Let’s Do Something!
Church folks and Christians in general have the reputation of being mostly talk and not much action. In fact, Jesus’ three primary criticisms of the religious leaders of His day in Matthew 23:1-4 are the ones most folks make of church folks:
- They don’t practice what they preach.
- They burden people down with guilt and rules.
- They don’t do anything to lift burdens off of people.
Now we can have serious issues with those perceptions, but we can’t escape that they are out there in a growing number of people. But while we can’t control what folks think about us, we can control who we are!
So in my Heartlight.org article this week, “Putting My Life Where My Mouth Is,” I challenge each of us to put our faith into action. I especially love the way James puts it: “I will show you my faith by what I do” (James 2:18b).
There are all sorts of ways to serve folks in the name of Jesus. The key is for us to get out there and start doing it. But here are some questions for you to consider and I’d love to get your insight into them.
Why do you think that most non-believers see church goers as hypocrites who lay burdens and guilt trips on people and don’t do much to help those around them who are broken?
Do you think this is a fair assessment?
What can you do to change people’s attitude about Jesus’ followers today?
What is one specific thing your church or small group or group of friends do to help serve the broken in your community?
What is one specific thing you could start doing to help serve those with whom you work, go to school, or meet in daily life?
What are things that Christ followers you know are doing today to serve the community around them? (This is to help share ideas with other believers of things we can do to help today!)
Why do you think that most non-believers see church goers as hypocrites who lay burdens and guilt trips on people and don’t do much to help those around them who are broken? Because they are… They aren’t doing what the words say and they are deceived, and it’s not just unbeliever who think that…
Fair assesment? Yes
What can you do to change people’s attitude about Jesus’ followers today? 11 chronicles 7:14 if my people who are called by My name will humble themselves and and pray and turn from their wicked ways , then I will hear from Heaven and heal their land.
repent and read the word, pray and do what it says, be a light to others,
( after you go to Him and get right with Him so others can see His light in you )
come along side of them and lift their burdens whatever it it, help them instead of passing judgement on where they are in their walk , pray, help , do, speak the word into them …
1 specific thing, Pray
then do what the word says .
help them, be Jesus to them , love them right where they are incourage earn the right to speak the word into them by serving them …
get together and pray for them , ask God what He wants you to do for people He has in your life and do it, go out and help serve, and do it for Him and for His Glory, read the Word and do it so you arent deceived yourself.. Abide in Him because with out Him we can’t do a thing for Him…
get together with a few believers, read the word, pray them do…
i also get on a prayer conference line and pray with others for needs, problems, just encouraging and staying accountable with other believers, helps to stay strong in HIM.. we can’t do it alone as long as we gather with a few even 2 or 3 He is there with us, we need the others in the Body, their gift encourage us our gift encourage them… He is looking for those who will worship in spirit and in truth!!!
above all else sit at His feet and learn from HIM, then go out and serve Him, if you dont love the brother who you can see how can you say you love God…
Forgive all who have hurt you so He will forgive you … even is you need to forgive yourself just do it, so you can walk with Him openely daily…
Jo-Ann Dunham
23 Feb 09 at 7:31 am
As a person who was formerly *very Christian* and left the church and remained Christian for a while, then dropped it completely, I have to say a few things:
There is no one “Christian” church. The fractures are annoying. A house divided against itself cannot stand. Work out what the “true” version of your faith is then practice it, and agree. This will not be easy or possible – too many people think their brand is the right one. This may be a hurdle too hard to surmount, honestly… but moving on…
The Hypocrisy is *rampant*. I dragged butt to a worship service faithfully every week giving my gifts of music and was annoyed by a worship leader who was very “Hallelujah! Let’s do everything for Jesus! Today’s a great day in The Lord” in my face at 7am… being very humble and transparent about my faults, doing my best… only to find out later that he’d been having an affair for 6 years. Wow. I could name many other discouraging examples.
Speaking of in your face Hallelujah stuff – and this is mostly my cynicism talking – stop being annoying and patronizing. I have a friend who is just … so … danged UPBEAT … that it stops glorifying God and starts being almost ridiculous. Be real. No one is sunshine and lollipops at 6AM in the morning. It seems less like you have joy in the Lord and more like you’re on cocaine.
Stop insisting moral/social conformity from people who are OUTSIDE the church. When you preach to the believers about homosexuality and abortion etc, I’m OK with that. When you start passing laws requiring everyone to act begrudgingly how you act out of faith, it’s tiresome and puts people off. This is particularly annoying in light of the hypocrisy point. I.e. don’t force male-female relationships down the throat of the public through laws when your own marriage is failing and you’re cheating on your spouses etc.
