That was Paul’s desire for himself, that he would finish well. But it was also his burden for his people. That’s why he was so concerned that he meet with the Ephesian elders in Acts 20, so he could have a few more moments with them, to prepare them for what they might face in the weeks and months and years and decades to come.
There are “savage wolves” even today that would challenge our faith, and tempt us to turn from the gospel. These come in many forms, but I am convinced that the most insidious and infectious and devastating of these in the American church is the temptation to believe that God desires for us primarily to have a comfortable, easy, trouble-free, problem-free, pain-free life.
Freedom from fear, freedom from pain, freedom from inconvenience, freedom from want, freedom from boredom. These are the prized values of the society in which we live. These are the ultimate goals, the good life, the American dream. Advertising tells us this. Music tells us this. Television and movies certainly do. And what’s sad is that the church often has adopted a similar mentality.
“God wants to bless you.” And he does, but we often interpret those promises through the lens of material comfort, and physical security, and financial abundance. And so God, in many of our churches (and perhaps in many of our own minds), becomes a means to the end of an easy, comfortable, trouble-free life. And the Holy Spirit begins to seem something like a force, that if we could just tap into in the correct way, we could somehow bend God’s power toward our personal goals and ambitions.
Let me suggest to you that this is a lie. And it is killing the church, and it can kill your spiritual life.
I was telling a group of parents when I was a youth pastor, that there are several things that I worry about with regard to teenagers. For guys I worry about things like pornography and lust getting a hold in their lives. For girls I worry about body image and the dangerous ideas and self-doubt that this can cause. For both, I worry about drugs and alcohol. But the number one thing I worry about for Christian teens, the number one thing I think might cause them to cop out and be mediocre, pew-sitter, lackluster Christians (in other words, the thing I think most likely to take them out of the race Paul is running) is materialism and consumerism.
It’s all over the place. It’s difficult to escape. And when we spiritualize it, it gets even more dangerous. We start to think in terms of what we’re entitled to, what we’re owed. As if instead of Jesus dying for the forgiveness of sins, we think he died in order that we might grow our businesses, or so that we could put a pool in the backyard.
The lie that many of us in America are believing is that Jesus died in order to secure for us an easy life.
But the number one thing I worry about for Christian teens, the number one thing I think might cause them to cop out and be mediocre, pew-sitter, lackluster Christians (in other words, the thing I think most likely to take them out of the race Paul is running) is materialism and consumerism.
ReplyDeleteAmen. So why do our churches and the socio-political engagement of most evangelicals NOT reflect this?
I'm curious what reaction you got from these parents, but I'll tip my hand to say that I doubt they viewed this issue with the same urgency as the other "sins" and "struggles" that you listed.
Brantley - Mixed reactions from parents. A few, I think, really got it, but they were already living counterculturally to begin with. Best reactions from kids happened over time, but we did see some kids really start to form (what I hope become lifelong) patterns of simplicity and generosity.
ReplyDeleteYou should check out Skye Jethani's book "The Divine Commodity." Really strong analysis of the ways consumerism has affected the church. And, refreshingly, his prescription for change is individual church members returning to the old disciplines and means of grace.
Amen, Josh, amen.
ReplyDelete