"Lukewarm Christians don't live by faith- in fact, they structure their lives so they don't even need it."- Francis Chan, or something close to what he said.
I remember asking my students when I was in youth ministry a simple question, "If tomorrow morning, you woke up and were an atheist (just miraculously became one) what would be the first thing you would notice?" I remember getting a bunch of blank stares. One of the more honest ones said, "Honestly, not much. I'd hang with the same people, talk the same way, act the same way- I guess I just wouldn't go to church."
Someone said we leave comfortable houses, get in comfortable cars, walk into a comfortable church building, and hear a comfortable message about God. No wonder it is very rare to see someone who truly trusts God for everything, lives by faith, and would be in serious trouble if God didn't show up.
Would your life be any different if Jesus hadn't been resurrected on the third day? Sadly, I'm afraid that most of us, in a moment of honesty, would say, "No."
I want my Christian faith to be more than avoiding porn, reading the Bible, and hanging around a great bunch of people at church. Don't get me wrong- those things are great. But I could do all those things without faith. What are the things in life that God is calling me towards that would require great faith to accomplish?
I used to think I had a great deal of faith. I was very impressed with myself. However, the more steps of faith I take, the more lukewarm I really see myself as being. Kind of like the high school student who knows it all, then goes to college. The more he learns, the more he realizes he DOESN'T know. That's what happens when you step out in faith. You find how little you actually trust God with your life. You find that God has huge things for you to do, but you simply won't because it would make you uncomfortable.
When you decide that being comfortable and being Christian are mutually exclusive- that the Christian life IS one of continual trust and discomfort- then you quit worrying about what MIGHT happen. You stop living in fear- fear of loss of status, fear of loss of income, fear of loss of comfort, fear of loss of possessions or position- and begin LIVING. Truly living.
Someone said that the richest man is not the one who has the most but who needs the least.
This rule applies to faith as well. What would you be capable of if you didn't need anything this world had to offer? What if you didn't need popularity, or wealth, or position, or comfort? What if you didn't need the approval of people or a pat on the back? What if you didn't need the life that Madison Avenue and Hollywood constantly place before us as ideal?
You would be a person very rich in faith- because you would need very little.
Everything in life that we "need" impoverishes us in our faith. If we "need" wealth, we will never live sacrificially as Jesus teaches us to. If we "need" comfort, we will never risk as Jesus calls us to do. If we "need" position and status, we will never associate with the "least of these" that Jesus says to love and care for. If we "need" the life that our neighbors around us have, we will simply continue to exist, never having fully lived.
And never having fully followed Jesus.
The richest man is not the one who has the most, but who needs the least. I say that we as Christians should start sloughing off all the things we "need" and start gaining true wealth in the form of faith. The less you need, the richer in faith you will be. The less you need, the more faithfully you will be able to follow Jesus. The less you need, the more you will realize what true freedom is.
I remember asking my students when I was in youth ministry a simple question, "If tomorrow morning, you woke up and were an atheist (just miraculously became one) what would be the first thing you would notice?" I remember getting a bunch of blank stares. One of the more honest ones said, "Honestly, not much. I'd hang with the same people, talk the same way, act the same way- I guess I just wouldn't go to church."
Someone said we leave comfortable houses, get in comfortable cars, walk into a comfortable church building, and hear a comfortable message about God. No wonder it is very rare to see someone who truly trusts God for everything, lives by faith, and would be in serious trouble if God didn't show up.
Would your life be any different if Jesus hadn't been resurrected on the third day? Sadly, I'm afraid that most of us, in a moment of honesty, would say, "No."
I want my Christian faith to be more than avoiding porn, reading the Bible, and hanging around a great bunch of people at church. Don't get me wrong- those things are great. But I could do all those things without faith. What are the things in life that God is calling me towards that would require great faith to accomplish?
I used to think I had a great deal of faith. I was very impressed with myself. However, the more steps of faith I take, the more lukewarm I really see myself as being. Kind of like the high school student who knows it all, then goes to college. The more he learns, the more he realizes he DOESN'T know. That's what happens when you step out in faith. You find how little you actually trust God with your life. You find that God has huge things for you to do, but you simply won't because it would make you uncomfortable.
When you decide that being comfortable and being Christian are mutually exclusive- that the Christian life IS one of continual trust and discomfort- then you quit worrying about what MIGHT happen. You stop living in fear- fear of loss of status, fear of loss of income, fear of loss of comfort, fear of loss of possessions or position- and begin LIVING. Truly living.
Someone said that the richest man is not the one who has the most but who needs the least.
This rule applies to faith as well. What would you be capable of if you didn't need anything this world had to offer? What if you didn't need popularity, or wealth, or position, or comfort? What if you didn't need the approval of people or a pat on the back? What if you didn't need the life that Madison Avenue and Hollywood constantly place before us as ideal?
You would be a person very rich in faith- because you would need very little.
Everything in life that we "need" impoverishes us in our faith. If we "need" wealth, we will never live sacrificially as Jesus teaches us to. If we "need" comfort, we will never risk as Jesus calls us to do. If we "need" position and status, we will never associate with the "least of these" that Jesus says to love and care for. If we "need" the life that our neighbors around us have, we will simply continue to exist, never having fully lived.
And never having fully followed Jesus.
The richest man is not the one who has the most, but who needs the least. I say that we as Christians should start sloughing off all the things we "need" and start gaining true wealth in the form of faith. The less you need, the richer in faith you will be. The less you need, the more faithfully you will be able to follow Jesus. The less you need, the more you will realize what true freedom is.
