Why Did Gandhi accept the Teachings of Jesus but reject Christianity?
As I am preparing for my journey to India, I am being challenged to look deeply into my heart and seek out what is my honest motivation. I, like many of us have dark tendencies that seem to want to control our lives when our motivation is not challenged. When I choose to run from my motivation of lust, greed, and control to Christ and I am then honest in my pursuit of His Holiness. It’s only then can I experience relief of the burden I have been carrying and the Joy of Christ.
The Bible says in Luke 9:23, Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.??? What Jesus is saying here is that if we want to be like Jesus, we must die to ourselves every day and then, and only then, can we be like Jesus. In following with what I am saying above, I have to ask myself daily what is my motivation? Is it to serve myself or is it to serve my God. Mahatma Gandhi experienced Christians that were mostly living as double agents. They were seeking and wanting to do the things of God but were allowing their motivation to be the things of man.
It has been said that Gandhi was deeply hurt by his experiences with apartheid and “Christians??? during his time in South Africa, and that this stymied his relationship with Christ. Like Gandhi, millions have been unable to see the Christ obscured by Christianity. Gandhi was shrewd enough to tell missionaries, “I like your Christ; I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.??? When asked why he did not embrace Christianity, Gandhi said that it offered nothing he could not get from his own religion, observing, “…to be a good Hindu also meant that I would be a good Christian. There is no need for me to join your creed to be a believer in the beauty of the teachings of Jesus or try to follow His example.???
I am deeply challenged by the words of Gandhi and express great pain in knowing that I too have fallen into the trap of Satan by living my life as a double agent at times. Without challenging my motivation and searching deeply within my soul of why I exist today and what is my greatest purpose. I too make decisions that are of no greater difference than any other religion of this world. If I do not live and act as Jesus has taught me to act, I will not have any power or authority in seeing lives being transformed.
The greatest difference that Jesus offers that no other religion can offer is His resurrection power. Jesus was truly man and truly God and took on the life of a servant to teach us how He wants us to live our lives and to act with the Holy Spirits help as He did. So that by Him dying on the Cross for our sins and then raising to life on the third day we to can now experience His resurrection power. For 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 states “For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; 15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.??? When I truly let Him be in control of my life and I no longer live but He lives with in me, there would be nothing of myself but everything of love. Then when anyone challenges me like Gandhi did of other Christians, they will only see and experience Jesus in me and not my religion. Gandhi never had a problem with Jesus only with Christians, and if I do not make my daily choice to deny myself, pick up my cross, and to follow Jesus and to also allow Him to have full ownership of my life, I to will lead others like Gandhi away from Christ’s resurrection power.
I must be content in where God has me, I must allow Him to use me as He so chooses. I have to let go of all of my desires that are not in perfect alignment with what God has for me. As I wait and meditate on God and allow Him to speak into my life and then do what He asks of me, my life will then be a reflection of Christ and others will come to Jesus. Being a Christian is a daily discipline of being humble enough to always ask the hard question of what is my true motivation today. Ask yourself “Do I desire to have perfect peace and Joy in knowing God is my lead? Has all things worked out or is my flesh going to get in the way? When the opportunity comes to share the love of Jesus will they see Jesus or only my religion???? E. Stanley Jones described it as, “the greatest tragedy since the Son of God died on the cross,??? precisely assessed Christianity as being no different from other religions. The ones that surrender all to Him know that there is a HUGE difference in Jesus than in other religions. Surrender all today so that others can have salvation and a life of Joy and peace. Don’t be the one that Satan uses because your motivation is that of yourselves which, in turn will lead others astray from what is the true meaning of life and that is JESUS!