following Jesus Archives - Page 7 of 14

Have you considered that Jesus may be leading you to leave the church as you know it so that you can be the church as it was meant to be?

Please don’t dismiss such an idea too quickly.

There are lots of people who leave the church today, and they often get criticized for abandoning God or disowning Jesus. But in my experience, I don’t find this at all. I find that people who “leave the church” have not given up on God or stopped following Jesus. Instead, many of them are simply learning to follow Jesus outside the four walls of a church building. They are seeking to be the church by following Jesus into the world.

So let me encourage you … if you find a rapidly growing unrest with church as it has always been done, this unrest may come from Jesus.

Millions of people today know that something is missing from their normal church experience, and they sense Jesus leading them to something more, but they don’t know what …

Some Christians think Jesus is leading them to leave the church they are in to start attending a different church down the street. More often than not, they get to this new church, and find that the internal unrest has followed them to the new building. So they start looking for a new church to attend, or think that maybe they misunderstood God’s leading.

Some Christians think Jesus is leading them to leave the church they are in so they can go on a mission’s trip to Africa. So they raise funds, pack bags, and spend $10,000 for a six-week trip to Africa. And while they might have a spiritual mountaintop experience while there, they find that the internal unrest followed them to the new continent, and is multiplied even more once they return.

Some Christians think Jesus is leading them to leave the church they are in so they can go to seminary and become a pastor or church leader. They have ideas for how the church could be different, better, more productive, and believe God wants to do new things in His church through their ministry. But in the process, they get saddled with a bunch of debt and end up leading a church which is almost identical to every other church in the country.

Some Christians think Jesus is leading them to leave the church they are in so they can follow “the New Testament pattern” and get involved in a home church or community collective. They long for that intimate setting where everybody has everything in common, where people get to share as the Spirit leads, and where there are no professional clergy, choirs, or classes. But they soon find that although the setting might be smaller, home churches are not that much different than regular churches.

Some Christians go through some (or all) of the experiences described above, and think that the unrest they feel is because church is simply a waste of time and energy, and so they leave the church … and Jesus too. They turn their back on all of it, saying that they tried the whole “church thing” and it wasn’t for them.

If you want Jesus to lead your life, I can pretty much guarantee you have gone through one or more of the experiences above. I have personally experienced all of the scenarios above, other than that last one.

So are these experiences wrong? Was that feeling of unrest not from Jesus after all, but from some self-centered desire to experience something new, do something adventuresome, or fulfill an unmet need?

I say no.

I firmly believe that when people feel that Jesus is calling them to leave the church they are in, they are rightly discerning what Jesus is saying through the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The problem, however, is that when people feel Jesus calling them to leave the church they are in, along with this leading, they want to know where Jesus is calling them to go. But very rarely does Jesus offer this direction. If Jesus says, “Leave” and we say, “Okay … but to where?” Jesus will answer with “Just leave.”

The mistake is when we try to fill in the blank ourselves and say, “Well, I can’t just leave the church. So I guess I’ll go to another church. Or go to Africa. Or attend seminary. Or start a house church.” But Jesus never led us to those places, and so after going to these places where He never led, we will soon have that feeling of unrest again, and we will wonder if we misunderstood or misheard Jesus.

You didn’t misunderstand or mishear. But now Jesus has to call you to leave the church all over again.

Do you want to know where Jesus is leading you? Jesus is leading you to leave the church “as you know it” so that He can guide you into being the church “as He wants it.”

The church Jesus wants has little to do with the things that are often identified as “church.” The church Jesus wants has little to do with fundraising, mission’s trips, attendance numbers, ministry programs, large-group events, personality cults, best-selling authors, TV and radio programs, stained-glass windows, padded pews, professional choirs, or regularly scheduled Bible studies.

Instead, the church Jesus wants has everything to do with personally loving our neighbors, hanging out with “sinners,” spending time with societal rejects, defending the cause of the weak, and a variety of other ways of living that look just like Jesus. But you will never learn to be the church Jesus wants until you take the step of faith to leave the church that you want.

Do you feel a growing unrest or dissatisfaction with the church? That’s not wrong. That’s Jesus calling you to leave the church. Will you follow?

P.S. Please note this: I am not telling you that Jesus is calling you to leave the church you are in. If you sense no such leading from Jesus, then stay put!

The Role of Faith and Works

By Jeremy Myers

22 Comments

Lots of Christians struggle with the role of faith and works in the life of the believer. Since there are a myriad of positions on this debate, it can become quite confusing to sort through the various views and determine which is right. During my life as a Christian, I have held almost all the various positions at one time or another, but in the last fifteen years or so have settled on a position which seems to make the most sense of most biblical passages surrounding this debate.

