Why God Is Relevant
One of the most common criticisms against the “new church” is that it has gotten away from the God of the Bible, in favor of a made-up, imaginary God who wants you to be rich, healthy, famous, happy, and prosperous in every way. They say that the “new church” has redefined God in the name of relevance, in order to appeal to a wider audience. That’s why churches play those sinful drums, and sing those sinful Christian rock songs, and the pastors wear those sinful jeans on Sunday. –tongue firmly in cheek 
And yes, there are many churches and tv ministries that do preach a prosperity Gospel, and I’ve spoken on that before. And yes, there are churches that play Christian rock, and people don’t wear suits and ties, and that does indeed make the church itself a bit more relevant and accessible. But since preaching prosperity is a lie, it makes God Himself no more relevant … it makes the false god of materialism more relevant. And dressing casually, and playing music written in the last 20 years makes God Himself no more relevant, because those things are stylistic items. You see, they say nothing of God at all. Those are preference issues, meant to reach an audience who doesn’t like older music, and outdated instruments. The opposite is true as well. Some people prefer soft music, hymnals, piano/organ, etc. To each his own, so long as it isn’t sin.
God is relevant no matter what. However, we can present Him in a very irrelevant manner. People need to hear why the Bible and God is important to them. Over the weekend, I was thinking about why I think God is relevant, and why it matters that we portray Him accurately in order to show people that he is indeed relevant. Here are 5 reasons I believe God is relevant:
1. God’s principles on money always work.
I’ve seen this both in a positive and negative way. When I don’t give to the church, my finances suffer. When I’m faithful in giving, I never have problems with money. Honestly, this has NEVER failed.
2. God’s principles on sexuality are best … period.
I’ve seen the wonderful results of a life of sexual purity, and I’ve seen the devastating effects of not following them. I don’t have time to go into it, but there is a certain level of harm done when you drift away from God’s principles here.
3. Lies never turn out good.
OK, every once in a while you may be able to get away with one, but lying is never a good policy. It always leads to trouble. Telling the truth may be a bit painful, but it nearly always turns out better than if you were dishonest.
4. Controlling your anger, bitterness, and need for revenge is always the best way to handle a difficult situation, 2 Corinthians 10:5.
When we bring into captivity what we allow ourselves to think about and dwell on, we give God control over our thoughts. He tells us what is good and what is bad … not because He’s mean, but because He knows what is best for us.
5. Jesus came to earth, lived the life your couldn’t live, died the death you should have died, offers a free gift of sin forgiveness, saves us from hell, and offers us an eternity with Him.
Even if Christianity offered no practical value, it would still be incredibly relevant!
Obviously, there are so many other reasons why Jesus is relevant, but these were the ones that were fresh on my mind. It has taken the church to twist Him into an irrelevant, boring, impractical Savior. That’s not the Jesus I serve. If you serve a irrelevant God, you serve a different one than I do
If you have any other examples of the relevancy of Jesus, feel free to post them in the comments. Personal stories and examples are welcome We love those!
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There are many personal examples, but the one that comes to mind…
I’ve always loved how Jesus was a carpenter before His public ministry. He was known as a craftsman before He was known as Messiah. And I bet He was known as a GREAT carpenter. No shoddy work coming from that shop!
This has always inspired me to not just be a good employee, but to be good at what I do. To take care with every task, whether it will be recognized or not.
Excellent point, Ben. That’s a sermon in itself!
The fact that the Bible is not only a record of good men and the good lives they lead but also the times they failed in their efforts to be holy. Since we fail constantly, it nice to see examples of great people who were not perfect and yet, God still loved them and used them to do His work. That’s pretty relevant I’d say.
Nathan,
Dude, this is great stuff! I’ve never seen it put like this! Usually people say, “God is relevant” and let it hang! You actually gave us something to hang it on! Thanks!
Paul
These are all such great examples, everyone!