Flatline Faith
There is a flatline faith taking place in our church culture today. Today there are more resources, guides, and devotionals than every before. Scripture is just a click away or a morning email greeting you as part of your daily routine. Worship music, choruses and rebranding of hymns is very much a part of our worship culture. And yet with more “access” to God than ever before, there still is very much so a flatline faith being exercised in our pews and outside the walls in society. We spend far too much time looking into the hallway mirrors of our church and complaining, then looking out the windows of our church at the society around us and praying.
It is time to stop and ask “Am I part of the flatline faith church culture?” Am I not growing in my own faith, therefore causing a lack luster growth in others?” Am I simply going through the emotions of faith or am I allowing my faith to control my emotions? Do I indeed love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul and mind?
Friends, there is a church culture that is thriving, but by and large the institution known as the church is struggling to survive. If the church is to be successful in this increasingly passive faith environment, we are going to have to learn what is essential to Christianity and what is required of our faith. You have a choice: accept the challenge, with all your heart, soul and mind, and rise to meet it, or simply shrink into irrelevance and obscurity. Today society is increasingly suspicious of Christianity and increasingly evidential, society wants to know what we believe and why. We as believers need to be ready to continue the command put forth by our Lord, Jesus Christ. We need to be ready to reach out to those that have strayed from the faith, and encourage them with our reason to stay committed to the faith. We need to provide for them a reason to come home.
Jesus came to earth to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament and to be a living stone/rock (1 Peter 2:4) of God’s continued love for His creation. We know this because…”The stones the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. Psalm 118:22” The Messiah was heralded as a “tested stone, precious cornerstone, and one that would be a sure foundation.” (Isaiah 28:16). We are commanded to follow in the footsteps of this “stone”. When we do so we will be sharing an active faith and it impossible to have on display a flatline faith.
Spiritual Life begins with faith.
2 Peter 1:1-4
Faith is defined as; complete trust or confidence in someone or something. As Christians, our faith is rooted in the working of the Lord and the witness of Jesus.
Read Matthew 22:37-40
Our faith is in a person.
2 Peter 1:1-2Our faith involves trust in God’s power and grace. 2 Peter 1:3
Our faith embraces the promises of God. 2 Peter 1:4
“Keeping the next generation does not require an unusual level of cultural savvy, but it does require a confidence in God’s Word, the gospel, and in relationships.”
Questions for reflection
Are you living out
Matthew 22:37-40?Do you see yourself as living out a flatline faith? Who is one person that you can trust with this new awareness of your faith? Will you trust them to pray for you?
Whether child, teen or adult, you know at least one individual that has left the church? How can you share your continued faith with that individual?
Flatline Faith - Week 2
Fatih in Christ presents spiritual growth and offers life changing results.
2 Peter 1:5-11
Supplement or supply your dedicated Christian life with the following seven things;
Goodness, Knowledge, Self-Control, Endurance, Godliness, Affection, Love.
“Most unbelieving outsiders are old friends, yesterday’s worshipers, children who once prayed to Jesus.”
There is an obligation to our calling. 2 Peter 5-9
Present the calling on your life. 2 Peter 10-11
“For many years, we have preached half the gospel by encouraging people to be saved FROM something—namely sin, wrath, damnation, and eternal punishment—and neglected the fact that we’re saved FOR something.”
Questions for reflection
People are leaving the faith today because…do you see yourself as part of the problem? How can you be part of the solution?
Based on this text, how would you encourage a brother or sister who is struggling with assurance of salvation?
Flatline Faith - Week 3
It’s important to remember why we have faith and the source of our faith.
2 Peter 1:12-21
“Because the stakes are so high, even though you’re up-to-date on all this truth and practice it inside and out, I’m not going to let up for a minute in calling you to attention before it. This is the post to which I’ve been assigned—keeping you alert with frequent reminders—and I’m sticking to it as long as I live…”
Peter suggests three important reasons remembering the nature of the true gospel is so crucial for our growth.
Sustains Godliness. 2 Peter 1:12
Stimulates our Passion. 2 Peter 1:13-14
Strengthens our readiness. 2 Peter 1:15
“The first hearers of the apostles came to faith on the basis of this evidential approach. If you’re a Christian today, evidence also played a critical role in your conversion, even if you weren’t aware of it at the time.”
An Apostolic Witness. 2 Peter 1:16-18
The Prophetic Word. 2 Peter 1:19-21
Questions for reflection
What do you do when “life gets in the way” of you recalling and remembering your faith.