Live Like You Are Dying!

I grew up on country music! It was a pretty big part of my life as a child. Of course one might ask if I really had a choice since I grew up in upstate South Carolina! There was a song that came out a few years back by Tim McGraw called “Live like You Were Dying.” I rarely ever listen to country music anymore, but I did recently hear this song and it got me to thinking about so many things.

The song basically talks about a guy who is close to death and he explains things that he is doing differently with his life now that he knows he is dying. He has a long bucket list of things he did that he had never done before like sky diving and other things! He also explains how he changed as a person as far as the way he lived. He then goes on to say that he hopes everyone gets the chance to live like they are dying! What would our lives look like if we lived this way?

I know it would affect the amount of time I spent with my wife and children. I would never take for granted anything that involved them, which is so easy to do. It would also radically change the way I live my life in day to day conversations. I am not trying to be melodramatic but I am haunted by the number of people that I have crossed paths with that I never shared my faith with. There are many people that I used to work or went to school with that I never told about Jesus, and I knew at the time that they probably weren’t saved.

I can’t do anything about the past, but I can do something about the present and the future. I think as believers we should live our lives with eternity in mind. When I go out to eat, I should consider that the conversation I have with my server may be the last chance I have to share Jesus with them. When I tuck my children into bed at night and pray over them, I should consider that it could be the last time. That homeless person you pass by that you see everyday may just be the last time you see them!

In all honestly, we usually live like we will be on this earth forever, when the average person lives to be about seventy five years old. Compared to eternity that is not a long time, and we aren’t even promised to live that long. Scripture says that life is like a vapor, we are here one minute and gone the next.

My challenge for all of us to ponder during this Christmas season is to live everyday like tomorrow will not come. Share the gospel with a lost world, love on somebody, bless somebody, encourage somebody, hug your family, and tell them you love them! When we live this way is when we truly do experience the life Christ desires for us!

Why do you go to Church?

Why do you go to church? What is your main motivation? Do you go because you have always been forced to go and it has become a habit? Is this something that your family has always done so you wonder why you should stop now? Is this a time of the week where you can catch up on the latest gossip or just a genuine time to see some close friends and enjoy some fellowship? Do you go to worship and be encouraged to live your faith out loud?

These are questions we all should ask ourselves when we meet with other believers and that is: Why am I ultimately here? Are my motives honoring to God? Think about these as we continue to compare and contrast Cultural Christianity vs. Biblical Christianity. Here is my comparison:

Cultural Christians go to church out of habit, family tradition, or to socialize, while biblical Christians go to church to worship and grow in Christ as well as closer to other Christians!

What is our purpose for getting together on Sunday mornings? Scripture does actually command us to do this! Hebrews 10:25 states: “And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” So we as Christians are COMMANDED to meet together in some sort of community in order to encourage one another in Christ. We see that the main reason for meeting was to encourage one another to be focused on Christ and His return. Christ is what the meeting was ultimately all about!

I recently had the opportunity to read the book “Radical” by David Platt! This book challenged me on so many levels I can’t even begin to describe. What struck me in the early chapters were Platt’s stories of having church with Asian believers in secret. They would meet in small, dark venues with a dim light and nothing but a bible. There was no entertainment, no speakers, no padded pews, and no air-conditioning. Oh yeah, and they would have a bible study that would last twelve hours sometimes. These people were hungry for the word of God! Oh and by the way, if they were to get caught, they would face prison time and possibly death. This really caused me to evaluate my own walk with Jesus, and ask the question: Why do I go to church? Here in cultural Christianity many of us complain if the service goes over five minutes or if it’s too hot/cold, the band played a song we didn’t like, etc! All the while we are allowed to worship without fear of any kind of persecution!

My prayer is that the church today in any culture would return to the place of wanting to gather together with other believers out of a love for Jesus and a desire to worship Him.

