As a member of the choir,
I tire of John 3:16.
It is not the message behind the verse that bothers me
Nor its Author.
However, hearing its use for the 15th million time
Causes my mind to autofill the words
Before the preacher finishes reading.
“For God so loved the world”
That He gave His only begotten Son
“That He gave His only begotten-“
So that whosoever believes in Him may not perish
But have everlasting life.
“So that-“
By the time the mouth reaches “everlasting”
I have had lasting thoughts on football teams…
And other things.
Tuning out the message of the week
While feeling resentment for how weak the church has become
I mean no disrespect
But the fact of it is, Sunday sermons are typically for babies
Feasting on milk for their twenty-third year
In a walk with Christ
How are you still on salvation
And have not progressed to sanctification and application?
Yet, I’m the mean one for acknowledging your stagnation
You cling to the water
Held breaths for .2 seconds in case you drown
When the Lord said you could move mountains!
How many times are we going to ignore the “study”
In favor of “approved”?
You should know that scripture
I won’t be giving you hints
You should know of the Levite’s concubine
You should know about the prophet’s prostitute wife
You should know about the soldier whose hand costed him his life
You should know of Jonathan and the armor-bearer
Did you know God poisoned a people for complaining?
Did you know He prevented pregnancies
Because a man took a prophet’s wife?
Do you know the last recorded sins of Sodom, Gomorrah, and Jericho
Before God enabled their destruction?
Do you know what happened just before He sent the plagues to Egypt?
I do not ask if you know for knowledge’s sake
I ask if you know it can happen again
Think of the unchecked rape
Think of the rampant homosexuality
Remember the babies murdered
How are we not in desperation
Reaching out to God daily for His will on His earth?
Our nations mimic those long dead
By the decree of the Holy One
And we sit here week after week
Speaking of prosperity
God loves you
You are forgiven
You are a child of God
Tell the other side!
God is not only love, He is justice
He doesn’t just bless, but He curses
He doesn’t only promise eternal life
But His last author wrote of a second death
You coddle visitors for their tithes
When you’re supposed to be introducing them to the mighty God!
You sit celebrities in the front of your pews
Or shout them out on social media for views
While the few who maintain the church do not know Bible
They know tradition
How to behave
How to fit in
How to fake concern for the things of God
The more I see western Christianity, the more I detest it
We shout persecution because we cannot berate
We scream bias when we cannot oppress.
We claim poverty when affording more than just needs
I see why the world shouts hypocrisy
We are hypocrites
Imitators of the world and not imitators of Christ
Sounding like the accuser, the serpent, the lying father
Rather than showing grace, being merciful, and remaining in love and truth
Like the Holy Father
Most walk into the church to recharge their ego
“I go to church” is not a badge of honor
But a privilege of mercy
A commandment from the Holy Spirit
Going to church is not to catch up on gossip
But to gather together for declaration
Going to church puts you no closer to the judge’s seat
Than being an atheist
There is only one Judge
We all have evidence to answer for
And that is why I am filled with such sorrow…
We cling to poverty when God ordained kings
We turn cowardice when God created soldiers
We remain isolated when God commanded evangelism
We hold onto passivity when God demands boldness!
I’m tired!
Tired of the last miracle we talk about being loaves of bread and fish.
Tired of demons remaining unchecked from the minute they opened their mouth
Sick of priests abusing and raping youthful congregants
Sick of thieves preaching pep talk over Gospel
Be mad all you want about the mockery and laughter
We have made the church a running joke
How do we have beef between churches
Who believe in the same God?
Why are we sowing discord when we know
Blessed are the peacemakers?
Why are we hating the people who sin
Rather than the sin by itself?
Whole city full of churches and yet there is no revival
A church on every street, yet the widows and orphans are abandoned
Too many want to play police rather than be doctors
Too many show favor rather than unconditional love
The Bible says every nation and every tribe will bow
But church folk complain about singing a Korean song
The Bible says come to Me, all who are weary
Yet we turn away the person who doesn’t present themselves “correctly”
We use scripture as weapons against the gays
When the Bible says we should be slow to anger and slow to speak
We tune out the church hurt
To boast in our weak morality
Like the Bible didn’t say we should boast in our infirmities
I understand we are human
I understand we battle our flesh
I understand we will sin to our dying day
But how many senseless deaths until we wake?
How many will walk away from the faith
Before we realize we are failing?
I dream of a church network
Appreciating Baptist or Pentecostal
Rather than dollar bills and church attendance
I look forward to singing Gospel in seven languages
Rather than signing everything that sounds like Hillsong
I hunger for a church that does not worship their pastor
But Christ and Christ alone
I pray for a church that knows, teaches, preaches, believes, and applies Bible
As a member of the choir
I understand
And I weep
We can’t get out of our way
Sounding like Sadducees and Pharisees from back in the day
We’ve regressed with no way to go back
Unless we remove pride
And return to the God we say we love
If His people humble themselves and pray
Seeking His face
Turn from their wicked ways
He will hear them, forgive, and heal the land…
Are we not His sons and daughters?
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