The Power of Semantics

I wanted to write a book for years entitled The Power of Semantics. The gist is how many moral issues with Christians are actually more concerned with the aforementioned "s" word than anything else. I wanted to discuss two of them below. If you think of any others or just want to argue feel free to comment.

The issues are:

1. Biblical Courtship as opposed to dating. I went to a Conservative Christian Prayer Advance for youth ("Not a retreat! We're not retreating!") a few years back. Several young men and women gave a testimony that they would commit to Biblical Courtship rather than dating.

Problem a: While courtship is Biblical, along with polygamy, neither turned out too well for the parties involved most of the time. Just think of Jacob's family and leave it at that. This is more Arrested Development than Father Knows Best. I don't exactly see God's endorsement here.

Problem b: Courtship (as described in I Kissed Dating Goodbye) is actually a different way of dating. The parents are involved more, along with accountability in general. Tweak a detail here and there, and dating gets a new title.

Call it "radish" if you want. It still seems like dating to me.


2. "Seeker Friendly" for churches = watering down the Gospel message. Maybe that's how the buzz word gets used, but it's being misused.

As it is, I don't see a lot of seeking. Churches are becoming too inwardly focused. The problem, unfortunately, isn't the offense of the Cross. It's because we have our own gigantic clique. We even have our little code words and inside jokes. It's not unlike the biggest high school ever.

The church needs to go out, seek the outcasts, robbers, drunks and whores, and show them Jesus. We talk too much.

The point of both of these problems is one of switching labels. Let's redefine dating, being seeker friendly, and even entertainment with our actions. The issue isn't things, but how you use them.

Let's use them well.