DID CHRIST FAIL RAVI ZACHARIAS OR WAS IT THE HYDRA OF CHRISTIANITY?

American writer, Jack Lee wrote, “culture is an unforgiving animal that will eat its own if given a chance.” Well, the knives are out for the late author and apologist Ravi Zacharias and the people pointing fingers to his depravity seem to be completely oblivious to the three fingers that point back at them.

 I cannot defend Ravi, nor ignore the unspeakable plight of his many victims. But with my own sinful heart, and the Lord’s impossible standards, I dare not condemn him. I learned lessons to deepen my faith with his undeniably inspired teaching. I’d rather note that Ravi was given enough time in God’s mercy before he died of cancer, than speculate if he repented of his sins. However, I will not deny that his consummate sexual addiction, and cruel victimization of vulnerable women, especially Mrs. Lori Anne Thompson, is indefensible.

In a previous episode I observed, we Christians come from a long line of liars, fornicators, murderers, you name it - the list could go on and on. Romans 3: 23 is clear, “ All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”

 Pointing to the hypocrisy in Christendom, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian wrote,“This pious fellowship permits no one to be a sinner. So everybody must conceal his sin from himself and from the fellowship. We dare not be sinners. Many Christians are unthinkably horrified when a real sinner is suddenly discovered among the righteous. So we remain alone with our sin, living in lies and hypocrisy. The fact is that we are sinners!”

So I’m not going to stop reading Ravi’s books anymore than I would reject David’s Psalms in the Bible, after I learned he was a killer. God called David, an adulterer and murderer, a man after his own heart.Why he allowed Israel's King David into the most exclusive family tree in human history is the mystery of mysteries.

 The simple fact is there are no spiritual heroes in the Bible - or even any walking around today- only depraved sinners, saved by grace.

I lived in Dubai for nearly four decades, I was briefly on RZIM’s regional board and I’d meet Ravi on his visits there. When he published, Has Christianity Failed You? I was emphatic that it had - only Christ has not failed us. His book states,“a Christian is a person who believes what Christianity teaches,” and he also wrote,“It is Christianity that has kept the Western world intact.” (Page 45, 208) I disagreed.

Pointing out those issues to Ravi in his book, I had an open discussion with him. I affirmed that a Christian is someone who trusts and obeys Christ - not Christianity. And the western world is not intact, it is a mockery of Christ’s teachings.

Gandhi’s response actually came to mind. When a reporter asked him what he thought of western civilization, he famously replied, “ I think its a good idea.”

I urged Ravi to stop promoting the very word ‘Christianity.’ If he replaced the word Christianity with Christ in his books, it would only enhance his message - not diminish it. Did Ravi take my thoughts seriously? I don’t know, but he admitted many Americans do not want to be called Christians anymore, because the term has lost all meaning in U.S. society.

 Like many of us, Ravi Zacharias is another notable addition to the ‘Sinners Hall of Fame.’ Ravi compromised his mission, but is anyone else responsible for his catastrophic failure?

 Well, besides his RZIM organization, the splendid political, business empire named Christianity cannot go scot free. It took Ravi to the top of its temple and gave him all its stages in the world, taking him further and further away from his anchor in family and accountability. Perhaps it convinced him that bringing Christ to the world wasn't enough, he could bring the whole world to Christ. This spectacular man made edifice, comprising 30,000 denominations, powerful proud guardians, and 2.4 billion mostly nominal adherents hooked on consumerism, celebrity and la dolce vita must be held accountable too.

 Christianity’s ideological and cultural conventions, program both individuals and congregations away from the Cross of Jesus Christ. In the service of this demanding Mammon, unwitting theological superstars rise and fall, powerless in trying to serve two masters.

 In his book, Against Christianity, Peter J. Leithart, President of Theopolis Institute for Biblical, Liturgical, & Cultural Studies in Birmingham, Alabama  writes. “The Bible never mentions Christianity. It does not preach Christianity, nor does it encourage us to preach Christianity. Paul did not preach Christianity, nor did any of the other Apostles. During centuries when the Church was strong and vibrant, she did not preach Christianity either. Christianity is the heresy of heresies, the underlying cause of the weakness, lethargy, sickness and failure of the modern church.”

 According to Revival Outside The Walls (rotw.com), in a recent survey of 2,500 churches, fifty percent said their church was not spiritually vital. 1 in 4 Americans don’t go to church, and 48% are done with God.

But millions of churchgoers fill the coffers of popular preachers, herded by them like cattle. Our longing for certainty in a very uncertain world is easily exploited.

 Christianity gives its followers a religious identity at a huge cost - it is not the Truth that can set men free. Christianity, it could be argued, is not the faith of our fathers and it is certainly not the Church - the body of Christ.

 At its worst, without obedience to Christ, I would argue that Christianity is a consumer pleasing business enterprise, a power and numbers-seeking stronghold. It is an idolatrous, historically flawed, political, and cultural fabrication, posing as a benign substitute.

One has to ask the question, is it Christ who does not impact people’s lives or is it the counterfeit that has usurped his sacred name?

 Did Christianity fail Ravi Zacharias? Can just one paradigm shifting word distract us from Jesus? It can, and it has, very effectively. Because this multi - headed hydra strategically named Christianity, is legion, not true religion.  

 Frank Raj is the editor of christnotchristianity.com and homeanddiaspora.com