Let Go and Let God

Let Go and Let God

There has been something that has been heavy on my heart for the last several years. I have been in active ministry for about 27 years, and I have noticed the pulse of the church getting weaker and weaker.

Please do not take this that I am against the church (I have been accused of this before). I love the church, serve the church, and God has entrusted me with a wonderful local church. The church is the bride of Christ who He makes clear He is coming back for.

I will even go so far as to say that if you don’t love the church, you cannot possibly love Jesus.

Charles Spurgeon has even said the church is “the dearest place on Earth.” I have said for many years that God’s plan for the church is perfect, but His people are not.

So I hope you understand that in no way am I against the church, and that I have a heart that is broken and in need of repair — or better yet, a complete heart transplant. I will serve the church, love it, and lay my life down for it.

So you say, what’s the big deal? What’s the problem?

As I read and study the book of Acts, I see a church that gave everything for others. I see a church that not only increased, but the Scriptures said that it multiplied after it understood the calling and was activated. Today, I see a church that is afraid to share what Christ has done for them; I see fear creep in at the thought of sharing the good news of Jesus Christ; I see a church that tries to sell a product.

I have been teaching a Sunday school class recently called “How to Share your Faith.” I was looking on the Web for a resource when I ran across the most popular iPhone app for sharing your faith. This app had two scriptures and a cute little diagram showing a few truths about the separation of us and God, but never mentioned the words “sin” or “repentance.”

As a Christian counselor, I have more and more people who, when we hit on the topic of sin and strongholds, do not realize that repentance is a daily part of a Christ Follower’s life. The statement I am told is, “I do not need to repent. Jesus did the work on the cross.” Wow, pretty scary if you ask me!

In the United States, I have seen the church get fat and sassy. I love this quote from Pastor David Platt, “We are settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves.”

Before you get into an uproar, I am going to ask you a few questions and I’m asking you to examine yourself, because this really is between you and God. Why do you go to church? Is your connection with God just once a week? And are you a consumer or a servant?

For some time now, I have incorporated a sound bite into my morning prayer and meditation time. It’s called “God is Better” by Francis Chan.

This 3:34-minute clip has changed my life, has alarmed me and has shaken me. You see, I am human, and my flesh doesn’t want anything that goes against it.

In the clip, Francis Chan reads out of Jeremiah chapter 2, so let’s see what it says.

Jeremiah 2:2-9: ” ‘I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness, through a land not sown. Israel was holy to the Lord, the firstfruits of his harvest; all who devoured her were held guilty, and disaster overtook them,’ declares the Lord. Hear the word of the Lord, you descendants of Jacob, all you clans of Israel. This is what the Lord says: ‘What fault did your ancestors find in me, that they strayed so far from me? They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves. They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord, who brought us up out of Egypt and led us through the barren wilderness, through a land of deserts and ravines, a land of drought and utter darkness, a land where no one travels and no one lives?’ I brought you into a fertile land to eat its fruit and rich produce. But you came and defiled my land and made my inheritance detestable. The priests did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord?’ Those who deal with the law did not know me; the leaders rebelled against me. The prophets prophesied by Baal, following worthless idols. ‘Therefore I bring charges against you again,’ declares the Lord. ‘And I will bring charges against your children’s children.’ ”

Can you see it? God is talking to His people. God is talking to America and to its church. He’s talking to me and you!

How many people do you know that have left a church? This is the sassy part — they leave because the band was horrible or the pastor’s message was just too long. How about some of these things I have been told throughout my ministry career: It’s too hot; it’s too cold; the seats are too hard; if you’re going to bus in kids that swear, I’m leaving; my kids are not entertained; I don’t like so and so. What foolishness.

The only reasons I see in the Scripture for someone to leave a church is when the truth is being compromised, or a leader is in sin and won’t step down or receive correction.

Is church supposed to be about entertainment, about our needs being met? I thought it was to be like Jesus and serve — not be served. Am I seeing this wrong? And I believe it’s safe to say that we should be driven to be like Christ since His DNA runs through our veins.

Let’s talk about the fat in the church (and I didn’t mean “phat” with a “p”). In the church in Scriptures, I see a church who held on to nothing, who understood that everything they had was from God, and Him alone. As Americans, we have been born with rights that our forefathers fought for, and the brave women and men of our armed forces preserve today through sacrifice and blood. Those rights, or most of them, are being taken away slowly.

We need to remember that this was because of the blessing of God on our country. I see us as a nation and a church in Jeremiah 2:2-9.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, I beg of you to start thinking eternally — this is not our home. What God has for us is so much better. Stop worrying about tomorrow and live in Christ for today. Stop storing up treasure where moths and rust will just eat them away. We must think eternally.

Just like most people, I don’t like where our country is headed, but I must remember how this can be changed. Jesus gave us the answer with the last words He spoke on this Earth: “Go and make disciples.”

I will end this blog with a quote, then go refocus on Jesus and examine myself.

“Radical obedience to Christ is not easy. … It’s not comfort, not health, not wealth, and not prosperity in this world. Radical obedience to Christ risks losing all these things. But in the end, such risk finds its reward in Christ. And He is more than enough for us,” David Platt in “Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream.”

Running with you, Pastor Dave (Hebrews 12:1)