Do we give our all to God and does the world see it?

 It’s either the whole or nothing, we’re either all in or all out, there’s no sitting on the fence or grey areas when it comes to our Christian walk with Jesus.

Are we all in or all out for Jesus and can anyone tell the difference?

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I recently attended a funeral and was left a little baffled as to what type of funeral it
was. There was no Christian content and by this I mean, the coffin was led in without comment, there were no prayers or hymns and the whole service was simply a two part tribute to the deceased read by the man at the front who was known as a 'Celebrant', as the deceased first and current wives were there with their respective families, and it seemed both wanted their say without them saying it. The committal was the celebrant simply saying ‘farewell and sleep peacefully on your onward journey’ (to who knows where, because he didn’t seem to know), over the coffin and then told everyone to say goodbye to him on the way out.

Having said all that, right in the middle of all this, and completely out of character with the rest of the service, the celebrant asked everyone who wanted to, to say the Lord’s Prayer. As we were saying it I wondered how many of them really understood what they were saying.

So let’s consider what was being said:

‘Our Father who art in Heaven’ I know there were a lot there who didn’t know God as their Father, as many of them were from my immediate and wider family.

‘Hallowed be Thy Name’. I wondered how many of the people saying that really knew what Hallowed even meant, as rather than exalting God, I’ve heard many of them take the Lord's Name in vain on many occasions?

‘Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven’. Did they really understand the consequences of what that would mean if God took them up on that?

‘Give us this day our daily bread’. I think if asked they would probably think this meant, give us whatever we want, when we want it.

And then the big one, ‘Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us’. Well, if you’d have heard some of the conversations at the wake you’d have realised they had no idea what that meant!

‘Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil’. They really don’t seem to care one way or the other over this statement, as they just don’t believe in God or the devil.

‘For Thine is the Kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.' A statement that is true whoever says it.

It was almost as though they’d put this in the service as a token gesture for anyone who did believe. It did seem a little bizarre, and I have to say I’ve never been to a funeral quite like it, as it was almost emotionless.

Now having said that, I then wondered how many Christians also say the Lord’s prayer without even thinking about what they’re saying or understand the greater consequences for them compared to those who don’t know the Lord. For instance ‘Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us’. Now the rest of the Lord’s prayer for the Christian is easy to say and I have no doubt is heartfelt and meant.

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But the question is, can we say with hand on heart we have no unforgiveness towards anyone? If the answer to that is ‘yes’ then great! But if the answer to that is ‘no’ or ‘I don’t think so’ then that can cause a block or possible separation between us and God. And we shouldn’t forget the words of Jesus that He speaks straight after teaching his disciples how to pray, ‘For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. (Matthew 6:14-15 NIV). (underlines added). 

This is serious and we need to take it seriously, otherwise God might just look at us and wonder why, just like those at the funeral, we are simply paying lip service to something so important.

At a meeting myself and a number of others were asked a question by a pastor, which was, ‘What sin can keep you out of heaven?’ We all looked at him with no one giving an answer. Then he looked at us and said ‘The unforgiven sin’. Given the words of Jesus, this question and answer could be very poignant. This begs the questions, do we practise what we preach? and does the world see that in us? Because to be able to truly forgive, can set you free.

So when we’re told to ‘remember who we are’ and asked ‘do we believe in the cross of Jesus?’ There's a reason for this and we need to seek the face of the Lord to understand what it means for our lives and service to God. It’s either the whole or nothing, we’re either all in or all out, there’s no sitting on the fence or grey areas when it comes to our Christian walk with Jesus.

Jesus gave His all and so must we.

Author: Kevin Hunt

May God bless and enrich your life

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