One reason I am sharing this now is because a reader submitted the following question:

I am new to the Christian religion. I thought that I was believing correctly and realized that a relationship with Christ is all about faith and not works. I’m not going to lie, I still have doubts about what I believe and am still learning. Every time I read something about Christianity and faith I get a new outlook on it, then I read something else about works, works, works, there is no faith without works and then I get discouraged and fearful.

I have tried to read books and internet to get some clarification of the bible, I think well this person would be good to learn from because they are so knowledgeable about the Bible and then they speak about faith and works and I get so confused all over again.

I came across your website by accident really and I’m hoping to learn more from it. Thanks.

Thank you for reading.

The question you have asked is one of the most fundamental questions that can be asked, and yet at the same time, a question which never seems to get answered.

As you have discovered, there are a thousand different ways people try to answer this question. Some say “faith alone.” Some say, “faith plus works.” Some say, “faith that leads to works.”

The Role of Faith and Works in the Life of the Christian

As I mentioned in the opening paragraph, I have a position on the role of faith and works which seems to make the most sense out of most of the troubling and difficult passages of Scripture.

Essentially, when it comes to the role of faith and works, it is critical to understand the important distinction between the free gift of eternal life to all who simply believe, and many of the other benefits of the Christian life which can be gained through following Jesus daily.

Not many recognize this distinction, which causes them to read passages about the cost of discipleship as if they were passages about how to receive eternal life. As you can imagine, this causes them to read the passage wrongly and apply it incorrectly.

Here is a little chart which begins to show some of the distinctions between the free gift of eternal life and the life of discipleship as a follower of Jesus.

Eternal Life	The Abundant Life
Free Gift	Prize
Received through faith alone	Received through faithful living
Once for all time	A daily practice
Instant justification	Life-long sanctification
Jesus paid the price	The Christian pays the price
Believe in Jesus for eternal life	Follow Jesus as Lord of your life

There are certainly other distinctions that could be made, but these are some of the basic ideas to get you started as you seek to understand the role of faith and works in the life of the believer.

So as you are reading the Bible and seeking to follow Jesus, remember these distinctions, and many of the tough texts will begin to make a lot more sense.

The Role of Faith and Works in the Bible

It is also helpful to understand that probably about 95% (or more) of the Bible is primarily concerned with the right-hand column of the chart above. When you read in the Bible about proclaiming Jesus as Lord, following Jesus, taking up your cross, eternal reward, inheriting the Kingdom, life in the Spirit, faithful living, and on and on and on, the author who wrote that text was primarily thinking of how we should live as followers of Jesus so that we can experience the life God meant for us to live.

Let me put it another way: Most biblical authors assume that their readers have already received eternal life by faith. Most biblical authors assume that their readers want to know how to obey God and follow Jesus better.

The Bible is primarily a book for discipleship. While there are many texts which tell readers how to receive eternal life by faith alone, the vast majority of the Bible is intended to encourage and inspire those who have received eternal life to live in light of the free gift they have already received.

There is a lot of confusion about the role of faith and works

As you have discovered, there is a lot of confusion among Bible teachers, pastors, seminary professors, and Christian authors about the role of faith and works in the life of the believer.

I have no desire to criticize these other teachers and writers, so let me encourage you to go ahead and read and learn from as many of them as you can. As long as you understand the basic distinction I have briefly laid out above, and recognize that most teachers and writers are going to be a little confused on this topic, you can benefit from what they teach and write by making the little mental adjustment in your mind to whatever they are saying.

So, for example, if your hear a pastor saying, “You have to take up your cross daily and follow Jesus in order to go to heaven when you die,” you can look in the text he is preaching from (maybe Matthew 16:24-26 or Luke 9:23-26), and see that Jesus is talking about saving your life (which is NOT the same thing as receiving eternal life) by living in a profitable way here on earth (cf. Luke 9:24-25). You will further see that Jesus is referring to receiving glory, honor, and recognition from Him when He returns (Luke 9:26). Again, this is not eternal life, but is the prize or the reward of living life for Jesus, which has benefits here and now and benefits for all eternity.

One of the key passages which is often debated regarding faith and works is James 2:14-26. I have written previously about James 2, dead faith, and the faith of demons so won’t write about this text here.

Obviously, a lot more could be said on this, and eventually I hope to write a lot more about this important topic. Hopefully this will be enough for now to steer you in the right direction on the role of faith and works in the life of the believer.

