This is from an old “Stier Straight” article I wrote three or so years ago. Somebody brought it up the other day and it made me smile. Maybe it will give you a giggle today.
What is it with the body of Christ and bumper stickers? Seriously - how many people do you think will be in heaven because they read some words on the back of a car and were “driven” to become Christians. And who is it that sits around and thinks up these sayings? They are like holy Hallmark cards, the perfect mixture of corny and Christian. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure the intent of taking the time to buy a Christian bumper sticker and actually placing it on the backside of your car is noble. The goal is for all to see these words and declare to all those “sinners” in our exhaust zone some kernel of Christian truth. Deep thoughts like:
“God is my copilot.”
“Angels are watching over me.”
“Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven!”
If God is your copilot why not try letting go of the steering wheel and taking a little nap? Shouldn’t He be driving anyway? I mean He’s had his license a lot longer than you and I’m sure His driving record is impeccable.
And should more than one angel have to watch over you? Should it have to be a team of angels? Are you that bad of a driver? How dare your driving distract heaven from loftier ideals than keeping you from crunching your bumper on someone elses!
My personal favorite bumper sticker is the classic “Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven!” It’s like a license to drive badly. So what if you ram the car next to you? You’re not perfect right? I can hear the cop conversation now:
“Son, do you know how fast you were going?”
“No. Officer.”
“You were going forty miles an hour over the speed limit.”
“Didn’t you read my bumper sticker when you pulled me over? We Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven.”
“Well, God may forgive you, but the judge is gonna make you pay.”
If you are a bad driver (like I am) and you happen to be a Christian (like I am) you should probably break out the razor blade and scrape off all of your Bible bumper stickers and fish symbols (like I did). If you speed a lot or wreck a lot or talk on the cell phone while eating a cheeseburger a lot, it’s time to remove all Christian quotes from your tailgate.
And if you are a really bad driver you could replace those Christian bumper stickers with ones like:
“How’s my driving? Call 1-800-Mormon Church”
“Atheists rule.”
“Honk if you love Buddha.”
Just kidding (and if you are a Mormon, Atheist or Buddhist reading this right now…smile, God loves you! How do I know? I read it on a bumper sticker!)
When you think about it, we Christians shouldn’t need bumper stickers of any kind to declare our Christianity to others. We shouldn’t have to have Christian T-shirts, buttons or bumper stickers for those around us to get the message. Our lives should be so bathed in the love of Jesus Christ and power of the Holy Spirit that those we encounter should sense something supernatural. Paul put it this way to the Corinthians,
“You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.” 2 Corinthians 2:2-3
What is Paul saying? Let me give you a modern paraphrase,
“You yourselves are our bumper sticker, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. You are a bumper sticker from God, the result of our ministry, printed not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not stuck on an actual car bumper, but on the bumper of the human heart!”
Every word you speak and everything you do is a bumper sticker. Your actions, intonations, attitudes, responses, non-verbal and verbal communication all shout something to people around us. Those who read our micro messages are either drawn closer to Christ or driven farther from him.
Be careful how you drive.
Greg Stier is the President and Founder of Dare 2 Share Ministries in Arvada, Colo., where he works with youth leaders and students, equipping them to be effective in sharing the gospel. With experience as a senior teaching pastor and in youth ministry for almost 20 years, Greg has a reputation of knowing and relating to today’s teens. He is widely viewed as an authority and expert teen spirituality. He is known for motivating, mobilizing and equipping teens for positive change. For more information on Dare 2 Share Ministries, and the Invicible 08/09 conference tour, please visit www.dare2share.org.
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I don't see what you're missing, but here goes.
Most folk in the West that own much property at all own two items worth more than a few thousand dollars: a small real-estate claim of some sort and a vehicle. Hopefully, the real estate cost more than the car, since most cars depreciate in value rapidly; hence, the "second-most-expensive" property for most folk is, in my mind, the car. Bumper stickers stand a moderate chance of damaging the paint or finish (and thus, the resale value of the car), so one possible interpretation is that attaching one should indicate a more-than-passing interest in or approval for the subject of the sticker. This is surely the case for political bumper stickers, at least (fun experiment: see how many bumper stickers promoting political candidates survive the election of their opponents).
In my case, I have purchased a few bumper stickers here and there, but I do not attach them to the car's exterior; instead, I either lay them under the rear window or tape them to its interior surface. This might suggest to anyone deeply interested in the relevance of bumper stickers (or maybe of legible messages on personal belongings in general) that my dedication to whatever messages those stickers bear is less than would be the case for someone who plastered them over the paint on their shiny new car. I don't really think that's true, but since the topic is the relevance of bumper stickers...it's an interpretation that comes fairly readily to mind.
What message defacing your "second-most-expensive piece of property" will send? I'm not a fan of bumper stickers of any kind but I am curious about your statement. My story doesn't have the answer in it so I thought you might be able to help me understand.
Why buy any Christian merchandise, save a good Bible and a nice suit or dress for mass? It's just advertisement, after all!
Some fair number of bumper stickers, t-shirts, hats, and other decorations are produced with charity in mind; profits go to the needy and so forth. Other than that, yeah...
Personally, I leave any bumper stickers I buy in my back window, still attached to their paper backings. There they stay, until they fade or bubble up and look crummy. I suppose part of the philosophy is to say, "I care enough about this message that I defaced my second-most-expensive piece of property to convey it." In which case, I guess I'm not sending the right message after all.