Whether one thinks it is strong enough or not, there is among the churches a substantial interest in converting new souls to the Christian faith/religion/way-of-life. But just how much of the soul are we to convert? Are we to convert them in minimal ways only, such as to believing merely that God exists, and yet taking nothing else in the scriptures to heart? Or are we to convert them simply to adding the go-to-church habit into their weekly routine, with no other changes in their lives than that? These would be minimal changes, of course, and far from a “total makeover”, as we might call it.
These may be some of the low expectations that are common to the churches, but what does God expect from the convert?
Let’s check the first and second greatest commandments, present in both the Old and the New Covenants:
Matthew 22:36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
new international version
We must not fail to notice that Jesus not only uses the absolute language of “all” in this commandment, but that he also appears to be placing it as the greatest of all the commandments, for he cites it in response to this question. And though they didn’t ask, he adds in a second, which I assume he thought they would really need to hear. And I suspect that it’s easy for the “Pharisee” sort to overestimate the quality of his love for God. So when Jesus brings in that second commandment, it helps to make it more “real” for them
So, if these are the greatest of the commandments—the most important ones—then how does this bode for the barely-converted soul, who has been taught that he is in a right relationship with God just for saying “Jesus is Lord” or just for coming to church most Sundays, when he has no grasp on these two greatest commandments, which require great effort and sacrifice to fulfill?
I don’t think that God has ever been satisfied with half-hearted people. It was a problem under the Law of Moses, and it’s a problem under the New Covenant. And I don’t have time to spell it all out at present, but there’s a lot of language in the Bible along the lines of the need and expectation for Christians to be wholehearted.
Even so, I observe that so very many of the churches are quite satisfied with less-than-wholehearted conversions. They set the barre really low, and just try go hang on to their members, satisfying themselves with the low-hanging fruit of regular or semi-regular attendance, as if that were what God were looking for. They offer up what amounts to little more than a church hobby for people, where what God had in mind—if I’m reading my Bible right—is an all-consuming way of life that makes people like Jesus was when he was here.
So while the churches may be checking off the attendance column, I think they should be checking off all manner of things: character, behavior, righteousness, relationships, Bible knowledge—everything, really, with a view toward converting the members fully to the heart and mind of Jesus, making them mature and diligent for every good thing, and not just one or two.
2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
Colossians 1:10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,
2 Timothy 3:17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Hebrews 13:21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Verses like these give us some valuable insight into the spiritual culture of those First-Century fellowships. And they are quite unlike the stereotypical fellowship of today, which may actually de-emphasize good works, just as so many de-emphasize other godly things like knowledge, wisdom, and study. They pick-and-choose parts of the Bible that they want to emphasize, but they are not wholly converted to obedience. For example, a church may strongly emphasize that the women are to be submissive to their husbands, but not that the men are to be submissive to Christ, behaving like him. They can pound their fists on the lectern about the women, and pretend to be people of strong conviction about Bible teachings, but when they leave the men unchallenged in their walk with Christ, they do more damage to themselves that I can calculate.
And there are a thousand other such compromises that come into play when the aim of conversion in a church culture is less than the wholehearted level of conversion. Yet this is fairly standard in the churches. And it shows.
But something else shows, too. It’s when an individual is taking it to heart and wants to go after those first two commandments, whether his or her church is typified by going after them or not. And I think this is the sort that God is really looking for—the sort who are all-in from the beginning, and who will set out about learning to walk in the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no matter how great a challenge it is to them. That’s where real Christianity happens. It’s not in filling the pews with the masses; it’s in the individual choosing to fill his or her heart with the philosophy and deeds of Jesus—to turn him- or herself in wholeheartedly—to sign up for the whole course of learning.
Here’s a one-liner glimpse of something about God that was going on in the old days.
2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.
He was sitting on ready to bless them if they’d just give him their whole hearts. Here’s that same heart of God, borne out in another passage, where the problem was that the Israelites were not wholehearted in tithing at the Temple:
Malachi 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
I think that God has always been like this, and still is to this very day. I think that we miss out on so much blessing when we go half-heartedly about it all. And surely, not every believer meets with this approval at the end of the story:
2 Corinthians 2:9 So we make it our goal to please him, … 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
So many these days are unwilling to hear that God does indeed judge Christians on how they have lived. But here it is in print—and this is certainly not the only passage from which we can learn this lesson. I think a lot of believers won’t want to get it, because they’re still wishing for a way out—for a way to please God without having to be wholehearted. But I think that the entire Bible story is contrary to that wish. It’s the story of the rebellion of humans and angels alike against God’s wholehearted plan for their existence. And fortunately for us, it’s also the story of some humans and angels alike who thought that wholeheartedness before God is a good thing. And it seems it’s harder for humans to learn to live that way than it is for angels. Hence, our time here in this beautiful/ugly world, where we can learn godliness if we want to. Or not!
And I am so thankful to be learning it—and with the help of some friends! But may it ever be my true intent, and not just lip service!
(See also the follow-up article: “What do you want from God?“)