By the way, one book I highly recommend on this topic (though it rather expensive) is Joseph Dillow’s Final Destiny. An earlier version of this book was of immense help to me as I learned about the roles of faith and works in the life of the believer, and how to understand most of the tough texts in the Bible on this topic.

What Christians Say… and What Christians Mean

By Jeremy Myers

9 Comments

This is a guest post from Mike Donahoe, who runs the “Done with Religion” blog. Here is what he writes about his ministry:

Done with religion does not mean done with God, but done trying to please God by performance. We no longer submit to man’s rules and regulations, and we realize that the Church is the body of believers and not a place we go. Religion says do this, don’t do that and you will be a ‘good’ Christian. It tries to make us feel like successful Christians based on how well we perform and follow the rules. We want to take our eyes off following man made rules and gimmicks and focus entirely on Christ and living a life like His.

Along with this blog site above, you can connect with Mike on Facebook or Twitter.

If you would like to write a Guest Post for the Till He Comes Blog, begin by reading the Guest Blogger Guidelines.

So many times what we say and what we mean are two different things.

Church

Take for instance the word “church.” Most of us think of a building where Christians meet every Sunday for an organized, pre-planned service of music, prayer, and sermon by a paid pastor.

In reality, church is better described by the word ecclesia. It’s people. It is people who are following Christ and allowing Him to live and love through them.

Church isn’t a place, a building, or the house of God, and it isn’t at a set time or day.

Christian

Then there is the word “Christian.” We think of people who love God, go to church, pray, read their bible, and try to do the right things.

Actually, “Christian” is a man-made word that originally was used to describe those who followed the teaching of Jesus and were doing the works of Jesus. Today, rather than being the true sense of following Christ, it is more widely known as a religion. Christians are considered people who believe in Jesus, go to church, follow specific rules, adhere to a set doctrine, pray, read the bible and try to get more people to come to their church.

We think of Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindu and a host of other religions rather than a way of life walking with Jesus, which is what the word refers to.

Prayer

When we talk about prayer, we generally think of a pastor or godly person saying spiritual sounding words to God. Many times prayers are written out and followed word for word to make people sound more spiritual.

Actually prayer is just talking. Like you would talk to a friend or relative, prayer is talking to God. Not only talking, but being quiet and listening for God to speak to you.

Bible

What about the Bible? Of course, our first thought is a book that God inspired men to write. We think of the Word of God.

Yet if we look closer at John 1:1, we find that the Word is not a book at all. “In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God and the word was God.” So actually, the Word of God is Jesus. He is the inerrant, all powerful, living Word of God.

The Bible is a book that contains God-inspired words which show us the ways of men and the Way of God. It is in the Bible that we read about the Word of God — Jesus Christ, who Himself is the ultimate revelation of God.

Does that mean we don’t need to read the Bible? Of course not, we can learn a lot about God and ourselves by reading it. What we don’t want to do is make the Bible equal to God. The Bible is not part of the trinity; it is a book.

Worship

The word worship is generally thought of as a time during the service when people are lead into song and outward praise to God by a leader or group, paid to lead people this way. The style of worship also varies greatly from group to group. Many people think worship are songs, or lifting of hands, or dancing. A lot of people think of worship as a church service.

Yet worship is a true sense of reverence and adoring praise to our Father. It is personal and does not need a professional leader. It is a sincere and earnest thankfulness we have for God.

Jesus is the all in all. It doesn’t boil down to our doctrines, beliefs, and man-made efforts. It boils down to following Jesus, allowing Him to live in us and through us.

What Words Can You Add?

There are many other words we could be discussed, but the point is that it is not as important the word we use, but the true meaning.

What words do you find have confusing usage in some Christian circles? What words can we start using more clearly?

All Religions Are the Same

By Jeremy Myers

23 Comments

It’s true what they say: all religions are the same.

And make no mistake, I am including the Christian religion in with that. All religions are the same, including the Christian religion.

All Religions are the Same

All religions have at their core the idea that God is mad at the world and people have to do certain things to make God like them again. Usually, the good things that God wants us to do involve wearing silly hats, eating certain foods, and listening to some person talk for an hour before we give him money. This is true of any religion, whether Jewish, Muslim, Rastafarian, Santeria, Moorish Science Temple, Hindu, or… dare I say it? …Christian.

If you took away the hats, the robes, the names on the buildings, and some of the titles for “God” that different groups use, you would be hard pressed to tell the difference between most of the world religions, …including Christianity.

