Middle of the Road Spirituality

"For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit . . . those who are in the flesh cannot please God." -- Romans 8:5 & 7


A comment I hear consistently about Christians is that they are nerdy or that they come across as weak. If questioned any further, the impression I get is that since Christians feel they are saved by grace, they don't necessarily feel they have to excel in everyday life, never aspiring to peak performance in all things. This also translates to an attitude that they don't have to excel in their responsibility toward their relationship with God. A pastor told me just a few days ago that he has been preaching out of the book of Galatians for the past four months. He suggests the congregation bring their bible, but if they don't he directs them to the correct page in their "pew bible." However, he said he recently discovered that many of them still do not know where in the bible Galatians is!

This trend of biblical negligence has caused many churched people to think it's okay to struggle with all kinds of sin. The term "accountability partner" has become the church's euphemism for enabler or co-dependent. How long do we "struggle" with addictions, abuses and so many other sins that persist in our lives before we call it what it is: "setting our minds on the things of the flesh," and so doing we "cannot please God," as described in our verse above? Insensitive or not, it is imperative that we all check our faith in this commitment we call Christianity. Bible-believing Christians should know that there is nothing hidden from God. Our thoughts and actions are splayed wide open, in clear view of our ultimate "accountability partner," Jesus Christ. Instead we burden ourselves and others with the sins we choose to expose to each other, while accountability partners across the country enjoy the role of repositories for the church gossip mongers.

The burden of prolonged temptation to the same sin should be a concern for the proclaimed disciple of Jesus Christ. Peter, the impetuous apostle, often acted impulsively before thinking things through, yet his desire to please God is legendary. Paul continually expressed his falling short of perfection, yet he felt confident enough to tell his congregations to emulate him and the words he wrote. This is a difficult post to write because I know it gives the impression that I have perfected my walk with God. Certainly not; like Paul, I have not attained it yet. However, the burden I have to write this is because I know I will continue to "press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Jesus Christ," and my exhortation is that you do the same.

Very much like the secular trends of society, churches have taken up the nanny role of gently coddling its congregations and tiptoeing around the elephant in the middle of the room. I am very sorry you have a porn addiction. Maybe one of the church's twelve-step programs could help you. In the meantime, would you be interested in helping with our music ministry? Struggling with homosexual thoughts? You know, we have a specially designed program that puts anyone who has similar thoughts in the same room to deal with those struggles. In the meantime, would you like to help us collect our morning offering ?

I know we are not all perfect. We all fall short of righteousness. Our act of worship to God is not perfection, but to come as close as we possibly can. Our spiritual obligation is not to show God that we are less of a sinner than someone else. That is mediocrity. Imagine a body of believers bogged down by this thinking. Maybe we don't have to imagine what it looks like: over 85% of the country feel comfortable calling themselves Christian, 66% of that 85% George Barna calls "Casual Christians;" those who "feel religious without having to prioritize their faith." He continues, "Casual Christians can be all the things that they esteem . . . and never have to defend or represent difficult moral or social positions or even lose much sleep over their private chioces as long as they mean well." (Casual Christians and the Future of America; The Barna Group, May, 2009)

I know, if we defend or represent moral or social positions today, we are labeled as haters. Well, it's really okay to hate sin (you'd be in good Company). It's especially okay to hate sin that sits in the midst of our congregations week after week. God and His word calls us to a life of spiritual excellence. Live it out, and encourage those in your body to do likewise. Spiritual mediocrity has no place in the pew; it presents itself to those outside the faith exactly what they have come to expect, nerds and weaklings.

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