That's a very large question, a perhaps loaded question. It feels like it to me. I found 3 parts to this.
I suppose before we really answer this question, we should probably establish what Christians are already doing that they believe helps them to be a Christian (aka, part 1). The things they believe define them. I typically think of "the motions" in this respect, things we consider to be "Christian" that aren't exactly commanded biblically, but aren't bad things in and of themselves. So when we think of Christians, we think of people who go to church regularly. This could be a Christmas and Easter level of regularly, or every Sunday and Wednesday regularly. Either way, it's consistent. They also pray before their meals and take their Bibles to church. They don't swear, and call out those that do swear, especially at church or around other Christians. They're the nice, good people. They talk about Christian things, using words like "salvation", "baptism", or "fellowship" that you only hear at church, or maybe in Lord of the Rings. Regardless, we don't talk about them outside of church. It's Christian terminology, Christianese if you will, that we build up by going to church regularly. These Christians also listen to their Christian radio, have Jesus hanging on their wall somewhere, and watch movies like God's Not Dead or anything made by PureFlix. These aren't bad things to do, and it can be helpful to have Christian influences to help guide believers. But at the same time, no where in the Bible does it say, "Thou shalt watch the film God's Not Dead to be accepted by me." This seems like an absurd thing for the Bible to say when I put it like this, but the Bible also doesn't say, "Thou must attend church every week to enter the kingdom of heaven." Yet, these type of things define their Christianity. They believe that because they do these things like going to church, avoiding swear words, and wearing the Christian t-shirts, that they are Christian. If you're one of those people, I'm here to burst your bubble: that's not what it means to be Christian. You're being religious, not Christian. There's a difference. Biblically, there's more to Christianity than that.
There's a story in the gospel about a certain ruler that asked Jesus what he needed to do to get into heaven (see Luke 18 for the full story). Jesus called him to obey what scripture says, citing some of the ten commandments. When the ruler pridefully responded with the bold claim that he had kept all of these since childhood, Jesus called him to give up everything. "Sell all your stuff," Jesus commanded him, but the wealthy ruler left moping. Christians nowadays have a similar problem, whether it involves stuff or not. We tend to see the actions typically taken by Christians as defining their Christianity, but in reality, it's religiosity. When you take actions such as following the ten commandments, attending church regularly, and praying before you eat, you're taking religious, Christianese actions expected by church culture. Being a true Christian, however, entails a wholehearted devotion to God and to Christ. Many times, we don't think about what Jesus actually wants us to do, who he wants us to become, or what he commands in the gospels.
At this point, I'd like to begin part 2 of this discussion: what are we biblically called to do as followers of Christ?
One of the first things I mentioned in the "what makes a Christian" or "Christianese" list was prayer. It's not bad to pray before you eat or go to bed, but we should pray more than that. Like, what about the rest of your twenty-four hour day? Prayer is designed to be an all-day, everyday activity. And what are we praying for? Are we serious about our prayers? Are we asking for what God wants or what we want, and do we know the difference? And what about reading our Bibles? How often do we read it? How much do we read in one sitting? Do we always read it by ourselves? Do we talk about what we read with other people? The problem with things like prayer and reading scripture is that it's so easy for it to become routine, which is why I included them in the Christianese list.
We're commanded to pray and spend time in scripture, but when it turns into routine, or even worse, a checklist, it's not what God actually wants us to be doing. Jesus has so much more in mind for us than this! He came to give us life! He not only wants what's best for us, but he wants us to be our best for him. Because of that, he gave us a purpose, a mission for him: the great commission. Jesus says in Matthew 28 before he ascends into heaven, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." So not only did Jesus give us a mission, he says he'll help us complete it.
