Is The Christian Life Supposed To Be Boring
“Is the Christian life supposed to be boring?”There are many misconceptions about the Christian life, and one is that it is boring. The truth is the Christian life is where we find true joy and lasting peace, hope and contentment. Like all good and perfect things, they come from God James 1:1717 Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. (Greek from above, from the Father of lights) He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. (Some manuscripts read He never changes, as a shifting shadow does. )
The difficulty is that, if you're not a believer in Christ, you truly don't know what you're missing.This does not mean that the Christian life is easy. One writer described it by writing, growing in the Christian faith as being "on a never-ending downward escalator. In order to grow we have to turn around and sprint up the escalator putting up with disturbed looks from everyone else who is gradually moving downward." Jesus never misled anyone into thinking it would be easy to follow HimMatthew 10:34-3934 "Don't imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword.35 'I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.36 Your enemies will be right in your own household! (Mic 7:6)37 "If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. We read it again in Luke 14:26But much more demanding and confusing, what must we make of that ?.26 "If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison-your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters-yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.What did Jesus mean by making such a statement?First, we must take this verse in the context of the chapter. Jesus is teaching His disciples, and like any good teacher, He begins with a truth statement that is hard to understand in order to get his students thinking. Then, he clarifies the difficult truth statement with a metaphor. The truth statement is the confusing verse 26, 26 "If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison-your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters-yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.So, if we don’t hate our family and our own lives, we can’t be His disciple. But does He mean we are to have real hatred for our parents? Next, He relates a metaphor about a man who builds a house without counting the cost and finds that he cannot follow through with what he set out to do. He leaves the house unfinished because he cannot pay what is required. Jesus is showing us the explanation to His difficult statement-that we must count the cost of discipleship. This is the point of the passage. In order to be a disciple, we must be willing to give up everything for Jesus. Therefore, if our parents will not follow Jesus, or even if they disown us for being Christians, we must still choose Him over them.
It is in this sense that we are “hating” our family members, those who reject the Lord or reject us because of the Lord. This is not easy, we should love our family members and we should want our family members to love and follow God.1 John 4:7-8 7 Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.8 But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.This one of many passages commanding us to love others. But despite our love for the people we know, here is the key: If they don’t love Jesus, our first priority must still be our love for Him . We must regard Him higher than the people we love and we must love Him more than our own lives. In fact, we must love Him so much even to the point that our earthly love by comparison, could seem like hate.Secondly, Let’s take it in context by looking at other verses in Scripture.Matthew 19:2929 And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life.So, here is the promise: God requires total commitment from His followers, to the point of heart-breaking separation from any natural family members who reject Jesus, but in Heaven we will have a hundred times what we lost-an entire family of believers who love Christ and who love us! The material things that we had forsaken in order to follow Him will be given back to us in a form of a hundred times better than what we lost! So, He is a good God, after all – and no, He does not want us to literally hate (viciously despise or wish harm to) the members of our family. He requires from us to choose Jesus over them who would want us to reject Him. Jesus may have chosen the word “hate” to show us that this is how a mother or father may interpret the actions of a child that chooses the Lord above them.
They may see it as disloyal, especially if we try to witness to them. The love of a Christian for a non-Christian is almost always seen as hatred, intolerance, narrow-mindedness, etc. But we must be okay with the fact of it being branded as “hating.” After all, our unbelieving relatives are part of the world" and Jesus saidJohn 15:1818 "If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.Let's look at the other confusing statement by Jesus that we often hear and read about in scripture this follows on from verse 37, Matthew 10:38-39 this remark needs to be examined closely as well, it's more than a remark , it's an instruction a challenge, no it's a condition ,we find it as well in Mark 8:34 and Luke 9:23.Matthew 10:38-3938 If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine.( To take up the cross is to obey and identify with Jesus even unto death, not simply to bear some particular burden imposed by the Lord)39 If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.We must love Jesus not only more than our families but more than our own lives. In this day and age there are so much talk about low self-esteem , the vast majority of people still cling desperatelyto life and most of us view ourselves as less than what God has called us to be But the moment we become Christ’s followers, we surrender our own lives and wills; we die with Christ to sin (that is, to the right to make selfish choices);Rom 6:3-43 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. and we choose a path that could lead any day to our execution for Christ’s name we read the same words concerning the cross we have to take up in Matthew 10:38 Jesus repeats it in Matthew16:2424 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me.