Good People & Sinners

Do you struggle as a Christian? Do you sometimes feel that everyone else around you seems to have it all together but you? Do you worry what people would think if they ever found out what a wreck you are inside? In a recent blog I explained some differences between Cultural Christianity and Biblical Christianity by comparing and contrasting certain issues in the church today. You can check it out here: http://makewar-trey.blogspot.com/2011/08/cultural-christianity-vs-biblical_31.html

The first comparison states: Cultural Christians have it all together and think they are pretty good while noticing the faults of others, while Biblical Christians are broken and realize their sin as well as their need for Jesus.

There is certainly an element of Cultural Christianity where people seem to think that Christians are supposed to have it all together. These people view Christianity as having good morals and values, and they themselves are considerably good people. They tithe most of the time, are in church every Sunday, and have good reputations in their community. They are generally conservative and don’t drink, chew, or smoke. They enjoy going to church and hearing a good sermon as well as good music. They would never claim to be perfect but at least they aren’t like those people who are really doing bad stuff. They can very quickly notice the splinters in others, but never see the logs in their own lives. However, the biblical Christian can’t see past their own sin to notice the sins of others. They know that they are hopeless and that only in Christ are they anything. They are depending in Christ alone for their salvation and hope.

A clear picture of this is the parable that Jesus told about the Pharisee and tax collector in Luke 18:9-14. We see in this passage how the Pharisee was putting his hope in his own works and righteousness, but the tax collector knew he was a sinner and that his only hope was in the mercy of God. The question is do we line up more with the Pharisee or the tax collector?

What disturbs me about contemporary church today is the lack of brokenness among Christians, and the lacking we see of it in general worship services. Just knowing that we are in the presence of a holy God should drastically impact us especially if we have an understanding of our sin. The problem is Cultural Christians don’t see themselves as sinful people in need of Jesus thus there is no reason to be broken. In fact in many churches the one’s who are broken and are on their faces at the altar, are seen by the “normal Christians” as the people who apparently are having problems. However, maybe the people who are on their knees and emotional are the tax collectors who see God for who He is and are broken over knowing it was their pride, anger, gossip, jealousy, that hung Jesus on the cross. Maybe the “messed up people” are just revealing that they are aware of the holy spirit’s presence and are responding in worship to a great God in the only way they know how: To just fall apart at His feet!

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:18

Here is the truth of the matter! Many in churches today are simply Pharisees who think they are ok with God just because they aren’t like other people. These same people, however, have never truly encountered Jesus Christ. If they had experienced Christ they would know by witnessing His true beauty that they are nothing without Him. The result is a very confusing message sent to our young people. When God is dealing with their hearts, they feel that we should have it all together, and people would think they were weird if they were to fall on their faces before the throne of a holy God. Many young people generally see church as a social club where we dress to our best, socialize, sing songs, listen to a message, and go home because that is what has been modeled before them. This is Cultural Christianity and not Biblical Christianity, and quite frankly I will readily admit to being a messed up individual who is held together by Christ alone!

The Elephant Room 2

I am super pumped to hear about The Elephant Room 2 coming on January 25, 2012! Here is a link about the event: http://www.theelephantroom.com/. The Elephant room was a day in which prominent pastors who all have a common love for the gospel gathered together to discuss issues where they disagreed with the goal of sharpening each other! The panel included James Macdonald, Mark Driscoll, Perry Noble, Steven Furtick, David Platt, Matt Chandler, and Greg Laurie. I was unable to see this event live but did purchase the DVD’s and I recommend it to anybody who is in ministry. It is eight sessions of awesome dialogue that every minister should have as a resource. I have watched them about three times and am still learning more within each viewing. I really love how all of these pastors respect each other even though they disagree in many areas (mainly methodology) of ministry. I believe that it sets an example for all of us to follow as we work together to reach people with the gospel.

So having said all of that, one shouldn’t be surprised with my excitement upon hearing of The Elephant Room 2. At this point I am really curious about whom the pastors will be this time. They have already announced that Macdonald and Driscoll will be returning. Driscoll’s humor had me laughing hysterically in the first round and he definitely brings a great deal to the table so I am glad that he will be back. I do hope that we get some new pastors this time however. I love all those guys who were on the first panel, but I feel there are many other pastors out there who could greatly contribute to the discussion. Here are some pastors I would love to see in The Elephant Room 2!

