Commitment and Love
Not long ago, as I was waiting for statistics class to begin, the subject of my faith came up with a friend. After I explained what “Apostolic Pentecostal” meant, he asked incredulously, “Wait, do you go to church every Sunday?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Seriously? Wow, that’s a lot.”
“Hey man, I love it. I love every second of it.”
“Every Sunday, wow…”
The love and passion that I hold for my church and my relationship with God left my friend awestruck. However, love is only half of the story. While my love for God and the church is important, there is another driving factor in my walk with God: Commitment. Without both, our walk with God will not succeed. As we journey down the straight and narrow, the devil is trying to pull us off our holy path. He doesn’t particularly care which side he pulls us off of. Cold hearted commitment which lacks the energy of love is just as dangerous as passionate love with no commitment. God is desirous of a holy Bride who is both stubbornly committed and feverishly in love.
Was my statistics friend correct? Is going to church every Sunday a lot? Is that too big of a commitment? As I divulged earlier, I am a stats student. So let’s do a simple math equation. Say that your church has a two-hour service. Say that it takes you a half hour to get to church and a half hour to drive home. That brings us to a total of three hours. The average American watches four hours of TV a day. Personally, I do not watch much TV at all. However, there are plenty of things I do for three hours a day, and on Sundays, church is one of them.
Three hours a week is certainly not ridiculous, but our greatest example, Jesus, gave much more than that small fraction of his life. Jesus was “daily with you in the temple teaching.” Jesus wasn’t just a Sabbath saint. He was passionate about church. Today He is still “daily in the temple” teaching us, but are we there to hear Him? Maybe church isn’t available every day. But, when someone comes to meet God, you can count on Him being there. He is a church junky. He loves it. On the other hand, He is committed to it. I cannot remember the last church or house service where God has not blessed me. That alone is more than enough reason to both love and commit to it.
Our sacrifices are often not as demanding as we think. Our small offering of time does not compare with the price paid by many who gave their lives for His kingdom. As one preacher says, “In the day of judgment you will stand next to people whose life’s blood ran down the streets of their cities.” Commitment will lead you to do these things for God. Love will lead you to do them with Him. You must have both to be a part of the Bride fit for The King.
I love your statement, “God is desirous of a holy Bride who is both stubbornly committed and feverishly in love.” It is so encouraging to see young people with the kind of passion you have for God.