I just read a great post over at ModernEkklesia.com about Missions. Pastor Rodlie Ortiz makes a great point about how sharing Jesus isn’t about something we are forced to do but something that should come out of our love of Jesus. As Ortiz quoted Lesslie Newbigin, in his book The Gospel In A Pluralist Society,
If one looks at the New Testament evidence one gets another impression. Mission begins with a kind of explosion of joy. The news that the rejected and crucified Jesus is alive is something that cannot possibly be suppressed. It must be told. Who could be silent about such a fact?
Do you love Jesus?
It is easy to say we love Jesus. We can easily roll off our tongue through word and song but do we really mean it? I mean, many an adulterous husband tells his wife that he loves her both before and after he was intimate with another woman. Most of us can recognize that his words ring hollow. What about ourselves? Do we love God with ALL our heart? Is He really the love of our life? Do we want to be with him more than anyone else including our spouse? Would we DIE for him?
Talk is cheap. Anyone can say they love Jesus just like anyone can say they love their spouse, their family, their children or their dog. It’s ultimately your actions that will prove it. Jesus stated in Matthew 7:16-20
“You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.”
What kind of fruit do you produce? Are you going to church because you are forced? Are you praying because your parents always told you that you had to? Do you sing in church simply because you would stand out if you didn’t or because it is expected of you?
Are you forcing yourself to obey Him?
Anyone who has been in any kind of long term relationship can tell you that there are times when you will do something not because you feel like it but because you know that it means a lot to your loved one. A case in point for most men is shopping at the mall with their wives. A typical mall features many men sitting on benches in the mall in front of the store their wife is currently shopping in. Does your average man enjoy shopping? No way. Do why do they do it? Because most men recognize that their wives enjoy it.
This sometimes happens in our relationship with Jesus too. God often asks difficult things from his followers. It isn’t always easy to obey God. Sometimes it can even be downright lethal. Here’s the thing though. If the majority of our relationship with God is defined by things we don’t like, we don’t have a very good relationship. No relationship can last if only one person is into it. It has to be a two way street.
Relationships need to be cultivated in order to last. It takes work. Sometimes hard work. It takes reality checks. It sometimes takes a commitment check. If you love the other person though you push through the pain. The result is a deeper level of love and commitment.
How’s your commitment?
Are you committed to Jesus? Do you want to be with Him in eternity? Do you love to spend time with him every day? Can others tell you are in love with Him? Do you love really love Jesus? Prove it.