Kids Say the Darndest Things!

When I was a kid, one of the funniest shows on television in the weekday afternoon hours was the Art Linkletter Show. Staying home from school in the late 60s was not the fun time it is now with access to the Internet, Facebook, Skype, hundreds of cartoon television networks on cable TV, or a multitude of computer games accessible from phones, tablets, or home computers. In my day, we had four regular television stations and three or four VHF stations. Television shows were very limited for a "sick" kid staying home and knowing which programs were on when could make the difference between going to school or faking a sickness to stay home from school and enjoy the day off.  There was NOTHING worse than staying at home watching Bill Kennedy at the Movies or one of my mother's afternoon soap operas! Going to school was better than enduring an afternoon filled with that plateful of nonsensical slop, so a "sick" kid had to know his stuff if he were going to pull a fast one on his mother and enjoy a day of pampered service and cartoon hilarity!

Art Linkletter, on the other hand, was a show that aired every day in the early afternoon and was an adult exception to a day full of kids' entertainment. Art Linkletter hosted a show in which kids were asked questions about what they wanted to be as adults or some other leading question about them or their families. The answers the kids gave were funny and came across with a sense of innocence that led to making their answers even funnier. This portion of the Art Linkletter show was a favorite with everyone and spawned a copycat version hosted by Bill Cosby later in the 80s.

The reason I mention this particular show is I was thinking about the darndest things that many Christians say. Sayings that we have all heard a multitude of times, but leave us with the same sort of  astonishment and laughter because of how ridiculous or how apparently "Biblical" they sound. How many times have you heard the following "darndest things" coming from the mouths of Christians?

• God knows my heart! (Yes, it is deceitfully wicked above all things... - Jeremiah 17:9)
• God wants you to have the best life possible now! (Take up your cross and follow me... - Luke 9:23)
• Don't judge anyone! (Stop judging by mere appearances and make righteous judgments... - John 7:24)
• You have to forgive everyone! (If you don't forgive their sin, their sin will not be forgiven! - John 20:23)
• God told me to...! (Something that clearly contradicts scripture! - Isaiah 8:20)

 

In this day of religious confusion, distortion, outright challenge, and denial, it is imperative that we as followers of Christ represent him in the most accurate way possible. Pithy sayings and humanistic platitudes dominate the speech and thinking of most Christians rather than a solid foundation and knowledge of God's Holy Word for the many difficult questions people ask or the circumstances people find themselves in. May we wholeheartedly devote ourselves to the meditation and study of God's Word in 2013 as we continue to present God's way of salvation for mankind. Let us quit saying the "darndest things" we Christians are known for and present to a world in desperate need of God's wisdom the solid knowledge of God's Holy Word!

Stay Holy, My Friends!



Pastor Don