Mathew 16: 24 – 26
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.
26 What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
Now having read the above verses, and seeing the way some Christians act, not to mention the churches that appear to have the same attitude, I feel compelled to ask myself this question;
“Where in the scripture does it say that our faith is supposed to be convenient or comfortable”?
I know that when I came to know the Lord, I thought that my life was going to get a lot easier, that all the turmoil would cease, and riches would come my way, after all I was now friends with Jesus, and I found a church that reinforced attitude.
Every Sunday I heard a lot of “Jesus loves you”, and not enough “Thou shalt not”.
I felt very comfortable hearing all those pretty songs and felt good about myself after listening to every message that the Pastor taught. The church offered services that were convenient to my schedule, and I felt comfortable with my once a week acknowledgment of a higher power.
I was happy with my faith, and my life seemed to go along nicely. I got to act the way I wanted during the week, then felt the presence of God in my life each Sunday.
Life was good.
I'm sure that we have all seen people and churches like this. The churches usually have packed parking lots every week and the Pastors are quite charismatic and likable. All the congregants smile as they leave the coffee counter, Bibles tucked firmly under their arms, wishing everybody a good week as they get in their cars and drive home and away from God.
There is nothing here that requires any effort. It is quite a convenient and comfortable religion. But we know that following Jesus is a lifestyle and not a Sunday-only convenience. Being a “disciple” calls for giving up our lives for Him. It’s about living as Jesus calls us to live, daily giving up our plans and purposes for His. A relationship with Him causes us to be concerned with our thoughts, decisions, attitudes, and actions, all to make our life joy-filled for us and pleasing to God.
It ain't easy I tell ya, but the change in your life is worth every bit of it.
I guess that thats about all I have to say on the subject. I hope you are able to apply the scripture to your life.
I was happy with my faith, and my life seemed to go along nicely. I got to act the way I wanted during the week, then felt the presence of God in my life each Sunday.
Life was good.
I'm sure that we have all seen people and churches like this. The churches usually have packed parking lots every week and the Pastors are quite charismatic and likable. All the congregants smile as they leave the coffee counter, Bibles tucked firmly under their arms, wishing everybody a good week as they get in their cars and drive home and away from God.
There is nothing here that requires any effort. It is quite a convenient and comfortable religion. But we know that following Jesus is a lifestyle and not a Sunday-only convenience. Being a “disciple” calls for giving up our lives for Him. It’s about living as Jesus calls us to live, daily giving up our plans and purposes for His. A relationship with Him causes us to be concerned with our thoughts, decisions, attitudes, and actions, all to make our life joy-filled for us and pleasing to God.
It ain't easy I tell ya, but the change in your life is worth every bit of it.
I guess that thats about all I have to say on the subject. I hope you are able to apply the scripture to your life.
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