Dude, so you know those times when God’s trying to teach you something and its like everywhere you turn its like a jackhammer on your brain! Ha, Ha! You just wanna shout, “OK GOD…REALLY…I GOT IT…LIKE FOR REAL…SERIOUSLY!!!!” Man this week has been one of those for me. I randomly wandered over to the Newspring Church website and watched Perry Noble’s talk on “It is OK for a Christian to drink alcohol.”
Now I know what you’re thinking, probably, and the conclusion of that sermon isn’t what’s been slamming me in the head…although it is an amazingingly biblical, brutally honest, stand that he takes. Its the idea than ran throughout his talk, and more importantly through everything God has been teaching me lately.
Here it is…you ready…
Christians have made our salvation all about behavior. To some extent, we are all guilty, some more than others…for whatever reason its a human tendency for us who have been redeemed. I personally feel it is one of those “angel of light” moments the Bible talks about Satan using to deceive us. We puff ourselves up based on our righteous behavior, and then snuff our noses at those who don’t act like us, as if we’ve reached some higher spiritual plane because of our behavior.
But somewhere in that process, we have lost sight of the HUGE work grace played in each of our lives…hmm…how’s it go…”not of ourselves lest any man should boast?” Grace is the great equalizer…it brings us all to level playing ground…Hello…its all about what God did for us, not what we have done or are doing/not doing. Even though none of us Bible-believing Christians would admit that we actually think we save ourselves, our Christian sub-culture broadcasts a different story…
Many times I have heard…”they say they’re a Christian, or they say they go to church, but they do ______.” Hmmm…I’m a Christian…and I lie…I cheat…I struggle with maintaining pure thoughts (what guy wouldn’t in our culture today)…Is that really any different?
The point is that there comes a time we have to say…yeah we’re all screwed up, in different ways, that’s why God did what he did, and why we are constantly trying to make our way through this “relationship with God” thing. Continually working out HIS salvation in us…
The attitude of if you are saved you act/look like “this” is what has isolated the church from the rest of the world, and quite bluntly what has robbed the church of truly loving those far from Him the way He did. Its true in my own life. True we are to be in the world and not of it…but alot of the stuff we cling too as “evidence of our walk with Christ” really weren’t the things that He was actually concerned about.
In fact…I jave been such a total Pharisee at so many points in my life its embarassing, and I think it would do all of us good to stop and recognize the same in all of our lives. Its humbling, and puts our perspective in the right place.
Its late…its time for bed…but my brain was about to explode…had to channel the energy out someway!
G’night!