Be active. The lady’s comments before are nice, but seriously – and this will ruffle your feathers probably – stop praying already and just do stuff. Prayer is nice for you – but can we keep it short and get on with the action please? The economy is about to collapse, most of the world is in poverty… stop having rock concerts praising God… it’s gauche. It probably annoys GOD too… $16 for a concert ticket when half of that could have provided water for a village? Eh hem. There’s that bumper sticker (bracelet, t-shirt, every freaking product…) “What would Jesus do?” – it smacks of navel contemplation – I want to see people stop asking and just GO DO WHAT JESUS WOULD DO…
Finally – technically speaking – if you believe that man cannot serve two masters – God and Mammon, then no “Christian” in America is really EVER serving Jesus. Every dollar printed by the Federal Reserve instantly carries debt. I don’t think Christians should force laws that impose their morals on everyone (above), but I DO think Christians should be on the forefront of REALLY SETTING PEOPLE FREE… I.e. REVOLUTION.
I have tons of thoughts on this. Yes, I’ve “fallen away” but I’d like to think I have some credibility because of my history with Church.
Phillip Harrington
23 Feb 09 at 1:07 pm
I have learned (by observing a few good friends in my local church) to run toward people with problems rather than run away from them. In the past 2 weeks, for example, I have:
*Visited a couple in the hospital whose 3-year old boy was run over by a car.
*Called a co-worker who is suffering from deep depression after her husband died unexpectedly.
*Talked to a co-worker who has had surgery recently.
*Offered to help a pregnant teenage girl to get some help from our church’s ministry to new mothers.
*Counseled a co-worker whose 3-month old cousin died of apparent SIDS.
I have made it a practice to contact co-workers who get suspended or fired for alcohol/drug abuse so that I can help them get in touch with our recovery ministry at my local church.
These are just a few ideas that I have used in my life. I suppose the key is to look for people who are having problems and try to help them. It’s a mindset I have picked up from some good Christian friends who are devoted to following Christ.
Terry
24 Feb 09 at 5:06 am
Brother Phil, thank you so much for your work in Christ. I need it. In the course of three years I have lost a Preacher friend (outside of our church) who fell to sin (not my choice to lose him, I still love him) I lost the close friendship I had to my own Pastor (whom I still love) but he chose not to forgive the Preacher, which harmed our relationship, I lost a friend, who my Pastor defended, who committed the same sin as the Preacher… I know, it reads like a soap opera! My point is this, we failed. Not Christ. But unfortunately in our human form, like Mr. Harrington, we get our eyes stuck on the people of Christ not the body of Christ, and certainly not our own service to Christ. I was there. But I hung on!
The Church does often lay undue burdens on it’s people for the sake of the “name over the door”. Program leaders have replaced servants.What I can do, and anybody can do is to humble ourselves to a servants heart and let the Holy Spirit guide us to serving saints and sinners alike.
I’ve been in the “high” status positions of church. To whom much is given, much is expected. I believe that. Every community is different. I believe my prayer should be, “Lord let me see the need, and then hear what the Holy Spirit would have me do about it.
Shari Johnson
24 Feb 09 at 8:13 am
Mr. Harrington is my father. Call me Phil (too)
Phillip Harrington
24 Feb 09 at 12:24 pm
Phil,
This is a two edged sword – people accuse others of hypocrites to hide their own guilt; they also see real hypocrites in the church. Most of our responses revolve around self. I realized this early in life when my husband (who had been coming to worship services with me for 10 years, yet wasn’t a Christian) asked me about hypocrites in the church (he has since made that commitment). I knew he was doing it to keep from making the commitment he knew he needed to make to Christ. The old “I’m as good as they are – so why do I need anything else to please God?” I told him the parable Christ told of the wheat and the weeds (Matthew 13:24-30):
“Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.
“The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’
” ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
” ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ ”
This answers part of the excuse – we will always have hypocrites in the church. Jesus doesn’t want US to decide who is a weed – because we might pluck out a new Christian who has a lot of baggage from his previous life! The second part of that – thinking that “being good” saves us – is a lack of teaching about the grace of God and our own inability to save ourselves.
As far as laying on guilt and burdens, Jesus laid on some pretty heavy guilt. He told us hating and calling our brother “Idiot!” was the precursor to murder; lust the precursor to adultery; jealousy the precursor to stealing, etc. But the Pharisees He spoke of looked condescendingly on those whose lives were a mess; they did not think them worthy of saving.
The one thing we can do – whether our church family is doing so or not – is teach those around us (at work, in school, in the community) that NONE of us is worthy of His love – yet He loves us just the same. HE gives the Spirit that will help us to grow to be what He wants. He makes us able to live a life of righteousness. It is not within ourselves; so “No one can boast.” If we realize our goodness comes from Him and without Him we would be nothing, we should be a great example for Him and lead others to Christ.
Yet we should remember, even Jesus had a Judas; even Jesus’ disciples left Him (some for good) when the teachings got hard (John 6:60-66):
On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”
Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.”
From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.”
The Pharisees fell short because they wanted to please people – and the Romans. If we try to please God and not man, we can (and will) do what is needed – and we will teach others to do the same.
Linda Hoeck
27 Feb 09 at 11:37 am