This post was originally created as a status update for my personal facebook page, the second of two posts decrying the incongruity paraded at the Capitol this week. Because so many have shared and copied these words, I want to give them a permanent home. I encourage you to also read the article by David French that prompted this lament. You can find that here.

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Oh, Church…
We can’t keep saying “This wasn’t us! This isn’t who we are!” We can disagree with the actions and call them “fringe”, but if they’re playing our music, waving our flags, wearing our symbols, and speaking in the name of our Lord, we need to do something about it.

That “something” starts with confronting the lies we’ve permitted to fester within our communities.

I confess I’ve dismissed conspiracy theories, even ignored them. I thought they would just go away. Instead, they’ve taken root and spread like kudzu. There are many unbiblical, un-Christ-like positions we’ve permitted to remain in our midst far too long. Dare I say— We’ve even nurtured them. It’s got to stop. We need to root them out and fill those voids with truth.

We need to remember who we are and what we’re called to do.

Jesus didn’t save us so that we could possess political power. He saved us so that we could have relationship with Him and love and serve others.

When the vast majority of Americans believe Evangelicalism is a political movement rather than a religious conviction, we have a serious problem.

When we have droves of our own leaving because they don’t want to be associated with the label, we have a serious problem.

The moment we decided character doesn’t matter, that policy positions are more important than heart conditions, we sacrificed the Gospel.

Now, listen —- We’re not going to turn this into an “us vs. them” argument. This isn’t about Right vs. Left. This is about our house. Let’s stop making excuses. What are we doing in our Christian communities to preserve and promote TRUTH? To live and exhibit LOVE? To disciple others to reflect the GOSPEL?

Because if those who stormed the Capitol claim to be with us, we’ve clearly confused and distorted the message. We need to get it right.