Throughout the pages of the New Testament we are reminded that the followers of Jesus Christ referred to him as their Lord. All of the writers of the early church called him Lord. We are informed (or warned) that there will come a time when everyone will call him Lord. We read in Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
It seems that if we claim to be Christian it means that we are claiming that Jesus Christ is Lord. That claim can be a vague, other worldly claim or it can be a very personal proclamation of faith and lifestyle. I do believe that it is easier to proclaim Jesus Lord of West Lafayette, Indiana, than it is to proclaim him Lord of my life. For Jesus to be Lord of West Lafayette, nothing much has to change in my life and in how I choose to live my life. But if I proclaim him Lord of my life, it seems rather obvious that such a claim should have a dynamic effect on every aspect of my life.
That brings me to a question I would like to place before you for your consideration. This is a question that I have thought about off and on for many years. For me, the question speaks to the heart of what it really means to be a Christian. I would like to simplify the concept in order to come to a meaningful understanding of being Christian. As I hang around churches and Christian thinkers I am always amazed that their goal seems to be is to complicate Christianity to the point we can’t define it, we can’t understand it and thus we certainly cannot live it. I will admit that I am fascinated by many of the religious discussions but will also admit the when the discussion ends I usually think, “That was interesting but who really gives a crap?”
We North America Christians struggle with a meaningful understanding of Christianity for many reasons. One of our greatest challenges to truly understanding Christianity comes because we are, at our heart of hearts, consumers. If something or someone cannot serve us, cannot make life more comfortable for us, cannot plump up our lifestyle, cannot expand our power and influence, does not gain us anything, does not meet our needs and the needs of our family, we have a hard time believing such a thing has a place in our lives. When it comes to church, we are the ultimate consumers. We even say, when looking for a church to attend, that we are church shopping.
On one end of the consumer Christian spectrum we find the “Prosperity Gospel” preachers who tell the excited masses that being a Christian is all about God meeting your needs, making you happy and helping you prosper. When Jesus said, “I have come that you might have life and have it abundantly,” he obviously meant that he wanted us to drive nice cars, live in houses with twice the floor space we need, be able to buy that boat we want, and if you are really tapped into the source, you will have a vacation home and a not particularly demanding but well paying job that you really like. Judging from the size of the mega churches that preach the prosperity gospel, it works. At least it seems that the prosperity preachers are prospering. This consumer Christianity is quite popular for obvious reasons. Even a cursory reading of the New Testament debunks this Americanized theology. But who reads that stuff and if one reads it, does anyone really take it seriously?
In other churches the consumer mentality is much more subtle. When “church shopping” we make it clear that we are looking for a church that has something for our kids, something for women, a men’s group, a singles ministry, a sports program, and fellowship groups. We want a church where we will feel accepted and will feel no pressure to change our lifestyle. Don’t be preaching and saying horribly intolerant things like I am a sinner and that some of the things I am doing are contrary to God’s calling and Word. I don’t want to change; I just want to feel good. I want to be inspired and soothed - I don’t want to be challenged and changed. Even though Jesus clearly taught the opposite, we want a church that says that the family is the most important thing in the world; family comes first. Mired in the slush of our semi Christian thinking, we honestly believe that my God will understand that He is important but my child’s participation in sports is more important; that I work hard and so weekend get-a-ways are more important than gathering to worship God and that I want to be a Christian but I don’t want to go overboard about this religious stuff and allow it to impact my thinking or my lifestyle.
Since we struggle so with what it really means to be a Christian, let’s simplify it. If you want to call it “dumbed down” I can live with that. We of the church, who kind of "get it" (Do any of us really get it?) realize that Christianity is not a religion that exists to meet our needs and make us fat and happy. It is not a religion of rules to be followed to get God to like us enough to let us into His heaven. It is not a club to be joined for social status and community acceptability. It is not a feel good society that is designed to make life easier to deal with. It is not a way to put God’s stamp of approval on the way we have chosen to live. Christianity is agreeing with Jesus' claim that He is Lord of all and inviting Him to be the Lord of my life. It is about selling out to God and giving over the lordship (control or say-so) of my life to Him.
Here is my question. If you claim to be a Christian and Jesus Christ is Lord of your life, what does that mean? How does His lordship impact your daily life - what you will and won't do for a living - how you spend your free time - what you do with your money - who and what you invest in? If Jesus is your Lord, how does your life look different from the people you know who do not claim to have made Jesus Lord of their lives? And, if your life isn't all that different than someone who is not interested in following Christ, why is it not? On the other hand, do you even think your life should be different because of your faith commitment?
This is not a rhetorical question. I am really interested in what you think.
5 comments:
these are great questions that should be reflected on throughout our lives. we live in a world of rights, privelege, entitlement, and "i deserve..." but the last time i checked, "dead men don't have rights". We are children of hope and promise and every area of our life that we have given over to Christ's Lordship will reflect that. this might look differently in each of us, but His Lordship will discernably separate us from others. If the things we do and the impact we have can be duplicated by those who Christ is not Lord. then what does His Lordship have to do with it. I am reminded of a Pastor who commented that the world applauded the works of feeding the poor and helping the homeless, but questioned them when someone was healed of cancer or a bone grew back. Our difference from the world may not always be as dramatic, but if the world can't tell, can God?
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