Have you seen the "Coexist" bumper stickers? I think they're more popular in urban areas -- I see them frequently here in the Metro Detroit/Ann Arbor area. They're not new... In 2001 a relatively simple "Coexist" design incorporating three religious symbols was created by Piotr Mlodozeniac, a Polish graphic designer, for a contest sponsored by The Museum on the Seam for Dialogue, Understanding, and Coexistence in Jerusalem. It looked like this:




It was a basic message of the three Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) coexisting together in peace. Then a few years later the band U2 began incorporating this logo onto their concert T-shirts and such, thereby increasing its popularity. At that point, it began to morph as new symbols and meanings were added. Here's one version of that, which explains some of the other symbols:




And here's yet another version:




And yes, this year I've even seen this version of the bumper sticker on some cars, sporting the Obama logo:





Bottom line -- regardless of what version of the logo you use or like -- the message is this: "Coexist peacefully and accept all religions/beliefs/lifestyles."

It's a message that seems harmless enough, right? I mean, if the world lived in peace and could accept each other, the it would be a much better place, wouldn't it?

But what if the message of accepting all religions, beliefs and lifestyles goes against the beliefs of your own religion?

Before I explain that, let's talk about the current day forms of Christianity for a minute. Right now, there seem to be two big camps of Christianity: those that are conservative, who believe the teachings of the Bible as they are written and who oppose controversial issues like abortion, gay marriage, etc.... and those that are more "modern" Christians, believing in tolerance, accepting all people, and endorsing social rights like a woman's right to chose, or gay lifestyles. This "side" of Christianity is becoming more and more popular. It's laid back, more open, more accepting, and not as rigid. All that matters is that you love Christ and his people -- that's the main criteria of this group of Christians.

Did you know that Jesus knew that it was going to be this way with his church? In the book of Revelation, Jesus sent an angel to visit the disciple John when John was in exile, stuck on the Island of Patmos. Jesus said to John: "He who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." (Revelation 2:7).

The angel also instructed John to write down this "revelation of Jesus Christ" -- the revealing of the end of times -- for those who are believers. The angel gave John a vision, and in this vision Jesus spoke to him. One of the first things Jesus did was tell John seven messages to seven different churches. "Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches. (Revelation 1:19,20)

The churches are mentioned specifically, the first time in this passage: I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea."(Revelation 1:10,11)

But they were also mentioned as each "letter" was dictated to John -- they each started out, "To the church in Ephesus..." or "To the church in Smyrna."

Now Pastor Steve Hadley of Harvest Family Fellowship in Reno (see button over on the right for his website) states that it is his belief that these letters to the seven churches represent three things (remember -- three is a complete and Biblical number -- e.g. The Father, The Son, The Holy Ghost. Also known as the Holy Trinity). These are the three things that those churches in the letters represent:

1) Actual churches that existed in the time of Paul and John -- each church had its own set of "issues" whereby they each struggled with something different with regard to their collective church faith.

2) Conditions of the heart/soul as an individual -- each of those "issues" that the churches had are also issues that any person, at any time, could feel. For example, Jesus states that the church of Ephesus was great at not tolerating evil, and they worked hard and kept false prophets out of their church. But Jesus said that despite all of that, they have forgotten their "first Love" -- God. Not only was this true of the church of Ephesus in that day, but it could also be easily said of any person in any age.

3) That these seven churches also represent actual church eras, or ages, of Christianity. Several other theologians believe this as well. Each of those churches represent an era of history in which the church went through a definitive period of identity. For example, the first addressed letter is to the Church of Esphesus. The word Esphesus means First Love. The Esphesus Church Represents the time period from Pentecost to about 100 AD. This was the major developing period of Church History in which we have come to know today. (For more on the message of each church letter, visit Steve Hadley's video messages at this link: Harvest Family Fellowship -- start at the one dated 08/24/08.)

It is clear to those who share this point of view regarding these seven letters to the seven churches that we are now in the "age" or "era" of the last church -- The church of Laodicea. Here is the full context of that letter:


TO THE CHURCH IN LAODICEA

To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

"These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm -- neither hot nor cold -- I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Revelation 3:14-22)

Of all the seven churches spoken to by Jesus Christ, this group is the most harshly condemned. With all of the other letters, Jesus starts out first by praising them for what they have done right, then corrects them at the end of the letter for the issue they are still dealing with. (In your Bible, turn to Revelation Chapter 2 to read those first letters, or you can click here: Letters to the Churches, Book of Revelation) But in this letter to the church of Laodicea, Jesus just comes out lashing. They are neither faithful nor unbelieving. Instead, they are completely indifferent and just claim to be Christ-believers even though their actions, heart and mind-set are not passionate about the teachings of Scripture. Their indifference to God's truth disgusts Jesus. The Laodiceans are so self-satisfied and self-reliant that they believe everything is fine. They are full of knowledge and doing great works, so they view themselves as the recipients of a true spiritual understanding... even though they have very little.

This part of the letter was the most profound to me: "Because you say, 'I am rich; and have need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched, and miserable and poor and blind and naked. I advise you to buy from me gold having been refined in the fire by me, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, and your shame and nakedness may not be revealed. And anoint your eyes with eye-salve, that you may see."

It's quite obvious that the word "rich" means that the church of this era is collectively wealthier than any other group -- but it also refers to richness in spiritually. Notice the fact that Jesus is commenting that these people perceive themselves to be complete and in need of nothing. They appear to be secure in their lives... they are confident that they are secure in their stance with God... that they are secure in their beliefs... and they feel as if they don't need anything from anyone. Doesn't that sound like a lot of people today? You're blind if you deny it. I can think of several friends/acquaintances who have said those very words, "I am fine with my beliefs... God knows my heart... I don't have to believe those things in the Bible -- I love all people and that's the main message of Christ...." and on and on.

The people of the church of Laodicea -- OUR church age -- are falsely secure in their beliefs. They are not hot, but not cold. They are indifferent towards the teachings of the Gospels, and are masters of the mindset that they "are in favor with God." Think about today's Christian church, specifically the one half of the group I talked about earlier. They are apathetic and lackadaisical about the message of Christ in the Gospels. Their indifference has left them self-deluded and oblivious to the fact that they are actually spiritually poor, miserable, wretched, blind, and naked. There are THREE STEPS in the acceptance of salvation through Christ (there's that trinity again): 1) accepting Christ as your savior 2) repenting from your sins and sanctifying yourself (to sanctify is literally “to set apart for special use or purpose,” figuratively “to make holy or sacred,” -- meaning turn in a new direction away from sin) and 3) following the words/teachings of Christ and keeping your relationship with God strong as you continue on with your journey, all the while teaching/showing others of the "good news" regarding the Kingdom of Heaven.

The church of Laodicea -- again, OUR church -- somehow did away with number 2 and 3. They now believe that only number 1 is enough.

Let's go back to that "Coexist" bumper sticker that I talked about originally. This bumper sticker essentially says that all faiths/religions/cultures/practices should live and coexist in peace. For a minute, pretend we took this bumper sticker back almost 2,000 years to the days of Christ's teachings here on earth. Let's imagine for a moment that we're in a crowd of people, listening to him teach, and at a break in the lecture we raise up our hand to wave our sticker and say, "Jesus! You're telling us we should love everyone... so doesn't that mean we shouldn't condemn people if they want to practice Wicca, or try to correct someone that is a Muslim? Aren't you saying that we should accept all homosexuals and allow people to practice whatever they want, as long as they aren't hurting anybody?"

Stop for a moment and think about what Jesus would say. If you're a true Christian, then you have read the Bible -- or at least the New Testament. Do you remember anywhere in the Gospels where Jesus told his disciples or people of the faith to let others be? Do you recall any place where he endorsed other Gods, or encouraged people to have sex in whatever manner pleases them? Did you ever hear Christ say, "It doesn't matter what you believe -- you can believe in Allah if you want -- as long as you're loving and peaceful, you'll get into Heaven"???

No. You didn't. In fact, Jesus said specifically, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)

Remember, Jesus talked in a very descriptive, narrative and flowery way -- this is simply how people talked back in his day. It's hard for us to understand now, but the message is still clear. In the Gospel of Luke, there is this story:

Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?"

He said to them, "Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, 'Sir, open the door for us.'

"But he will answer, 'I don't know you or where you come from.'

"Then you will say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.'

"But he will reply, 'I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!'

"There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last." (Luke 13:22-30)

Jesus is saying that there will be many -- MANY -- who will be upset when they discover that they could not enter through the door of Heaven. Why? Because Jesus couldn't recognize them. These people might have claimed to be Christians, but when they walked the earth, they preached messages of "peace" "tolerance" "acceptance" and ignored the process of repentance and sanctification. They made up their own rules regarding what they thought the religion should be. These over-confident people of the church in the last days will think themselves to be first in the eyes of God as they look down on Evangelical Christians who choose to stick to the word of the Bible. They will raise up their chins, and say to us, "How dare you not believe in peace and coexistence? You aren't a real Christian!" I, for one, have literally come under fire a few times now just in the past month for my stance on not accepting other religions as well as my views on homosexual marriage. Guess what? I don't care. My goal here on earth is not to impress other humans, or to be peer-pressured into their way of thinking. My goal is to stand true to the teachings of Jesus and his apostles so that when I am standing at the gates of Heaven, God will say to me, "Well done, good and faithful servant." I know this, because according to the words of Jesus, "Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last."

I will not coexist. Jesus promoted peace and love IN ORDER TO PREACH THE GOSPEL. If your neighbor loves and respects you, then they are more likely to listen to you spread the message of salvation. People are missing the picture when they say Jesus was about love and peace. Yes, it would be ideal if every single person got along and loved each other in a peaceful and coexisting way -- that is, IF everyone was saved by Christ. But they are not. So then we must USE peace and love IN ORDER TO spread that message of salvation. Peace and love are not intended for you to shrug your shoulders, accept that your best friend is a witch who practices Wicca, and keep your mouth zipped.

Paul wrote to the church in Corinth: Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

If that's true (if you're a Christian, you should be believing every word of the Bible), then why do Christians of this day and age endorse and embrace homosexuality???

It also says in Galatians 5:19-21 "The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God."

So if the Bible clearly states that idolatry and witchcraft are sinful, then why would Christians support and tolerate Islam or Wicca or Buddhism???

I will not coexist. It's as simple as that. I don't hate those who partake or believe in those other religions. I love them as my neighbor and will work as hard as I can to share with them the Gospels and the salvation of Jesus Christ. But I won't endorse their beliefs with a bumper sticker. I won't turn my head away and shrug my shoulders, believing that they'll still get to heaven and are receiving God's approval. Doing so contradicts hundreds of passages of Scripture in the Bible. Jesus would not have condoned Wicca or Atheism or Islam, nor would he have ok'd homosexuality and abortion.

"To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

Therefore, here is MY version of the "coexist" bumper sticker:



For more reading on this topic, click here to visit and read a past post called: Love... Does It Equal Tolerance And Acceptance?