Has Your Church Lost Its Passion for Christ?

“Jesus comes to the complacent congregation and patiently knocks on the door seeing if anyone will invite Him in.”

Would any coach want an entire team of mediocre football players? Would any business want a whole company of uninterested employees? Would any pastor want to eagerly lead a congregation of happily complacent believers? (Photo by Ken Haines from Pixabay.)

Jesus is the Founder and Chief Shepherd of the church. In straight forward terms He condemns any of His congregations that are filled with these types of mediocre, uninterested and complacent followers. There was once a church just like this, and Jesus wrote them a letter saying, “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 2:15-16)

Jesus used temperature language to illustrate where this church stood in relationship with Him. They did not have a cold distant relationship, nor a passionate one. They were somewhere in the middle, which Jesus forcefully called, “lukewarm.”

The church had good biblical doctrine. The congregation was morally upright. They were not lazy, but a group of doers, always getting much done in the church. Consequently, their divine rebuke did not result from their beliefs, morals or activity. Instead, it came from their attitude toward their Chief Shepherd. They acknowledged Him, talked about Him, but there was no zeal for Christ nor dependency on Him.

This is the state of so many churches today. They have wonderful buildings, faithful congregations, dependable supporters, encouraging weekly services, uplifting fellowship but something is missing. Jesus says to them what He said to the Laodicean church, “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” (Rev. 3:19) Like the believers in Laodicea, the church today is missing a zealousness for Christ. This is another temperature word referring to hot or boiling. There is no burning passion for Jesus. There is no boiling love for Him. Just a contented lukewarmness. And people can feel it. Amidst the teaching, friendliness and good programming, something is absent.

In love for His church, Jesus comes to its door and patiently knocks. All the while, the door remains closed to Him. Even so, He continues knocking, waiting for anyone in the church to come and welcome Him back in. And if the church refuses to reopen the door to Him, at a time He decides, He will “spit them out of His mouth.” But if they respond and turn from their lukewarmness to a renewed walk with Him, He offers a great promise of blessing upon them.

My fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, take time to examine the spiritual condition of your church and your own walk with Christ. Where is the passion for Jesus? Where is the boiling love for Him? Where is the heavenly zeal? This is not about feelings, but about the bent of one’s whole life and the spiritual state of a congregation.

Listen to Jesus’ loving and persuasive words to His precious bride, “I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Rev. 3:20-22)

Hear the Spirit’s call to His church and respond. May we the church, repent of our lukewarmness and be awakened to a fresh zeal for Christ, the one who died in our place and rose again.

A prayer for you - Shepherd of the church. Search our hearts. Point out if we have strayed from you and lost our zeal. We repent of our love for the world and dependency on ourselves. We turn to you asking that you pour out upon us a renewed passion and love that burns with a raging fire, that nothing in this world can extinguish. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Are You a Phony Christian?

“If one claims to be a Christian,

the evidence will be demonstrated through loving his neighbor.”

Once while traveling internationally a young woman caught my eye in the airport. She was with an older man, who did not seem to be her husband or father. Her face looked filled with despair. Something was not right. I prayed, wondering if she was in some type of danger. As the couple was getting their luggage, the man stepped away, leaving the woman sitting alone. I felt compelled to do something, so I asked a young woman in our group to come with me. Together we went to the woman while the man was gone. I introduced ourselves and shared, “I saw you sitting there and wanted to let you know, I’m praying for you. If you need help with anything, let me know.” Then soon afterward the man came back, and the two left the airport. (Photo by Pexels from Pixabay.)

Despite some minimal risk, why did I do that? Because my walk with God urged me to. Jesus once said, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:39) The Golden Rule is based on this, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them…” (Matt. 7:12)

What I was practicing was basic Christianity. If one claims to be a Christian, the evidence will be demonstrated through loving his neighbor. The Scripture declare, “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.” (1 John 4:20-21) If one says their name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life but treats some people unjustly, or deliberately turns away from helping the needs of others, their profession of faith is a lie.

How so? Because God has made all people in His image. Therefore, how we treat others is how we treat Him. So if we say we love Jesus but mistreat someone who is made in His image - we are liars.

