Come Back

 "You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel." Matthew 23:24....."Do you go through the rituals of a worship service without an attitude of worship? Do you sing the words of the hymns without ever thinking of their meaning? Do you consume the wafers and the wine without consuming the Spirit behind them? Do you miss the heart of God?"......Chris Tiegreen

Pharisees. These were people who knew all the laws of God without actually knowing God Himself. They were so often targets of Christ's during His earthly ministry. He chided them for knowing much about God while not knowing Him at all. As someone said, they didn't believe the God they said they believed in. They dedicated their lives to following rules while never having a relationship with the One the rules were supposed to honor. Pharisees. In the modern western church, being considered a Pharisee is a harsh label. Yet, might we consider that many of us have more in common with them than we would ever dare to admit or think upon?

The above quote from Tiegreen should confront those tendencies within us. What He asks us about is exactly what took place in the hearts of so many of the Pharisees. They were religious leaders and students of the Scriptures. They knew them inside out, but they knew so little of the God who gave them. And they were unable to recognize the Son He sent when He stood before them. Jesus ministered and spoke with the very heart of the Father because He and His Father were one, yet His ministry and words were never received by the Pharisees because they didn't know the heart of the God they said they followed. They missed Christ because they missed the very heart of God. It's in that where we must allow Tiegreen's questions to pierce our own hearts. Where are we, like they, missing the heart of God? Where do we, in our faith lives, strain out gnats while swallowing camels?

How many of us regularly attend what we call "worship services," and yet never really worship Him at all? We sing songs about Him. We listen to sermons about Him. We even participate regularly in the Lord's Supper, the receiving of communion, yet never commune with Him, with the One we're there to worship, honor, and glorify. The very act of worship is meant to transform us, yet countless numbers of professing believers leave that day's worship no different than when they came. The Scriptures, the message, the songs, we participate in them all, but we never actually partake of Him in our participation. That's how the Pharisees lived, and we form a common bond with them when we live that way ourselves. They missed the heart of God, and we do too. To have that happen should grieve us, but does it? The Pharisees response when Christ confronted them on this was raging anger. They would never admit that they, the religious leaders of the day, were missing His heart. Can we? Can we let Him expose the areas of our hearts and lives where we too are missing His heart?

After His resurrection, Jesus encountered two of His followers on the Emmaus Road. They didn't recognize Him as He engaged them in conversation. Finally, after inviting Him to join them in a meal, their eyes were opened to who He was. They exclaimed, "Didn't our hearts burn within us as He spoke?" When was the last time our hearts burned at the hearing of His words and voice? When was the last time we really encountered Him in our worship? Where have we drifted from His presence? Where have we left our first love?

In Scripture, the Lord calls with the words, "Come back to Me and live." Wherever we're missing His heart, that must be our response; come back to Him.....and live. If not, we'll go on missing His heart, His life, and His glory.

Blessings,

Pastor O