So, what do we do? How do we live out this life commanded by God himself? I'm gonna start again with prayer. Jesus even gave an example of prayer in scripture, the rather well-known, "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name..." that so many Christians can rattle off of the top of their heads. However, this was designed to be a guideline, perhaps a template, of what you should pray for. So while some people pray this prayer verbatim, I believe it's designed as a more general guide for prayer, such as glorify God, acknowledge him and his will, ask for provision for your daily needs and thank him for meeting them, ask for forgiveness, and ask for help in areas we need help. Prayer is also a powerful tool for Christians when used effectively, which I would gladly elaborate on more another time. Tying into prayer is meditation. My great-grandmother once said, "Prayer is talking to God. Meditation is listening to him." Many people have no clue why they can't seem to hear God speak to them, and my first question is, "Have you tried listening?" Jesus made a point of getting away for time with just him and God, along with many other examples in the Bible who made efforts to simply listen for God. In today's society, we don't talk about meditation, so it can be a bit tricky to figure out what meditation should look like and how we can today, but we have to be willing to start just listening for the Holy Spirit. Then it's brings up matters like when should we meditate, how often, etc. But I think sometimes we focus too much on these questions when instead we should simply incorporate things like prayer and meditation into our everyday lives. Reading the Bible is the same way, and it can become a motion if we're not careful. It should be about spending time with God and reflecting on what the Bible says, not just reading it to mark it off the list, which can be figurative or a literal "Read the Bible Through in a Year" list. It's not bad to have a plan of what and where you're reading scripture, but it should be something you take with you throughout the day and allow it to impact your life. Otherwise, you just read and move on with your day, forgetting everything you just read. I'm guilty of this, and it wouldn't surprise me if you are too. Even more, thanking God for blessings can become a motion. I cannot tell you how many prayers I've started with, "Dear God, thank you for this day..." without actually thinking about what I'm thanking God for.
I feel like another really important topic the church doesn't really talk about is fasting. A lot of churches have a day or few days set aside to fast as a church, but sometimes it's just to raise awareness for hungry people or to say they accomplished something. However, most of the time people don't understand the value of what they're doing or see what can come from it. At that point it becomes a bunch of people not eating and then coming together for fellowship to eat together when it's over. This is cool, in concept. But I've experienced firsthand the reality of what happens: everyone is not eating just for the sake of not eating without appreciating it for what it could be. At least, that's what has happened in middle school and high school youth group events I've been a part of.
In my experience, churches do talk about confession and repentance, but usually within the context of baptism, and it's not just about baptism. First, the basics are confession is telling God about what sinful things you've done, and repentance is accepting the second chance God gives to change your life and avoid doing it again. Catholics have confessionals for the first part, but the latter sometimes gets dismissed. And while confessing and repenting is important in baptism, it's also important in everyday living. Jesus says that people who want to follow him are supposed to die to themselves daily, pick up their cross, and follow him. This helps us overcome the sins that we used to partake in and move on for Jesus. But, this can only happen if we actually repent instead of just saying we are. We have to be willing to say, "God, I'm done with this! I'm not doing this anymore. I'm turning my life around. I'm changing things and doing things differently now."
Another way to spend time with God that I feel like the church misinterprets is worship. We often think of it as singing, but that's not all that worship's about. Worship is how your heart responds to God. It's giving yourself to God in whatever you're doing. Colossians 3 even talks about letting Christ lead and live in us before saying, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." This means doing everything, not just singing in worship to God to praise and glorify him. Also, singing at church is just another Christianese motion if you're heart isn't in it. Because that's what worship is really all about: the heart. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (see Matthew 6). And it's clear that God looks at the heart more than the outer appearance. This is evidenced in scripture when Samuel went to appoint the next king and thought one after the other looked the part, but God said, "No, I'm looking at the heart. I've got someone else in mind." Then he designated the youngest of the brothers, David, as the next king of Israel. This is a great example of someone's heart being in the right place, and that's what worship should be too. For some people, their hearts aren't in the right place, but they feel good about where they're at because singing at church makes them feel like a good Christian. Really, it's between you and God, and he's the only one that knows your heart. Service is the same way, and it's another key way to spend time with God. But, if our hearts aren't in it, then what's the point of serving? Yeah sure, it helps other people, but it does nothing for us at that point, so why should we? That's why service involves devoting one's heart to God.
These are all things we should be doing to live for God and simply spend time with him. We so often turn these into motions and don't even think about it! But there's more (part 3). Christians are also given commands by God beyond spending time with God: following his commandments.
