JULY 27 "MY CHRISTIAN LIFE IS PRIVATE"

     I was looking over my blog stats and to my surprise one of the most read blogs this year was titled "My Christian Life is Private".  And I know, or have experienced over time, that often, the title of the blog is what draws people to read. And I am alarmed that the title "My Christian Life is Private" drew so many readers.  Is this the crowd that I am catering too, I wonder? That TITLE "caught" your eye, didn't it. Unfortunately, as you read the blog it probably ended up being the complete opposite of what you thought. Readers probably thought it would confirm their delusion that their Christian Life was "private".  Instead, the blog was meant to blow that theory apart. I wonder if this title "My Christian Life is Private II" will draw another slew of readers. It discourages me that there are so many Christians out there that are off track, looking to confirm and console themselves in their decision to withdraw and become spiritual recluses. I've heard it all, the mantra goes somewhat like this, "I'd rather just stay home and believe in God than have to deal with all the drama and hypocrites and politics of the church."  Well, was there not drama, hypocrites and politics through out the early church. I find it interesting that the drama (of the church) would even be mentioned in God's Holy Bible, rather than be left out intentionally. However God does the opposite, God doesn't intentionally leave it out, He intentionally puts it in! God chose to put "the drama" of the church in his Holy Book for our sake. The drama and hypocrisy of people in the church is laid bare before us to see, but nowhere does Paul or any other writer, inspired by the Holy Spirit admonish us to just withdraw from the church and become spiritual recluses.

     Your Christian life is not private, if it is private than it is ineffective. Jesus said, "what good is salt if it loses it's flavor but to be thrown out and trampled upon".  A "Private" Christian life is an OXI-MORON.  Jesus' "private" Christian life was at 4:30am in the morning, after that, his life was anything but private. You want your Christian life to be private, than find it in the wee hours of the morning or the late hours of the night, but after that, God says your life belongs to him and if he wants to throw you out amongst the throngs of people, amongst the wolves, than he has the right to do so. (or does he?) So many Christians on the Internet today are Christians who once, wholeheartedly surrendered their lives to Jesus, and than at some point decided to "take their lives back".  Proverbs says, "he who isolates himself, seeks his own desires and rages against all sound judgement".  This is really what is at the heart of  this facade of "the private Christian life". In all reality and honesty, it's simply a guise for "yes I'm a Christian, but  I want to do what I want to do".  "I want to go to church when I feel like it, I want to date who I want, I want to give what I want and if people are going to try to tell me what to do, then I will just serve God by myself," so we say.We say.

      " The Church tries to control me, convict me, the Pastor tries to tell me what to do, the leaders in the church try to tell me what to do, I'm judged if I do this, I'm judged if I do that, I am made to feel guilty if I miss church 2,3,4, or 5 times a month and I don't like it!  I don't want anybody to hold me accountable, I don't want anybody trying to tell me how to live, this is between me and Jesus".   Yes, Preachers can be over opinionated, yes people can try to push their standards on you, but for the most part, God is the one that is guilty of trying to regulate your life, It is normally God's word that is simply being regurgitated right back to you and in the end, it is God's word dictating whom you should date, how much you should give and how faithful you should be to church, not a man. Don't hate the messenger but claim to love the message, that is a delusion. The reality is you hate both.

     Ironically, when you ask this type of  Pseudo Christian, "what is it that JESUS tells you to do, that you don't want to, what is it that Jesus holds you accountable for, that irritates you, what is it that Jesus convicts you of that makes you angry" you will always get a pause and of course after a long pause, the answer is "nothing" or something vague. The reality of the "Private Christian Life" is that not only can the church not infringe upon their "privacy" but in all reality neither can Jesus himself.  Their Jesus thinks like they do, approves what they approve and in the end what they have done is down-graded their God and fashioned him to be a reflection of them. It's a love affair with a Jesus they've created but has no scriptural backing and/or support.  To conclude, a "Private Christian Life" is one of the greatest OXI-MORON's in our modern vernacular.

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