Growing Smaller?

I just wanted to comment on an article posted by christianpost.com in response to Ricky Gervais' harsh critique of Christians today.  To be honest, I agreed completely with the things that Dr. Johnson had said in response to Gervais.  I don't think he was saluting the actor for his criticism towards the church but I appreciated his humility in responding to the critiques and encouraging Christ followers to reexamine our ways and improve in how we can better love God and others.  If you haven't read the article, the link is provided below...but in a nut shell Gervais was critiquing how Christians do a horrible job at following the teachings of Jesus compared to many  non-believers.  I found it interesting that Gervais (like Gandhi) doesn't have a problem with Jesus but his beef is with the followers of Jesus.  If that is what the world sees in Christians today, our first response shouldn't be towards pointing fingers on whose right, whose wrong, and who messed up. I think it's a wake up call for the whole church (including yes, you and me) to repent. We need to repent not towards the world but to God...and ask that He forgives us for the ways in which we have misrepresented His wonderful Son.  We are all ONE BODY and we are ALL responsible for the shortcomings of the whole.  

With than being said, even from an atheist perspective, there seems to be something that is intriguing about Jesus.  My only sadness is that those who are/were curious about Jesus had been hurt or disappointed when they looked to His followers and got something far short of their expectation.  I know the church's typical excuse has been, "we fall short and we need Christ to help us be who we need to be." Although I completely agree with that saying (for if I were to disagree, I would be disagreeing with Romans), but I can't help but think that's a sorry excuse that the church has thrown to justify how we can continue to live as we are and resist change.  I don't know how many Christians (myself included) have really contemplated and grieved over our brokenness and genuinely sought out after Christ to save us and keep saving us.  If I really did consider myself broken and falling short, shouldn't I daily come to God in repentance and lift prayers that He would continually change me to better resemble His Son? God is love and we are not God, so in order to find/gain love, we need to go to God for that love. Christians (just like everyone else) cannot love just based on the knowledge of Christ and our will to become like Him.  Sadly this has become the reality of the church and we believe that the things we knew or "think we knew" of Christ should change us and make us into better people. I, like many of my fellow brothers and sisters, had been disappointed when that was not the case and I was even tempted to leave because I did not want to live my life in contradiction.  By the grace of God however, I managed to hang on to learn that maybe that wasn't the case.

I think love comes from our continual communion with God.  It grows when we are growing in our closeness to God.  While I commend so many of my fellow believers who fight for justice and defend the weak(and they are doing far more than I will ever do), we must be careful not to substitute that for God.  Doing community service, serving at a church, or even starting a non-profit organization cannot make you into a more loving person--even if it was first started in the name of Christ.  I mean, our inner character is one that needs change! We need to ask ourselves, how am I treating the people God has placed in my life?  How do I treat that barista who messes up on my latte? How do I treat the customer who yells at me for something that isn't my fault?  How do I respond to the dude who cuts me off in the freeway or leaves a dent in my car?  And the list goes on and on...and then it become daunting on how we ought to love others in this world.  I believe we become a loving people when we continually know love.  Love is none other than God manifested through His Son Jesus Christ.  We need to be constantly and intimately commune with that Son.  We need to keep growing closer to Jesus because if we stop growing in Christ, we stop loving like Christ.

With that being said, I wanted to come back to the article with Gervais.  I think this article does more than pick at the flaws of Christianity, but provides a message of hope.  It tells us that this world wants to see MORE JESUS!  Yes even atheists, like Gervais, are curious about Jesus and despite their bitter complaints, I wonder if even complaints stem from a desperate longing to see light break through in a world of darkness.  The Good News is that God calls us bearers of that light; so we need to go to Him and ask that He would keep turning on that light that is within us.  We need to ask Him to give us instructions and a blueprint on how to use and where to use that light so it would be most effective.

I think this article is only a small reflection of how the world is screaming out for more Jesus and less Clara's (or you fill in the blank) to be illuminated in the world.  Yes, I realize that there needs to be less of me so there would be more of HIM out there. There is joy knowing that every time I get smaller, Jesus' presence and goodness is getting bigger.  So that will be my prayer tonight...and hope will be the prayer for the rest of my nights...that God would grow me smaller.

http://www.christianpost.com/news/atheist-ricky-gervais-a-better-christian-than-christians-49856/