I wanna start this part of the conversation by taking us back to the great commission. Jesus commanded us to tell people, tell everyone, about him and what he's done. To get out of our comfort zone and talk to people outside of our safe bubbles of comfortable living. Nowadays, what does that even look like? Do we rely on pastors and churches to do all the heavy lifting for us by bringing strangers along to church with us, or do we actually instigate conversations about Jesus with people around us outside of church? Taking a friend to church is NOT the same as sharing the gospel with them. Sharing the gospel should be a personal initiative, where we are willing to reach out to people who don't know Jesus and say, "Oh hey, Jesus is pretty cool. Here's some of what he's done in my life. He changed my life for the better. I know he can do some pretty cool stuff in yours too if ya wanna hear more about him." This also ties into loving people the way Jesus commanded us to. After all, the greatest commandments are to love God with all that we are and to love people as much as we love ourselves. But, how do we show that love? Do we love everyone, or just our family and friends? Are we loving like Jesus? Because that's another thing we're called to do: be like Jesus. Follow his example as shown in scripture. It's impossible to get onto Jesus' perfect level, but we're called to get as close as we can. We're called to show reckless love (yeah, see what I did there? Don't worry, I'm aware it's not funny... to you). We're called to take chances for God, which sometimes means talking to those people we're afraid to reach out to, and tell them about Jesus. We're called to love people no matter what. No matter what they've done. No matter what other people say about them. No matter what people will think of us. No matter what we get out of it (because it shouldn't be about us). But do we do this? For most of us, the answer is no. But Christ followers are called to live crazy lives, reckless lives, so we don't miss out on what God wants us to do.
We're also called to live in today. Tomorrow's got it's own problems, but right here, right now, God may very well have something important for you to do that can't be done tomorrow. I've heard stories of people who simply felt like they should talk to a friend of theirs, and because they did, that friend decided not to commit suicide. Tomorrow isn't a guarantee, so if you feel like God wants you to do something, he wants you to act now. Some things can wait until tomorrow, however. Personally, once I started listening for God more, I realized God was telling me to be patient. "But God, what about this thing? When can this happen? When can I do something about this?" "Be patient," he said. "Just wait," he said. If you don't like that answer, I like it even less because this has been my predicament for the past... month? Two months? I kinda wanna start placing bets on how long it'll be, but a) gambling isn't healthy, and b) God knows the best timing. So, we need to live where we are today and work to do what God wants us to do, whether that's to take action or to wait. Many aren't willing to take initiative. Sometimes people will take action the one time, such as that one time you helped that one person with that one thing that God told you to do, but they don't invest. One-time listening and continuous investment are two very different things, and while sometimes God demands the former, the latter can change everything for you or the receiver of your investment... or both.
Let's not also forget the fruits of the Spirit. First, a reminder that they are *cue Christian camp music* love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Christians are called to live out all of these in our daily lives. Yet, we don't really talk about how to do so... I've talked a bit about patience from my recent personal experience, but we're also just an impatient society in general. Lots of people have so much going on that they don't think about being gentle or kind. With all of the depression, it's no wonder joy is hard to come by. And don't even get me started on self-control! People get frustrated, or nowadays "offended", and take it out on people in an angry rampage. But in Galatians, the Bible gives us this list of virtues we're supposed to live out on an everyday basis. You know what else we're supposed to do everyday? Trust God. With everything. We're supposed to give him control and give up our situations. Trust him to handle what we're going through. He knows what he's doing. Sometimes, it takes trusting in God in order to live out these fruits of the Spirit. We may have to trust God to provide our daily needs, or to help us to forgive, or to show us the next step. He's got everything under control. We just should also try to take those steps of trusting him and living for him.
So, there's a lot of content here. I could dive way deeper into a lot of these concepts, but this is kind of a broad synopsis of my latest thoughts. Also, I'm aware that there's some overlap between spending time with God and following his commands, such as the command to confess and repent or how we can spend time with God by living in today... There's lots of steps we're supposed to take compared to what we actually do. It's all stuff we should talk about and be willing to have conversations about, but most of the time society and even churches aren't willing to have these discussions. We're called to more, but what do we actually do? Are we doing what God calls us to? Are we kind of doing these things, but we could change how we do them or do them better? Do we let our Christian actions define us, or the identity that God gave us? Are we willing to spend time with God in different capacities to grow closer to him, and trust him enough to follow his commands? Do we follow his commands? Ultimately, it just comes down to loving God and loving people and being willing to act on that love. So, let's go be like Jesus.
