“The clichés of a culture sometimes tell the deepest truths.” (Faith Popcorn)
A cliché is an expression that is trite,
worn-out, and overused. As a result, clichés have lost their original vitality,
freshness, and significance in expressing meaning. A cliché is a phrase or
idea that has become a “universal” device to describe abstract concepts.
The church has an overabundance of clichés that
are commonly used in their religious communities across the US. If you grew up
in a church environment (like me) the eight Christian clichés below might be extremely
familiar to you. Maybe you’ve used many of them like I have:
A Bible that’s falling apart
usually belongs to someone who isn’t: In my experience, those who have
Bibles that are falling apart should just go buy a new one. I have also seen
Bibles that were falling apart because they were severely abused by their
owners.
A Bible doesn’t fare well in those
situations. Even when Bibles are falling apart because their owner truly does
read and study it all the time, many of them are some of the proudest,
self-important, judgmental Christians around. Being a Bible expert does not guarantee Christlike behavior.
Cleanliness is next to godliness: If the requirement
for Christians is to be clean to be godly, than we all are in big trouble. Romans
3:23(ICB) says: All people have
sinned and are not good enough for God’s glory. We are all sinners,
and need God’s grace for salvation. God makes us clean through His holiness.
If cleanliness puts you
closer to God, what about the homeless who may not have access to water to
bathe? What about people in third world countries who have to walk miles just
to get drinking water? Can they not be close to God, too? While it may seem
that those that have it all together may be closer to God, only the heavenly
Father knows the true state of the heart, which may be the dirtiest part of us
after all. Jesus focuses on hearts, rather than outer appearance.
Everything happens for a reason: This sentiment can
only cause further suffering to anyone in the midst of difficult circumstances
since it makes God the cause of their trouble. This saying comes from a
misunderstanding of Romans 8:28 (VOICE): We are
confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something
good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live
according to His plan.
This verse doesn’t
say that God specifically ordains every single thing, no matter how horrible it
may be. It simply promises that God can bring about something good in spite of
all the terrible things that happen, whether it’s a huge event like a natural
disaster or something smaller like an individual battling depression.
God won’t give you more than you
can handle:
1 Corinthians 10:13 (MSG) says: No test or
temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to
face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never
let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come
through it. This verse refers
to temptations not general trials in life. Very godly people in the Bible regularly experienced far more
than they could handle, and cried out to God for help.
You aren’t promised
troubles you could handle, but you are promised help through the troubles. This
saying can also be a form of victim-blaming. First, it implies that whatever
bad things the person is currently experiencing did actually come from God.
Second, it implies that the person can in fact handle the circumstances alone
if they try hard enough.
Everyone faces
trials, but through it all, God is there to help you. God often gives you more
than you can handle. He puts you through situations at times that are so
unbearable it makes you cry out to Him. God wants you to come to Him in times
of trouble. If you weren’t drowning in our circumstances, would you ever come
to Jesus in need?
I can do all things through Christ
who strengthens me:
This saying may be a Bible verse, but far too often, it’s quoted out of context.
In the immediately preceding verses, Paul is discussing how he’s learned to be
content in any circumstance and to live on what God has provided for him. This
verse is simply giving God credit for teaching Paul how to be content.
This is a far cry
from the typical “power ballad” treatment this verse gets in many Christian
circles. This verse tells us to be humble, not to expect God to help us do
whatever we want. Paul is saying that Christ will give him strength in the
times when he is in need, and that he relies on God (not His own strength) to
see him through difficult times.
Love the sinner; hate the sin: As well-intentioned
as this saying is, it still encourages a perspective that focuses on a person’s
sin rather than who they are and God’s love for them. You certainly should
never condone someone else’s sin. Jesus came to bring salvation, but He also
came to love people and heal them. Providing for people’s needs can lead to
opportunities to tell them about Jesus’ love for them.
When God closes a door, He opens a
window: The
simple truth is that sometimes God closes a door and nothing else opens.
Sometimes, we’re supposed to stay where we are, and no “window” of another
opportunity will appear. This saying can even cause pain to someone who truly
has no other opportunity to pursue since it implies that the chance is there,
they just can’t find it. Offer to help the person find any opportunity that God
may have provided.
You can’t outgive God: This is almost
always said in the context of some call for monetary donations to a building
project, a ministry opportunity, or some other fundraising campaign. While it
is true that God is more generous than we can ever imagine, it is not true (as
is often taught) that if you give lots of money, God will give us even more
money.
Don’t give beyond
your means to a church or ministry based on this faulty understanding of
finances. You can give generously and joyfully to ministries and people that
are serving in the kingdom of God, but don’t expect that by giving, God will
give you greater financial wealth because He may not.
“Save me from
trendy religion that makes cheap clichés out of timeless truths.” (Rich Mullins)[i]
[i] Adapted from:
· “10 Christian Clichés that Confuse
(and Hurt) Unbelievers” by Michelle Lazurek
· “10 Christian Clichés to Avoid Like
the Plague” by Jeremy Myers
· “7 Christian Clichés that Help No
One” by Oak Ridge Baptist Church
· “Cliché” by Literary Devices
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