The Narcissistic Church

Have you ever experienced a church that was more full of itself than a desire to preach God's Word? More interested in its programs and denominational viewpoints than in sharing the Gospel? I've been in a few. "Been" is past tense. I left.

Most narcissistic churches are run by narcissistic leaders. They like to do things their way. That's not a good thing. They should be doing things God's way, not their own.

I was in a meeting at one church when one of the pastors said his goal was 15 baptisms in the youth group for the upcoming year. What's wrong with that statement? It's narcissistic. The pastor was thinking that it was up to him to bring people to faith in Christ. Nope. That's the Holy Spirit's job last time I checked . . . which was five minutes ago.

"44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him." - John 6:44

Another church I was in once felt like they needed a big, fancy addition to their church so they could draw more people into it. That's not right.

"5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers." - Acts 16:5

Churches grow because they were strengthened in their faith. Is that done by a new building program? No.

"46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." - Acts 2:46-47

God grows the church, not us.

I have a theory. No, I think it's more than a theory. I think it is a truth. There are no narcissistic Christians. Think about it. If you are narcissistic and profess a faith in Christ are you really being truthful? I encourage you to examine yourself. Read this and see if it fits the narcissist.

"9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." - Romans 12:9-11

Jesus told us that "the first shall be last and the last, first." How can we be last if we are number one?

We must approach God in humility. We must be servants and do so in the name of Jesus. After all, He humbled Himself, He died on a cross, He gave us a way to escape death. How? Buy putting off our old self and placing our faith in Him.

We must give up our narcissistic self and surrender it all to God. If we don't can we truly be one of His children?

Hard To Be Humble - Mac Davis

Everything To Lose

Gone are the days when I drove into work looking into the beauty of one of God's amazing sunrises. At least for this year. These days my morning commute is in total darkness - a reminder of the coming winter. The cold. The darkness.

Yesterday morning I decided to drop in on of my mix CD's to brighten my mood. A couple of songs played and then This Is Your Life by Switchfoot came on. I like the intro so I had the volume cranked and soon I was signing as I drove.

Part way through the song I heard some words that found new meaning for me that morning. As I thought about them I realized, with sudden gratitude, just how blessed I am . . . how blessed we are to be called by God to be his children and heirs to His kingdom.

When we humans are young in years we think ourselves invincible. Nothing can harm us! Our whole future is before us! We are on top of the world!! Then the future arrives and we find ourselves unprepared. We are not ready for life. We're like a lonely piece of driftwood, wave-tossed sea.

 We also tend to think of ourselves when we're young, as if WE are the star of a movie and it's all about us. All these other people in our lives were just supporting actors. Kids. Some of them never mature either. Sad.

The line in the song I heard yesterday goes like this:

"When the world was younger and you had everything to lose, you had everything to lose."

When we are younger and we don't know Jesus Jesus yet, we truly do have everything to lose. If we die in our sins without repenting of them and placing our faith in Christ, we most definitely have have lost everything - our hope for a future beyond this life. It's over period.

But if we DO repent, if we DO change our ways and become a follower of Jesus, we then have everything to gain. It seems like an easy choice, unless we're self-focused and narcissistic.

"39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." - Matthew 10:39

"3 So he told them this parable: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ 7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance." - Luke 15:3-7

Are there any lost sheep in your life? There are several in mine. SO, what am I waiting for? An engraved invitation? Jesus has already told us we should seek these people out and preach The Gospel to them. What are we waiting for? These people have everything to lose! Let us be about God's business . . . as long as it is called today.

This Is Your Life - Switchfoot - A Christian Skit