Here’s a Robby Dawkins quote from one of my favorite documentary movies, “Furious Love.” He talks about a vision he had that changed his whole view of how he does “church” and what’s important.
Here’s a portion of what he says.
“He [Jesus] said, “Keep it simple. Love them and let Me change them. And that completely revolutionized how I thought of church, and how I saw evangelism, and everything. And it wasn’t about pointing out to people what they were or were not doing, but what Christ was inviting them to…”Love Me and I’ll change you…Love Me, pursue Me, and I’ll do all the hard stuff…I want you coming to Me.”
This priority has revolutionized and guided my ministry also. I believe we should first connect people to Christ so they can encounter the transforming love of the Father. Then, it’s all about being “in Christ” and living out from that simple reality by faith.
But this modern Christianity we’ve inherited from a Western “enlightenment” paradigm has done something else. The focus is on a myriad of doctrines, being right instead of being intimate, on behavior modification instead of sonship, complicating instead of bringing clarity, and living out of the mind instead of being instructed by the Spirit.
We become intellectually fat but spiritually anemic on this complicated religious diet. And it only turns away the lost and confused world Jesus is trying to save through us.
As Paul told the carnal and earthbound Corinthians, “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” (2 Cor.11:3)
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I LOVE that film. It both fires me up and slays me all at the same time.
Yes, same here. The first time we showed it at our church was when it first came out. It happened to be a night when our youth were meeting with us, and they’re mostly kids with no “church” background. God moved so powerfully on many of them during the film that we ended up ministering for an hour and a half afterward. It was a holy mess. 🙂
“Holy mess”…. one of God’s favorite things. Breaking out of the mold is usually messy. Think childbirth, molting, metamorphis, etc. New life comes forth leaving safe-ness and comfort behind to experience a brand new experience of adventure and wonder. Sounds like God.
Amen. Great comparisons there! Yes, freedom and new birth usually looks messy at first. But the Holy Spirit seems to work just fine in the midst of our perceived chaos. Since it doesn’t seem to bother Him, I’m not going to let it bother me. And it is quite an adventure. 🙂
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Amen! We must show others Christ’s love and then help them walk out their faith. God will transform them from the inside out just like He did for us. Everything begins and ends with God. He is inviting all of us to join Him in what He is already doing in the world. Be blessed today and bless someone else!
Sounds like a good plan to me! I like the idea that we’re simply responding to His invitation and joining in what He’s already doing. Great insight. We’re not asking people to join our church, but to join Him in the BIG family of God. Thanks for stopping by and joining in the conversation. Much appreciated.