Last week, one of the big news stories came out of China as people were accusing staff at the Hangzhou Zoo of putting humans in bear costumes instead of displaying real bears. The zoo’s display of Malaysian Sun Bears got some attention after videos of the bears standing upright went viral.
Of course the accusations don’t come without precedent. Some Chinese zoos have been caught doing things like trying to pass off dyed dogs as wolves and donkeys painted with black and white stripes as zebras. Nonetheless, the people at the Hangzhou Zoo promise that their bears are the real deal.
Sometimes, we feel our challenge as a Christian church is similar to that of the Hangzhou zoo. We might be trying to convince people that we have real bears….or rather…real Christians in our church. That can be difficult sometimes. Sometimes Christians look pretty fishy. Sometimes Christians ARE pretty fishy. Afterall, the accusation that “churches are filled with hypocrites” is 100% true (it’s also true of universities, non-profits, government institutions, and any gathering of humans by the way).
But convincing people that we have real Christians in our church is not only going to be a losing battle, it’s the wrong battle. We need to be pointing people to the fact that we have the real God, and His real Son, Jesus Christ, and the real Holy Spirit. That is what matters. If you come to University Lutheran this weekend looking for “real Christians,” then you might as well be looking for Malaysian Sun Bears…I’m not sure you’ll find many. If you come to University Lutheran looking for the real God, we can help you see Him.