FROM THE MANUSCRIPT
In the author’s words
They assume that because Christianity confesses him, every encounter with him must be controlled by the version of Christianity they inherited. That is the arrogance this chapter is confronting. Not love for Jesus. Not devotion to Jesus. Not sincere Christian faith. Ownership. There is a difference between honoring Jesus and trying to possess him. There is a difference between following Jesus and using his name as tribal property. There is a difference between confessing Christ and acting as if Christ belongs to your denomination, your culture, your politics, your church language, your fear system, or your inherited certainty. Jesus is too profound to be reduced to a membership card. And if that sentence bothers someone, they should ask why. Because if Jesus is truly who Christians say he is, then he cannot be made smaller than the institutions that speak about him. He cannot be confined to the people who claim him while ignoring him. He cannot be owned by the mouths that say his name while their lives contradict his teachings. A person can say “Jesus” constantly and still not carry the spirit of Jesus. A person can defend Jesus loudly and still not be formed by Jesus deeply.
The God They Inherited, manuscript p. 245. Transcribed from the supplied manuscript; line breaks normalized.
The definition above is an editorial summary of this chapter, not a separately named theory or a claim of scientific proof.