Have you ever dated someone who was perfect for you on paper, but you just couldn’t make the relationship work? Logically, they had everything that you were looking for in a spouse, but something was missing? You loved everything about them, but you weren’t in love with them? While it made sense in your head, there just wasn’t any chemistry.
Sometimes in the face of these situations, I would find myself telling others about how perfect the person was for me, but I would do so in the hopes of convincing myself. Deep down I knew that something was terribly wrong, but I thought that if I focused on all the things about him that were right and good, that the lack of attraction would simply go away.
This method never lasted very long, and soon the charade became apparent to everyone around me, including myself. In reality, a relationship that only works on paper is really no relationship at all.
Well I think that has happened to my relationship with God. On paper, it’s all there. I know all the right words to say, I pray, I do ministry, I disciple young women, and if you ask me why I believe the Gospel I can tell you without hesitation.
On paper, everything is perfect.
But all those things are starting to fall flat. This week I’ve been confronted with people who could be ostrasized by their families, or even killed, were they to profess faith in Christ. So when given the opportunity to share the Gospel with them, I’ve found myself hesitating. I have all the right answers to their questions and objections. I know the Scripture and apologetics like the back of my hand. So what is stopping me? One haunting question…
Is it worth it?
Is it worth it for these people to lose their families and friends all for the sake of changing to a better religion? Is it worth risking their lives, just to accept a more holistic worldview? On paper, it all makes sense to me. On paper, Christianity is the most logical understanding of humanity, the world, sin and God. But is having a correct worldview really worth the risk I’m asking them to take?
All week, my instincts have been telling me “no.” No it’s not worth risking all that, just to get someone to pray a prayer and believe the logic behind Christianity. It’s not worth taking their lives into their hands simply because someone presented them with a more compelling argument than that presented by Islam, Budhism, or Hinduism. If all we’re about is proposing the best argument, the best way of life, the most convincing worldview, then I can’t sell that to people who could lose everything because of it.
And that is the mindset that results when we reduce our faith to mere words. Logic and apologetics are all good things, but they are not enough to move mountains, let alone hearts. They may be true, but they lack power.
In 1 Corinthians 2:4 Paul writes, “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.” Without the power of God infusing our hearts and our minds, without authentic and transformational experience of His presence in your life, your relationship with God will be just as exciting as a dating relationship that only works on paper. In your head, it all makes sense, but your heart just isn’t in it.
That is why my heart has been so hesitant to share the Gospel with those for whom it could mean culture alienation. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt the power of God in my life in a real, transformational way, so my words fall flat in the face of real risk. And when I did share the Gospel, I felt just like a girl trying to convince herself that her boyfriend is perfect for her, when deep down her heart just isn’t in it.
As soon as I identified this issue in my heart, I started praying for an experience of God’s mighty power. Being the faithful God that He is, I have felt it in an undeniable way. Nothing huge and earth-shattering, at least not yet, but just enough to remember the power behind the words that I speak. Just enough to remind me that it IS worth the risk. That we don’t merely share the Gospel because it makes the most sense, but because it really is GOOD news. It is life and peace and freedom for all who believe. It is unity with God and everlasting life, a life that begins here and now amidst so much death and darkness.
The Gospel is all of those things, but even saying it now will mean nothing to my heart or yours if my words are not infused with the power of God’s Spirit. And that is only something that God can give. That said, we can never spread the Gospel apart from a total dependence upon God. We may know how to turn a phrase or stage an argument, but if we are not experiencing God’s power then we will never convince others, let alone ourselves.
Are you experiencing God’s power right now? Does it light up your heart and mind, and compel you to go tell the world? If not, pray that it does, because we should never be people of mere words. We should also be people of power.
I would also say that we do not experience the power of God often in our lives because we do not have high expectations of God working in powerful ways. Several times scripture talks about places that Jesus goes but cannot heal because the people there do not have enough faith–they do not EXPECT him to heal. I speak of “expect” in the sense of “waiting for someone to fulfill what you know they are capable of.” These people do not already know that Jesus is capable of this, they want to find out for themselves. But when we come to God knowing that he is capable of unimaginable things, and expect him to accomplish them, God delights in displaying that power. The problem is, everything that we come to God with, God’s response is, “is that it?” Is that all that you think I am capable of? DREAM BIG! When we begin to expect unimaginable things, God will accomplish undeniable acts of his power.
One more thought about the power of God, we must never forget the greatest exhibition of the power of God, the resurrection of Christ and
what that means for us. As we follow the call to die to ourselves everyday, we are reminded that the very reason that we die to ourselves is so that we can experience the resurrected life offered us in Christ. A life no longer sustained by flesh and blood but by the very Spirit of God. You are yourself, the very consequence of the power of God, what does that mean for your life and how you see it?
Hey Sharon,
Man thanks for writing this blog, you are so right! One thing I’ve been telling people lately is the very fact that people change is what has me convinced that Christianity is real and that this whole stuff isn’t just textbook material. From giving up addictions to just being able to admit your wrong… those are powerful testimonies of God being alive and powerful and SO IMPORTANT… important enough to tell the world about him. Your blog reminds me of this almost every time I read it. Thanks for being so honest about how God works in your heart and your life.
🙂
great post sharon:)
blog looks great! I am pumped to read more. thanks for being honest as a person, and thoughtful.