The Candyland Gospel

There are few things that really "irk" me when I hear them. To be "irked" is the kind of feeling where you seem to fidget in your seat and become consumed with the sentence or sentences that make up an idea you can't agree with. It also begins to discredit the speaker in your own mind and puts an asterisk on everything else he or she might say.

The thing that's been irking me lately is what I like to call the Candyland presentation of the Gospel. What is the Candyland presentation of the Gospel? It is the presentation of the Christian faith as the easiest, most happy-go-lucky, and narcissistic journey you could choose. There are no true risks in Candyland. I mean, seriously, it's Candyland. The worst thing that could happen is that you fall into a mudpit of chocolate. There is no daring, on-the-edge-of-your-seat moment.

The fact of the matter is that the Bible very clearly articulates the Christian faith is not the easiest path to take. Yes, it is the absolutely best path you can take that will lead you to your God-given purpose and eternal life. But no, it is not about making you as comfortable as possible until you die. It's not about hitting cruise-control and gliding safely into eternal life. My dog back home will often find a blanket on a bed and pull the cloth and spin around several times before finding or creating the most comfortable spot possible. This, unfortunately, is how many Christians are approaching their faith. They're pulling and pushing the blanket of support around them, spinning in circles, trying to find the most comfortable spot they can be in until this life ends.

I don't know how we got here. I have a theory that it has a lot to do with the Americanization of Christianity. We're taught to hedonistically find our comfort and safety and look out for ourselves. Only in rare moments of compassion do we hand out $5 to the homeless man on the corner or clean up a street (and yes, I am very guilty of this as well). The Gospel should disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. If there comes a point in our faith journey that we would describe as comfortable, something is wrong. We don't truly understand that discipleship unto Christ is a call to revolution.

In John 21:18, Jesus says to Peter, "Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." In verse 19 it says, "Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!"" In other words, Peter would be martyred for his faith. Tradition says that Peter was actually crucified upside-down. Something about that doesn't make me too comfortable.

The greatest part of that exchange between Jesus and Peter is how quickly Jesus tells Peter to follow Him after describing the death Peter would experience for following Him. It's almost as if Jesus was testing Peter's devotion. Just before this conversation, Jesus had asked Peter three times if he loved Him. And now he's telling Peter he will surely be martyred for his faith if Peter really does love Him and follow Him. Let's just say - Jesus doesn't mess around. He doesn't coat a Candyland picture of faith for Peter. He lets him know straight off that discipleship will cost him. And it won't be comfortable, either.

I could show example after example from the Bible of the Gospel's call to live beyond our comfort level. But I don't think it is that necessary. Instead of tuning into Joel Osteen's health-and-wealth message, we should be reading the Bible for what it actually says. While thinking about this heavy topic, I was pleased to run across a paragraph in a book I'm reading by Leonard Sweet called the Gospel According to Starbucks:
"Maybe we should warn spiritual seekers in advance that Jesus is not for the faint of heart, instead of "cooling down" the gospel so we can all sip religion comfortably on cushioned, suburban pews. The gospel was not meant to be comfortable or safe. Jesus does not invite lukewarm faith, the brand practiced by the Church of Laodicea. Instead, God promises to spit the lukewarm out of God's mouth" (33).

Yes, exactly! In evangelism we can often fall into the trap of persuasion that waters down the gospel in order to "close the deal" or obtain the conversion. This is not what God calls us to in the Great Commission. We are to make disciples, and not converts. And Jesus makes it very clear what the cost of discipleship is in Luke 9 and Luke 14. Please familiarize yourself with these passages if you don't know what it says. It'll revitalize your view of comfortable Christianity.

Last week I was at a Hillsong United worship concert in Indianapolis. One of the best parts of the night was in between songs when Joel Houston spoke to the crowd. He proclaimed that our worship cannot be contained within these walls, the walls of the church. If we come to a concert like that one and leave our worship there, we are living out a selfish faith. Our worship needs to expand beyond the walls of the church into the community. He exclaimed that we have so many resources and opportunities to bless and love other people, and we need to take hold of them. (They then did a plug for Compassion International, and hundreds of people signed up to sponsor a child in poverty somewhere in the world for $32 per month. I love that they didn't just talk in theory, but accompanied it with a challenge to act. 1 John 3:18 - "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.")

We have to take risks as disciples! We need to get out of our safety zone and embrace the call of the gospel. Sometimes this will mean doing things that don't make much sense rationally. Risk is sometimes defined by unrationality. That's what makes Christianity exciting! How exciting can it truly be when we're comfortable? Let's stop tailoring Jesus to our own interests and accept the cost of discipleship. The reward will far outweigh everything else we think we want. And God will smile on us as we reach out to the homeless, the oppressed, the lost, the downtrodden, and the outcasts. We'll run in answer to the call into Samaria where no one else will go. There is a huge need for disciples who will give up their own comfort to spread the Good News. Will we answer?

Leave Candyland to the board game creators. It is much more suited as a toy for a child than as an interpretation of the Christian faith.