Church Values: Authentic Relationships

For anyone who has been on a first date empathy can be felt with this story.  I can remember the first date I had with my wife.  For some reason I felt the very large need to impress.  After all, I didn’t want her running away from me screaming, never wanting to see my face again.  So, throughout the date I asked her questions such as, “What’s your favorite color?” and “What music do you like to listen to?”  Later on in the date I drove her into the country to watch the sun set.  While the sun was going down I broke out the sparkling grape juice and asked her to dance with me to the music we had playing.  She said no, which wasn’t a good sign of things.

 

On the surface these types of things seem innocent enough because I was just trying to get to know her and her me.  But the problem was that I was trying to get to know this beautiful girl by scratching the surface.  And what seemed to me a way to impress her only scared her to death.  I barely knew her and I was asking her to dance.  Thankfully I learned my lesson and over the next number of months we began to get to know each other in a deeper way that wasn’t forced.

 

In my attempt to impress I lost sight of who I really was.  And one reason I was reluctant to be authentic with my future wife was that I was scared that if she saw who I really was she would never come around me again.  The mask I wore was not me.  It was what I wanted her to see.  And it certainly was not authentic.

 

We all desire authentic relationships, but what do these types of relationships look like and how do they come about?  Do we wear a “mask” with the intention of hiding our true selves?  It is our desire as God’s people to be a church that has authentic relationships with others so that disciples of Christ will be made.

 

Join us this week as we explore what God’s Word has to say about authentic relationships as a disciple of Jesus Christ.  May the Spirit reveal His truth to us and may we have the courage to be authentic to one another as His people so the glory of God can be seen by others.

 

By the way, after my wife and I were married it was normal for us to go out to watch the sun set and the stars come out while drinking sparkling grape juice.  And we have danced many times since.

The Mark of Genuine Christianity

I want you to look at the title of this Friday Preview again.  It is more than a statement.  It holds deep meaning and raises many questions.  How can one define genuine Christianity?  Who am I to say that someone is or is not a genuine Christian?  Only God can see the heart of an individual so who are we to tell someone that they are or are not a Christian?  What is a genuine Christian?  What is the mark of genuine Christianity?  If someone does not have this mark does that mean they are not a Christian?

We all know individuals who believe they are Christians because they attend church services, Wednesday night ministries, youth group, Bible studies, walked forward during an evangelistic service, read the “Sinner’s Prayer,” or were baptized.  In fact, if statistics on the church in America are correct there is at this moment someone reading this Friday Preview who personifies this point of view.  But are these the marks of genuine Christianity or is there something deeper?

We cannot rely upon ourselves to answer these questions for our own desires, influences, preferences, and feeling tend to skew our point of view.  But there is a place with great authority that addresses this issue of authentic faith: God’s Word.  James 1:21-27 speaks with clarity on the mark of genuine Christianity by defining the believer as humble, a doer of the Word, and lives out true religion.  These three actions point us in a single direction.

May God’s Word speak volumes into our hearts and minds this week as we explore together God’s mark of genuine Christianity.  Our God is great and full of wisdom.  Let us ask him to teach us and have the courage to live out genuine Christian faith.

Reflecting the True Gospel of Christ

Philippians 3:18-19 (ESV) ¹⁸ For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹ Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.

What does it mean to be an imitator of Christ?  Does it mean perfection or holiness or just doing the best you can?  These questions are not new to me.  From the moment I began to truly live for Christ I have begun to see those areas in my life that are far from imitating Christ.

In Philippians 3:18-19 Paul is encouraging the believers in Philippi to imitate Christ, not the world.  If we were to look deeply into the hearts of those who profess to be believers in Jesus Christ today we would inevitably find some who use the gospel to justify their own sin.  Most predominantly we see this in those who glory in the shame of homosexuality, premarital sex, and other behavior.  Paul encourages us to imitate Christ, not those who pervert the gospel for their own means.

But while it is easy to see the perversion of the gospel in the behavior of others it may be just as easy to see that same perversion in my own life.  Though I do not condone homosexuality do I condone another behavior which does not glorify God?  How do I fight against my propensity for sin?  What type of influence is the gospel revealed by my life having on those who witness my life?  Is what is revealed by my life the true gospel?

The daily devotional TableTalk speaks today on imitating Christ as an encouragement to other believers.

In addition to preaching the true gospel, we must live in a manner shaped by the gospel. As we live in holiness, imitating others who imitate Christ, those whom God is calling to Himself will see the genuineness of our gospel and follow the authentic Jesus (Matt. 5:15-16).

May our lives reflect the authentic Jesus.