There is this space between what I want to be, what I should be, and what I'm supposed to be that frightens, confuses, and sometimes paralyzes me. It's the space between Genesis and Revelation. Between "There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" to Jesus spitting out lukewarm Christians. It's the space between grace and judgment. It's the space we live in right now.
"What water temperature am I?" How do we measure that? Where's the spiritual thermometer? I think it can be so easy to fit into the church culture we're a part of. We figure out our temperature by comparing it to others around us and by what's being taught from the pulpit. That's why it's so huge to have a balanced teaching on grace and the seriousness of living as Jesus commanded us to live.
It always amazes me to see people in churches get angry when the church decides to make more of an effort to reach out to those outside the church. Isn't that what the Church is for? Isn't that what we're called to do? It seems so elementary to me. But we get so fat, so lazy, so selfish, and self-absorbed. We aren't able to see beyond our bellies to the very thing we're told to never lose sight of.
We find ourselves thinking that if we just pull our wallets out we're doing our part. It's more than that though. That's a part, but it's not all of it. God wants us to be a part of the adventure, to enter in. That's when we become alive. That's when it clicks, when we get it.
That's why I love this church. We've moved beyond the constant feasting. We've taken out the smorgasbord and replaced it with a food bank. We're more about giving out and feeding others. And look at what God is doing because of it. It's like everyone has just woken up from a deep sleep with a second wind. But we just can't stand around and watch everyone else jump in. We can't be a part of someone else's adventure. We need to live out ours - the one that God has for each one of us.
Back to the church culture thing. It's so easy to get caught up in the flow of things without taking inventory of what we're actually doing personally for the Kingdom of God. How are we personally bringing God to the world around us, to the people we know, or to the people we should be getting to know? Thank God we're a part of a church that gets it. But let's make sure that we get it too. Let's make sure we're burning hot for God - that He's able to flow out of us at will. Let's make sure that we're taking the time to hear Him, and then obey Him.
So don't look around when you're trying to figure out if you're one of the lukewarm Christians Jesus was talking about. Look to Him. Ask Him for yourself - "God is there anything I should be doing? Is there anything I've been blind to that I need to see?"
"What water temperature am I?" How do we measure that? Where's the spiritual thermometer? I think it can be so easy to fit into the church culture we're a part of. We figure out our temperature by comparing it to others around us and by what's being taught from the pulpit. That's why it's so huge to have a balanced teaching on grace and the seriousness of living as Jesus commanded us to live.
It always amazes me to see people in churches get angry when the church decides to make more of an effort to reach out to those outside the church. Isn't that what the Church is for? Isn't that what we're called to do? It seems so elementary to me. But we get so fat, so lazy, so selfish, and self-absorbed. We aren't able to see beyond our bellies to the very thing we're told to never lose sight of.
We find ourselves thinking that if we just pull our wallets out we're doing our part. It's more than that though. That's a part, but it's not all of it. God wants us to be a part of the adventure, to enter in. That's when we become alive. That's when it clicks, when we get it.
That's why I love this church. We've moved beyond the constant feasting. We've taken out the smorgasbord and replaced it with a food bank. We're more about giving out and feeding others. And look at what God is doing because of it. It's like everyone has just woken up from a deep sleep with a second wind. But we just can't stand around and watch everyone else jump in. We can't be a part of someone else's adventure. We need to live out ours - the one that God has for each one of us.
Back to the church culture thing. It's so easy to get caught up in the flow of things without taking inventory of what we're actually doing personally for the Kingdom of God. How are we personally bringing God to the world around us, to the people we know, or to the people we should be getting to know? Thank God we're a part of a church that gets it. But let's make sure that we get it too. Let's make sure we're burning hot for God - that He's able to flow out of us at will. Let's make sure that we're taking the time to hear Him, and then obey Him.
So don't look around when you're trying to figure out if you're one of the lukewarm Christians Jesus was talking about. Look to Him. Ask Him for yourself - "God is there anything I should be doing? Is there anything I've been blind to that I need to see?"
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