What Is My Passion?

I just finished watching Francis Chan preach at the Passion 2011 conference in Atlanta. It was one of the most challenging messages that I have heard in a long time. The question I came away with: What is my passion?

Chan shared some of his experiences of travelling overseas to meet with persecuted believers. What was most interesting about his experience is that when he would ask the church about their experiences, they would look at him confused. Many of them simply figured that every believer in the world experienced persecution because Jesus said that it would happen. The question that he asked that I found most interesting came while he was talking to a pastor from one of these countries. He said, "Don't you have people here who call themselves Christians?" The pastor replied, "Why would anyone do that? To call yourself a Christian means that you could die!"

The consumer mentality that has hit the American church is devastating. Persecuted believers around the world don't understand how people get to "choose" the church they attend and can "change" churches whenever they feel their needs are not being met. It's literally a laughable concept to them because they don't get to choose, they don't get to change, and they aren't looking for their "needs" to be met. Let me ask you a question: Do you think Christianity in America would be drastically different if we didn't have so many choices?

I'm not bemoaning the fact that we are a free country. I love our freedom! I'm not criticizing America for having many churches. What I am trying to point out is that because we are like this we have lost the understanding of what the body of Christ is all about. The early church wasn't trying to find the place that met all of their expectations. The early church was looking for a group of believers that would allow them to fellowship, worship, grow, and become the force in the earth that is the kingdom of God.

The consumer mentality that I mentioned about gives us the idea that we can shop around. We can look for a place that has the music we are looking for, the type of preaching/teaching that we like, or style of service that best suits us. This mentality has also caused a lot of conflict in the body. When things begin to change within a particular church, some of the members will stand against it. The concept is often built around a conviction but the attitude is often "this isn't what I paid for!".

Ask yourself this question: Does my life reflect what I say I believe?
Think about it...
I'm not trying to bring conviction or condemnation to you. I simply want you to look at your own attitude and thought life as it pertains to the body of Christ. Am I willing to hear from the other members of the body? Am I able to worship with the different styles of music? Does what I believe about Jesus change the way I treat the people around me? Do I share the Gospel with the lost? We can go on and on but I think you get the point. What we believe should make a difference in how we live. This isn't legalism - it's truth manifested in our lives!

Can an eye say to the hand "because you are not an eye then you don't belong to the body?" According to Scripture...NO! In the same way, ears would not lift themselves up above the mouth, etc., etc. This is the beauty of God's design in the church. Different offices, different talents, different giftings all coming together with one purpose: Edifying the body of Christ for the purpose of sending people out into the fields that are white with harvest.

Will we be the generation of believers that do more than sing the songs and attend the services? Will we be the generation that makes it all about Jesus? If (and when) we do, it will change everything. Our lives become a symphony of God's goodness in the world. Our churches become the force that the gates of hell will not be able to withstand. Our marriages will become sanctuaries where the God who created us will be honored. Every part of life will be affected...everything will change.

Take some time today to thank God for the fellowship of believers that surrounds you. Give glory to God that you can even call yourself a believer. Begin to ask the questions that I asked about and then allow the grace of God to align you with His Word. And while we are at it, let's stop looking at what the church can do for us and see what we can be doing with the church. It's time for a change. Let's make it happen!