Comfortable Christianity Is No Christianity At All

I named my blog The Set-Apart Walk as a direct response to what I believe is the key component missing in American Christianity today. Holiness. To be set apart is to be holy. To be holy we are not only set apart from the world and its ways, but also to God and His call on our lives. A Christian living in His will for her life cannot experience what we might call comfortable Christianity. We simply can’t be comfortable and holy. Friend, it’s time to get uncomfortable.

An Uncomfortable Conversion

I share my testimony HERE, so I won’t get into much detail now. Suffice it to say, my salvation was the kind that made onlookers think I might have an undiagnosed brain tumor drastically changing my personality. Jesus significantly changed me. That’s what He does (2 Corinthians 5:17). Well, if you want to see something uncomfortable, then watch a godless party girl who openly mocked the Church become a born-again Christian and suddenly feel compelled to tell everyone about Jesus…

I was twenty-six years old, and I abruptly did a complete one hundred eighty degree turn in my life. My family found offense in everything I did and said. Some of it was, in truth, unintentionally offensive, but so much more had to do with my differences. The personal changes I made evoked a caustic reaction from relatives.

My friends quickly stopped calling me. Apparently, our relationships were built more on a shared interest in trivia and alcohol than on anything significant. My co-workers, with some exception, ignored me, left me out in obvious ways, and openly mocked my “innocent” lifestyle.

My eternity was looking good, but my personal life was full of hurts and rejections.

Comforted Christianity

The first year or so after my salvation I felt isolated from most of the people who had previously been important parts of my life. I was newly married, and sometimes it felt like Chris, my husband, was all I had. Where was this perfect life offered by Christianity? Clearly, I had the wrong impression about salvation. There was no such thing as comfortable Christianity, but praise the Lord, there is so much comfort!

My church family understood what was happening in my life, and they accepted me with love and counsel. My pastor and his family realized I had no Christian influence or guidance in my walk with the Lord. They eagerly and openly invited me to eat in their home, participate in activities with them, and offered the spiritual support I needed. At a time when newlyweds can struggle to find their footing, my husband and I had spiritual parents in our church to encourage us. Today, I can only look back at this time with nostalgia and thankfulness. Despite how uncomfortable so many areas of my life had become, I had such joy and love.

I think stories like this are imperative to share because Christians spend so much energy these days griping about the church and carrying grudges. No church is perfect, but there is support, fellowship, and love available in our church families. Speak up and let others know you’re struggling.

Church, reach out to those you suspect are hurting. We are called to serve one another. That service can be practical helps, prayer and biblical counsel, or even just listening.

The Word Comforts Uncomfortable Christianity

The best comfort a believer can receive, though, is from God, Himself. As I was discovering Scripture as a new believer, new truths and hope revealed themselves. The following were particularly helpful for me.

“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”

1 Peter 5:10

“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

John 16:33

“When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” (ESV)

Psalm 34:17-18

“Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” (ESV)

Romans 5:2-5

Comfortable Christianity Isn’t In The Bible

False teachers like Joel Osteen, T.D. Jakes, and Creflo Dollar will try to convince you that the more faith you have the more blessed your life will be. However, they teach that blessing translates to comfort, money, and health. That sounds great! Too bad it’s a lie.

Scripture promises trial and tribulation. If you are saved, then you can count on struggle. That is not to say that your life will be characterized by tragedy and hard times. Some Christians seem to have that life while plenty of others live lives defined by wealth and ease. I believe most of us have both seasons of struggle and seasons of ease.

I can’t explain why, from the outside, Christian lives sometimes have such a disparity between each other, but I can say two things with certainty. First, all Christians will have trials. Second, God has plans, and they are perfect.

So, let’s take a peek at the promise of hard times we can find in the Bible. (It really is a guarantee!)

“And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.”

Luke 14:27

Carrying the cross. Ease and comfort in one simple image, eh? Yeah… No. It’s the picture of dying to self. And take note that bearing that cross is evidence of being a true disciple of Jesus.

“Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.”

John 15:20

You might hope that this isn’t for everyone, but 2 Timothy 3:12 supports this verse saying, “all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” Did you catch that all? There is also a caveat. Living a godly life will ensure persecution.

