Faith and T-shirts

I’m a t-shirt and shorts kinda guy. So much so, that half my closet space is reserved for them.

I have new t-shirts, old t-shirts, and ANCIENT t-shirts (my oldest and softest is my high school gym class shirt; a purple cartoon eagle showing off his biceps). Many of these shirts carry sentimental weight and so I have found it difficult to part with them.

Over time, some shirts just can’t keep going and I sadly relegate them to the garage for rags. Such was the case a few years back with a bunch of my old “Christian T-shirts”.

Back in college, most of my t-shirts came from either local Christian bookstores or youth ministry conferences. They all shared a common thread; the t-shirt designers would find some popular slogan and “baptize” it. Hence, “GOLD’s GYM” became “LORD’s GYM” and “No pain, no gain!” became “His pain, your gain!”

I found the following survey at an online retailer of “Christian Clothing”:
How many times a week do you wear a Christian t-shirt?
I Don't Wear Christian Clothing (415) 28%
Once A Week (323) 22%
Twice A Week (198) 13%
Three Times A Week (137) 9%
More Than Three Times a Week (329) 22%

Christian Clothing? What is that? Seriously. Does wearing a t-shirt make you more of a follower of Christ? On the flip side, does your refusal to wear emblems that represent your faith mean you’re somehow ashamed of Jesus?

Now, I’ve heard people say that these t-shirts/bumper stickers/fish/WWJD (don’t get me started!) bracelets, etc. help them to be a better witness for Christ by keeping them from doing what they shouldn’t. But shouldn’t we be living from the inside out instead of vice versa?

That’s the reason I stopped wearing “Christian Clothing” years ago.

I discovered that (for the most part) the people I knew who were most like Jesus never wore their faith on their sleeves. They were being transformed on the inside, which showed up on the outside.

The Christian’s hope is rooted in the Person of Christ changing them from the inside out. This is an organic process, a journey that takes a lifetime.

A t-shirt won’t speed it up.

This is reflected in the fourth part of our Vision:

Inner Growth
No Lone Rangers are allowed here. We were created to live in community with God as well as each other. We want to be like Jesus so we take hold of His identity and allow Him to wrap His life around us, above us, beneath us, yes, even within us. We recognize that truly following Jesus is a process that does not come from just reading the latest books and taking a bunch of classes. Rather, we learn His ways as we serve others and walk with those on the Journey. The Way of Jesus is caught more than it’s taught. As we follow Jesus, we begin to see changes that we couldn’t bring about in ourselves. Miracles happen. We become more loving, joyful, peaceful, patient and self-controlled. We choose a lifestyle of purity because it’s how we were designed to live and who we are called to be.

Joe

Related Verses
Matthew 23:27-28
“You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You're like manicured grave plots, grass clipped and the flowers bright, but six feet down it's all rotting bones and worm-eaten flesh. People look at you and think you're saints, but beneath the skin you're total frauds.

John 15:1-17
“I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn't bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.

“Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can't bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can't bear fruit unless you are joined with me.

“I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you're joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can't produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.

“I've loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you'll remain intimately at home in my love. That's what I've done—kept my Father's commands and made myself at home in his love.

“I've told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I'm no longer calling you servants because servants don't understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I've named you friends because I've let you in on everything I've heard from the Father.

“You didn't choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won't spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.

“But remember the root command: Love one another.

The Message

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12
Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before. Then people who are not Christians will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others.

1 Peter 3:13-17
Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way.

Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ. Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!

NLTse