Todays Reading: Nehemiah 3:15-5:13, 1 Corinthians 7:25-40, Psalms 32:1-11, Proverbs 21:5-7
Scripture (not from today’s reading): ”Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. for I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law–A man’s enemies will be the member of his own household. Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 10:34-39
We are about to, as a church body, go through a Wednesday night study together based on the book “Radical” by David Platt. I have read the book and I am excited that we will read it together as a church. What this study will involve is us studying the Bible to determine what it means to be a Radical Christian and a radical church. One of the hardest parts for me to grasp is the idea of radical abandonment. What does it even mean? Based upon Matthew 10:38-39 we see that Jesus’ words are very direct about what He demands of us as followers and believers of Him. We are to take up our cross, an instrument of torture, and follow Him. Any of us who does not do this is not worthy of Christ. We must lose our lives in order to find our lives.
Certainly Jesus isn’t speaking in a literal sense. He really doesn’t mean what He’s saying, does He? Here’s a passage from “Radical” that I believe the American church needs to hear today:
“And it is entirely possible that he will tell us to sell everything we have and give it to the poor. But we don’t want to believe it. We are afraid of what it might mean for our lives. So we rationalize these passages away. ”Jesus wouldn’t really tell us to bury our father or say goodbye to our family. Jesus didn’t literally mean to sell all we have and give it to the poor. What Jesus really meant was….’
And this is where we need to pause. Because we are starting to redefine Christianity. We are giving in to the dangerous temptation to take the Jesus of the Bible and twist him into a version of Jesus we are more comfortable with. A
A nice, middle-class, American Jesus. A Jesus who doesn’t mind materialism and who would never call us to give away everything we have. A Jesus who would not expect us to forsake our closest relationships so that he receives all our affection. A Jesus who is fine with nominal devotion that does not infringe on our comforts, because, after all, he loves us just the way we are. A Jesus who wants us to be balanced, who wants us to avoid dangerous extremes, and who, for that matter, wants us to avoid danger altogether. A Jesus who brings us comfort and prosperity as we live out our Christian spin on the American dream.
But do you and I realize what we are doing at this point? We are molding Jesus into our image. He is beginning to look a lot like us because, after all, that is whom we are most comfortable with. And the danger now is that when we gather in our church buildings to sing and lift up our hands in worship, we may not actually be worshipping the Jesus of the Bible. Instead we may be worshipping ourselves.”
Is that a bit harsh? I’m not sure it is. I believe the American church has molded Jesus to be something very different than what the Bible actually says He is. I believe we have taken the parts of scripture out that are most difficult to us and instead we focus on the parts that make us feel good about ourselves. We serve a master who demands radical obedience. I’m not sure how many of us are willing to live the life that God is truly calling us to; however, I believe it is our duty to search scripture and define Christianity Biblically, not traditionally. If we can all begin living radically for Christ we will see our lives change, this church change, this community change and God glorified.
