Being a natural-born card-carrying smart aleck, I simply love one-liners, especially catchphrases. Catchphrases are the basis for most advertising and the purpose is to quickly grab our attention.
The best one-liners stick in people’s minds and when heard we will associate the phrase with a particular product, brand or even an idea. The end goal of branding is to create consumer loyalty to a particular product or concept.
A catchphrase or marketing slogan done properly can create product loyalty which can last for generations. However, while marketing slogans can be extremely effective at communicating a general or overall favorable impression of a product or idea, the whole truth can often be overshadowed and even lost within the slogan. Christianity is rife with catchphrases, which sprout from preachers, teachers and theologians like weeds in a garden.
Here are a few Christian catchphrases coined by theologians over the centuries since Jesus Christ’s advent nearly two thousand years ago: Total depravity; sola scriptura (by scripture alone); sola fide (by faith alone); sola gratia, (by grace alone); solas Christus, (Christ alone or through Christ alone); trinity; once saved always saved.
Those are just a small sample of catchphrases used by Christians in the past and present. Our modern-day pastors coin new catchphrases every Sunday, even article titles such as this one is just a catchphrase.
One-liners are a short and often memorable way to categorize or summarize complex ideas. This can be very good as long as everyone already has a perfect understanding of the theology contained within the one-liner. However, more often than not, we simply do not understand the details summed up within the catchphrase.
Therefore the well intentioned good meal summarized by the catchphrase is reduced to fast food, which more often than not is unhealthy. I like to call it “Fast Food Christianity!”
It is very easy to fall into the trap of getting our theology at the drive-thru window. Seems like all of us are in a hurry, even when it comes to learning about God.
Get in the car, pull up to the neon menu, a voice speaks, we respond #1 with a diet drink, pull up to window 1, pay with your phone app, pull to window 2, get your meal. Five minutes total and we are on our way, we can even eat our meal while we are driving home. No fuss, no mess, plus very little clean up and all done in less than 20 minutes.
Why I suppose that even many preachers get their message via fast food services as well—such as YouTube, Facebook or some other web-based source—because they are in a hurry too!
Friends, it takes a lot of time to prepare a nutritious, healthy meal. Fast food might be okay in moderation if we have done our studying and homework about the nutritional value. Following are a few things Jesus and some of his friends had to say regarding a good meal!
Psalm 23:5 KJV [5] Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Matthew 6:26 KJV [26] Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
Luke 22:14-15 KJV [14] And when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve apostles with him. [15] And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer:
John 21:12 KJV [12] Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.
John 21:15 KJV [15] So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.