Usually about this
time each year I begin to fanaticize about being in Maine along the rocky coast
shrouded in a cool foggy mist. I can almost hear the drone of the fog horn in
the background and the squawk of sea gulls. The hazy, hot, humid weather has won the
battle and my t-shirt, damp with perspiration, is being waved in the air to
signal surrender – or at least dry a little bit. A person can only endure so
much of the three “H’s” until their steam-boiled brain starts to fanaticize about
a way of escape. Some people have mirages of catching the breezes on the
Susquehanna River while dangling a fishing line behind the boat with an
occasional dip in the river to cool off. Others dream about laying on the beach
at some shore point slathered in number 30 sun screen interrupted only by an
occasional immersion in the cooling ocean. Then there are those who picture the
perfect escape as a retreat to a mountain cabin nestled in a grove of trees,
located near a babbling stream which will later lull them to sleep after consuming
way too many s’mores around the camp fire. We all can vividly imagine our place
of escape and are convinced that our solution is the best solution to deal with
the 3 H’s.
My summer coping solution has been
cultivated and embedded into my DNA after almost 60 years of making the summer trek
to Downeast Maine. My family concludes I am addicted to the place because I
feel like I haven’t been on a vacation until I have been there sometime during
the year. They have even gone as far as calling me a “Maineac!” Just because one
has miniature lighthouses and paintings of the rocky coast around the house is
no reason to call one names! I admit it, “I love Maine!” For many years I even
had a bumper sticker that said so on our station wagon that I called our
“Maine” car.
Lest you feel compelled to have an
intervention to break me of my Maine addiction, let me assure you there are
others like me and even worse. Paul, an older friend of mine, loved Maine as
intensely as I did. Actually, he probably loved it much more than I did. I love
Maine so much I am willing to spend my vacation there almost every summer. He
loved the place so much he was willing to move there. He sold his home and farm
in Bucks County, left a secure position with a company, uprooted his wife and
three daughters, and settled into a community along the coast. He loved Maine
enough to become a permanent resident. I loved Maine enough to visit yearly. If
you measured love by the commitment and investment one makes, you would have to
conclude that he loved Maine more than I did. Paul was a resident – he was all
there. I was a mere tourist – I was there when convenient and I needed my
“Maine-fix.”
Could there be a parallel between Paul’s
and my love for Maine and the way one loves Christ and His Bride, the church?
There are many people who declare they love Christ and His church. What do they
mean by that affirmation? Their commitment and investment may be rather
revealing about the nature of their love. In John 6:24-25 there were many
people who classified themselves as followers of Jesus after the miracle of the
feeding of the 5,000. However, when Jesus started making amazing claims and
teaching difficult truths, they withdrew and followed Jesus no more (6:60, 66).
There was one group of followers that remained, the disciples (6:67-69). They remained
because they were fully committed and invested in Jesus and believed His claims.
Kyle Idleman writes in his book, Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed
Follower of Christ, “My concern is that many of our churches in America have
gone from being sanctuaries to becoming stadiums. And every week all the fans
come to the stadium where they cheer for Jesus but have no interest in truly
following him.” Then he adds this sobering thought, “The biggest threat to the
church today is fans who call themselves Christians but aren’t actually
interested in following Christ. They want to be close enough to Jesus to get
all the benefits, but not so close that it requires anything from them.” The
people who followed Jesus in John 6 wanted the benefits of the free meal, but
not the burden of taking up their cross and following Jesus (Matthew 16:24-25).
Jesus wants followers, not fans. Jesus wants people who are willing to be
residents in His Kingdom, committed fully to His principles and plans for their
lives no matter the cost. Jesus is not looking for mere tourists coming only
for the benefits they derive while fully intending to live elsewhere.
Around the world there are multiple
examples of Christians who are fully committed and invested in Christ’s person,
principles, and plans. They are followers and not fans. They are residents in
Christ’s kingdom, not tourists. Their commitment is costly and for them horrendous
suffering is the norm. Their investment means more than enduring harsh words, cultural
marginalization, or economic loss. They have been physically abused and even
murdered. Yet their Christian communities are thriving and having a huge impact
in their country and world. Again we see a repeat of what one church historian
wrote of the persecution of the early church, “The blood of the martyrs has
become the seed of church.”
Christ is calling us to love Him and to
love His world (Luke 10:27). True followers will do that as they worship Christ
and invest in people and their needs. They will have an impact. Those who are
mere fans of Christ will be looking for an exciting pep rally to juice up their
emotions and give them a spiritual charge, continue loving themselves and focusing
upon their own needs. They will have an impact too – they will be perplexing.
