Two quotes worth considering in this day when evangelical Christians are so intertwined with Republican politics.

“We as a church have become spiritually lazy, substituting aggressive culture-war tactics for the generous, self-sacrificing humility Jesus taught and modeled. Cultural aggression is easier, and it allows us to think we’re still ‘not of this wold,’ even as we use worldly strategies to get our way.” (Justin Lee, “Torn”)

Philip Yancey tells of asking airplane seatmates what the words “evangelical Christian” bring to mind. “Mostly I hear political descriptions: of strident pro-life activists, or gay-rights opponents, or proposals for censoring the Internet…. Not once–not ONCE–have I heard a description redolent of grace. Apparently that is not the aroma Christians give off in the world.”

Because evangelical Christians have so closely aligned with conservative politics, I suspect way too may nonChristians lump us all together as narrow-minded, Obama-trashing, immigrant-hating, gay-bashing, science-denying, poor-despising, FoxNews-worshiping, war-mongering, and generally government-hating zealots.