Be The Fruit

Raptured from Responsibility? -(see this church sign)

by Bill Blair on 07/08/09 at 7:02 am

Raptured from Responsibility?

I saw this church sign the other day while driving so I decided to go back and take a picture and post it here.  This church is the New Hope Community Church in Brentwood, Tennessee.  I don’t know much about them other than what can be found on their website here.  The text on the sign reads as follows:

Apparently today’s church wants to be raptured from responsibility.

What do you think about this sign?  What do you think they are trying to say?  Does the church want to be raptured from responsibility?

My take: I think this is a pretty sharp criticism on the church today, but I do think this is the way many live their lives.  There are many that seem to be content with receiving their “fire insurance” without taking up God’s mission on earth today.  Such people sit in church services, live their life, and await a trip to Heaven one day when they will leave this evil world.  In this way, they wanted to be taken away from their responsibility here.  The sign reminded me of N. T. Wright’s book Surprised by Hope where he argued that many Christians today neglect their mission in this world because of wrong thinking about end times and the new heavens and new earth.  His point was that Christians are focused on escaping this evil world rather than working to restore it.

What do you think? Am I right on my take?  Would you put this on your church sign?