I've been thinking more lately. I've got two things:
1) Faith and works. A real and genuine Christian faith will result in acts of love and charity. It will make you care about others more than yourself. But these things will not be motivated by obligation or guilt. It will be a natural response to Christ's love. If a person's faith doesn't result in these things, then I would say that their faith is dead and I'm not convinced it's a saving faith. Yes I said that.
If this is the case, then a lot of people who think they're saved probably aren't. Jesus said that the gate to life is narrow and few find it (Matthew 7:13-14), and also that anyone who wants to find their life must lose it for his sake (Matthew 10:39 and 16:25). It's heavy stuff, worth giving a lot of thought to.
2) Rihanna's song "Rude Boy." Here are some of the lyrics:
Come here, rude boy, can you get it up?
Come here rude boy, is your big enough?
Take it, take it baby, baby
Take it, take it; love me, love me
Tonight I'ma let you be the captain
Tonight I'ma let you do your thing, yeah
Tonight I'ma let you be a rider
Giddy-up, giddy-up, giddy-up babe
Tonight I'ma let it be fire
Tonight I'ma let you take me higher
Tonight, baby, we could get it on, yeah
This song breaks my heart to be honest. Seems to me that the whole thing is a masked cry for love, and Rihanna feels like the only way to get it is to give her body away. I feel like it's a reflection of how Godless our society has gotten. Is sex the only thing guys care about? Is sex the only way women feel that they can get love? It's angering. The world has never been in more need of Christians who take their faith seriously and who will love people without an agenda no matter what the cost.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
There's a saying that says "familiarity breeds contempt." It's true.
It can be especially true of Christians. Trust me, I've been there. Playing the whole church every Sunday, youth group and worship band, Wednesday night small group, summer camps, fall conferences, spring conferences, winter retreats. In college, going to church on Sunday morning, Breakaway on Tuesday, and homegroup on Thursday.
What I'm saying is that it is very easy to inundate yourself with Christian "stuff." None of it is bad, in fact it is all very positive. But when you over-involve yourself in Christian "stuff," it is very easy to get comfortable and substitute all the "stuff" for a real relationship. Remember, familiarity breeds contempt. I realize that becoming too familiar with Christian stuff may not lead to true contempt, but it can certainly lead to complacence, because it makes you feel like you're doing all the right stuff. It's as if church and all the other Christian stuff you do become the "crutches" of your faith. If those things were taken away, your faith would fail.
All of this makes me wonder if Satan's greatest scheme is convincing Christians that they must attend every Christian event that comes up. It would be brilliant on his part. Think about it.
If Satan can keep Christians at all of the nice events, if he can convince Christians that the more teaching they hear, the better (which is not true because too much teaching leads to being overwhelmed), if he can keep Christians from digging into the Scriptures themselves and only listening to speakers, if he can create a false sense of "doing the right Christian thing (i.e. attending all Christian events)," if he can keep the Christians only in their nice, safe Christian sphere, then not only is he keeping Christians from loving those who need love and sharing Christ with those who need it, he also is making Christians think that they are doing the right thing.
Please understand that I'm not trying to rag on Christian ministries. My point is that these ministries should only be a supplement to your faith and that you yourself should be the one pursuing God.
My advice is that if you read something good in the Bible, or come across a great speaker, allow yourself some time to chew on it and let it impact your life. Don't inundate yourself with teaching and overload your system. The Christian life is a journey, and trying to get to the end too fast will only slow you down.
It can be especially true of Christians. Trust me, I've been there. Playing the whole church every Sunday, youth group and worship band, Wednesday night small group, summer camps, fall conferences, spring conferences, winter retreats. In college, going to church on Sunday morning, Breakaway on Tuesday, and homegroup on Thursday.
What I'm saying is that it is very easy to inundate yourself with Christian "stuff." None of it is bad, in fact it is all very positive. But when you over-involve yourself in Christian "stuff," it is very easy to get comfortable and substitute all the "stuff" for a real relationship. Remember, familiarity breeds contempt. I realize that becoming too familiar with Christian stuff may not lead to true contempt, but it can certainly lead to complacence, because it makes you feel like you're doing all the right stuff. It's as if church and all the other Christian stuff you do become the "crutches" of your faith. If those things were taken away, your faith would fail.
All of this makes me wonder if Satan's greatest scheme is convincing Christians that they must attend every Christian event that comes up. It would be brilliant on his part. Think about it.
