MAGA Christians vs. Matthew 25 Christians

 A new trend popped up in the media this week. Someone coined the term "Matthew 25 Christians," and it gained immediate traction.

Background: MAGA Christians

The term "Matthew 25 Christians" was created by someone trying to differentiate between MAGA Christians and true Christians. A MAGA Christian believes in a Christianity that promotes equality, peace, love, charity, and religious freedom -- but only if you're a white, Protestant American, born and living in the USA, and of western European ancestry. Even Jesus Christ himself wouldn't qualify to be a Christian under this definition.

Closely related to MAGA Christianity is Christian Nationalism, which title claims two pieces of virtue that it does not deserve. Christian Nationalism is the belief that the USA was founded on Christian principles, as a Christian nation, and that that makes it a special nation among all the nations of the world. (Parenthetical comment: other ideologies also have this belief. But they don't turn it into a blunt weapon like Christian Nationalism does.) Christian Nationalists wish to force their beliefs onto everyone in the USA, through laws, regulations, and physical enforcement. 

If the two overlapping groups, MAGA Christians and Christian Nationalists, have their way, then the country will be run by an American Taliban, indistinguishable from the despots currently oppressing Afghanistan, Iran, and other nations under the color of religion.

Much of this is being driven by evangelical Christians, whose professed beliefs are often so far removed from true Christianity as to be unrecognizable. And the evangelicals are the best at setting themselves up to judge who is and isn't Christian.

(To be fair: It's not just the evangelicals. Every single slice of Christianity is expert at judging and condemning their fellow Christians, putting themselves with the sheep and everyone else with the goats, arrogating the authority of Him Whose Right It Is To Judge. But if my own children's high school experience is any indicator, the evangelicals are the worst offenders. If you are an evangelical Christian, and you object to this characterization, then show it to me by the way you live. See By Their Fruits, below.)

The Quiet Rise of the Matthew 25 Christians

The people who coined the term "Matthew 25 Christians" were pointing out the wide divide between true Christianity and MAGA Christianity.

In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 25, Jesus gives the great parable about separating the sheep (his followers) from the goats (everybody else) at his Second Coming. The whole parable is summarized in verse 40: "And the King shall answer and say unto them, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

MAGA Christianity denies aid to the poor, sanctuary to the immigrant, health care to the sick, and kindness to the prisoner, actions that Jesus specifically calls out in this parable. He condemns those who practice MAGA Christianity with this counterpoint in verse 45: "Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not unto one of the least of these, ye did it not unto me."

More and more Christians are standing up and denouncing MAGA Christianity. They are finally saying, "That's not who I am. That's not what I believe."

"But, but --" the MAGAs Protest

During the 2012 elections, evangelical Christians mobilized and became a potent political power. Their leaders became kingmakers. One evangelical leader was interviewed on the radio, and he was condemning certain political candidates for not being Christian, and therefore, of course, unworthy to hold public office.

The interviewer asked him what constitutes a Christian.

"One who believes in the Bible."

The interviewer pointed out that nearly everyone calling themselves a Christian believes in the Bible.

"Well then, one who believes in my Bible."

Not a word about believing in the person, Jesus Christ. Not a word about believing that He was the Son of God. Not a word about believing in His divine mission. Not a word about knowing what is written in the Bible and putting it into practice in their daily lives.

This has been carried to extremes in the last three years. To a MAGA Christian, you are only a Christian if you hold the same political views that they hold, if you agree with their "othering" of the American population, and if you agree with the supremacy of white, Protestant, natural-born American citizens over everyone else.

Nothing in there about their namesake, Jesus Christ.

How to Tell the Difference

The easiest way to tell the difference between the MAGA Christians and the Matthew 25 Christians is to use Jesus' own Sermon on the Mount as a yardstick. This sermon, the greatest guide on true Christian living, is found in chapters 5 through 7 of the Gospel of Matthew.

"Lord, Lord"

In chapter 7, Jesus himself warned: "Not everyone that says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will get into the kingdom of heaven." He told of those who would plead with, "Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? And in our name cast out devils? And in your name done might works?" 

