Real Chili
In Texas, we are proud of the traditional chili dish that was originated here. Chili is actually short for Chili con Carne which is Spanish for Meat with Peppers. All true Texans know that you can add onions and some tomatoes and maybe even a ‘secret ingredient’ to kick up the flavor but we all agree without exception you never ever put beans in chili. We love beans in Texas. We love black beans, and pinto beans and refried beans and butter beans and green beans and all kinds of peas. But we just have a thing about not putting them in chili. If you put beans in it then it is no longer chili. It might taste good. It might taste great! It might even taste BETTER. But that is beside the point. You can put beans with your meat and peppers but just please don’t call it chili. If you add beans then you have fundamentally changed what it is.
“Anyone that knows beans about chili, knows there is no beans in chili!” – Jerry Jeff Walker
BEANS
What do beans have to do with apologetics? Good question. Christianity is very simple too. It is Jesus and Him crucified (Col 2:2). Christ in his word gets to say what Christianity is. Some (unitarians) may prefer some humanistic stuff too and they may think it makes it better but don’t call it Christianity. Some (progressive movement) want to say that the crucifixion is unnecessarily harsh and want to add forgiveness without atonement. I say they are free to do that but please do not call it Christianity. Mormons want man’s diety, Word of Faith want dominion and power, Adventists want preterism and judgment. Catholics want tradition, saints and the pope. Some want healing. Some want signs and wonders. Some like liturgy and some like dream interpretation. Some love determinism. And you might have your favorite bean or pea as well. Great I like some of those things too but we cannot add them to what it means to be a Christian. Christian is the gospel. Christian is Christ.
“And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” Acts 16:30-31
Those three words: Lord and Jesus and Christ say it all. Lord means your ruler. Jesus means your salvation provided by God. Christ means the anointed one sent for you. Do you believe?
Paul said this is the gospel: “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve”.
Now the implications of these facts are fleshed out and discussed in the rest of the bible. Prophetically and with anticipation in the old testament and historically and practically in the New. All with faith. But if we add to it, we change what it is. It is no longer the gospel and if it is no longer the gospel then it is not Christianity. We don’t get to add our favorite ingredients or doctrines or ideas or whatever. We can flavor our experience with different song styles (some like it hot), or liturgy or pastoral temperament but bottom line we cannot make anything else essential.
Christianity is the following of Christ. No Beans about it!
(footnote: quote by JJW is disputed as being original to him or even if he said it at all. But we have a saying about things like that: “Even if it ain’t true it ought to be.” I think Willie said that.)
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