John Piper

Francis Chan

Mark Dever

Rick Warren

Paul Washer

Joshua Harris
Andy Stanley

David Jeremiah

I will keep this blog updated as I hear more information about the event!

In Christ

Trey Bradley

Cultural Christianity vs. Biblical Christianity Part 2

This is a list that I put together recently that does a compare and contrast of Cultural Christianity vs. Biblical Christianity! Over the next several weeks I will be unpacking each one and discussing the battle we are facing! This is not of course an exhaustive list, but some that have been laid on my heart as of late. Of each of these, which do you lean more toward?

1.

• Cultural Christians have it all together and think they are pretty good while noticing the faults of others.
• Biblical Christians are broken and realize their sin as well as their need for Jesus.

2.

• Cultural Christians go to church out of habit, family tradition, or to socialize.
• Biblical Christians go to church to worship and grow in Christ as well as other Christians.

3.

• Cultural Christians focus more on the way they or someone else is dressed.
• Biblical Christians focus more on the heart or character.

4.

• Cultural Christians would say they are religious, go to church, or believe in God.
• Biblical Christians would say they have a relationship with Christ, or are followers of Christ.

5.

• Cultural Christians are excited about heaven mostly to unite with family and friends.
• Biblical Christians are excited about heaven mostly because they will be face to face with Jesus.

6.

• Cultural Christians separate their faith and life.
• Biblical Christians would say that faith in Christ is their life.

7.

• Cultural Christians see God as “The man upstairs” or someone “Watching over us”
• Biblical Christians see God as their Lord, savior, and friend who they can depend on.

8.

• Cultural Christians may own a bible or several bibles but never read it unless they are at church.
• Biblical Christians base their entire life on what the bible says.

9.

• Cultural Christians may attend church.
• Biblical Christians realize they are the church.

10.

• Cultural Christians pray for God to keep them safe.
•  Biblical Christians pray for God to use them no matter what the cost.

11.

• Cultural Christians ask what Christianity can do for them.
• Biblical Christians ask how they can be used to reach the lost most effectively.

12.

• Cultural Christians get easily bored in a service with a musical style or preaching style they don’t like.
• Biblical Christians don't even notice or care because their focus is on God.

13.

• Cultural Christians would brag on what a good job the band or speaker did at a service.
• Biblical Christians would brag on how powerful God moved in their midst at a service.

14.

• Cultural Christians would take God a list of things they want during prayer time.
• Biblical Christians would take God a blank sheet and ask Him to fill it in during prayer time.

I have to be honest with you all! With many of these, I find myself leaning more toward Cultural Christianity and it makes me sick! What disturbs me even more is how comfortable and apathetic we are toward this issue. We should be disgusted that we have made an idol of the culture that we live in. Cultural Christianity when completely stripped down is basically when the foundation of our life contains our dreams, passions, hobbies, relationships, careers, education, and desires. We then try and fit God somewhere within these things when we have time. Biblical Christianity is God being our foundation and everything else being built upon that foundation. A house can't function without its foundation and Christ should be ours!

Cultural Christianity vs. Biblical Christianity Part 1

 I have been wrestling with this idea of Cultural Christianity vs. Biblical Christianity.  I don’t pretend to be the first person to write on this topic, and I know that my analysis might mirror others who have spoken about this before, however, this has really been hammering me lately mainly because of my own struggles with the issue. I believe that every person in this country is impacted by Cultural Christianity at least to an extent. There is no doubt a problem when we hear of underground believers in Asia who could lose their lives for being a Christian and we have people in this country who complain about the color of the carpet and music styles in their church!
The question that many may ask is: "What exactly is cultural Christianity?" That is a good question because it is such a broad term. It is quite difficult to narrow down an exact definition, but I am going to do my best. I have lately been dealing with this concept of being a Christian and what it exactly means. What did it mean to the early church? What does it mean now? Could it possibly change based on the culture? Would my life really be any different if I didn't even believe in God, much less claim to be a Christian? When it comes down to it, what I see going on in the American church today is vastly different than what we see in the early church when we read Acts!

