Derek Webb wrote a song entitled “Wedding Dress” in which he compares Christians who seek fulfillment in things outside of Christ to a person committing adultery.
The first time I heard it, I found the language a tad inappropriate for the church and the metaphors a bit harsh, but the Lord has really been speaking to my heart on this very issue.
I know personally I often wonder why my lifestyle isn’t attracting more lost souls to a saving relationship with the Almighty God - but taking a step back I have realized that when we as God-seeking Christians don’t live our lives in a way that show we are seeking God, the lost see us as hypocrites - and as harsh as it may be, I would have to agree with Webb in stating that this lifestyle we live can be compared to that of a prostitute or an adulterer..
When we claim the love of Christ, yet are not living it out - we are essentially selling a bit of ourselves to the pleasures of the world.
We are described as the bride of Christ, so I wonder why we don’t treat our relationship with Him as we would a marriage? Why don’t we demonstrate the faithfulness we would in an earthly unity with another in our heavenly marriage? Why is it so easy to forsake our first love, and in turn committing adultery in our relationship with God?
In the book of Hosea, God explains to the young prophet that He is going to be married to Gomer, a woman who is going to be unfaithful to him to the point of becoming a sort of street prostitute. Hosea trusts the Lord and ends up having three children, whom God names Jezreel (‘Cast-away’), Loruhamah (‘Not pitied’), and Loammi (‘Not my people.’) Gomer begins prostituting herself, adulterating her marriage with Hosea. She ends up in a bad situation - and Hosea SEEKS AFTER HER. He finds her, and tells the man that he is her husband, taking her and giving her food and taking care of his wife.
This may seem crazy to us, because most of us would not be this faithful. But don’t forget.. “LOVE is patient and it is kind. It is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant. It does not act unbecomingly, does not seek its own and is not provoked. It does not take into account a wrong suffered, and does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”
Even though Gomer was unfaithful, Hosea was. The same with our God. Even when we are unfaithful and adulterate our relationship with Him, He is ever faithful. 2 Timothy 2:13 reminds us, “[Even] if we have no faith, He will still be faithful for He cannot go against what He is.” We can find forgiveness and grace in our ever-faithful God, regardless of how we may tarnish and prostitute ourselves. (Praise God!)
But this thought remains, WHY do we act in such a way in the first place when we have a relationship with such a FAITHFUL and GOOD God, and what are we portraying to the world in such a lifestyle? As I said before, we are described as the bride of Christ, so why we don’t treat our relationship with Him as we would a marriage? Why don’t we demonstrate the faithfulness we would in an earthly unity with another in our heavenly marriage?
I would like to challenge not only myself, but my brothers and sisters, to begin LIVING OUT THE HOPE WE CLAIM WE HAVE and begin LOVING WITH THE LOVE WE EXPERIENCE.
Why is it so easy for us to say we KNOW the Lord is good and we KNOW He is faithful, but then it is so hard for us to trust Him?
Why is it so easy for us to say we LOVE our brothers and sisters, but then at the same time it is so easy to point the finger and harshly criticize and judge them?
Why is it so easy for us to say how much we LOVE our relationship with God and how THANKFUL we are for it, but we rarely TALK about it and SHARE it with those whose souls are dying?
Why is it so easy for us to talk about how we have intimacy with the Lord, but it is a completely different thing to actually honestly and genuinely EXPERIENCE that intimacy?
Why is it so easy for us to say that we find our joy in HIM, but then we go out and get wasted or high to numb the pain, or even worse we compromise our convictions to satisfy our flesh?
It doesn’t make any sense at all, does it? THIS is why our world is dying. THIS is the love we tell them about, but don’t show them. THIS is the Christ they see.
Now please don’t get me wrong. I’m not simply judging or trying to call anyone out. I’m just as guilty as any of you on this. I’m just saying we’ve gotta CHANGE something if we want there to be a DIFFERENCE.
We’ve gotta start really LOVING.
Really HELPING.
Really HURTING.
Really CARING.
Really PRAYING.
Really LIVING out this FAITH we claim.
Because until we do, things won’t change.
The world will still hate the church for the hypocrites.
The people around us will still be hurting.
The lost will still be dying.
Brothers and sisters, we’ve gotta CHANGE our own lives so that we can CHANGE the world..
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