"I want to go deeper..."

    Warning: I'm getting on a sopbox today...There is definitely a temptation to think when we hear a pastor teach a message, or when we read something, to think: "I didn't get anything out of that. I think I need something 'deeper'...".  I have actually heard this statement made dozens of time in my life. You have probably heard it, too. You might have been thought it or said it.
    I want to suggest today, though,k that the question we really need to be asking ourselves, is: What is deeper? This is a great question for those of us who follow Christ and the teachings of the Bible. I think that too many times, we don't know how to articulate what we're feeling, so going 'deeper' sounds like something that we need. However, I think most of the time, what someone is saying when they say they need something 'deeper', is that they need a new feeling--something to make them FEEL better or closer to God. They need new emotion.
    There are a couple of BIG problems with allowing emotional feeling to be our guide and barometer for our faith. One problem is that emotions themselves are terribly inconsistent. Emotions come and go. They are there one day and gone the next. If we are not careful, our pursuit of the 'deeper' things of God can have us seeking, chasing and jumping from one potential emotional fix to another. This is why many people jump from church to church every 2-4 years. When the newness wears off and they don't  'feel' like they used to, they feel like they must need some 'deeper' teaching or 'deeper' study again.The problem is that in 3-4 years, they will feel the same way again at their next church--And the cycle repeats itself.
    Secondly, our emotions can be very misleading! The truth is that Satan often uses our emotions to mislead us. If he can get us to think or feel something that's not accurate, he can lead us on a spiritual wild goose-chase! The heart is pictured in the bible as the center of our emotions. However, look what the Bible says about allowing our 'hearts' to navigate us spiritually: "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9 (NIV). In other words, most of the time, we don't even understand our own emotions and motivations for doing the things we do and wanting the things we want.
    This is why we have to define 'deeper', not with our heart but with our head. We have to go by what the Bible says and stop using our emotions as the barometer for everything:  "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will"  Romans 12:2 (NIV).
    To avoid drifting into this common 'deeper' emotion and myth, we need to keep our eyes on Jesus and follow His example. One of the deepest teachings of the Bible is found in Matthew 22:39: "Love your neighbor as yourself." In other words, regardless of the way you WANT to FEEL about a person, love them as much as you love yourself! Jesus didn't spend all of his time with His followers who worshiped Him. He spent tons of time with prostitutes, crooks, and sinners. Why? Because this is what God had commanded Him to do! He loved the unlovable. He touched the untouchable. It wasn't easy, but it was 'deep'.
    Here's how the Bible defines going deep: OBEDIENCE. APPLYING THE BIBLE. LOVING PEOPLE BECAUSE WE LOVE GOD. Jesus knew everyone was looking for something, 'new', so He played off of it when he said:  "So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples”John 13:34-35 (NLT).
    Jesus said this: Listening to a great message or even studying the Bible is not 'deep'. Applying the message to our lives and doing what the Bible says, is! Our heart tells us hat hearing and reading is deeper. The Bible tells us that applying it, is: "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says" James 1:22 (NIV).
     God, through his Word, can take us as 'deep' as we're willing to go. However, it takes work. It takes effort. It involves taking personal responsibility for our own spiritual growth and practice. We can't be led around by our emotions. We can't spend our life jumping from study to study and church to church looking for something 'deep'. We need to go to God and ask him to help us love people more. That's as deep as it gets! Simple, but deep! I love that!
    OK....I'll get off my soapbox again for now...

Comments

[Denise Krackenberger]

This is good stuff. You know, you can read good stuff and you can hear good stuff but until you are experiencing this kind of good stuff, you can't really get it. Let me explain. I realized awhile ago that I was needing these spiritual fixes and would try all kinds of things to get them. I think in the beginning of our Christian walk, because of our immaturity, God gives alot of quick answers and provides these revelations even to the simplest whiniest prayers just to let you know he's real and he's there. Well, you start experiencing these dry spells and panic and wonder where the heck God is. A song by Barlow Girl "Never Alone" sums it up when they sing about praying for interaction with God one day but they couldn't feel his presence (i.e. no emotions going on) but recognizing that He is in fact there even though we're not feeling it. I will not go into a long list of what's going on with me right now but I can tell you that things are not going my way AT ALL! I am not getting expedited prayer answers by Fed Ex and it's more like they are coming by camel. IN the meantime, I am trusting, I am looking introspectively, I am certain God is teaching me patience, humility and trust as he helps me work through all my doubts, uncertainties and no clear cut path in sight. (AND I LOVE CLEAR CUT PATHS!!) Awhile back, I would have hit the panic button and started trying to "fix" my situation quickly. Right now I think I am supposed to be still and know that even though I can't feel Him and I'm not getting answers, He loves me and does not want me to rely on my emotions right now but on His plan for me and whatever it entails to get me there.

[Bridgett Calhoun]

This was awesome! Thanks for getting on your soapbox today! I loved it so much I have shared it with many of my co workers.

Thanks!

Love Ya! Bridgett

[Lizette Beard]

Shawn, don't think of it as a soap box as much as an on board navigation system to keep us from going off course. My college pastor "lovingly" encouraged us one day when we were asking to go "deeper" in our weekly bible studies. He asked "hey, are you obeying what you already know? If not, what difference will learning any more make?" After the sting of that wore off, he asked us to consider that expecting our pastor to always be the one to take us deeper is like depending on our mom to tie our shoes or cut our steak even after we are old enough to know how. (Ouch) So, I appreciate your gentle approach to the reminders.

[rindy]

"it takes work. It takes effort. It involves taking personal responsibility for our own spiritual growth and practice."

This statement is so true! I wrote about this a short while ago http://rindy.wordpress.com/2007/02/22/reaching-a-turning-point/

This has been a big topic of conversation lately...when is it our own personal responsibility for growth? So many just want to be "spoon fed"...