.spiritual complacency.

A few weeks ago, my pastor, Pastor Keith Cowart of Christ Community Church, began a study of 1 Corinthians and has been leading the body through an understanding of who God is and what Paul was trying to convey within this particular book. Last week, we learned that the cross itself was a symbol of sin and condemnation to the Jews that witnessed Christ's life and ultimate death. Pastor Keith made it clear that the Jews considered it an abomination to worship anyone who was crucified on the cross and equated it to Americans today worshiping someone who was killed in the electric chair--it was a joke and completely unheard of during that time. To the Greeks, Jesus' crucifixion was also a joke because they decided to make gods of themselves (thus, Greek mythology) and worshiped mere humans that displayed ideal qualities their cultured idealized. For the rest of us (today), the cross is a symbol of love, sacrifice, and renewal. I personally feel convicted to remind myself that the whole purpose of last week's message was to awaken us to the very core of who Jesus is and what He did for us. Without the bloody sacrifice, we would not have life and life abundantly. Without the death of the Son, we could not love.

This week, Keith really pushed me to challenge myself as a Christian and decide what about myself made me different from non-Christians. He made a wonderful point when he stated that the morale of Christians and non-Christians are not greatly different. What impression are we leaving as Christians on those who don't believe? How are we living that makes non-believers say "I HAVE to have what they have." It is NOT enough for us to simply be nice people. It is not enough to simply open doors for people, smile at those who pass us, or even give to those who need. In my own personal experiences, my non-Christian friends do all of those things. My non-Christian friends are wonderful people who love me for who I am (sometimes, even more than those who are believers) and go out of their way to make sure I am okay and happy. So what is it that God is calling us to do?  Of course, the answer to that question is very dependent upon each of us who are convicted, but I pray that we would all decide and discover what it is we must do in order to further the kingdom of God and transform those who aren't following the Word of God into people who are head over heels in love with the God that sacrificed His son for the sake of all mankind.

Keith also enlightened me about who Paul was. As the founding minister of the Corinthian church, Paul was an educated man. He attended a university within Tarsus and proved himself to be an intelligent, humble, yet timid man. 2 Corinthians 10:10 tells us that Paul was not a confident man. His speech is described as unimpressive and that his speaking amounts to nothing. And 2 Corinthians 12:7-8 tells us that Paul may have had a physical ailment, and this may be why the Corinthians didn't take Paul seriously. He describes this ailment as a thorn that he begged God to take away. However, Paul quickly realizes that God implanted this "thorn" in order to "keep [him] from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations." If Paul was perfect (physically), he would have been conceited and self-absorbed and would have missed the revelations God was revealing to him. Knowing this, we can learn that all that God does is IN HIS PLAN. Because in verse 9 of the same chapter, we read that God responded to Paul by telling him "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." God does not refuse grace for any of us, and it is within our weaknesses that God can perform perfect miracles and display His power. In verse 10, Paul rejoices and says "That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." What a strong statement! Paul understands here that all that we are and all that we endure is simply a part of what God has for us. Rather than feeling pity or self-loathing about what thorns may be in our lives (whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually), we should rejoice in the fact that God is doing His great work and know that while we are weak, He is strong. When we are at our least, God can do the most work. I pray for myself and for those reading this that God would enlighten us to understand His love and know for a fact that He has no plans to abandon us--He will never withhold mercy and grace. I pray that we would all rejoice in times of pain and know, without a doubt, that although it is raining, so is God's mercy.

Along the same lines, I want to make a confession. I confess that often times, I do what I do in order to bring glory to myself and not to God. I am a very proud person. I am proud to have graduated college and work for my money and have the relationships I have. And in turn, I like talking about those things in relation to myself and how they make me feel. But I need to stop and realize WHY I have all of those things. It is only because of Christ Jesus that I was able to have the opportunity to do these things. So, this is yet another conviction I experienced today and is something I want to focus on as a follower. This is a lesson that I'm learning based on the written words of Paul. He stated in 1 Corinthians 1:17 that God sent him to preach the gospel but not with words of human wisdom because if it were based on human wisdom, the cross of Christ would be emptied of its power. This teaches us that God expects us to put our faith in His power and not in human wisdom. For all humans will fail us, but God is the only one who will prevail throughout the storms of life.

In closing, I want to pray that God will enlighten us all. Because at some point, we all reach (or have reached) a place of spiritual complacency. I definitely will admit that I've been there recently but am refusing to be there any longer. As humans of habit, we don't like change. But sometimes, change is exactly what we need. We need to change our patterns of thinking, our motivation, and our reason for living. What does the cross mean for you? What is it you're doing to enlighten non-believers to the life they're missing out on? In the midst of hardships, who are you turning to? Are you allowing your life to bring glory to God or to yourself? Who are you putting your faith in--human wisdom or the promise of the Almighty?

As Keith stated today, God not only wants to be at the top of our "to do" list, He wants to be the Lord of everything else that's on that list. He is, after all, the source of our identity, our strength, and our wisdom. He is ALL we need.