“i believe there’s not unity because most christians don’t wake up in the morning thinking to themselves that god actually has something for them to do that day. instead, most christians wake up and think to themselves,
‘i have some things i would like to do today. and i’m going to pray that god helps me. ‘
and so suddenly god becomes the means rather than the end. in fact that’s why a lot of people come to church. they think,
‘i would love to have a happy family, and i think church would help me do that and god would help me get there.’
or
‘i would like my friend to be healthy so i will go to church and maybe god will help that person get better.’
so suddenly god is no longer the end. we don’t think,
‘oh wow we get to have god.’
instead it’s ‘no wait. i can have this family and god will help me achieve to get this family.’ “
i was just listening to francis chan’s easter sermon. he alludes to this televsion moment that’s one of the most intense things i’ve ever seen.
how many of us will admit to all of our sins, mistakes and yet still think we’re good? listen to francis’ sermon to hear his whole message. it’s really good stuff! (click on “francis’ sermon” to get the direct link to the podcast on itunes).
anyone who knows me well knows that i’ve developed a man crush on francis chan over the past couple of months. here’s a quote from a sermon he did last december that has been in my mind today.
“do you realize that god loves you and wants restoration in this relationship more than you do? this is something we never really think about. don’t you see from scripture that god loves you more than you love him? the lack of peace that you feel because of the sin in your life. you say ‘man i want to be right with god.’ well guess who wants that even more. god wants that relationship reconciled. so much of my christian life i didn’t think about that, but that is the obvious! of course god loves me more. look at what he did. he’s the one who went after me.”
