"Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?"
The church is God’s hospital. According to the blueprint laid down by Christ, she is the conduit by which God intends to heal the world. In fact, Jesus boldly claims in one of the gospels that without the church, the world is in trouble. For there is actually no better way to interpret His words in Matthew 6:23, “If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” In other words, “If therefore the church that is in the world is ailing, how great is that ailment!” These words hint us on how important the church is in this world. Every Christian must hereby understand this and admit how important his role is in the great scheme of life.
Unfortunately, a rather significant percentage of the patients admitted into this divine hospital remain unhealthy despite prolonged administration of medication. But the truth is no unhealthy patient loves to remain that way. In reality, every true believer that finds himself in a state of spiritual indisposition wails in the same manner Paul did in Romans 7. But a mere discontentment is not enough. As the Pauline epistle admonishes not to be ignorant of the Devil’s devices, it is necessary that one understands the “why” of his predicament. For any Christian who is not enjoying a rich fellowship with the Holy Spirit, I am rather confident that one or more of the following statements is true concerning you.
You Are Distracted
One of the fastest ways to derail as a child of God is to permit distractions in your life. Any horticulturist will affirm to you that weeds need neither to be sown nor cultured. They simply grow on their own and cause a lot of havoc to the cultivated plant. In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:1-23), literally all the negative scenarios discussed had something to do with distractions. In this century with a plethora of technological devices and enhanced communication, how are you managing the distractions that present themselves? Are they submerging you into an unhealthy state of heart?
You Might Just Not Be Taking God Seriously Enough
I know many Christians do not like to hear this, young ones like me especially. But the truth is many of us are not taking God seriously enough. Do you ever consider your attitude, love and passion towards the faith through the lenses of the believers in the early church? What place does God occupy in your life? You should already be aware by now that if He’s not in first place, then He’s in no place at all.
You’re Taking Yourself Too Seriously
Could it also be true that you’re thinking too much of yourself? It may be too highly or contrariwise, too lowly. Maybe you think you rise and fall too frequently just because you’re not strong enough. But no man has ever gotten it right with God by relying on the arm of flesh.
You Are in Wrong Company
No verse does better justice to this than 1 Corinthians 15:33, “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”” Are you letting yourself be misled?
You Are Unintentional
It’s high time you stopped handling matters of your spiritual health with levity. Champions are born only out of deliberate and intentional effort. You just cannot afford to leave your spiritual well-being to chance, it’s been proven to be a matter of global security.
If you’ve ever struggled in your Christian walk, you most definitely admit the veracity of these above statements. I know they are true because I am a witness myself. So, together, we will consider ways to secure our spiritual health in the next release. For what use is a diagnosis without a prescription?
If all of these makes no sense to you and you wish for that to change, consider taking the sinner’s prayer.
Thank you for your God-given time. Shalom!
