In one of the books I am reading, Patrick Morley talks about God's leading saying, "He has important work for you and me, and He must squeeze the cultural Christianity out of us."
That's a tough phrase to take. It is saying that perhaps we have a misguided view of what following Christ is supposed to look like. Maybe what we have built Christianity up to be is off the mark. What if our understanding of following Christ has been misdirected due to the influence of American culture instead of the other way around?
Christianity in the New Testament certainly wasn't pretty-it cost those believers more than we can imagine in our comfortable world of today. They were willing to follow God's leading & His Word regardless of the cultural and personal consequences. The church in the book of Acts had a different feel than the majority of American churches today because of those risk-takers.
Looking like Christ is not so much of a focus on church attendance, the number of Bibles in your home, how many Christian t-shirts you have, or the Jesus sticker on your car. I believe it is reflected in the individuals (and families) who are willing to say, "I will follow Christ no matter the cost."
When God can create that cultural shift in each of us, Satan better be on guard.
No comments:
Post a Comment