Just Thinking…
Brian Tamaki has again made the news this week, and his name seems to have become the byword for all things that kiwis at large hate about religion in general and Christian fanaticism (so-called) in particular. What are we to make of him? Firstly, I would have to say there are things where I do not see eye to eye with him, and some of these issues are significant. However, I tend not to jump on the bandwagon that many of my Christian friends do, which joins the chorus of condemnation. A Christian leader I admire once said that he tried not not criticise other Christians as they lived out their calling for Jesus and I guess I have tried to follow his lead. Too often we find ourselves in the shoes of the disciples attempting to get in the way of others service because they are ‘not one of us’ (Mark 9:38-40). When I look around the country, I find few ministries which are making inroads into maoridom with the effectiveness of Brian’s ministry, and he like all of us will answer to his Master. So let us keep in tension the two disciplines of grace-giving and healthy critical evaluation, and let us not find ourselves in any way being an obstructive to what Jesus is doing in our communities.
In Him,
Murray