Stinking to high Heaven?

Stinking to high Heaven?

Francis Chan, author and pastor, is quoted as saying that one of the reasons he stepped away from pastoral ministry is that his constant emphasis on applied Christianity was ‘bugging some people.’  In short, his failure to compromise Christ’s claim to be both Lord and Savior became an irritant to some.  Can I stand up and cheer now? Chan is a gracious, thoughtful man who offends only by being truthful and faithful to the Gospel. I could only hope that part of my legacy would be that I provoked people to consider the claims of Christ on their lives.

By and large, American Christianity is a weak brew steeped to meet the tastes of the masses. Strong flavors of holiness are heavily sugared by promises of divine favor, by insistence that God is willing to overlook our self-love and careful preservation of our ‘rights’ if only we will ‘let Jesus come into our heart.’  The invitation to discipleship is replaced with coffee and donuts in the church’s café. We make much of ‘life to the full’ that Jesus promised while all but ignoring the fact that He said the route to that life runs straight through death to Self and requires that we carry our cross.  Yes, such preaching ‘bugs’ people and bugged people leave our churches; and empty pews don’t pay mortgages or salaries.  So, bring on the culturally sensitive spiritual talks and forget the sermons that point to His Lordship, to godliness, and to true intimacy with Christ.

Imagine Paul conducting a seminar on church growth and explaining how to present the call of Christ in a way that does not offend.  To any real student of the Scripture that is unimaginable.  Read the challenge he was inspired to send to the Corinthians (and to us). "We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead." (2 Corinthians 1:8-9, NIV)  Let me rephrase his words:  “God allowed us to walk a path that led to great pressure. It squeezed us nearly to death, and in the process, released a beautiful fragrance from our lives.”

And, what of that smell?   "For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God." (2 Corinthians 2:15-17, NIV)   To some it stunk like a dead corpse; to others it was like a spring-time morning!  What is he saying?  In fact, he says that real Christians will sometimes be offensive! Spirit-filled Christians will polarize people. They will be so full of God that just their presence will provoke a reaction.  Not very culturally friendly, is he?

Before we run off to to see how many people we can bug, let’s be clear that the Bible is not suggesting that Christians must become socially inept, deliberately offensive, rude people in the Name of Christ.  At a funeral at which I spoke recently I gave those gathered the opportunity to stand and share a memory about the deceased. One man felt it was his holy duty to stand up and remind people of the necessity of being ‘born again, covered by the blood of Jesus Christ, so they would go to Heaven.’ He went on to point out that Hell awaited those who refused.  Did he speak truthfully? Yes. Was his presentation wisely timed or graciously presented? No.  He bugged people, for sure, but not in the sense of which the Word speaks. 

He became the issue not Christ Jesus, our Lord. If people take more not of you or me than they do of Jesus at work in us, then something is amiss in our discipleship.  If our message is provocative, let it be for who we are, not just for what we say.  It’s easy, a cheap shot if you will, to throw bombs of condemnation at others.  When we are walking in step with the Spirit, He will create a gentle demeanor and cause our lives to have such rich flavors that those who are rebelling against God will avoid us simple because of the conviction of heart that they feel when they are around us.

Here’s a word from the Word. I pray that the truth provokes us today to consider whether we are reeking of the fragrance of Christ in our world. "For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body." (2 Corinthians 4:6-10, NIV)

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Let Your Glory Fall

Father of creation,

Unfold Your sov'reign plan.

Raise up a chosen generation

That will march through the land.

All of creation is longing

For Your unveiling of pow'r.

Would You release Your anointing?

Oh God, let this be the hour!

Let Your glory fall

In this room.

Let it go forth from here

To the nations.

Let Your fragrance rest

In this place,

As we gather to seek Your face.

Ruler of the nations,

The world has yet to see,

The full release of Your promise

The church in victory.

Turn to us, Lord, and touch us

Make us strong in Your might.

Overcome our weakness

That we could stand up and fight.

Let Your kingdom come!

Let Your will be done!

Let us see on earth,

The glory of Your Son!

David Ruis

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