“Church is useless.”

I might have expected such a comment from my 24-year-old nephew who insists that living with his parents in the room he’s occupied since birth, whose passion is playing FPS (First Person Shooter) games and whose sole means of gainful employment is a part-time job at a local restaurant. But my nephew, as far as I know, has never said that. Though he was “raised in the church,” he doesn’t attend with any regularity. But as far as I know, he’s never said the church is useless.

Instead, the quote came from a 28-year-old—let’s call him Michael—who has a really good job, is married to a very successful marketing executive and who has nothing in common with my nephew except that he was also raised in the church.

Groups of People: followers of Jesus

·         A follower is by definition someone who has given his/her life to follow Jesus and has put Him first. This assumes a measure of passion for Christ.

Group 5: The Mature: Demonstrate the courage by following His leadership in His timing with His attitude and His character.  Gracious with the immature, ignores the spiritually arrogant, has healthy friendships with other followers for whom he/she prays and has many friendships with non-followers.

Thank you for your patience during my summer break. This post wraps up our series on “Groups of People: followers and non-followers”.

What is spiritual maturity?

The more I read the Old Testament the more I am amazed at how consistent it is with the message of the New Testament.  Over the last couple of weeks I have been reading through Proverbs, a book known for its claims on how pursuing God’s wisdom leads to a well ordered, and profitable life.  Solomon, the author of most of the book of Proverbs, placed a high value on the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom.  In fact in several places the two words seem to be used interchangeably.  In our culture today there are people who put Christians down for their perceived lack of knowledge.  To these people Christians do not have enough “evidence” or are maybe behind the curve on claims to truth.  To them Christian beliefs are outdated, or do not apply to our modern culture.  However the Bible claims the exact opposite. 

The church has become a master at niche marketing.  From the kind of music style you want in your worship service, to whether you prefer a small church or large.  There are also things like Stephen Ministries, a ministry designed to train people to be good “helpers”, for lack of a better word, in coming alongside a person to help them through a period of grief. 

If you want a small group experience there is one for almost any place you are at in your “spiritual journey”.  For instance, some churches have “seeker” small groups, new believer small groups, high school small groups, single adult small groups, men’s groups, women’s group, recovery groups, motor cycle groups, MOPS, and “young at heart” groups.  One of these options is most likely available to you.  If I have left any group out that you attend or know about, I apologize.