Although we may speak glibly today of “our cross” we look at it in the same way as putting up with Aunt Molly or a leaky roof, “taking up the cross” in Jesus’ day meant being forced to bear the burden of one’s execution past a jeering crowd to the site where you would be crucified as a condemned criminal
“If we look at it today how would we interpret what Jesus meant when He said that you should "Take up your cross and follow Me"Let's begin with what Jesus didn't mean. Many people interpret "cross" as some burden they must carry in their lives: a strained relationship, a thankless job, a physical illness. With self-pitying pride, they say, "That's my cross I have to carry." Such an interpretation is not what Jesus meant when He said, "Take up your cross and follow Me."When Jesus carried His cross up to Golgotha to be crucified, no one was thinking of the cross as symbolic of a burden to carry. To a person in the first-century, the cross meant one thing and one thing only: death by the most painful and humiliating means human beings could think of.Two thousand years later, Christians view the cross as a cherished symbol of atonement, forgiveness, grace, and love. But in Jesus' day, the cross represented nothing but torturous death. Because the Romans forced convicted criminals to carry their own crosses to the place of crucifixion, bearing a cross meant carrying their own execution device while facing ridicule along the way to death.Therefore, "Take up your cross and follow Me" means being willing to die in order to follow Jesus. This is called "dying to self." It's a call to absolute surrender. After each time Jesus commanded cross bearing, He said, Luke 9:24-2524 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 25 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?
Although the call is tough, the reward is matchless.Wherever Jesus went, He drew crowds. Although the multitudes who often followed Him as Messiah, they had a distorted view of who the Messiah really was-and what He would do. They thought the Christ would lead them and restore the kingdom. They believed He would free them from the oppressive rule of their Roman Empire. Even Christ's own inner circle of disciples thought the kingdom was coming soonLuke 19:1111 The crowd was listening to everything Jesus said. And because he was nearing Jerusalem, he told them a story to correct the impression that the Kingdom of God would begin right away.Parable of the Ten Servants12 He said, "A nobleman was called away to a distant empire to be crowned king and then return. 13 Before he left, he called together ten of his servants and divided among them ten pounds of silver, saying, 'Invest this for me while I am gone.' 14 But his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We do not want him to be our king.'15 "After he was crowned king, he returned and called in the servants to whom he had given the money. He wanted to find out what their profits were. 16 The first servant reported, 'Master, I invested your money and made ten times the original amount!'17 "'Well done!' the king exclaimed. 'You are a good servant. You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, so you will be governor of ten cities as your reward.'18 "The next servant reported, 'Master, I invested your money and made five times the original amount.'19 "'Well done!' the king said. 'You will be governor over five cities.'20 "But the third servant brought back only the original amount of money and said, 'Master, I hid your money and kept it safe. 21 I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn't yours and harvesting crops you didn't plant.'22 "'You wicked servant!' the king roared. 'Your own words condemn you. If you knew that I'm a hard man who takes what isn't mine and harvests crops I didn't plant, 23 why didn't you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.'24 "Then, turning to the others standing nearby, the king ordered, 'Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one who has ten pounds.'25 "'But, master,' they said, 'he already has ten pounds!'26 "'Yes,' the king replied, 'and to those who use well what they are given, even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. 27 And as for these enemies of mine who didn't want me to be their king-bring them in and execute them right here in front of me.'"Jesus' Triumphant Entry28 After telling this story, Jesus went on toward Jerusalem, walking ahead of his disciples.When Jesus began teaching that He was going to die at the hands of the Jewish leaders and their Gentile overlords, His popularity sank rapidly.Luke 9:2222 "The Son of Man (A title Jesus used for Himself) must suffer many terrible things," he said. "He will be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead."Many of the shocked followers rejected Him. They were not prepared to put to death their own ideas, plans, and desires, in exchange for His.Following Jesus is easy when life runs smoothly; our true commitment to Him is revealed during trials. Jesus assured us that we will have trials if we follow Him John 16:3333 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world."Discipleship demands sacrifice, and Jesus never said otherwise.Three people seemed willing to follow Jesus. After Jesus questioned them further, they were not so sure . They failed to count the cost of following Him. None was willing to take up his cross and crucify on that cross their own interests.Luke 9:57-62The Cost of Following Jesus57 As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, "I will follow you wherever you go."58 But Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head."59 He said to another person, "Come, follow me." The man agreed, but he said, "Lord, first let me return home and bury my father."60 But Jesus told him, "Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! (Greek Let the dead bury their own dead) Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God."61 Another said, "Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family."62 But Jesus told him, "Anyone who puts a hand to the plough and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God."Therefore, Jesus appeared to persuade them against it. How different from the typical Gospel presentation! How many people would respond to an altar call that wentlike this, "Come follow Jesus, and you may face the loss of friends, family, reputation, career, and possibly even your life"?That is what Jesus meant when He said, "Take up your cross and follow Me."If you wonder if you are ready to take up your cross, consider these questions:ÔÇó Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing some of your closest friends?ÔÇó Are you willing to follow Jesus if it caused division in your family?ÔÇó Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means that you might lose your reputation?ÔÇó Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing your job?ÔÇó Are you willing to follow Jesus if it means losing your life?In some places of the world, these consequences are reality. But notice the questions are phrased, "Are you willing?"Following Jesus doesn't necessarily mean all these things will happen to you, but are you willing to take up your cross, take that chance? If there comes a point in your life where you are faced with a choice-Jesus or the comforts of this life-which will you choose?Commitment to Christ means taking up your cross daily, giving up your hopes, dreams, possessions, even your life if you had to for the cause of Jesus Christ. Only if you are willing to take up your cross may you be called His disciple Luke 14:2727 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. The reward is worth the price. Jesus followed His call of death by giving up Himself ("Take up your cross and follow Me") with the gift of life in Christ: Matthew 16:25-2625 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?
If we want to be followers of Jesus, we must be ready to die. If I value my life in this world more than I value Jesus and the life of the next world, I cannot be his disciple.
It's not easy, but the hardships help prevent boredom.Luke 14:2626 "If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison-your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters-yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.Although coming to Christ brings peace to the heart, embracing the gospel makes life more difficult in some respects, because what Jesus demands is commitment that would priority over the natural ties of life .Those who believe that the Christian life is boring have never taken God's invitation to heart. Psalm 34:88 Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!Instead, they selfishly pursue the things they think will make them happy or content and not bored.The problem is, the things of this world are temporary and can never truly satisfy.The Bible tells us in Galatians 6:88 Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.King Solomon, the wisest and richest person who ever lived, had everything a person could possibly want said: Ecclesiastes 2:1010 Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure. I even found great pleasure in hard work, a reward for all my labors.Solomon had it all, but he concludes in verse 1111 But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless-like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.In other words, he had everything this world had to offer, and he was bored.Sometimes, a new Christian is surprised that his new life is not "more exciting," as if the Christian life is supposed to be a thrill-a-minute extravaganza.There is no life on earth that is like that. Boredom is something we must all overcome. Everyone stands in line at the grocery store, gets caught in traffic, or is given jobs he'd rather not do.Maybe the problem is the definition of "boredom" . Is it a lack of excitement? Nothing can stimulate lasting excitement.Is it idleness? If so, then the key is to find something to do.Is it lack a of interest? If so, the key is to be more curious.Is it a lack of "fun"? In that case, "fun" needs to be defined, since "fun" is itself a highly subjective concept.Some people assume that being a Christian is boring because they've heard that Christians have to give up all the "fun" things in life. It's true that Christians give up some things, but it's not the fun.
Christians give up their sin, their self-destructive behavior, their addictions, their negative attitudes and their ignorance of God.
In return, they receive "righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit"Romans 14:1717 For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. They "live as children of light" in a dark world Ephesians 5:88 For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!
The mistakes of their past no longer have a stronghold in their lives.
They no longer live for themselves but for the One who died for them.
They serve others and make a difference Romans 14:77 For we don't live for ourselves or die for ourselves.Philippians 2:44 Don't look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
They are becoming everything that God created them to be. It is virtually impossible to be bored in such a life.The only thing in this world that has eternal value is a relationship with Jesus Christ. A growing, committed Christian will find that life is never boring. There's always another step of faith to take, another relationship to build, another person to serve.Is the Christian life supposed to be "boring"? Absolutely not. Jesus said:John 10:10
"I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" .