What part of the Christian life do you think is most often overlooked?

General Faith
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When people talk about the Christian life, certain topics come up often: faith, prayer, forgiveness, and love.

Is there an aspect of following Christ that you think deserves more attention than it usually receives?

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The part where one actually lives it.

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Amen!

“Welcome today, come in. Good to see ya.”
Congregation arrives.
“Please stand”
Congregation stands.
“Goodwill to you, goodwill to me, goodwill to all, peace on earth. Amen.” “God be with you.”
Congregation “Also with you.”
“Please be seated.”
“Today I want to talk about the Church’s teachings on Women wearing Pants. In 1860, our great leader, Father Notta Real Person, said Women need to honor their Husbands and God. They shall wear dresses and cover their heads. Men should wear trousers and honor their Wives. So saith the Lord.”
“Please Stand”
Congregation Stands.
“Goodwill to you, goodwill to me, goodwill to all, peace on earth. Amen.” “God be with you.”
Congregation “Also with you.”
Congregation sits.
“I understand that we have gotten away from these traditional teachings of Father Person, and society may see things differently. But we know that God doesn’t care about society. If you follow what the Church says on this matter, you will be just fine. You are all absolved of your Sins. May you have a great week.”
Congregation stands.
“Goodwill to you, goodwill to me, goodwill to all, peace on earth. Amen.” “God be with you.”
Congregation “Also with you.”
Congregation leaves, shaking hands on the way out.

Back to Football, BBQs, Shopping, life in general…Until next week. Is this really Church? Are you really praying for anything? Did you learn God’s purpose and plan for your local church and/or your own life? Was the hungry fed? The lost found? What fruit did that produce? What did you actually do?

Some people do this, and they feel good. “I said my prayers. I went to church. I checked my boxes. I’m good till next week.” Monday comes around, and they are back to cussing out their coworkers, gossiping, backstabbing, and cussing out those other drivers in traffic. Drinking, smoking, and watching things that may not be, uh, beneficial to their spiritual growth.

You cannot fool God. You cannot play a role forever. People may like what they see. They may even cheer you on as you dance in the spotlight for all to see. But in reality, are you actually BEING the spotlight? Are you a child of God? Are you just dancing? Take some time and really think about it. Examine yourself. What fruit are you producing? How are you doing in sharing the Gospel? What have you done for God lately? If you think perhaps you have been liking the spotlight more than being that very light? May I suggest it is time to refocus?
Peter

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Yes I do. There is an aspect of Christianity that is very importany and largely ignored. Not taught about (very much) and ignored by most people if it is brought up in conversation.

The Spiritual life of a Christian.

John 4:23-24

**23 **But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

**24 **God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth…/KJV

Most Christians can’t even tell you what that means. Some Christians even rise up against it if you bring it up. God don’t do that stuff anymore, hey let’s BBQ…

I could go on, but this is ok for now.

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Yes. We follow the One who loves us. It seems so many Christians know this as a head knowledge, but it hasn’t reached their heart. They know it, but don’t experience it. Our experience doesn’t change the facts but it can change our walk. There is such security and joy in knowing you are a loved child of God. It’s the basis of our relationship with Jesus who loves us and we in turn love Him. You can’t give what you don’t possess and a lot of our problems in the church stems from this.
If we knew; truly knew deep down inside how much God loves us, everything would change. Wrapped in the security of His love we could love others knowing that God loves them. Our relationships would reflect His love and we would know His peace.
The Bible has a great deal to say about God’s love for us. It sits on the surface of ourselves and goes no deeper. How often do we think about it and how often do we pursue really knowing it? We get busy pursuing other things.

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The Christian life begins with an ontological transformation. By the sovereign grace of God, we are regenerated, born from above, made alive together with Christ, and made a new creation (John 3:3–8; Ephesians 2:4–5; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Titus 3:5). From that new birth flows the lifelong work of sanctification, whereby the Holy Spirit conforms us to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Philippians 2:12–13).

This transformation is not merely theoretical but practical. Daily, we are called to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Christ (Luke 9:23). We are to put off the old man, be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and put on the new man, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:22–24). We are not merely hearers of the Word, but doers also (James 1:22), diligently obeying the imperatives of our Lord Jesus Christ out of love for Him: “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15).

Ultimately, there are only two kinds of people in this world: those who have been born of God and are being transformed from glory to glory into the likeness of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18), and those who remain in Adam, conformed to this present age and dead in their trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1–3; Romans 12:2). There is no middle ground. Every person is either perishing or being saved, walking in darkness or in the light, remaining in the old creation or living as a new creation in Christ (1 Corinthians 1:18; John 3:18–21; 2 Corinthians 5:17).

Mat 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.
Mat 25:32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
Mat 25:33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.
Mat 25:34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
Mat 25:35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
Mat 25:36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’
Mat 25:37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?
Mat 25:38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?
Mat 25:39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
Mat 25:40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
Mat 25:41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
Mat 25:42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
Mat 25:43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’
Mat 25:44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’
Mat 25:45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’
Mat 25:46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

J.

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Let me quote C S Lewis. This extract comes from his introduction to Athanasius’ On the Incarnation.

  • Every age has its own outlook. It is specially good at seeing certain truths and specially liable to make certain mistakes. We all, therefore, need the books that will correct the characteristic mistakes of our own period. And that means the old books. All contemporary writers share to some extent the contemporary outlook – even those, like myself, who seem most opposed to it. Nothing strikes me more when I read the controversies of past ages than the fact that both sides were usually assuming without question a good deal which we should now absolutely deny. They thought that they were as completely opposed as two sides could be, but in fact they were all the time secretly united – united with each other and against earlier and later ages – by a great mass of common assumptions. We may be sure that the characteristic blindness of the twentieth century – the blindness about which posterity will ask, “But how could they have thought that?” – lies where we have never suspected it, and concerns something about which there is untroubled agreement between Hitler and President Roosevelt or between Mr. H. G. Wells and Karl Barth.

Unless we read the older books, Lewis argued, we will stay stuck in our own age’s fallacies. We are blind to our blind spots.

Future ages will be horrified by:

  • our morbid fascination with fortune-telling (i.e. “prophecy teaching”) and
  • our willingness to render unto Caesar that which is God’s – the children He entrusted to parental care.