“The truth of the matter is this: Jesus doesn’t work for you.By that I mean He doesn’t reorient the center of the world around you for your wellbeing. God doesn’t move to us. We move to Him. And as such, we need to understand that a life with God is on His terms, not our own.” –David Foster
I read those words on David Fosters blog, and besides having one of those “I-wish-I-would-have-thought-of-that” moments…It also crystalized something that has been a reoccurring theme in our latest sermon series, “Really God!?!
When faced with the reality that God is NOT going to “do things the way we want him too”…that God is NOT going to “do things WHEN we want him to”…that God is in control and we are not…people react in one of two ways.
1.Some say “Jesus doesn’t work for me”, and go on to FOLLOW him, to trust him, instead of continuing the frustrating and futile business of trying to “control” God through religious rituals and knowledge.
2.Some say “Jesus doesn’t work for me” and walk away from faith…decide to “go it alone”…because Jesus wouldn’t cooperate and be their “genie in a bottle”. (Not the Christina Aguilera kind)
Either way, at some point in our lives, EVERYONE will find out the “Jesus doesn’t work for you”. It’s either the beginning…or the end…of a life of Faith.
Bonus Question: If the above is true, should Church be more about exposing the reality the “Jesus doesn’t work for you”…or hiding/obscuring it?
The church should be about the business of exposing the truth and the reality of being a Christian. (Can you drink from the same cup as Jesus?) We should tell others how we came to our faith. We should tell them about the miracles that we have witnessed AND about the sadness, loss and tragedy that also comes as part of the package.