The Christian Life is a life of discipleship. In His short earthly ministry, when Jesus called people into discipleship, he told them to deny themselves, take up their cross (a symbol of dying to self and maybe even physical death) and follow Him. He still calls men and women the same way today. To become a disciple is to surrender ALL of life to Jesus (not some parts), to pursue a transformed life (not a life of self-improvement), and to help others to do the same.
Unfortunately, many expressions of the evangelical church in our current culture have been diluting and dumbing down this call, watering down the message, and blurring the lines of being called out and set apart by God.
In an increasingly secularized America, these expressions of “church” are waxing eloquent on secular ideologies of self-care, self-help, and wokeism, trying to make man “good” rather than bringing him to God through the Gospel of Jesus, as the only One who can make anything good. The Gospel message of reckless abandon TO and reconciliation IN Jesus and liberty THROUGH His Holy Spirit is buried somewhere in the church basement. They have confused an entire generation or more, and rightly so.
Jesus asked for more…not less.
Minimizing me...making much of Jesus 