Some might argue that Christians can avoid this discomfort by not living too godly a life. Of course, if a person can easily choose to not bear that cross and surrender to Jesus, then I suggest this individual may need to examine whether or not she really knows the Lord.

“The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”

Romans 8:16-17

Again, we see here this idea that we are not truly a child of God if we do not suffer some trial. No one is claiming that trials need to be martyrdom, starvation, severe illness, or some other life-threatening ordeal. We can see, though, that comfortable Christianity is not something Christ calls us to live.

Red Flags Of Comfortable Christianity

Now you know that you can’t spend your Christian walk sitting on the couch. You will face difficulties, but these will bring you closer to the Lord. They will help you grow into the woman of God you are meant to be. Trials will be sanctification in action.

But how do you know if you are living comfortable Christianity or are simply not currently experiencing a season of trial? Here are a few red flags that can alert you to possible trouble in your Christian walk.

1. Your Christian Faith Is A Surprise To Others

Think about how co-workers, friends, and family might talk about you when you aren’t around. Would they describe you as a Christian? If you died today and loved ones discovered your Bible in your home, would they be surprised?

Your Christian faith doesn’t have to be advertised, but it really ought to be one of your defining attributes. God should be first in our lives, and others will notice if we are living that out.

2. Nothing Comes Before Your Family

OK, this might step on some toes. The mama bear thing is so common now. I’m not entirely opposed to the idea. I get it. I mean, I once felt the urge to pick a fight with a preschooler after I saw him push my toddler down while playing a game of chase. No worries. I restrained myself, but it made me aware of just how protective a mother can be. And I think it’s a good thing.

BUT… (you knew it was coming) at what expense do we prioritize our families? This applies to children, parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, spouses, and whomever else you might love dearly in your family. Consider where they fall on the list of priorities compared to God.

An example of incorrect priorities might be a mother enabling her son to sin because she wants him to be happy. It could be parents who stop attending a Bible preaching church in order to attend the unbiblical church their child’s friends attend. Maybe your adult child wants to move away to serve where the Lord is leading her, but you discourage it because you’ll miss her and the grandchildren too much. Their wants and your desire to be close don’t trump God.

“If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.”

Luke 14:26

Woah! Did Jesus say we have to hate our families? No, but, no matter how deeply we love our families, we should love Him so much more than we love them. So, stop enabling your children to sin. Don’t placate your child by indulging his church preferences, especially those based on his or her social life. And encourage your children to follow God’s leading, even if they are sent far away.

3. You’re Not Spiritually Growing

By the nature of it, comfortable Christianity will not push you to challenge yourself in any significant way. You’ll leave church feeling affirmed in who you are rather than sometimes convicted about an area in your life that is contrary to Scripture.

Christians are to be growing in their likeness to Christ, and that will guarantee some discomfort. Do you love your enemies? Are you patient? Are you unashamedly sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ? Is your prayer life on point? How’s that temper, Julie? (Sometimes I need a personal reminder.)

If you aren’t ever feeling challenged in your walk with the Lord or desiring to learn more about Jesus, then you are probably too comfortable. God uses our discomfort to grow us, and we are missing out on blessings and the abundant life He offers when we rest on our laurels and essentially check out of our faith.

“My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”

James 1:2-4

Final Thought

It seems natural for us to avoid discomfort. C’mon, no one wants to be uncomfortable. Nevertheless, the Bible consistently speaks of struggles, persecution, and trials for believers. We are encouraged to rejoice in them, in fact.

Unpopular opinion time. The least comfortable times I have had generally resulted from conviction about my sin or when my life looked nothing like what the world was doing. Maybe the reason so many American Christians are comfortable is that they are not convicted of their own sin and have no interest in living a holy (set-apart) life. Many Christians care more about their wants being met today than they do about living faithful, obedient, and counter-cultural lives. If that’s the case, then these folks are not living Christian lives at all.

Take up your cross, Christians, even if it means letting go of your comfortable Christianity and embracing the trials as they come to you. Don’t be so comfortable that you lose your witness and cease living set apart from the world and unto the Lord.

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

Galatian 2:20

What are some things about comfortable Christianity I didn’t mention?

Image courtesy of Adrian Swancar via Unsplash.