Right Wing or Left Wing?

"Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law . . . ; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go" (Joshua 1:7).

A Parable

Trouble was stirring in the eagle's nest. Soon it would be time for three young eaglets to attempt their first flight. But along with the natural anxiety of leaving the nest, the youngest of the three found himself feeling confused and frustrated because his two older brothers kept shouting out conflicting advice.

"Use your left wing!" shouted one. "It will make you feel free. All the popular birds are flying to the left these days."

"No," insisted the other brother. "Use your right wing! It will keep you on course. It will keep you from drifting off to who-knows-where. Birds have been using their right wings for generations."

Feathers flew as the older brothers hit each other with rights and lefts. The younger bird thought to himself, "If they keep beating each other that way, will either of them ever be able to fly?" Strangely, though they had lots of advice for their younger siblings, neither of the older brothers showed any signs of actually leaving the nest.

"I just want to fly," sighed the young eagle. He looked upward where blue skies stretched toward Heaven. He looked outward where new adventures beckoned from the horizon. He looked downward and saw food to eat and water to drink.

Stretching himself to the full wingspan God had given him, and trusting the power of the wind, he leaped from the nest.

And he began to soar.

Conservative or Liberal?

Are you part of Christianity's "right wing" or "left wing"? There are problems with both sides.

Jesus wasn't fond of either extreme, and he managed to irritate pressure groups on both sides. He told the "liberal" Sadducees, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God" (Matthew 22:29). He rebuked the "conservative" Pharisees who appeared to follow the letter of the law but were inwardly corrupt (Matthew 23:25-28). The apostle Paul sharply disagreed with the "liberals" who denied the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:12) and he tussled with the "conservatives" who used the law of Moses like a sledgehammer to pound on their brethren (Galatians 5:1-15).

I don't identify with Christianity's left wing. I believe the Bible is true and inspired by God—the pattern for faith and practice in the church. I'm far from perfect, but it's my goal to order my life according to the time-tested values of God's Word. I want to conserve "the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 1:13). I am determined to "contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints" (Jude 3). I reject the toothless, truthless, rootless relativism that casts aside the essentials of our faith.

Yet, my faith isn't defined by the political or religious right wing either. I refuse to be bound by tradition that equates human opinions with the commands of God. "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free" (Galatians 5:1). I want to love liberally, give liberally, and serve liberally. I want to live abundantly, obediently, and fully for God.

In a world of confusing religious labels, there's only one title I want to wear. I just want to be a Christian. Isn't that enough?