When I think of a cultural Christian, I think of one who is a Christian in name only. They are merely a product of the culture surrounding them. This is especially prevalent in the south where going to church is just basically what one is suppose to do on Sunday, at least on Easter or Mother’s Day! Easter Sunday is cultural Christianity displayed at its finest. Churches everywhere are filled up with people dressed to their best. Some go out and actually purchase clothes just for this day (not saying this in particular is wrong) and go to church this one day out of the year. People fill church buildings and sing songs to God while it is noise to Him because most of these people are just checking off their Easter Sunday box to say “Ok God, I did you a favor by coming to church today!”

As I mentioned before, I believe that every person in this country is impacted by cultural Christianity and that was not a typo. Even those who don't know Christ are impacted by this. Lost people who are on the outside basically see right though the church game. They can see that there is basically no difference between these people who claim to be Christians and them. They may go to church on Sunday but act no different than others throughout the week. They basically acknowledge Jesus with their lips and deny Him with their lifestyle. This causes lost people to want nothing to do with Christianity because they are searching for something real and authentic.

I will be honest with you all! I am a cultural Christian to an extent and it makes me sick to my stomach! I have no excuses and I am tired of us trying to just downplay this issue. It is time that we face this head on pray that God will help us to fall in love with Him alone and not Him and fill in the blank! The truth is that often Jesus is just a means to an end and we are only interested in what we can get out of a relationship with Him instead of just cherishing Him for who He is.

Lately I had a conversation with someone who spent about six months on a mission trip out of the country. She basically told me that she rebuked someone for saying they would pray for her safety while in this country telling them that she wanted them to pray first and foremost for God’s will to be done no matter what the cost. That is a bold prayer and exactly what I want my prayer to be. I believe that this is where cultural Christianity DIES!!! That is when we come to the place where we realize that it is not about us and our safety, but about God being magnified through us and if that leads to suffering or death than so be it!

Jesus words here in Mark give us a picture of what true biblical Christianity is: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever will save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.” Mark 8: 34-35

The Ultimate Purpose of this Blog!

Well I am doing something that I never thought I would ever do and that is creating a blog! At one time I claimed I would never have a facebook, twitter, or blog page. At the time they all just seemed to be something else I had to keep up with and life is busy enough as it is after all. However, over time I have begun to see these as easy ways to connect with friends and also tools for ways to share my faith with others as well as encourage other believers to keep on keeping on. I think it’s absurd to have these resources at our disposal and not to take advantage of them. What breaks my heart is when I see many people who have such a following, yet they use these networking sites to only make much of themselves. I would like to be clear that the purpose of this blog is to glorify Christ and to make much of Him as He works through my life. I want to be an encouragement to people and to also challenge others to continue to fight this battle we are facing.

Speaking of facing battles I would like to explain why I have chosen to name the blog Make War. Many believe and teach that the Christian life is an easy life free of problems yet Scripture tells a completely different story. Being a Christian is about a fight! It is a battle we are facing, and many aren’t even putting up a fight! Most would attribute Satan as being the one we are up against, and yes Satan is our adversary as well as all of the forces of darkness. (Ephesians 6) I do believe, however, that many of us use Satan as a scapegoat for why we sin when the problem is really us!! The real reason why God is not being glorified in our lives the way He should is because we too often give into our flesh desires. The problem is not Satan, our friends, our family, television, music, or anything other than US! We are the problem and until we deny ourselves and get US out of the way, we will continue to be slaves to our flesh. The answer is to Make War with our sinful flesh and put it to death! (Colossians 3) Jesus made this possible by dying on the cross so we don't have to be slaves to our flesh anymore. With the power of the Holy Spirit within us we can conquer our sinful flesh and have victory! It's time we stopped living in defeat and pressing on in His power and strength!

That is what this blog is ultimately all about and that is getting ourselves out of the way so that Christ might be magnified in us. Once this happens we will then impact others that we come in contact with by pointing them to the cross. It’s time we get on the front lines and Make War against ourselves and anything in this culture that would hinder our walk with Christ. Until we understand this, the church will continue to be stagnate and apathetic toward those who need the gospel!!!