We get discouraged easily. When we confront texts in the Bible that encourage us to witness, teach, be a light, be salt, etc… — we feel pangs of guilt and are easily discouraged. This is especially true when we start to compare ourselves with others. I came across these two quotes this morning which I have stored in my folder for several years. Allow me to share a few with you along with some comments.

“Would be disciples of modern times need to be reminded that education, talent, and charisma have relatively little value in the kingdom. These qualities are indeed helpful to posses, but without the inner dynamic energy of the Spirit of Jesus, they are useless when it comes to doing work with an eternal purpose.” Gordon Macdonald “Questions I’d Ask Before Following Jesus” Discipleship Journal

Do you remember the prophet Samuel looking for a new king to replace Saul? In his mind, he saw brothers with great potential, but God looks somewhere else. The heart. Oh, I would love to have education, talent and charisma – but God desires something else. Passion, commitment and trust. It is through a willing heart, that we can be lead and empowered to carry out God’s will – not our own. Because, when we start to follow our own will – then it’s funny how talent, charisma and education can be our worst enemies.

“Jesus warned His disciples that they would be treated as nobodies; He never said they would be brilliant or marvelous. We all have a lurking desire to be exhibitions for God, to be put, as it were, in His show room. Jesus does not want us to be specimens. He wants us to be so taken up with Him that we never think about ourselves, and the only impression left on others by our life is that Jesus Christ is having unhindered way.” Oswald Chambers, So Send I You

I admit that I have a desire to be placed in God’s showroom. I tend to measure success in the world’s eyes, and not the definitions of success found in the Bible. Because whenever I read Scriptures, the emphasis is on a de-emphasis of self. Paul had to be weak until made strong. It’s not a depressed feeling, that considers myself worthless and unusable by God. It’s a surrender to God’s will and purpose – no matter what circumstances may surround me. Basically, it’s taking off those clothes soiled by self and putting on the robe of Christ. Upon doing so, we shake our heads in disbelief asking, “Why was I keeping those stinking clothes on?” Walking in the Spirit is shedding those clothes, taking a bath, and steeping out renewed and refreshed.

To answer this question, we must begin by asking, “What is the main point of the Bible?” Jesus says, “The Scriptures testify concerning me.” The central message of the Bible is that Jesus Christ is that person in whom God is fully revealed. Jesus says, “If you see me, you see the Father.” For this reason, we must take the whole Bible seriously, because Jesus Christ took the entire Bible so seriously. He always referred to the Scriptures as facts, not myths or legends. Faith becomes the new pair of glasses for which we can accept and clearly see the whole Bible to be true. Without these glasses, the message and the stories of the Bible become out of focus and unclear, therefore difficult to grasp.

I would agree that the Bible contains many miracles that simply cannot be explained to satisfy human reason. In the Old Testament, we read about snakes talking in the garden, a giant fish swallowing a man and the dividing of a great sea. By struggling with the truthfulness of these miraculous stories, we allow the elements behind the story to interfere with the central message. With Adam and Eve, the point of the story is not that a snake talks. The point is that Eve fell for a lie about who God was in her life. She thought she could improve herself by doing something. As a result, she no longer became what God intended her to be. God’s grace was not enough. This story is very important because it reveals the existence and the essence of sin.

The Bible is not about believing in miraculous stories. The dominant theme of the Bible is our problem of sin. Sin works as a blind spot in our lives. The Bible has a way of pointing to an area in our lives to which we are not looking. The Bible reveals our weaknesses and innermost needs that we have effectively kept hidden. As a result, we get embarrassed or defensive, because we don’t like to admit we are wrong or lost. When we begin to understand sin, we start to grasp the radical message of faith found in the gospel.

Jesus Christ came to erase sin. God desires to re-establish a relationship with his creation through the life, death and resurrection of his Son. Through Christ’s death, believers have new life. All the miracles in the Bible point to this one central truth. So, our problems with the Bible can cloud our understanding about what the Bible is supposed to be. Be patient with the perplexing parts of this God-inspired book and open yourself up to its transforming power. It is the words of the Bible that will lead you into a relationship with the Savior.

This post relied on the book, “Letters from a Skeptic” by Greg Boyd. For more information, check out www.gregboyd.org.

A MacArthur Foundation survey found that large majorities of Americans say they’re religious and think spirituality is important, but that doesn’t translate into commitment to a single religion or house of worship. A USA Today article reported that more than seven out of 10 Americans surveyed said they are religious and consider spirituality to be an important part of their lives. However, about half attend religious services less than once a month or never. The findings also suggest that people are equally divided on whether it is best to explore different teachings or to follow one faith.

“Spirituality in the U.S. is a mile wide and an inch deep,” said David Kinnaman of the Barna Research Group. There is an all-time high in interest in spirituality, he said. “But people are beginning to develop a hybrid personal faith that integrates different perspectives from different religions that may even be contradictory. . . That doesn’t bother them.”

The lack of loyalty is found in other new research that shows about 40 to 45 percent of those attending Protestant churches on a given Sunday were raised in that denomination, said Nancy Ammerman, a sociologist at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut.

Cultural anthropologist Elizabeth Bird said a “pressure to declare a belief” may account for the high percentages of people who declare that they are religious.

My generation of those between 45-55 belongs to a cultural group that declares an attachment to a particular religious group, but don’t take it too seriously. This is largely due to the pressure of not what society, places upon them, but the pressure placed on them from parents. Church membership is more of a loyalty than a heart issue. And now a new generation is coming up which do not feel the pressure from grandparents to remain loyal to a religious group or denomination. They are saying, “forget this!” and are either staying home or finding their own means of spirituality. In other words, they are being honest. And after growing up homes where there has been a lack of honesty in regards to religion – whereupon actions are not backing up words – who can blame them?

I think this proves that tradition is not a lasting when it comes to spirituality. For those who look upon religion and attend a church as a safety-net, meaning that if I go to church and appear religious and respectful to God, then I have a much better chance of going to heaven if I stay home. This no longer translates into the next generation where they are questioning beliefs, traditions and social norms. They want answers and are not afraid to ask questions, even if it appears disrespectful or anti-authority. And the question I pose for Christians is, “Are you prepared to give an answer? Are you backing up your answers with real living that consistently pattern of what is being taught in church?” We have run out of excuses and as a result, we live in a society where the salt of biblical truth is losing its saltiness. And like it says in the Bible, un-salty Christianity is no longer good for anything and is tossed along the side of the road.

We are entering into a new age where only the courageous Christians can dwell. Who is willing to stand up for what orthodox biblical Christianity – not only in words, but also in actions? In a climate of competing truths, who has the courage to stand up and state what is absolute? As the clouds of the gospel truth begin to drift away from North America, I wonder what history will record in the next twenty years?