The objection to the claim that all religions are the same is that “Christianity isn’t a religion; it’s a relationship! It’s a way of life!”

Right.

Few Think They are Religious

But do you know that this is what almost every person of every religion says? Almost nobody of any “faith group” thinks they are in a religion. If you ask the average “religious” person if they are in a religion, no matter what “religion” they follow, almost all of them will say, “No, I am not not in a religion, I practice a way of life.”

Nevertheless, almost everybody is in a religion, including most Christians. Most people believe God is mad at them for something they did or said, and they are doing certain things to try to make God happy again. The core of religion is that we can somehow pleas or appease God by our own good behavior or beliefs. If you believe that, then you are part of a religion, even you bear the name “Christian.”

Of course, I do consider myself a “Christian” in the sense that I am a follower of Jesus. I just think there is a vast difference between what has come to be known as Christianity, and what Jesus actually intended.

And when it comes down to what Jesus intended his followers to be and do, and what the religions of the world do (including the religion of Christianity), there are a few major differences. There are things that sets Jesus and His followers distinctly apart from all religious groups in history, including those religious groups that bear the name “Christian.”

What Separates Jesus from All Religions?

So what sorts of things separate Jesus followers from all other religions in the world?

Well, I will tell you one thing that doesn’t separate us…. good works. You sometimes hear Christians say, “We are more generous, loving, kind, and forgiving.” That’s crap.

Sure, it’s true sometimes. But in my experience, some of the most forgiving, kind, and generous people I know are of some religion other than Christianity. Many of them are atheists.

You can always find another religious group that is behaves better than many Christians.

So, it seems to me that the main difference between Jesus and every man-made religion in the world (including the Christian religion) boils down to one word: grace. But not the watered down grace you hear preached from pulpits and described in books.

No, the one thing that separates what Jesus revealed to the world and what we see in all religious groups is one thing: indiscriminate, scandalous, shocking, outrageous, senseless, irrational, unfair, irreligious, ridiculous, absurd, offensive, infinite grace.

If you don’t hold to this kind of grace, it might be because you are part of a man-made religion, even if you call yourself “Christian.”

I am someone who came out of the Christian religion and now follows Jesus on the way of grace.

As a reader of this blog, you are probably similar. Together, we challenge some of the ideas and practices of Christianity. We raise questions about what Scripture really teaches, what God is really like, and what it means to be the church in the world today. We look for ways to reveal the scandalous grace of God to the world, raising questions about justice, righteousness, forgiveness, and love.

All religions are the same, which is partly why I am not part of any religion. I do follow Jesus, but try to do so in a religionless way. How about you?

God is like a Cosmic Cowboy

By Jeremy Myers

20 Comments

The following comes from an email that was sent in to me through the “Contact Me” form on the right sidebar. I asked the sender if I could post it on this blog for others to respond to, and was given permission.

If you were talking to someone, and they said something like this, what would you say?

Most days I feel like I’m being herded. By the church. By politicians. By my job.

Especially by God.

God is like a cosmic cowboy herding me toward certain death, and I am the only one who seems to know it. I keep telling myself that I’m wrong. That this cowboy God can be trusted. But I’ve heard rumors about where he leads cows, and I’m not sure I’m going to like it. I certainly don’t like it now.

He pushes and prods me in one direction, which is a direction I don’t want to go. So far it’s been nothing but dust and barren, windswept landscapes.

Behind me is the clear water, cool shade, and green grass. Why couldn’t I have stayed there? Now I’m surrounded only by tumbleweed, gritty sand, and glaring sun.

I don’t mind if the cowboy is leading me to greener pastures. You know, Psalm 23 and all that. But it’s been ten years of desert so far, and there is no end in sight. I can’t go back, because I don’t know the way. But if I have to stay here in this desert till I die, well, the slaughterhouse is preferable to that…

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I wandered off into the woods to die.

Can I trust God? I mean really trust Him?

If so, how come it seems like He’s playing some game with my life? Like God is playing Russian roulette, but it’s my head at which the pistol is pointed?

So what would you say? The person said they would read the comments, but would probably not respond.

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Jesus is Calling you to Leave the Church

The Role of Faith and Works

The Role of Faith and Works in the Life of the Christian

The Role of Faith and Works in the Bible

There is a lot of confusion about the role of faith and works

What Christians Say… and What Christians Mean

Church

Christian

Prayer

Bible

Worship

What Words Can You Add?

All Religions Are the Same

All Religions are the Same

Few Think They are Religious

What Separates Jesus from All Religions?

God is like a Cosmic Cowboy

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