SCRIPTURE: James 2:1 (TM) - larger
reading James 2:1-13
My dear friends, don't let
public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated
faith.
STORY:
Alison
Bucklin shares this story: A dozen or so years ago, a Romanian pastor came to
visit the church I belonged to. He had gotten to know my pastor, John Vawter,
who had been involved in a Bible-smuggling ministry when the Iron Curtain was
still up. John asked him what he thought of our country, and of the church in
this country. His friend was at first hesitant to speak, for fear of giving
offense, but finally said that in his opinion the American church was rich in
material things but poor in spiritual things. And by that he did NOT mean that
we were the blessed "poor in spirit" whom Jesus commended. No, what
he meant was that American Christians by and large had a flabby faith because
it was rarely even exercised, much less tested.
OBSERVATION:
What did we do before we had
the never-ending public opinion polls? How did we know whom to vote for? Which
issues to work on? What apparel to purchase? Which coffee to buy? Which city to
live in? What car to drive? So much of our lives are “controlled” by public
opinion polls… or so it seems.
James writes about the
downside of allowing public opinion to dictate what we believe and how we
should express that faith in the market place. A trap has been set. The jaws of
that trap have sprung shut. We are have gotten caught. This has resulted in a
“flabby faith”.
There is nothing wrong with
wanting to be popular, accepted, included… but at what cost. The older I get
the more I desire an easier daily routine… and a daily dose of
Four-Bucks-Coffee. But should it be this way?
As energy levels change and
responsibilities shift finding new and exciting ways to live out the
Christ-originated faith that isn’t driven by public opinions or shaped by what
is the latest and greatest thing in religious life, i.e. the “Duck Dynasty” faith
based thinking, becomes increasingly harder and harder. Be careful about those
hidden traps… their teeth are sharp and unforgiving.
As I have often said to my
congregations: “What you desire and want is interesting. What your opinion
might be on any particular issue could be fascinating. But in reality, the only
opinion that matters and the only thing of lasting interest are God’s opinion
and his desires. Everything else, while attractive, is nothing more than a trap
waiting to snag us and keep us from being who God has called us to be.”
The choice is either a flabby
faith driven by public opinion or a Christ-originated faith driven by a
God-centered life.
PRAYER:
Help us get moving so that
flabbiness of our faith will be worked off so that we can become stronger and
spiritually healthier.
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