For many people in our churches today, their whole church life can be compared to a wedding rehearsal. They have learned to say the right things, act the right ways, and dress the part. But at the end of the day, it's only been a rehearsal without a life commitment. Their life has not been changed by Jesus.
In our previous blog, we looked at a group of people who have been given just enough religion throughout their lifetime to keep them from the real thing - a personal, life-changing relationship with Jesus. We call this group the religious lost. And the question we are asking is "What can we do to reach them?" Allow me to speak to this from a couple of different perspectives.
First, as friends of the religious lost, we must continue to pray for the true salvation of those around us who are not bearing fruit. And remember that when you commit to laser-focused prayer for the lost, you are joining the greatest prayer partner of all time - Jesus Christ (see John 17:20 ).
One of my favorite commercials of all time is the old Wendy's restaurant commercial. As an elderly lady receives her order in the drive-through at a competing restaurant, she looks at the burger and asks with disgust and sarcasm, "Where's the beef?" In today's world, many people are still asking "Where's the beef?" Except they're asking it in a little different way. They are asking "Where's the evidence?" And they aren't referring to a burger. They're referring to the Church.
I'll never forget one of the professors I had while attending college during my undergrad studies. On the first day of class, he made it very clear that he was opposed to Christianity, made fun of people who read the Bible, and proceeded to explain that there was no way to prove that something was one hundred percent truth - no absolute truth. Now that's a great way to start off a college class. I was a Christian, more zealous than knowledgeable. I'll admit I didn't know how to respond.