Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe - Osborne

I hope the title got your attention. It is the title of a book I recently read that is very enlightening and challenging. It is by Larry Osborne and worth the time to read. Here are the ten dumb things that smart Christians believe:

1. Faith can fix anything.
Faith is not a skill we master. It’s not an impenetrable shield that protects us from life’s hardships and trials. It’s not a magic potion that removes every mess. It’s a map we follow. (17)

2. Forgiving means forgetting
Forgiveness is a decision lived out as a lengthy process. The expectation that those we’ve wronged should simply forget about it is not only unreasonable; it’s emotionally unhealthy. People who can’t remember what happened to them or who bury their pain are not spiritually mature; they’re mentally or emotionally handicapped. (25)

3. A godly home guarantees godly kids
The myth that a godly home guarantees godly kids (and godly adults) is not just untrue. It’s not just wishful thinking. It’s spiritually dangerous. If we buy into it, we become especially vulnerable to two things that are never part of God’s plan: unwarranted guilt and foolish pride. (44)

4. God has a blueprint for my life
The fact is, God doesn’t have a blueprint for our life. Never has. Never will. He does, however, have a game plan for our life. And the difference is important.
(57)

God doesn’t care where we work so much as how we work, where we live somuch as how we live, and even whom we marry (as long as it’s within the faith)so much as how we do marriage. (60)

5. Christians shouldn’t judge
The idea that Jesus forbade his followers to judge is a myth. Refusing to make judgments or call sin, sin, is not what Jesus asks us to do. . . Refusing to do so leads to costly spiritual consequences, not only in the lives of those of us who refuse to judge but also in the lives of those who never have their sins pointed out. (72)

Underlying the idea that we have no right to judge the beliefs and moral standards of others is another widely held belief. It’s the dogma that truth and morality are relative – the conviction that there are no universal spiritual truths and no universal moral standards. In other words, in the spiritual and moral realms, two diametrically opposing viewpoints or standards can both be true at the same time. (74)

6. Everything happens for a reason
Those who assume that everything that happens has God’s fingerprints all over it fail to distinguish between what God allows and what God causes – what God permits and what God prefers. The Bible makes it clear that there are a number of scenarios where the dark trials of our lives have nothing to do with God’s wonderful plans for our lives. (93)

7. Let your conscience be your guide
The idea that our conscience is a trustworthy moral guide is a myth. (108)

It’s a spiritual thermostat. We set it to the standards we choose. We determine when it kicks in and when it stays idle. Our conscience doesn’t tell us if we’re violating God’s standards. It tells us when we’re violating our standards. (110)

8. God brings good luck
As for Jesus, he certainly never promised his followers a long run of good luck or earthly success. He promised forgiveness. He promised eternity. But winning lottery numbers, job promotions, good health, and riches? Not exactly. (124)

9. A valley means a wrong turn
I’m not talking here about the kinds of valleys and trials that are completely out of our control – the medical issues, tragedies, and injustices that we can do nothing about except suck it up, trust God and endure. I’m talking about the kinds of valleys we can avoid or wiggle out of if we so choose. (139)

. . . the idea that every long-term valley is a mistake and should automatically be wiggled out of is a fallacy. It’s based on a spiritual urban legend . . . the belief that God only leads us to the mountaintop and that long-term valleys always mean a wrong turn. It ignores the long history of God’s dealings with his people and the clear teaching of Scripture. (140)

10. Dead people go to a better place
Jesus and the Bible are quite clear – the wicked don’t go to a better place. There’s a real hell. It’s not the devil’s playground. It’s not a perpetual wild party. It’s Satan’s worst nightmare. (156)

The widespread denial of any sort of actual judgment or a place called hell is nowhere more evident than when we deal with death. It’s here that it becomes obvious that funeral assurances are much more than a social custom. For many if not most folks, they’re a deeply held, core belief. (157)

The cross and salvation are central to the gospel. Once we lose any real concept of hell, the natural consequence is more than just putting us at odds with Scripture; it eventually devalues the cross, redefines salvation, and turns obedience into an extra-credit spiritual add-on. (163)