Rugged Pursuit
Withdraw to the Wilderness
Comfortable Christianity
Jesus didn’t command us to pursue comfort. Like the early disciples, you will risk your safety, finances, reputation, and more if you choose to give your life to Christ. I can’t tell you it will be comfortable, but I can promise you it’s worth it!
And a scribe came up and said to him,
“Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”
And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”
Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”
And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”
Matthew 8:19-22
Do Good, Be Good, Look Good
Our culture has painted a picture of Christianity that seems to fit a certain narrative. We are made to think that Christianity is a set of guidelines that are to be followed in order to be in the club. Repeat the prayers, recite the scriptures, wave to our neighbors in the subdivision, avoid cussing, and go to church on Sunday. You probably thought becoming a Christian would allow you to keep your hands clean. To stay out of the dirt. Or at least appear to. No trouble would come your way. You might have thought becoming a Christian meant all of your problems would go away, since you are now on “God’s good side.” Do good, be good, look good. That’s all that matters… Or is it?
It’s (probably) not your fault. You may have grown up in church, where you learned to sing happy songs, read nursery rhyme style Bible stories, and played Bible Bingo. You learned that being a Christian meant following the rules and being nice (and not running in church!). You learned your theology from talking vegetables. Your Bible was just something you brought to kid’s club to earn extra points (Maybe you thought you could later cash those points in for a ticket to Heaven or something). Everyone learned how to make killer casseroles and could shoot a mean game of horseshoes at the annual church picnic. Each person tossed a wadded up $5 bill in the collection plate as it passed. These were the attributes of a good, normal church-goer.
Or, maybe you didn’t grow up in church. You might have formed your opinion of Christians from television and movies. You thought a Christian was a dorky, khaki wearing guy with a receding hairline who only opened his mouth to pray for the food or to make cheesy remarks that were on the same cringe-worthiness level as “Dad jokes.”
As you approached middle age, you may have thought it was time to settle down, join a church, and switch your gears into coast mode. The other church-goers you saw around you were upper middle-class folks with nice houses and a few cars. They seemed to have it all together and were living squeaky clean, comfortable lives. The problem is that Christianity was never intended to be comfortable and these characteristics don’t really match up to what the Bible says about being a follower of Christ.
Count the Cost
“Comfortable Christianity” is an oxymoron. Jesus never commanded us to get comfortable. In fact, He often warned His followers that they were going to be giving up a lot by following Him. Like the early disciples, you will risk your safety, your finances, your reputation, and more if you choose to give your life to Christ.
And a scribe came up and said to him,
“Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”
And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”
Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”
And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”
Matthew 8: 19-22
Choosing to follow Christ is a big commitment. One doesn’t become a Christian so they can fall into some sort of safety net that shields them from the world. You will still have problems, you will still have worries, and you will still have obstacles. You may even notice that some things get harder once you become a Christian. All of the sudden you find yourself faced with criticism from friends, coworkers, and family who don’t understand your new outlook on life. You will also come up against new spiritual opposition because choosing to devote your life to serving Jesus now makes you a worthwhile threat to the Enemy.
Here’s the Good News
You may be thinking “Why would I want to sign up for that? It sounds like a lot of hard work and problems”. It does take strength to overcome the world’s standards and live for God, but thankfully you won’t be doing it alone. John 16:33 says
“…In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33
I realize accepting discomfort may go against everything you thought about living a Christian life. Maybe you became a Christian thinking life would get easier, and in many ways, it will! It may not always seem like it, but living for Christ actually will make life better! Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Matthew 11:28-30
After what we have just discussed, you might not think that living for Christ is an “easy yoke” or a “light burden” but bear with me. Consider the following excerpt from the “Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown’s Commentary on the Whole Bible.” It says this in reference to the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11-32:
“Thus God, when His service no longer appears a perfect freedom, and when man promises himself something far better elsewhere, allows man to make the trial. And he shall discover, if need be by saddest proof, that to depart from Him is not to put off the yoke, but only to exchange a light yoke for a heavy one, and one gracious Master for a thousand imperious tyrants and lords.”
-Jamieson, Faussett, and Brown’s Commentary on the Whole Bible, Zondervan, 1999
(no longer in print)
We can choose, as the prodigal son did, to turn from God and indulge in a worldly lifestyle instead. If we feel we can do better for ourselves than God can do for us, we have the freedom to walk away and try. Unfortunately, what we eventually learn the hard way is that God’s yoke really was the light one, and it kept us on track and guided us where we needed to go. The heavy yoke of our selfish decisions weighs on us and compounds with burden after burden until we buckle under the pressure of the world.
As a Christian, you have direct communication with the Lord of all things through prayer! You have the Holy Spirit to guide you! You have the Wonderful Counselor to aid in your decisions! Most of all, you have eternal security and peace of mind knowing you will spend eternity with your Creator! But while we live on this earth, we will come against resistance due to the fact that we live in a fallen world full of sin. This battle is temporary and, through the power of Christ, we will stand our ground.
“I have set the Lord continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”
Psalms 16:8 NASB
Our main concern in life is no longer our comfort or convenience. Our careers and our finances no longer take precedence. We are not in it for the luxury. We are not in it for the glory. And we are definitely not in it for the money.* Now our highest goal is to give glory to God and to further His kingdom, no matter what it costs us.
Here are some self-evaluation questions to ponder:
- Am I clinging to comfort and ease as the main benefit of being a Christian?
- Am I willing to speak up for the teachings of Jesus, even when others disagree?
- What things am I placing at a higher priority than my relationship with God?
- What is one way I will step out of my comfort zone to impact the Kingdom of God?
Are you willing to trade in the recliner for some work boots? Are you ready to step out of the A/C and into the trenches? Suit up and stand firm, because things could get messy. Being a Christian isn’t about being a body in a pew. It is about being a soldier in the battle between good and evil. Are you ready to fight?
7.13.18
*Click the link below to learn about the dangers of the Prosperity Gospel:
What’s So Dangerous About the Prosperity Gospel?
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