If you had the above license plate on your car, people would probably make some assumptions about you. They might assume that…
You still live in your mother’s basement.
Your fingers are permanently stained Cheetos orange.
You took your cousin to the senior prom.
Your skin color is best described as translucent.
You feel like you’re betraying Harry Potter when you root for Gandalf in The Return of the King.
People will make assumptions about us based upon the character traits we advertise. If I say I’m a nerd then people will assume that I do nerdy things. If I didn’t do those nerdy things, though, it’s not like someone would get angry at me or call me a hypocrite.
Imagine if my SCYFY<3R car was parked outside of Urban Outfitters? Or if it was seen tailgating at a football game? Or if it was seen with a surfboard or snowboard strapped to the top? There would be discontinuity between my expressed character and my visible actions. Even with that obvious discontinuity, though, no one would call me a hypocrite.
The same can’t be said if we have one of these on our cars.
If we place a Jesus fish on our cars it is advertising something about our character and values. People will make certain assumptions about us because of that little fish and, if our actions aren’t in line with their expectations, we will be labeled as just another hypocritical Christian.
According to the Barna Group, though, a lot of Americans already assume Christians are hypocritical. According to their study, Americans also thought Christians were best known for their judgmental attitudes and opposition to the gay and lesbian community. If those are the assumptions that people already make about Christians, then I wouldn’t mind being labeled a hypocrite.
If people saw a Jesus fish on our cars and assumed that we were judgmental, spiteful, exclusive and angry, I would love for there to be discontinuity between their assumptions and our actions. I would proudly wear the label of “hypocrite” if it meant that I was acting in a way that disassembled the negative stereotypes and assumptions people have of Christians.
That should be the goal of every follower of Jesus whether there is a Jesus fish stuck to our car or not. Christians have done a lot to tarnish their reputation over the centuries; the negative assumptions people have of Christians have been well earned. If our actions are strong enough, though, we can begin to clean up that reputation and change those negative assumptions.
How do people respond to you when they know that you’re a Christian?
i like this post a lot. and i identify with what you are saying. i know a lot of people, people who are my own friends, who assume that i was against the gay community. they didn’t know my personal perspectives maybe because i did not run forward with my perspectives. even knew people so ignorant that they assumed i would just know someone who has vandalized abortion clinics or marched waving vulgar signs displaying what they say is God’s view at soldiers’ funeral. i think we can be more open and even egar to talk to people not only about our faith and jesus, but also that we want to be a positive part of the community and do not wish to be lumped with the radical views and actions that clearly arent our own.
I tend to openly accept what is coming to me. After all, the community that I have aligned my self with is full of a bunch of ignorant self righteous racists. I openly apologize for how others have been wronged by the Church (or at least those who attend church). I am not the hate-filled conservative Republican that most assume Christians are, but I understand where they are coming from. All I can do is change how I act and share God’s love.