Jesus once spoke about a future judgement all humanity will face before Him. And He predicted that He would say to some, “…as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” (Matt. 25:40)

What does love for others look like? It is forgiving someone despite the horrible things they did, and their refusal to admit wrongdoing. It is one man treating another man with dignity although they are a different race or ethnicity. It is a husband laying down his own wants and needs in sacrificial love for his wife, and she doing the same for him. It is visiting the widow, providing a home to the orphan, caring for the sick. It is defending the weak and being a voice for the voiceless.

Do you talk of yourself being a Christian? Do you share how you prayed to receive Christ. Yet, you curse at your wife. You deceive others when it is to your advantage. You say evil things of other church members. You deliberately remain silent in the face of another’s injustice. You spend your earnings on your own wants and needs, refusing to help the needy. If this is you, then your profession of faith is nothing more than that – a profession.    

Before Jesus ever said to love our neighbor, He said this, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matt. 22:37-38) How can you learn to love, as God wants you to? Simple. By loving Him. When you love God with all your being, He will then transform your heart through the death and resurrection of Christ. You will then be able to love others by the power of God and for the glory of God.

A prayer for you – Lord God, help us to love our neighbors, as we love ourselves. Help us to love those who are hard to love. Bring us to put the needs of others above our own. Change our hearts to do for us, what we cannot do for ourselves. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

A Deal with The Devil

“Taking drugs is a deal with the devil and he wins every time.”

According to a global report on illicit drug use, the United States has the highest death rate from drugs in the world. When I sat down to ask some law enforcement what the greatest problem was in their area, guess what they told me? “Drugs!” Across America and worldwide drug use is destroying lives. Cocaine, marijuana, fentanyl, heroin, opioids, methamphetamine are just a few of the drugs of choice for many, along with alcohol, nicotine and others. Since the beginning, the human race has continually battled with drugs.

In the Bible, there is a shocking account about a father and his two daughters that captures the influence drugs have had on humanity for thousands of years.

The family fled from their home just before their town was suddenly destroyed by fire in an unusual supernatural event. The father (Lot) had lost everything but his two adult daughters. And their new home they escaped to was a lonely dark cave. No doubt they were all discouraged, grief-stricken, overwhelmed, and unsure what the next steps were. Though they were a religious family, there is no account of them taking their questions to God, lifting their burdens before Him or seeking His counsel for where to go or what to do. They appeared to be relying on their own wisdom.

Eventually, Lot’s daughters felt desperate to have children and reasoned between themselves that there was no option for them outside of their father. They conspired to have a one-time incestual relationship with him, and do so with the help of alcohol. For the sisters said, “…let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve offspring from our father.” (Genesis 19:32) Lot was unaware of his daughters’ plans, but knew he was drinking alcohol and refused to stop. When he became drunk, one daughter laid down with him. After Lot woke up from his hangover, he did not remember anything. The next night the same thing happened with the other daughter. Lot never realized the implications of his drinking until he learned that both his daughters were pregnant.

The sisters wanted something for themselves, and rationalized the need to drug their dad to get it. As for Lot, rather than going to God in the face of discouragement, he became deceived by alcohol and lost his moral compass at a great cost.

No matter the drug, why do people do it? Because they believe the lie. The lie that has been continually sold to humans for thousands of years. That drugs can help them escape and get relief from whatever overwhelming situation they are facing. Drugs and their pushers offer grand promises using demonic lies. “Take this for the pain.” “This will help you have a good time.” “It will calm you down.” And the users believe the promises, treating them like a god, as if they have the power to give them what they are searching for. These false gods have a high price though. They can take your money, family, job, possessions, reputation and perhaps even your very life and eternal soul. Taking drugs is a deal with the devil and he wins every time.

What is the answer? Freedom through Jesus Christ.

Jesus died and rose again to defeat the power of sin, so that men and women might be set free from its strangle hold. Many are like powerless slaves to drugs, following them like a sheep to slaughter. But the cross of Jesus came to break people free from its chains. Turn from your drugs. Get ride of them today! Flush them down the toilet. Burn them up. Leave them behind and run to Jesus! Freedom is waiting for you!

A prayer for you. Lord God, I pray for the drug pushers and users. Open their eyes to the lies they are believing. Let them see what their drugs are taking from them. Let them no longer be deceived. Draw them to you. Help them to see the cross, call out to you and be gloriously set free! In Jesus’ name. Amen.