From Christian-ish to Genuine Faith: A Call to Commitment

As we start a new year, I wanna give you a new word, Christian -ish, and I wanna start by defining it because we're starting a new message series called Christian -ish. What does it mean to be Christian -ish? My definition is this. It's having a half -hearted faith, wearing the label of Christianity without truly following Jesus. [00:03:00]

And I would say, very honestly, from a pastoral perspective, to be Christian -ish is to kind of embrace a superficial, watered -down version of Christianity. It's where you have enough of Jesus that it makes you feel better, but not so much of Jesus that it changes anything in your life. [00:03:35]

Jesus says, I wish you were one or the other. So because you're lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I'm about to spit you out of my mouth, Jesus said. He goes on to say, you say, I'm rich. I've acquired wealth, and I don't need a thing. But you don't realize that your wretched, pitiful, [00:05:16]

poor blind and naked Jesus goes on to say those whom I love I rebuke and discipline so what do you do he says so be earnest and repent then Jesus says it's so powerful he says Here I am I stand at the door and knock if anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in and eat with that person and they with me [00:05:37]

God can't stomach comfortable Christianity it's not just undesirable to God it's intolerable Christian if it suggests this half -hearted you convenient, comfortable commitment to receive the benefits of Jesus without fully surrendering to the call of Jesus. And it suggests this half -hearted faith that is so repugnant to God that it provokes a visceral reaction. [00:10:45]

You may be lukewarm if you crave acceptance from people more than you do acceptance from God. The second thing is you may be lukewarm if you rationalize sin. If there's sin in your life, there's something in your life that is displeasing and dishonorable to God, and you just kind of explained it away. [00:17:48]

A third indicator you may be lukewarm is this, is that you rarely share your faith in Christ. You say, oh yeah, I'm Christian. Yeah, I believe in Jesus and everything. And okay, I know I'm called to be a light in the world, but it's just not my gift. I just don't talk about my faith. I don't want to offend people. [00:19:24]

Number four indicator that you may be lukewarm is that you only turn to God when you need something. That God's like your emergency 911 call, right? And instead of seeking him daily, instead of letting his spirit guide you instead of letting his word build your faith and renew your mind you call on him when you're in trouble [00:20:17]

And when you're doing something that requires faith and when you're depending on God, suddenly, you're not concerned with what people think. You're more concerned with what God thinks and you're living for his approval to glorify him above anything else. And instead of rationalizing your sins, you confess your sins. [00:27:02]

And so if you find out, cut my eyebrows too tight. I might be a little bit lukewarm. And I didn't realize it. What do you do? Well, you open the door and you let Jesus in. Jesus said this. He said, look, I stand at the door and I knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, Jesus says, I will come in and I'll share a meal together with you as friends. [00:28:14]

Lukewarm, it doesn't just grieve God, but it robs you from the life that God wants for you, the purpose for which God created you. And so what's Jesus asking for? He's continuing to knock, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock. He don't want half your heart, part of your heart, a little bit of your heart, whatever it is that you're asking for. [00:30:20]

Today, you may realize that you're lukewarm. You're not fully devoted to him. And Jesus is standing at the door and knocking. If you let him in, he will forgive your sins. He will make you new and he will reveal the life, the calling, the purpose that God has for you. [00:34:33]