I must admit that I tire of hearing about all the "personal"experiences in the church. Please don't misunderstand me. I love the Lord's church! As I have travelled about, there is this theme, this deepening sense of "all about us!" I have said it before and so forgive me for repeating, but the blogs, books, seminars and retreats that revolve around our need to experience God more intimately so we can be more emotionally and spiritually charged is not healthy spiritually.
I know some will read this and defend in various ways what they believe in, thinking I am off base and I respect their thoughts. But what I want us to see is when we make our relationship with the Lord all about us individually, our experiences and expressions personally, the church of our Lord becomes a place of complaints and judgments. It leads to statements like, "The church is stifles my growth and visions of Jesus Christ!" Or you will hear others say, "We are just dead and it's sucking the life out of me!" What is worse, when people start thinking like this, talking like this, they become somewhat blinded by their own personal thoughts and emotions while condemning what the Lord loves. With all this "personal devotion" attitude comes a lack of love and understanding what really is spiritual and the Lord wants. What is really troublesome to my heart is these very ones who speak of being "tapped out" spiritually by the church or the deadness of the people, they come up with the idea to walk away from the church, find their own freedom through who knows what avenue or group and eventually they might make their way back around. I've watched this happen over the years. I suppose that the only way for some to find their spiritual high, their deepening their personal relationship is to forsake the Lord's community for a year (or several or maybe even forever) so they can find their personal, richly filled relationship with the Lord Jesus because the individual is what is important!
But what does the Lord say? What does the Lord feel about His body? I can understand that someone can feel that their assemblies are lacking and some need reawakening. Just read Revelation 3-4 and one can see that. What we seem to be missing is "body life!" We see ourselves as individuals rather than the body and Jesus the head. How do you think Jesus feels about His body when they are doing poorly? Does He just cut His loses and move on or does He go about trying to get those "uninterested" or "dead" to come to life? When we talk of our personal relationship with the Lord, we should be moving with His heart toward His people, not individualism. Jesus speaks to the strong to help the weak. Jesus speaks to those about to completely die, defiled and corrupted to turn their lives around while those undefiled are to hold to Him and help, not walk away. We are speaking of His body! The weak, the failing, the strong and He cares deeply for them. All this individual personal experience relationship with the Lord is killing the body as a whole. They are actually helping it die while thinking they are the ones really alive. If we are alive to the Lord, the Lord wants us to help. Read Romans 15:1-13 and you will see this! The Lord is trying to save His children, not walk away from them. We need elderships to major in what fills our hearts with faith. We need the leaders to build, holding to the head so that Christ may be all and in all. We are the body, Christ's body and He alone is the head. What's happening to the church?
2 comments:
Brent,
I must commend and applaud you for this posting. I believe we are often "soft" or "politically correct" when we address issues in the Church in order to not offending anyone. Yet, that very type of response is failing us and those we address. Again, I must say you have always been willing to address the issues at hand regardless of the type of response you receive back.
Your points are valid and so very easily defendable since they are based on God's word. I realize they will sting many and perhaps it should be so.
Our hearts should be troubled, as you mentioned, to witness what is happening to the Body, since we are a part of that very Body. Seldom are our concern with the Body of Christ, as they should be, and far to often they are on ourselves as individuals. Many believe we have elders and deacons to be concerned for us. We want them to address the issues we are either unable or unwilling to address. Each and everyone of us in the Body have a responsiblity to the Body regardless of whether we hold any kind of leadership position in the Body.
The personalization of our relationship to Christ is, in my opinion, a bleed over from the world we live in. Worldly principals and practices inch their way into our lives and we, perhaps unintentionally, bring them into the Church. The World wants, and almost demands, individualism and the personal experience in ou lives. As with many things, this practice is accepted to the point of being "right with God" even though it's not and never could be.
As you mentioned, there is this push for a greater or more fulfilling relationship with Christ and God. I have to wonder, out loud at that, if it's due to a lack of knowing the Word of God. If we don't know what God expects how do we expect to know what kind of relationship we should have? I'm going to take that one step further too. It is not my relationship with God, but rather God's relationship with me. Yes, there is far to much of the pushing of me, me, me in order to properly understand what God expects of us.
Complaints and judgements is a very good way to put it. The Church is Christ, as you know, so I don't follow the reasoning as to those that make these kind of comments you mentioned. Every, an I mean every, gathering of the Body is a refreshing, uplifting, and strengthing event for me and always has been. If it's not to those you mentioned, perhaps they should look at themselves first instead of laying fault on the Church. Perhaps they need to remember why they are there in the first place too.
While tempted to ramble on, I shall refain since your posting says what I would write anyway. I will bring up one final thought. I can not speak for anyone else other than myself when making this point either. What are those that want this "personal experience" missing? Do they not see God in everything around us and everything we have? By that I mean we should open our eyes and our hearts to realize we live in God now and everything, from the air we breath to our very souls, are supplied by God. Spending less time worried about me and my relationship and more time focused on the Cross will help lead to the understand that is needed.
We must always hold to the Truth. This is why postings such as this are needed and why we, as a part of the Body, should be willing to stop and examine our reasons for doing what we do and don't do in the Church.
Thank you,
Jim
Thank you for your insight...bottom line I believe is people do not know they are saved! They are still looking to be rather than knowing they are. The day one is baptized into Christ, they can be no more saved. They can grow into their salvation and need to but saved is saved....that's from the Lord!
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