Self-preservation is a trait every person seems to have. Everyone knows there is safety in numbers. We are told early on to blend and fit in. Sometimes the stakes are high and getting noticed will cost us. We are told to: fly under the radar. Everyone knows the saying: Ignorance is bliss. It makes me think of Sgt. Shultz on Hogan’s Heroes…. wanted desperately to be liked by the POWs and by Colonel Klink. His famous line was, “I know nothing!” Christians who are living sold-out lives for Jesus will not blend in, that is certain. If we live every day to God’s glory, we will get noticed. On the other hand, some people claim to follow Jesus and blend in very well, they may even attend church regularly. They aren’t overly carnal, worldly, or in blatant rebellion. Nor does their daily walk, actions, or speech identify them as Christians. Jesus gives a stark warning regarding the person whose spiritual temperature is lukewarm:
Revelation 3:15 To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. ‘So because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.
The Christian life is no place for spiritual cruise control. Doing the Christian life on autopilot won’t work. You can’t straddle the fence of Christianity for long, you will either be on one side or the other. Yet there are many who claim to be Christians and are playing it safe. Here’s what I mean: Some are content with church membership, good grades, being neighborly, and being an all-around ‘good’ person. There is nothing wrong with those things, and Christians should exemplify solid citizens and good neighbors. But we are called to be so much more than the righteous chamber of commerce members. Lukewarm is apathetic and secure in the four walls Christianity doesn’t win souls. Plenty of people in the world attend church on occasion and are comfortable in their feeling good when they devote an hour of their time to Sunday. They have one foot in and one foot out because while the church is good for the kids, they are content with little to no fellowship. They may attend youth groups to meet other teens, but they show up at the best parties to ensure they are ‘in’. On the other hand, being a Christian does not equal being harsh, belligerent, social or political activists, trouble makers, or modern-day Pharisees. The world doesn’t need zealots fighting for a political side or people trying to “take America back for Jesus.” Society won’t change its course until individuals change.
What the world desperately needs to see is people who truly follow the Lord. This is reflected in the daily fruit of a regenerated heart. We can bring the presence of Jesus into our sphere of influence…and see hearts transformed. Not all, but some in the world will observe the life of a sinner saved by grace, a mind renewed by the Spirit, and want what we have. Not everyone will approve of your walk with Jesus. You may be ridiculed at work, teased on campus, and perhaps even religious people will tell you or imply: you need to tone it down. In the wide world of all-inclusive ecumenical feel good religion….it’s ok to say God, Lord, in his name, and the almighty. It’s fine to mention Buddha and Mohammed or express your spirituality. Mention Jesus and you will raise eyebrows. Say he is the only way and you will be maligned or worse. Say the name of Jesus: it will cost you. As a follower of Jesus….there is no room in the middle.
1 Peter 3:16 and keep a good conscience so that those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame in the thing in which you are slandered. For it is better if God should it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.
So what does the “Hot” (Rev 3:15) Christian life look like? A follower of Jesus is seeking to make much of Him. They are growing in their faith each day. They are people of prayer and seeking God’s will. They spend time reading the Bible. The word of God is hidden in their hearts, so they know to stay away from sin. The Christian is marked with a sincere love for fellow believers…..a very telling trait. Christians are marked by a love for the lost sinner. Instead of a hard legalistic heart, they look at the sinner with compassion knowing that if it weren’t for God’s grace, they would also be lost on the way to hell. Christians go out into the world, marketplace, campus, and their home and share the gospel with lost people. God help us never to settle for stale, status quo, ‘Churchianity.’ It’s time to be what the Lord wants us to be: Good and faithful servants. There’s a cost associated with following Jesus. Throughout history generations of believers have been marginalized, used, abused, jailed, and even martyred for their faith. That is a sobering thought because nothing has changed in 2,000 years. We have simply been insulated from the worst of that here in the western world.
Before I continue, please allow me to make one thing clear. I’m not on a high horse saying: I don’t understand wanting to fit in or not wanting to ruffle feathers. Because I get it…….I don’t like to stand out either. What I am saying is this: If we are truly living a sold-out life for the Lord the fact is…..we will stand out. The Bible is full of people on the periphery of faith. Then they encounter the awesome life-altering presence of the Lord, then they are all in. Abraham, Joseph, Peter, and Paul encountered the presence of the Lord and were never the same again. Jesus never minced words when He asked people to follow Him. He used sayings like: Take up your cross. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you on my account…..they persecuted the prophets who were before you. I’m sending you out as sheep among wolves. You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. Do not fear those who can kill the body but not the soul. A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. If they called the master Beelzebul, how much more would they malign those of his household? Look at what the Apostle Peter tells us:
