A lukewarm Christian is an oxymoron. There is no such thing according to Francis Chan. This is a heavy-hitting concept, because we each have lukewarm elements or practices in our lives, as even noted by Francis. In Revelation, Jesus says that the church in Laodicea is lukewarm and that he will spit them out of His mouth, implying that they are not saved. It says in Romans (10:9) that salvation is a matter of the heart, "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." And, of course, God knows each of our hearts. Our salvation is not based on works. Ephesians 2:9-10 says "For it is by grace you have been saved through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." However, faith is seen in our actions, according to James 2:17, "In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." Non-fruit bearing Christians do not exist. In Matthew 7:18, Jesus says that "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." To summarize, fruit comes naturally from the hearts of Christians. What are some examples of fruit-bearing?
Part of this chapter focused on giving to God. He points out that many of us are rich by the world's standards (53% of the world's people live on less than $2/day). He says we are rich people who complain we are poor at times. We might be more blind than poor, spiritually speaking. In Malachi 1:8, the Lord describes his anger toward the Israelites for their poor sacrifices. They offered the least of the animals for sacrifices. Francis says God described it as evil. The point here is that we ought to not get caught up in trying to acquire wealth at the expense of giving to those in need and giving to God. What are some examples of giving and why is it important?
Francis quotes Tim Kizziar: "Our greatest fear as individuals and as a church should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter." That is a quote that resonates with me. What are some examples of things that we might succeed at that won't matter in eternity?
Francis writes, "Do you know that nothing you do in this life will ever matter, unless it is about loving God and loving the people He has made?" He writes that God measures our lives by how we love. Paul says in Corinthians, "If I have faith but have not love, I have nothing." If love is a verb, shown through actions, then how do we love?
I believe that Francis' most important statement in this chapter is, "How we invest our time, money, energy is equivalent to choosing or rejecting God." What are some things that we should spend more of our time, money, and energy on?
Summary Questions:
- What are some examples of fruit-bearing?
- What are some examples of things that we might succeed at that won't matter in eternity?
- If love is a verb, shown through actions, then how do we love?
- What are some things that we should spend more of our time, money, and energy on?
Chapter 6: When you're in love
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