God Ain't Cool

The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.

— Brennan Manning

Do you know what the problem with modern Christianity is?  Modern Christianity is so bent on making God cool (or nice, or happy, or angry, or convenient, etc.) that they make Him totally unloveable.  Think about that for a second.  Christians are so intent on fitting God into a box that will make Him acceptable to the masses that they instead all but ensure that the masses will be repulsed.

Why do most people go to church each week?  Obligation?  Tradition?  Entertainment?  For the majority of people, that's all that church is.  It's just something you do each week because you're supposed to, and you sometimes get that little warm fuzzy before you head back out into real life.  And churches react to this by being more edgy, more flashy, more entertaining just to hold people's interest.  Clearly the God they are talking about isn't interesting enough, so they supplement with fun gimicks to keep people in their seats.

There are very few churches that are immune to this.  At Deeper, many people come to be entertained by good music and flashy graphics and an inspiring sermon from Pastor Dany.  At Forest Lake, many people come for a warm fuzzy from Pastor Derek...and many don't come at all because they can get the warm fuzzy via the internet.  That might seem like I'm picking on our church, but every other church in the area suffers from the same symptoms.  Journey, Northland, Calvary Assembly, Status, Church in the Son...pick one, it's all the same.  Each church, each denomination, tries so hard to make God their version of "cool" and "acceptable" that they keep ramping up the music/visuals/messages to the point where people don't really meet God at church, but they sure do feel good when they leave!  As Solomon so wisely said, it's all meaningless—like chasing the wind. (Eccl. 2:11)

We have conferences, we have meetings, seminars, rallies, where we come together and strategize and plan and try and figure out how to make God desirable for the next generation.  We come up with great music, inspiring speakers, we build prayer rooms and talk about dreams of helping others, but the question remains: Where is God?

The church wasn't always like that.  After Pentecost, when Peter and the disciples came out and talked to the people, Peter didn't wow them with flashy graphics and great music.  Peter simply told his fellow Jews the story of Jesus, who was killed and then raised again.  When the people asked Peter what they were supposed to do now, Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles—all who have been called by the Lord our God.” ⁴⁰ Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”  ⁴¹ Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all. (Acts 2:38-41)  

Peter talked about Jesus, and the fact that God wanted to be with us so badly, that He sent Jesus to be with us.  If we turn back to God through the gift of His Son, God promises to be with us.  That's it!  And 3,000 turned to God in that one day!

Jesus Himself talked to the people about that very same thing.  He talked to both society's rejects and the holy priests, all while outside on a hill instead of in a trendy synagogue.  He told all who were listening the joy that comes when you connect with God (Matt. 5:1-11).

Jeses says that you're blessed even if you have no discernable spiritual talents.  If you "don't know your Bible" or would never be the person asked to lead a Bible study (if you even know how if you were asked) and who only feel capable of warming a spot on a pew, God finds you worthy of blessing and wants to bring you healing in mind, body, and spirit through your contact with Jesus.

If you feel paralyzed by rejection, if your spouse has just left you, if you are a parent struggling through the loss of a child, if you were about to retire when the stock market collapsed, taking your retirement savings with it, if your heart is just broken into so many pieces you can't even fathom being whole again, God promises you comfort.  He promises to be there with you unconditionally and get you through it to an even better and more fulfilling life then you had before.

There are some people who are so shy and unassertive and easily intimidated that they feel they can do nothing, for themselves or God.  You know the type, the person who goes out of their way to not be an inconvenience to others, the person who immediatley thinks it's their fault when someone else is upset.  Jesus promises that as God comes into their lives, the whole world will become theirs.  As the Psalmist says, "The Lord is their shepherd, they shall not want." (Ps. 23:1).

Jesus also talks about those that burn with a desire for justice.  The social activists, those who fight for a cause.  Their yearning for things to be made right may come from a wrong in themselves, or perhaps they are the victim of some terrible injustice, either real or perceived.  Jesus promises that God has the power to transform the past and make the terrible, irretrievable losses seem insignifigant compared to His desire to come into their lives and restore their souls and fill them with His goodness and justice.

If you are a person who tries so hard to give to others, to always how mercy and care, Jesus promises a blessing for you as well.  Often times in the modern world mercy is looked at as a sign of weakness.  "God helps those who help themselves" is an often used phrase in tearing down those who are trying so hard to lift others up.  God promises these people that His mercy is infinite and will meet their needs forever.

God also loves perfectionists.  Those people who are a pain in neck to everyone around them....usually themselves most of all.  Nothing is good enough.  Their Bible is the right bible, their doctrine the right belief system.  Their food is never cooked right, their room never clean enough.  How miserable they are in their dogged pursuit of perfection!  Jesus says that God wants to show Himself to these people.  At long last, with God in their lives, they will find everything that they've been looking for, and finally find Someone who is good enough.

If you feel like you're always stuck in the middle, trying to solve disputes between friends, family, co-workers, etc. Jesus wants to remind you that He is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked, too. (Luke 6:35)  God understands, because when you try and help people find common ground, you are reflecing the character of God Himself.

Have you ever been tormented for doing the right thing?  You don't have to be the whistle-blower from Enron to have felt the harassment and scorn for standing up for doing what is right.  Often times these people are left with just their conscience and the knowledge that they did the right thing despite adversity.  Jesus promises that when God comes into their lives, they will have access to His kingdom, and through Him they can enjoy a blessed life, no matter the circumstances.

Perhaps you're someone who has been lied about or insulted for trying to talk to people about Jesus.  Maybe you're talking to fellow Christians even!  Jesus went through the very same thing, as did His disciples.  But Jesus promises that your Father takes notice of what you're trying to do, and even if you never recieve an earthly reward, in His kingdom you can stand tall.  You'll be standing with God, whose love and companionship will be with you for eternity.

So, why do YOU go to church each week?  Is it because you have too?  Is it because you just enjoy the modern, hip worship service?  That may not be an easy question to answer.  As a society, we're more agnostic then anything else.  We believe that sure, God's up there in space doing His God thing, but it really doesn't have an impact on our lives.  We go to church each week, and there just isn't any more then that.

This is a far cry from what Jesus wants with us.  Jesus spent three years, day in and day out, with His friends.  After Jesus left, the Apostles lived with their friends and daily spent time together, praying for the strength to keep telling people about their friend Jesus (Acts 2:42-47, 4:23-31).  It's time for us to come back to the simple message of Jesus, the one preached by Peter, John, James, and Paul: Jesus loves you, period.  God wants to be with you in your life, and He wants you to be a part of His life.  No matter what you're going through, what you've been through, or that you think He couldn't possibly have a use for you...He promises the He loves you and will ALWAYS be with you.  He doesn't promise it will be easy (in fact, He promises that is won't), but He does promise that He'll stick with you, no matter what.  And when the kingdom of God comes into your life, you will feel the joy that David did, that Peter did:

 ⁸ I know the Lord is always with me.
      I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.

 ⁹ No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice.
      My body rests in safety.
 ¹⁰ For you will not leave my soul among the dead
      or allow your holy one to rot in the grave.
 ¹¹ You will show me the way of life,
      granting me the joy of your presence
      and the pleasures of living with you forever.

Ps. 16:8-11