An “after thought.” That’s how we typically characterize secondary priorities in our lives; things that just aren’t that important. Sometimes that might a person’s health, their children, their spouse, their job, etc. Sometimes things should be an after thought. Some things like hobbies, time wasters, etc. just aren’t important enough in life for them to be a priority above all others. But one thing that has become an after thought to a lot of people and has been for far too long is their Christianity.
I’ve never understood the mindset of someone who wants to go to heaven but won’t make getting there a priority. And honestly that’s what we do when we are not intentional with our Christianity. We’re telling God that He’s just not that important. I don’t want the following to be assumed to be all that is necessary for our lives to be pleasing to God, but I want to offer some suggestions of some simple, common sense things we can proactively do to make Christianity of greater importance in our lives.
- Don’t forget to read the Bible every day (Acts 17:11). What greater pursuit could we have in life than a pursuit of Bible knowledge? But how can we obtain that knowledge if we don’t seek it out? It’s always been interesting to me that Paul connected a person’s eternal preparation to their knowledge of the Bible (2 Timothy 3:16-17). It’s interesting because modern religion has disconnected the importance of the Bible from a person’s salvation. God, though, says differently. If I want to live a life that is complete before God and be furnished unto every good work, Paul says I need to give some attention to the Bible.
- Commit yourself to regular Bible study (2 Timothy 2:15). But wait a minute. Didn’t I just repeat myself? I mean, I already mentioned the necessity of Bible reading. But there is a difference between reading the Bible and studying the Bible, at least in my mind. Now Bible study can never occur without Bible reading, but a person can read the Bible without really putting a lot of effort into digging down deep into it’s wisdom. If a person commits themselves to a daily Bible reading plan (three chapters a day, typically) so often they read their three chapters a verse at a time, but they never seek to make connections to how themes, messages, or principles relate to other passages. They never cross-reference, write anything down, or search difficult ideas out to get a better understanding of what they mean. Daily Bible reading is a great thing, but don’t do it to the neglect of real study.
- Be given to prayer (James 5:16). I am of the opinion that prayer may be the most effective but most underutilized tool in the Christian’s possession. But think about what prayer represents – the opportunity to address the God of heaven and the Creator of the universe, to offer Him the glory that He is due, to petition Him for our needs, and to give Him thanks for our triumphs. And though we have been instructed to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), so often we do just the opposite. We give up on prayer. But does our relationship with God not need the communication that any relationship requires? If husbands and wives quit communicating what happens? The relationship fails. If we do not communicate with our God the same will occur.
- Make your attendance at church services a priority (Acts 20:7). Where did we ever get the idea that attending church services just wasn’t that important? I never cease to be amazed at the disconnect people make between their attendance at a service to glorify God and their relationship with God. Somehow church services have become a “let me get my ticket punched at least once a week and I’m good” thorn in our side that just has to be endured for the sake of appearances. But the Bible displays those times when the church assembles as so much more than that. They are intended to be times of praise, encouragement, education, and even correction when necessary. But even beyond what they can do for us is the black and white reality that we’ve been instructed to “not forsake our own assembling together, as the custom of some is” (Hebrews 10:25). Those empty pews have eternal implications.
- What about the lost (Mark 16:15-16)? Do you believe if a person is not a Christian, obedient and faithful to God’s charge that they will be lost? If you don’t then we need to have a deeper conversation than a blog post will provide. If you do, what are you doing about it. That person you work beside every day. You know they’re not a Christian. Because of that they’re lost. What are you doing about it? What about your husband/wife? You know they aren’t living like God wants them to live. What are you doing about it? That person you just walked past at Walmart – the overwhelming odds are they are not a New Testament Christian, redeemed by the blood of Jesus. You don’t know them, but does that make their soul any less precious? What are you doing about it? Jesus gave a responsibility to His disciples to seek and save those lost ones (Matthew 28:18-19). If we are going to be intentional about our Christianity then we better get busy in spreading the message of Christianity.
Is there more to Christianity than these five suggestions? Absolutely. I don’t pretend that this represents a checklist Jesus will be using at the judgment. But these are some simple, straightforward, no nonsense, Biblical realities that should exist in every person’s life who claims to be God’s. If you’re serious about going to heaven you know you can’t get there by accident. You’ve got to be intentional with your Christianity and these are some suggestions of how you can begin doing just that.
-Andy