I suppose before we really answer this question, we should probably establish what Christians are already doing that they believe helps them to be a Christian (aka, part 1). The things they believe define them. I typically think of "the motions" in this respect, things we consider to be "Christian" that aren't exactly commanded biblically, but aren't bad things in and of themselves. So when we think of Christians, we think of people who go to church regularly. This could be a Christmas and Easter level of regularly, or every Sunday and Wednesday regularly. Either way, it's consistent. They also pray before their meals and take their Bibles to church. They don't swear, and call out those that do swear, especially at church or around other Christians. They're the nice, good people. They talk about Christian things, using words like "salvation", "baptism", or "fellowship" that you only hear at church, or maybe in Lord of the Rings. Regardless, we don't talk about them outside of church. It's Christian terminology, Christianese if you will, that we build up by going to church regularly. These Christians also listen to their Christian radio, have Jesus hanging on their wall somewhere, and watch movies like God's Not Dead or anything made by PureFlix. These aren't bad things to do, and it can be helpful to have Christian influences to help guide believers. But at the same time, no where in the Bible does it say, "Thou shalt watch the film God's Not Dead to be accepted by me." This seems like an absurd thing for the Bible to say when I put it like this, but the Bible also doesn't say, "Thou must attend church every week to enter the kingdom of heaven." Yet, these type of things define their Christianity. They believe that because they do these things like going to church, avoiding swear words, and wearing the Christian t-shirts, that they are Christian. If you're one of those people, I'm here to burst your bubble: that's not what it means to be Christian. You're being religious, not Christian. There's a difference. Biblically, there's more to Christianity than that.
There's a story in the gospel about a certain ruler that asked Jesus what he needed to do to get into heaven (see Luke 18 for the full story). Jesus called him to obey what scripture says, citing some of the ten commandments. When the ruler pridefully responded with the bold claim that he had kept all of these since childhood, Jesus called him to give up everything. "Sell all your stuff," Jesus commanded him, but the wealthy ruler left moping. Christians nowadays have a similar problem, whether it involves stuff or not. We tend to see the actions typically taken by Christians as defining their Christianity, but in reality, it's religiosity. When you take actions such as following the ten commandments, attending church regularly, and praying before you eat, you're taking religious, Christianese actions expected by church culture. Being a true Christian, however, entails a wholehearted devotion to God and to Christ. Many times, we don't think about what Jesus actually wants us to do, who he wants us to become, or what he commands in the gospels.
At this point, I'd like to begin part 2 of this discussion: what are we biblically called to do as followers of Christ?
One of the first things I mentioned in the "what makes a Christian" or "Christianese" list was prayer. It's not bad to pray before you eat or go to bed, but we should pray more than that. Like, what about the rest of your twenty-four hour day? Prayer is designed to be an all-day, everyday activity. And what are we praying for? Are we serious about our prayers? Are we asking for what God wants or what we want, and do we know the difference? And what about reading our Bibles? How often do we read it? How much do we read in one sitting? Do we always read it by ourselves? Do we talk about what we read with other people? The problem with things like prayer and reading scripture is that it's so easy for it to become routine, which is why I included them in the Christianese list.
We're commanded to pray and spend time in scripture, but when it turns into routine, or even worse, a checklist, it's not what God actually wants us to be doing. Jesus has so much more in mind for us than this! He came to give us life! He not only wants what's best for us, but he wants us to be our best for him. Because of that, he gave us a purpose, a mission for him: the great commission. Jesus says in Matthew 28 before he ascends into heaven, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." So not only did Jesus give us a mission, he says he'll help us complete it.
