Dross on Fire

Our Spiritual Poverty Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13–16 NIV) The condition of the Laodicean church mirrors the ambivalent state of the church in America today (Revelation 3:14–17). Those who have not developed spiritual ears to hear or eyes to see do not realize we are spiritually desolate, poor, blind and naked (Revelation 3:17). God desires to reveal our condition to us so we will repent and turn back to him, because he loves us and wants us with him (Luke 12:32). The harshness of his admonition is not for our rejection, but for our salvation and deliverance, to restore us to a right relationship with Jesus as head of his church and Lord of our lives (Colossians 1:18). Churches large and small in America appear to have everything prosperity and democracy can afford us: the right to meet openly, comfortable buildings with heat and air conditioning, and musical bands with media equipment to support powerful worship. Congregations are rich enough to send funds and missionaries to countries that we suppose lack our assumed superior spirituality. Many churchgoers possess an overflow of unwanted food and clothing to share with others. Our pulpit preachers receive education in Christian doctrine, and we can access Internet technology that supplies us with a constant stream of Christian discipleship trainings, prophecies, and Bible study tools. On the surface, it looks like churches in America are fulfilling God’s expectations expressed in the Scripture, such as ministering to the poor, orphans and widows; offering programs in prisons; advocating justice for the disenfranchised; showing love for the addicted, homeless, and sexually trafficked; and supporting worldwide missions and evangelism. These acts of service are important. In fact, Jesus stated that disciples who feed the hungry, welcome strangers, clothe the naked, visit the sick, and help those in prison are blessed by our heavenly Father and will inherit the kingdom of God because those actions toward others are like ministering to him (Matthew 25:34–40). So, what is it that we lack? When a woman poured expensive perfume on Jesus, his disciples chided her for squandering money that could have been used to help the poor (Matthew 26:6–9). Jesus stated, “The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial” (Matthew 26:11–12 NIV). The woman acted out a love for Jesus that prophetically supported his mission and ministered to his personal needs. She showed a depth of gratitude toward Jesus that resulted in a public demonstration of unabashed worship. Her surrender to God ignored her own need for social acceptance and stopped at nothing to put Jesus first in her life. She illustrated what it meant to give everything she had for him, to spare no expense for him, and to ignore the criticism, judgment, and rejection of others in order to follow him. This yearning to support the aims of Jesus rather than focusing on our own needs is sadly absent from American churches. We have lost our intense fervor for God’s glory and assume he exists only to please and prosper us. We are deceived if we think we are fulfilling God’s will solely by participating in church activities. Many believers do not realize that we are missing out on an intimate life with Jesus, which we can only experience through holiness (Hebrews 12:14). We twist scripture verses and create theological excuses to convince ourselves God approves of us without committing to a changed lifestyle. We believe rightly that our holiness comes by justification through the sacrifice of Jesus, but we embrace our righteousness in name only. Our doctrines of grace have fooled us into believing we can live lukewarm lives without sacrifice, and that God will generously look the other way and forgive our ongoing sin without consequences. Yet Jesus stated that to remain close to him, we must obey his commands (John 15:10). When we do not discern the seriousness of our sin and repent, we deny the Lord who died to save us (1 John 1:8–10). If we truly want end-time revival, we must listen to the truth about ourselves and strip away our spiritual blindness to see our real condition—not our theologically justified position—as God sees us. Some Christians may be offended at the suggestion that we need ongoing repentance and obedience to remain close to God, or argue that this concept is doctrinally incorrect. However, we must align ourselves with the multiple scriptures that expand our understanding of positional righteousness to include an expectation of behavioral transformation demonstrated in a life of holiness here on earth (Romans 6:12–23; Colossians 1:9–14; 1 Thessalonians 4:1–8).