No one is perfect. How dare you judge me! Those two statements are common place in the church today.
We live very worldly lives, then manage to drag ourselves into Sunday morning service thinking that God will see that we are trying to do better. When service ends, we head back out into the world for all the fun and games it provides. We did our part, now God has to bless.
In those line of thoughts, the church fails on a major level.
We are failing those in need because they don’t look as good as we do. We judge those who might have a loose tongue and don’t know any better. We don’t friend them because, we are so much better than they are.
We are failing because there are great needs in the church and we do nothing about it. Our attitude is, “Well, it’s God’s church, let him take care of it. After all, he owns cattle on a thousand hills. Let him sell one and be done with it.”
We want God to do it all while we sit back and get the rewards.
That is not how we are to live.
Jesus told us in John 13:34, 35 (KJV): A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another, as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
Face it, the church today doesn’t love one another in deed, but words only.
This is where those first two statements come in. We don’t want to be judged by what we do, but the fact is, we don’t love one another.
Okay, answer this. A family comes into your church. They have lost their job, they are one payment away from losing everything. What are you going to do?
You are going to do what just about everyone else does. “Oh, I’m so sorry about what happened. We will pray for you.”
You walk away never giving them a thought.
How about you give them twenty bucks for gas so they can keep looking for work or better yet, offer to take the kids. Give mom and dad a night out.
But we love our money, don’t we. A stranger comes in off the streets begging for bread. His clothes are dirty, maybe he hasn’t had a shower in weeks. He needs a little help to get back on his feet. We judge him before he sits down. No one talks to him, and we treat him like he is some kind of dealer on the street.
Would you die for that man as Jesus did?
Would it really hurt you to shake his hand, listen to his story and slap a ten spot in his hand?
What if he was a mega pastor asking for millions to build a new building? Oh, we would give to that, you bet. They will send me a prayer rag that they personally prayed over and all my problems will vanish.
We have the Benny Hinn / TBN mentality about giving. What am I going to get in return?
The stranger can’t do anything for you. He doesn’t have a prayer rag or license plate cover to give you. But the look in his eyes of thankfulness and gratitude should be enough, sadly, it’s not.
So what that God told us in his word that we will lay up treasure in heaven. No, we want our reward now.
Isn’t it funny how we will give to the United Way or some other charity not knowing where the money goes or how it’s spent but if your preacher stands up on Sunday morning and says we have a need, well, someone else can do that.
The church is failing because we cannot take care of our own. Ministries from all over the world are begging and pleading for help but very little comes in. It’s always someone else’s problem.
In the book of Hebrews, we find a great verse that if we put it into practice, it would change the world. Hebrews 13:3 (KJV): Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them, and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.
Think of that homeless man coming into your church. Would you be bound with him?
What about a need a Christian brother has, would you be bound with him?
If we would stop looking at what we have as ours, rather, it belongs to God in the first place, and then we could meet the needs of those who need it.
We are a very selfish church. We don’t trust God with our money, and we don’t love one another. Heaven forbid we become bound with them.
We are the church of, “Look the other way.” In the process of looking the other way, we do not receive the blessings of God.
In the book of Acts, the church sold everything they had to help the poor. It’s time we take that attitude again. These are hard times, we need to be a blessing to those who are in need.
Jesus told us in John 15:13, Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
You see the needs around you. Pray and see what God would have you do, then do it. Is five or ten bucks really that much to ask for? God can take that small gift and change the world with it.
The church is a failing institution. Let’s get back to the old paths of loving one another, standing with one another, being bound to one another.
Let’s be faithful to what God has given us. Our time here is short so let’s do something now to change the world.
People still need to hear the Gospel. Will you help those taking the Gospel around the world? They need you.
But the question is… Can God count on you?
By Troy Koehne
