Devotional Blogs: Not For Profit - 2 Corinthians 2

2 Corinthians 2:17     Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God.

There’s an old Yorkshire saying which states, “Where’s there’s muck, there’s brass.” It means that money can be made out of anything, no matter how messy or unpleasant it may be. As long as you’re willing to get down and get dirty, there’s a profit to be made. Controversy and scandal are major opportunities to make a financial killing. There’s always a market for controversial, on the edge stuff. Sadly, the Church is no different from the world in this regard.

For instance, there are some so-called Christian writers who have given up going to church in order to make a name for themselves. Being part of a local congregation gets in the way of completing presentation papers or meeting editor’s deadlines. Sunday mornings are for relaxation, isolation, and luxury. Drinking a latte, reading the newspaper, and doing their own thing rather than worshipping God in the pews is all that they live for. In the world’s eyes, there is nothing wrong with that, but I’m talking about Christian authors who write about what’s wrong with the Church. They think that their ivory tower theological perspectives should be adopted and practiced by grass roots believers who are actually Christ’s foot soldiers in the world.

For the Church to be effective, it doesn’t need armchair theologians who sit at home when worship takes place. It needs people, who are steeped in the troubles of life and in the midst of difficult times to sincerely keep Christ at the heart of their lives. The world would rather hear the rugged tales and personal testimonies of those who have maintained their faith through rough patches and critical days. The lofty loners who pontificate their insipid, impractical, and untested theologies in order to profit from controversy, heresy, and apostasy, may write and sell books that will satisfy spiritually shallow readers, anti-establishment academics, and pander to progressives, but with no real meat or substance, their so-called theologies will decay and turn to dust, whilst the True Church plods on making real progress across the world.

So how does this spiritually help you begin a new week? Be careful about what you read and know who the writers really are. All that glistens is not gold and where there’s muck, there’s brass.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, help us to discern what we should be reading and studying in order to become better disciples. Keep us from being caught up with fashionable faith writers whose only motives are to make money from unsettling the Church. Help us find sincere teachers who truly put You at the heart of their lives, their writing, and their presentations. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is John’s latest drawing in his Psalms project. It depicts Psalm 101 v 1 – “I will sing of Your love and justice.” A larger version can be viewed online here:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4113/5069276397_16410c724f_b.jpg