Advertising God

Recently, on a drive to a friend's house, I passed a church with a large sign at its front entrance. This particular sign grabbed my attention more than most church signs do. I'm not sure if I'm more attentive to church signs because of my Christian faith or if non-churchgoers also scrutinize them like I do. Whatever the reason, this sign grabbed my attention and it said, "Hey, look at me. I'm up here in large capital letters and I have something to say."

Oh, it had something to say alright.

Short but surely not sweet, this church's sign read: "THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY."

Let me choose my words carefully and say that I wasn't supportive of this sign and its message for me and others passing by. If that church's goal is to welcome outsiders, their sign was a pretty poor invitation. I'll readily admit that our modern-day society seems to have a disparaging view of marriage. The divorce rate is higher now than it has ever been before. Many people have committed adultery with little guilt following afterward. With that said, are these people not welcome in church? Maybe what incited this church's signage was the recent news of now-former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer and his connection to a prostitution ring. Still, is Eliot Spitzer not welcome at the table of God's grace? If I had committed adultery, or was divorced, this church's sign would look like a big finger directing me to leave the premises. What I hope this church comes to realize is that there is a difference between accepting sinners into the house of God and condoning their sin.

I've written before about the importance of considering how we, as Christians, present ourselves to the world. My wife and I have discussed this topic at length, and we both are very passionate about representing Christ to the world in effective ways. Our words matter and the world doesn't need to know everything that we feel strongly about. When we share every opinion that we have, we begin to tread on the dangerous ground of negativity and intolerance. We must use much diligence as we choose our words and our actions. Others are watching.

Though it seems trivial, even a church sign needs to be handled with care. We are all sinners who need God's grace. Presenting yourself as a holy, faultless person really separates you into a different category from those you should be attempting to connect with. Christians are no better than those who aren't believers. In our attempts to share our faith with others, we must give considerable thought to ways that we can effectively show others who God is and how much he loves them. In a sense, we're advertising God to the world. Our society is jaded and very skeptical. If they think for a second that God is a heavy-handed judge just waiting to condemn them to death row, I suspect they'll turn away from him forever. I tend to believe that most people accept God because of his promises of forgiveness and grace, and that's the message we most need to convey.

I suppose it's God's will that I'm in advertising, because I'm naturally passionate about new methods of communicating a message to the public. I'm always thinking of more effective ways to 'advertise' faith. My wife said that if she were to decide what message was to go on a church sign, it would read, "ONLY SINNERS WELCOME HERE." Now that's a message that feels unexpectedly refreshing to me.