So, what do we do? How do we live out this life commanded by God himself? I'm gonna start again with prayer. Jesus even gave an example of prayer in scripture, the rather well-known, "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name..." that so many Christians can rattle off of the top of their heads. However, this was designed to be a guideline, perhaps a template, of what you should pray for. So while some people pray this prayer verbatim, I believe it's designed as a more general guide for prayer, such as glorify God, acknowledge him and his will, ask for provision for your daily needs and thank him for meeting them, ask for forgiveness, and ask for help in areas we need help. Prayer is also a powerful tool for Christians when used effectively, which I would gladly elaborate on more another time. Tying into prayer is meditation. My great-grandmother once said, "Prayer is talking to God. Meditation is listening to him." Many people have no clue why they can't seem to hear God speak to them, and my first question is, "Have you tried listening?" Jesus made a point of getting away for time with just him and God, along with many other examples in the Bible who made efforts to simply listen for God. In today's society, we don't talk about meditation, so it can be a bit tricky to figure out what meditation should look like and how we can today, but we have to be willing to start just listening for the Holy Spirit. Then it's brings up matters like when should we meditate, how often, etc. But I think sometimes we focus too much on these questions when instead we should simply incorporate things like prayer and meditation into our everyday lives. Reading the Bible is the same way, and it can become a motion if we're not careful. It should be about spending time with God and reflecting on what the Bible says, not just reading it to mark it off the list, which can be figurative or a literal "Read the Bible Through in a Year" list. It's not bad to have a plan of what and where you're reading scripture, but it should be something you take with you throughout the day and allow it to impact your life. Otherwise, you just read and move on with your day, forgetting everything you just read. I'm guilty of this, and it wouldn't surprise me if you are too. Even more, thanking God for blessings can become a motion. I cannot tell you how many prayers I've started with, "Dear God, thank you for this day..." without actually thinking about what I'm thanking God for.
I feel like another really important topic the church doesn't really talk about is fasting. A lot of churches have a day or few days set aside to fast as a church, but sometimes it's just to raise awareness for hungry people or to say they accomplished something. However, most of the time people don't understand the value of what they're doing or see what can come from it. At that point it becomes a bunch of people not eating and then coming together for fellowship to eat together when it's over. This is cool, in concept. But I've experienced firsthand the reality of what happens: everyone is not eating just for the sake of not eating without appreciating it for what it could be. At least, that's what has happened in middle school and high school youth group events I've been a part of.
In my experience, churches do talk about confession and repentance, but usually within the context of baptism, and it's not just about baptism. First, the basics are confession is telling God about what sinful things you've done, and repentance is accepting the second chance God gives to change your life and avoid doing it again. Catholics have confessionals for the first part, but the latter sometimes gets dismissed. And while confessing and repenting is important in baptism, it's also important in everyday living. Jesus says that people who want to follow him are supposed to die to themselves daily, pick up their cross, and follow him. This helps us overcome the sins that we used to partake in and move on for Jesus. But, this can only happen if we actually repent instead of just saying we are. We have to be willing to say, "God, I'm done with this! I'm not doing this anymore. I'm turning my life around. I'm changing things and doing things differently now."
Another way to spend time with God that I feel like the church misinterprets is worship. We often think of it as singing, but that's not all that worship's about. Worship is how your heart responds to God. It's giving yourself to God in whatever you're doing. Colossians 3 even talks about letting Christ lead and live in us before saying, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." This means doing everything, not just singing in worship to God to praise and glorify him. Also, singing at church is just another Christianese motion if you're heart isn't in it. Because that's what worship is really all about: the heart. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (see Matthew 6). And it's clear that God looks at the heart more than the outer appearance. This is evidenced in scripture when Samuel went to appoint the next king and thought one after the other looked the part, but God said, "No, I'm looking at the heart. I've got someone else in mind." Then he designated the youngest of the brothers, David, as the next king of Israel. This is a great example of someone's heart being in the right place, and that's what worship should be too. For some people, their hearts aren't in the right place, but they feel good about where they're at because singing at church makes them feel like a good Christian. Really, it's between you and God, and he's the only one that knows your heart. Service is the same way, and it's another key way to spend time with God. But, if our hearts aren't in it, then what's the point of serving? Yeah sure, it helps other people, but it does nothing for us at that point, so why should we? That's why service involves devoting one's heart to God.
These are all things we should be doing to live for God and simply spend time with him. We so often turn these into motions and don't even think about it! But there's more (part 3). Christians are also given commands by God beyond spending time with God: following his commandments.
