We are a people today who enthralled with being casual. You may have heard someone say, "I am just a casual observer." Or "I love casual Fridays." Or "I am only a casual sports fan." This term conveys the meaning that one is not as serious or concerned about a matter as others may be. There is nothing wrong with being casual in certain circumstances. However, I have to draw the line of wearing pajamas out in public. Do people really think that's okay? But I digress! The danger today is thinking that we can casually follow the Lord and that He is fine with it.
On a certain occasion, "great multitudes" were following Jesus as he was traveling (Luke 14:25-33). The text says that He turned around and started speaking to them. There are people today who garner large followings, such as movie stars, recording artists, best-selling authors, etc. Maybe you yourself follow a few. Jesus was very popular, but some only followed Him casually as some may follow a popular person today. So, the Lord turned around and wanted them all to know something about being a disciple of His. If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple (Luke 14:26 NKJV).
To the casual follower, these are shocking words. Jesus is talking about the closest relationships we may form! He even talks about "number one" (self)! Yet, if all our attachments in this life are not secondary to Him, then we are of no use to Him. Jesus was telling those people then, and us today, that only wholehearted devotion to Him will be accepted. Jesus flatly rejects a "casual Christian."
Jesus knows, and we come to understand that anyone who takes a casual approach to Christianity will eventually fall away from the Lord. For after making that statement, the Lord asks a couple of questions that are designed to get His disciples to consider the cost of following Him (Luke 14:28-32). He speaks of one who goes about to build a tower, but is mocked by others because he can't finish it having run out of funds. I have seen such buildings, and they become eyesores to a community. Disciples who quit the Lord are viewed in such a way. What do you think of when you hear the name Demas (2 Timothy 4:10)? We must "count the cost" of being Jesus' disciples so that we will not make fools of ourselves by not finishing the race (2 Timothy 4:7).
How would a casual Christian answer the following questions? 1) Have you taken heed to your prayer life and private Bible study (Mark 1:35; Matthew 4:1-11)? 2) Do you and your family regularly talk about Jesus outside of the church building (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)? 3) As you have put on Christ, have you also made no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lusts (Romans 13:14)? 4) Have you purposed in your heart to give liberally and cheerfully to God (2 Corinthians 9:7)? 5) Do your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and customers know you are a Christian (Matthew 10:32-33)? 6) Is your heart's desire and prayer to God for your friends and relatives is that they might be saved (Romans 10:1)? 7) Do you regularly assemble with the Lord's church on Sunday mornings, Sunday nights, and Wednesday nights (Hebrews 10:24,25)? 8) Do you unashamedly suffer for being a Christian (1 Peter 4:16)? 9) Do you earnestly desire the Lord to come with all speed (2 Peter 3:12)? As our culture embraces casualness, we cannot afford to be casual in our relationships with others and especially with the Lord. Let us not be lulled into being a "casual Christian." In fact, it is a contradiction in terms.
Brotherly, Jamie
