Is the church in America living up to its name? The word “church” comes from the Greek word ecclesia, meaning called out—called out from this world, i.e., culture. In using the word, Jesus defined His followers as nonconformists: “Be not conformed to this world” (Rom. 12:2).
Many people think the Church growth movement and its step-child the Emerging Church are so intent on not wanting to seem peculiar to the world, they are in danger of falling into conformance with it. Recently one pastor explained, “We black out the windows of our auditorium and turn down the lights so un-churched people will feel less culture shock.”
But the Bible is full of non-conformists. From Enoch who walked with God against the tide of his times, to Abraham who left Ur for a nomadic life in the desert, to Moses who refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, to Daniel who rejected royal fare, and to the Disciples who died resisting Jewish tradition. When is the last time you heard a sermon on Paul’s command, “come out from among them, and be separate?” (2 Cor. 6:17). Is it time for a new generation of nonconformists?
“You are a stumbling block to me; you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's” (Matt. 16:23). Those are questionably the most severe words Jesus ever spoke to one of the Disciples. It certainly makes me wonder if I take this warning against earthly interests seriously enough. The difficulty, of course, is that earthly interests don’t seem sinful. On another occasion, Jesus called them the “pleasures of life,” warning that they choke out the Word of God so it cannot bear fruit in your life (Luke 8:14).
The most basic of human needs is nourishment, i.e., food and water. And a vast majority of Earth’s population struggle every day to get enough of it to stay alive. All the while, obesity in the U.S. has become an increasingly large problem (pun intended). According to a recent report, the amount of food Americans eat has been increasing since the 1970s. Why? Simply this: ‘wealthy’ (relatively speaking) Americans eat for comfort, not for nourishment. Comfort eating has always been one of the greatest saboteurs of well-being!
Why? Paul rebuked people “whose god is their appetite” as those who “set their mind on earthly things” (Phil. 3:19). In other words, Paul points out the eating connection between those whose focus is more on earthly than heavenly. The temptation for comfort and pleasure (or burgers, fries, and milkshakes) is the bane of fallen humanity.
The writer of Hebrews calls Esau “profane” (common or earthly) because he “traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal” (12:16). Think about this. Just as eating lost Esau his birthright, so it was eating that lost Adam His. And when Satan tempted Jesus to eat, it was Jesus’ refusal to eat that won back the kingdom! Metaphorically speaking, it isn’t eating, per se, but forfeiting our relationship with God for immediate gratification of comfort and pleasure (or fast food).
In the beginning when God created the world, sparkling with divine energy, bursting with unlimited expansion, He was pleased. On the seventh day, He stopped and looked around at all He had done, and said, “It is good.” And we see that God takes pleasure in His creation, including us: “The Lord is pleased only with those who worship him and trust his love” (Psalm 147:11).
We exist for His glory, purpose, and delight (Acts 17:28; Proverbs 8:30). Bringing enjoyment to God, living for his pleasure, is what we were created for. Eric Liddell, Christian missionary and Olympic athlete said: “I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure.”
Standing in opposition to God’s pleasure are the world's pleasures. But they only last for a moment, and leave us with an emptiness the just makes us want more (Hebrews 11:25). Why are we so easily enticed by such empty pleasures? The simple answer is this: God wants us to find our pleasure in Him, but if we do not, we will look elsewhere. So our pleasure-seeking is really an inherent hunger for God. Living a life that is pleasing to God has its own great reward, not only in time, but for eternity. “In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever” (Psalm 16:11). So let us, like Paul, make it our ambition to discern what is pleasing to the Lord (2 Cor. 5:9; Eph. 5:10) and do it!
