Question - Why are most Christians here in the United States not radically different than the many believers in other countries who are literally being imprisoned, tortured or dying because they are willing to stand up and stand out for their faith? Answer - because churches here are spending so little time helping new believers truly "get it". They are often in too big of a hurry making sure the new believer fits into their culture than helping them really fall deeply in love with God. Most mature believers have become saturated with the world and fitting into a bland form of religion. The church in the U.S. has for the longest time been far more interested in how many members or attenders they have, how many programs they provide, who has the nicest facilities, children's programs, student ministries and worship experience instead of walking a new believer by the hand to the point where transformation is taking place and knowing and living out scripture is an obvious part of their DNA. Is what churches are teaching/modeling about following God really making a difference? I don't think so, look around you and see the results of what I call the "Have to" principle and has almost always trumped the "Want to" principle. What I mean by this is we spend so little time helping new followers fall so deeply in love with God that they want to spend time with Him, reading His words, memorizing and meditating on it. Worship is alive and authentic, giving time, money and gifts are want to and not have to, and true community is something those where those on the outside looking in desperately want for themselves. Instead we communicate verbally and non-verbally that going to church services, being in a Life Group, serving and giving are the deal. THEY ARE NOT THE DEAL, but they can be a result of the true deal!
It took Jesus 3 years with 12 guys and honestly they did not get it until Jesus left and sent the Holy Spirit for them to be different. If 3 years of daily time with Jesus wasn't quite enough back then, how can we presume to think a 4 week Sermon Series on transformation, and then herding them into a Life/Small Group will do the trick?
Spending time helping believers get it requires first and foremost helping them have "right thinking" about God and authentic Biblical thinking. Often times this means "un-doing" a lot of false truth, misconceptions and have to's. This process cannot be hurried!!! How can it be? If George Gallup and George Barna are correct regarding how many people here in the States claim to be Born Again Christians and not just Protestant's than why hasn't this world and country become something other that what it is...A MESS? I declare that we must take time to help new followers get how much God loves them, all that He has done for them and all that they are in Him. If they get this, the overflow of the hearts and their minds will become transformational in how they live. Look at Acts chapter 2 and what you will find is a radically different church than what we see in 99% of churches today. People cannot be transformed through a single service or program, how many followers have been taught the great commission found in Matthew 28? I know many can recite this verse, but seriously when we are commanded to "teach everything that Jesus was and did" how many Christians know what this is? Instead we have a Biblically illiterate society, I have witnessed this everywhere I go to speak or worship. It's not because churches are not providing classes and programs, for I think it's being provided, it's just that we do not have disciplers or mentors (whatever you want to call them) taking the time to walk alongside a new follower until he or she gets it. We cannot pass go and collect $25 here, this part is critical.
Jesus taught the Seed Principle found in the Gospels (Matthew 13/Luke 8) when He told the story about 4 kinds of seeds. Only 1 in 4 produced fruit. I don't know about you but that is a horrible statistic!! I am going to begin praying and fasting for a transformational movement where all we do is help people "get it" before we ask them to go public about it, where we really walk alongside new followers while they fall in love with God, and not the do's and don't of religion and church, but a radical way of seeing God for who He really is, what He has really done and who we are in Him. Who will join me, or lead me to whom can I join to see this into reality? I know it starts with prayer as it must come first and foremost through faith in God. Believe me, God wants this, grieves over it not being here already and wants us who are secure in our faith to pass this onto others! May God ignite a new Christianity here in the States that overflows out of hearts that are fully in love with Him.
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