If Satan can keep Christians at all of the nice events, if he can convince Christians that the more teaching they hear, the better (which is not true because too much teaching leads to being overwhelmed), if he can keep Christians from digging into the Scriptures themselves and only listening to speakers, if he can create a false sense of "doing the right Christian thing (i.e. attending all Christian events)," if he can keep the Christians only in their nice, safe Christian sphere, then not only is he keeping Christians from loving those who need love and sharing Christ with those who need it, he also is making Christians think that they are doing the right thing.
Please understand that I'm not trying to rag on Christian ministries. My point is that these ministries should only be a supplement to your faith and that you yourself should be the one pursuing God.
My advice is that if you read something good in the Bible, or come across a great speaker, allow yourself some time to chew on it and let it impact your life. Don't inundate yourself with teaching and overload your system. The Christian life is a journey, and trying to get to the end too fast will only slow you down.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
There's this TV show called South Park. I know you've heard of it and have probably watched it at some point. I wasn't allowed to watch it as a kid, which was probably for the best.
But I recently started watching it, and while I don't appreciate the show's vulgarity, I have to admit that it is hilarious at times and the writers make some very good points. Points that more family-friendly shows would be too scared to make.
I'm not saying everyone should watch it. Many would be turned off by it. But many of the points that are made by the show reveal the true nature of things: that they are messed up. It's angering. Possibly angering enough to inspire action.
But I recently started watching it, and while I don't appreciate the show's vulgarity, I have to admit that it is hilarious at times and the writers make some very good points. Points that more family-friendly shows would be too scared to make.
I'm not saying everyone should watch it. Many would be turned off by it. But many of the points that are made by the show reveal the true nature of things: that they are messed up. It's angering. Possibly angering enough to inspire action.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Lately I've been wondering what it is exactly that defines Christian maturity. Here's what I feel like the church at large believes:
1) Christians should be super nice, and smile a lot.
2) Mature believers have a daily quiet time. Every day.
3) Christians don't drink, smoke, or swear. Ever.
4) It is enough to support a missionary monetarily and not do anything else mission-related. After all, mission work is for the super-Christians.
Fortunately, I do believe that many Christians - in particular the younger generation - are recognizing this mistake and thinking that there must be more to it than that. Believe me, there is. In fact, I think these 4 general things miss the point completely.
The point of Christian maturity is a heart change, not a few guidelines or rules. If I see someone actively loving and serving people in response to Christ's love, they're a solid believer in my book. I could care less if they read their Bible once a month or less.
The Bible says you will know them by their fruit. So what if they have a drink or a smoke? Do others - particularly non-believers - feel safe and comfortable around them? Like they can relax and be themselves? Like they're not being judged? Like they're being loved without an agenda?
If yes, then congratulations. You get it. Christian maturity is hard though, because it requires active and intentional effort.
I'm not by any means perfect at this. Yet. I'm getting there though. The desire is there, which is a start. I'm looking for the opportunity now.
By the way, here's some good new music I heard about from a friend.
Check it out!
Sleep Whale - Josh Likes Me
1) Christians should be super nice, and smile a lot.
2) Mature believers have a daily quiet time. Every day.
3) Christians don't drink, smoke, or swear. Ever.
4) It is enough to support a missionary monetarily and not do anything else mission-related. After all, mission work is for the super-Christians.
Fortunately, I do believe that many Christians - in particular the younger generation - are recognizing this mistake and thinking that there must be more to it than that. Believe me, there is. In fact, I think these 4 general things miss the point completely.
The point of Christian maturity is a heart change, not a few guidelines or rules. If I see someone actively loving and serving people in response to Christ's love, they're a solid believer in my book. I could care less if they read their Bible once a month or less.
The Bible says you will know them by their fruit. So what if they have a drink or a smoke? Do others - particularly non-believers - feel safe and comfortable around them? Like they can relax and be themselves? Like they're not being judged? Like they're being loved without an agenda?
If yes, then congratulations. You get it. Christian maturity is hard though, because it requires active and intentional effort.
I'm not by any means perfect at this. Yet. I'm getting there though. The desire is there, which is a start. I'm looking for the opportunity now.
By the way, here's some good new music I heard about from a friend.
Check it out!
Sleep Whale - Josh Likes Me
Howdy everyone, this is my first official blog post. I think it'll be fun to start blogging. In the meantime, I like music, rock climbing, and anything that involves being laid back. But I also like cliff jumping, and snowboarding. And white water rafting. I was all about skate parks back in the day. Adrenaline rush, you know?
I'm a sophomore Biomedical Engineering student at Texas A&M University.
More to come.
I'm a sophomore Biomedical Engineering student at Texas A&M University.
More to come.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