I wanna start this part of the conversation by taking us back to the great commission. Jesus commanded us to tell people, tell everyone, about him and what he's done. To get out of our comfort zone and talk to people outside of our safe bubbles of comfortable living. Nowadays, what does that even look like? Do we rely on pastors and churches to do all the heavy lifting for us by bringing strangers along to church with us, or do we actually instigate conversations about Jesus with people around us outside of church? Taking a friend to church is NOT the same as sharing the gospel with them. Sharing the gospel should be a personal initiative, where we are willing to reach out to people who don't know Jesus and say, "Oh hey, Jesus is pretty cool. Here's some of what he's done in my life. He changed my life for the better. I know he can do some pretty cool stuff in yours too if ya wanna hear more about him." This also ties into loving people the way Jesus commanded us to. After all, the greatest commandments are to love God with all that we are and to love people as much as we love ourselves. But, how do we show that love? Do we love everyone, or just our family and friends? Are we loving like Jesus? Because that's another thing we're called to do: be like Jesus. Follow his example as shown in scripture. It's impossible to get onto Jesus' perfect level, but we're called to get as close as we can. We're called to show reckless love (yeah, see what I did there? Don't worry, I'm aware it's not funny... to you). We're called to take chances for God, which sometimes means talking to those people we're afraid to reach out to, and tell them about Jesus. We're called to love people no matter what. No matter what they've done. No matter what other people say about them. No matter what people will think of us. No matter what we get out of it (because it shouldn't be about us). But do we do this? For most of us, the answer is no. But Christ followers are called to live crazy lives, reckless lives, so we don't miss out on what God wants us to do.
We're also called to live in today. Tomorrow's got it's own problems, but right here, right now, God may very well have something important for you to do that can't be done tomorrow. I've heard stories of people who simply felt like they should talk to a friend of theirs, and because they did, that friend decided not to commit suicide. Tomorrow isn't a guarantee, so if you feel like God wants you to do something, he wants you to act now. Some things can wait until tomorrow, however. Personally, once I started listening for God more, I realized God was telling me to be patient. "But God, what about this thing? When can this happen? When can I do something about this?" "Be patient," he said. "Just wait," he said. If you don't like that answer, I like it even less because this has been my predicament for the past... month? Two months? I kinda wanna start placing bets on how long it'll be, but a) gambling isn't healthy, and b) God knows the best timing. So, we need to live where we are today and work to do what God wants us to do, whether that's to take action or to wait. Many aren't willing to take initiative. Sometimes people will take action the one time, such as that one time you helped that one person with that one thing that God told you to do, but they don't invest. One-time listening and continuous investment are two very different things, and while sometimes God demands the former, the latter can change everything for you or the receiver of your investment... or both.
Let's not also forget the fruits of the Spirit. First, a reminder that they are *cue Christian camp music* love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Christians are called to live out all of these in our daily lives. Yet, we don't really talk about how to do so... I've talked a bit about patience from my recent personal experience, but we're also just an impatient society in general. Lots of people have so much going on that they don't think about being gentle or kind. With all of the depression, it's no wonder joy is hard to come by. And don't even get me started on self-control! People get frustrated, or nowadays "offended", and take it out on people in an angry rampage. But in Galatians, the Bible gives us this list of virtues we're supposed to live out on an everyday basis. You know what else we're supposed to do everyday? Trust God. With everything. We're supposed to give him control and give up our situations. Trust him to handle what we're going through. He knows what he's doing. Sometimes, it takes trusting in God in order to live out these fruits of the Spirit. We may have to trust God to provide our daily needs, or to help us to forgive, or to show us the next step. He's got everything under control. We just should also try to take those steps of trusting him and living for him.
So, there's a lot of content here. I could dive way deeper into a lot of these concepts, but this is kind of a broad synopsis of my latest thoughts. Also, I'm aware that there's some overlap between spending time with God and following his commands, such as the command to confess and repent or how we can spend time with God by living in today... There's lots of steps we're supposed to take compared to what we actually do. It's all stuff we should talk about and be willing to have conversations about, but most of the time society and even churches aren't willing to have these discussions. We're called to more, but what do we actually do? Are we doing what God calls us to? Are we kind of doing these things, but we could change how we do them or do them better? Do we let our Christian actions define us, or the identity that God gave us? Are we willing to spend time with God in different capacities to grow closer to him, and trust him enough to follow his commands? Do we follow his commands? Ultimately, it just comes down to loving God and loving people and being willing to act on that love. So, let's go be like Jesus.
Comments
Post a Comment