He told them that he would say, "I never knew you; get away from me, you who work iniquity."

About Public Displays of Christianity

One of the most insidious things in today's world is the rise of performative Christianity. Once confined to gatherings like church camps, rallies, and jamborees, now Christian "influencers" have a louder and louder voice, through TikTok, Instagram, podcasts, and other social media. All of this "influence" draws people away from true Christianity and closer to the extreme, damaging positions espoused by MAGA and Christian Nationalists.

Jesus warned about these types in chapter 6, when he said: "Moreover, when you do your alms, don't sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the churches and in the streets, so that they can receive the glory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward."

They do good because they want the public praise and adulation -- and, in 2026, Likes and followers. That is their reward. As far as Jesus is concerned, that's all they get.

"But," He continued, "when YOU do alms, let not your right hand know what your left hand is doing: that your alms may be seen in secret, and your Father who sees in secret shall reward you openly."

By Their Fruits

Again in chapter 7 of Matthew, Jesus himself tells how you can tell the difference between a MAGA Christian and a Matthew 25 Christian: "You shall know them by their fruits."

Whose words and deeds correspond more closely to the deeds and the teachings of the Master?

Whose life more closely follows the admonition, "Follow me, and do the things that you have seen me do"?

Who spreads out their hands and echoes the Master's invitation, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest?" 

Who is brave enough to tell someone who lives a lifestyle different from theirs, "Neither do I condemn thee"?

Who emulates the Master by simply "[going] about doing good?"

No, way too many of us are on the wrong side of Jesus's warning from Matthew chapter 6: "Judge not, that you be not judged." And especially the MAGA Christians. They have everyone judged, condemned, marginalized, disenfranchised, and in many cases deported. That's so much easier to do.

Pure Religion and Undefiled

Jesus' apostle James wrote this in his tiny part of the Bible: "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." I submit that this is only a tiny slice of true Christianity, but MAGA Christians can't even do this part.

"You must choose. But choose wisely."

The old knight in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade said these words: "You must choose. But choose wisely."

So, which one are you going to be? A goat, or a sheep? A MAGA Christian? A Christian Nationalist? Or a Matthew 25 Christian? You must choose. Choose wisely.

Choose wisely.

Election predictions

It's too early to predict who's going to win the presidential election in November. But I can make some predictions about the movements of the voting public. Here are my predictions:

• Led by evangelicals, many (if not most) Christians will vote against Romney because he's a Mormon.
• In a similar fashion, many (if not most) Mormons will vote for Romney because he's a Mormon.

Both groups will give other lame excuses to justify their votes, but when it comes down to it, they will vote for or against Romney because he's a Mormon.

So much for religious tolerance in this country. But it gets better.

• Many people will vote against Obama because (they say) he wasn't born in the United States.
• Other people will vote against Obama because (they say) he's a Muslim.
• Many (if not most) blacks will vote for Obama because he's black.
• Many (but definitely not most) whites will vote against Obama because he's black.
• Many (way too many) Republicans will vote for Romney simply because he's a Republican.
• Many (way too many) Democrats will vote for Obama simply because he's a Democrat.

Who does that leave? Oh, the free thinkers, right? Let's look at what the free thinkers will do in November:

• Many of them will vote against Romney because the negative ads about him were so convincing.
• Many of them will vote against Obama because the negative ads about him were so convincing.
• Many of them will vote for the candidate they saw or met in person, just because of that personal contact.
• Many of them will vote for the last candidate whose ad they saw on the TV before heading to the polls.

Does that leave anybody who's actually going to think before they vote? Anybody who's going to use logic and reasoning, to figure out for themselves who will be the best president for the next four years? Please tell me you are in this final group, and not one of the other groups I've listed!

They'll always be my students

My sweet wife and I spent two full hours on Friday night, listening to one of my former math students play her cello and a bit of piano. It was a concert worth writing home about.

The Calvary Church in a nearby town has a concert series it calls "Offerings." Recognizing the abundance of skilled musicians in their congregation, the pastor created this concert series several years ago. It gives each artist a chance to showcase their talents, and to make an offering to the Lord commensurate with the talents He has given them. The concerts are free to the public; there's not even a hint of a request of a donation. In fact, there's nobody to collect your money, not even a coffee can with a slot in the lid.

One young member of the congregation, whom we'll call "Emily" to pick a random name, is a senior at a local High School, and the principal cellist in the town's Youth Symphony. I first met Emily when she was in my 7th grade advanced math class. She was a quiet girl with a shy smile, the kind who excelled in all her classes and hoped nobody would notice. But she did have a lot of self-confidence. That came partly from playing cello, and partly from having good parents. (Kinda like some other cellists and musicians I know.)

This was Emily's Offerings concert, and it could also have been her senior recital. She had chosen 20 works for cello, and for two hours she regaled us with cello music and commentary. They weren't all solos. She did some duets with her violin teacher from when she was a little girl, with her cello teacher, and with a friend who played piano and had done his own Offerings concert earlier in the year. She played some Acoustic Eidolon pieces with a very talented guitarist, and she accompanied a vocal trio in a pretty praise-and-worship song.

Like some of you, she had started on piano back when she was a very little girl, but had quit piano to do something else and in later years quietly resumed piano on her own. So in the middle of all the cello music, she sat down at the piano twice, once to play a song from the second "Twilight" movie, and once to play one from "Pearl Harbor."

I would name some of the other pieces she played, but most of my readers wouldn't recognize the names. You would recognize the music, though - she did a couple of famous classical cello pieces. And she didn't just play music. She injected feeling and emotion into it, so that we didn't just hear it. We felt it.

In her introduction, Emily said that she was really nervous and didn't like public speaking. You wouldn't have known it from her delivery. She was poised and articulate. She had memorized all of the music she was going to play, and she had memorized everything she was going to say. Her delivery was not flawless, naturally, but it was genuine. The language she used was not flowery; it was simple, straightforward, and sweet.

She played the first half in blue jeans, and during the intermission she changed into a formal gown. She was obviously having fun playing, as she would trade grins with her partners and with the audience of almost 200 people.

In one of her narrative sections, she acknowledged her musical talent and the opportunities it had given her, and then she said, "I know my talent is a gift from God, and I give Him all the honor and glory."

After graduation, Emily will go to college, to pursue her lifelong dream of being a nurse. She will be taking her cello with her. She has spent six years living a good life, choosing the right and working hard to excel. It meant a lot to me that she wanted me to be there, and it meant a lot to her that I showed up. I'm very blessed to have been a part of her life, and to be counted among her friends.

The world will end in May - again

Remember Harold Camping? He was the preacher who announced, about 12 months ago, that the world would end on May 21, 2011.

Are you still here? Okay, so he was wrong. Well, make room for the next guy.

Another preacher, Ronald Weinland, now claims that the world will end on May 27, 2012, exactly one year and six days after Camping's predicted date.

Weinland is a self-proclaimed prophet, and a leader of a group that split off from the Worldwide Church of God. For those of you keeping score, the Worldwide Church of God was founded by Herbert W. Armstrong, who claimed that the world would end (more accurately, he predicted that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ would occur) in 1975. Obviously, he miscalculated. Armstrong met his Maker anyway in 1989, and the WWCoG fractured after that, with Weinland leading one of those f(r)actions.

It might be a good idea for you to believe him. If you don't, then he prophesies that you will die of cancer. Heck, even if you do believe him, you still stand pretty good odds (1 in 7) of dying of cancer, so that's not much of a prophecy. I just got back from a city where people lay down good money for odds that are a lot worse than 1 in 7.

The call Robert Jeffress has been waiting his whole life for

"Reverend Jeffress, I have some good news and some bad news."

"Okay, what's the good news?"

"Jesus has returned, like he said he would, and he wants to talk to you!"

