No More Christians - The Rev. Philip DeVaul

I grew up a Christian who believed the best thing I could possibly do as a Christian was make other people Christians. I was taught and believed that people who weren’t Christian would go to Hell when they died and spend eternity in conscious torment for believing the wrong thing while on earth. If I could just make someone Christian, then I would be saving them from an endless loop of torturous agony. What’s more, these previously damned souls would now get to experience the nameless eternal joys of Heaven all because of me! What could be a higher aspiration? 

Many Christians believe saving others from going to Hell is the purpose of life. And I think this is where it helps to have a real understanding of what Jesus asks of his followers. Jesus’ instructions to those who would act in his name is to serve others, to love others, to forgive the debts of others. Jesus is less interested in his followers trying to convince people something about God then he is in them embodying the loving presence of God. In other words, your job is not to save people, it’s to love them.  

There is a world of difference between saving others and serving others.