or not, people pay a whole lot more attention to the sinful things we do than the good things.  And in an ungraceful world, it is not the unbelievers who should show grace to us when we fail; it is US who must demonstrate grace to others by being lovely to the unlovely, by doing the right thing even when it hurts and by being set apart in a hurting world.

But the tricky thing is to balance our lives, which are to be lived righteously, with the idea of grace.  I didn't experience the ungrace that many have growing up in churches, but I've read a lot of testimonies about the harshness others have grown up with.  Some of those testimonies are of believers, most of whom came to know Christ because they experienced God's true grace; others are not believers and have become bitter and angry at a bitter and angry institution.

One thing we must never lose sight of is grace.  Because when we lose sight of grace, we lose sight of Jesus.  And without grace, there is no gospel message, and all that we Christians live for is gone.  We can tell others we are Christian and do "Christian things," but its all very hollow without grace.

After all, its grace that makes the difference. Without grace, we are left with law - something that weighs us down, makes us feel guilty and puts us under the wrath of God.  With grace, we enjoy the perfect love that casts out fear and that accepts us, no matter how broken we are.