"COOL! Okay, after that, I can take any bad news you've got. What is it?"

"He's calling collect, from Salt Lake City."

Looking at the Rapture thing from a different angle

You know, we've all had a lot of fun laughing at Harold Camping and his obviously crackpot ideas about the Rapture and the upcoming End of the World. He has gone incommunicado today, and for good reason: he is a laughingstock.

But Mr. Camping doesn't deserve all that ridicule. He went through the Bible looking for clues, thought he'd found them all (though he missed the most important one), and came up with a reasonable (to him) date for the Rapture and the EOW. He spent months spreading his message to the world, not with a "nyah nyah, you're all gonna burn" attitude, but with a "repent so you don't burn, pleeeaaase" attitude.

This episode reminds me of another Biblical story, the story of Noah. Noah spent forty years building his ark and warning the people about the impending flood. They mocked him and laughed at him and had a lot of fun at his expense - right up until the moment that the rain started falling.

Noah never faltered or turned aside from his message, even though he knew people were laughing at him and nobody believed him. Mr. Camping pursued his mission with the same faith and vigor as Noah.

I'm not saying Mr. Camping was a prophet, or even that we should have believed him. I have also participated in the mockery, and I firmly believe he was wrong. But he acted on the strength of his convictions, and he acted with integrity. Very few people act that way in today's world, and the world is poorer as a result. I honor Harold Camping for his convictions and his integrity.

Maybe I should buy him a T-shirt.

The End of the World is Coming - Again

MSN.com had an interesting article today, about a coalition of religious groups claiming that the end of the world will happen in 2011. (See the article here.) Specifically, they claim that the Rapture will happen on May 21, 2011, and the end of the world, the wrapping up of all things, the final curtain for this planet (and the sun and moon and stars, according to the prophecies) will be on October 21, 2011.

Well. That May 21 date is really going to mess up the graduation plans for our three local high schools.

The MSN.com article is written rather tongue-in-cheek, with more than a note of amusement. The May 21 date is prominently featured in a photograph accompanying the article, but you have to click through a couple more websites to find the October 21 date. I think that would be a more important date than May 21, for most earthlings.

Those other two websites? Well, the article has enough clues for you to find them on your own. One website has a detailed, lengthy, and convoluted description of the calculations that led its author to those two dates.

Forgive my skepticism, but we've been down this road before. Not counting bona fide kooks who try to hitch a ride on a passing comet, modern times have seen many Christians who have tried to decipher the clues in the Bible to come up with dates for the End Times.

In fairness, I should disclose that I am a member of a religious group that believes firmly in the reality of a literal, future, Second Coming of Jesus Christ and the literal fulfillment of all the prophecies leading up to it. I look forward to His Coming. I believe that many of the prophesied events have already happened, and that the time is near. But I can't define "near." I wish we knew the day when He was coming, because I work better under deadline pressure, and a deadline would make it a lot easier to prepare.

Ah, but that's the point. As good Christians, we should be living in such a way that we are always prepared for His coming.

Because the reality is this: we see Jesus Christ every day. Not literally, of course, but every day we have the opportunity to render service to someone, to brighten somebody's day, to give somebody comfort or relief or a simple helping hand. Jesus explained to His followers: "Inasmuch as you have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, you have done it unto me." (That's Matthew 25:40, if you want to look it up.)

Another part of that reality is this: you may literally meet your Maker today. You don't need to wait for May 21, 2011. Maybe the cement truck with your name on the front bumper is headed your direction right now. Just as "no man knoweth the hour or the day of" the Second Coming, so nobody can predict the hour or the day of their own death (with a few exceptions). If that cement truck catches up to you today, you could beat the Big Event by 4 months and 18 days.

All this fussing about dates is irrelevant -- it's "straining at a gnat and swallowing a camel" -- and moreover, it ignores what the Master called the "weightier matters of the law." Whatever happens on May 21, or whenever They call my number, I hope that the day finds me still buckled into the harness and tugging hard, working to make the world a better place one person at a time, the same as on any other day.