Well how do you do? This is my first go round with this blogging stuff, but not my first time around the block. I am excited at the prospect of reaching people with ideas and dialogue concerning God and the strength of the American Christian culture. This blog is dedicated to reaching people who call themselves Christians, but it would be a bonus if it causes the non-Christian population to pause, think and devote their life to Christ as well.
The aim of the Ultimate Competition Ministry is to delve into such topics as apologetics, end times prophecy (eschatology), men’s issues, discernment and the general state of the church and its members in regards to being “luke warm.”
So without further ado, let’s get the party started. If y’all haven’t read much in Revelation you might want to give it a gander. The first couple of chapters are pretty much straight forward and is addressing the 7 churches of Asia: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. These were actual churches that existed in the first century. These churches also represent the type of churches that exists today. The problem here, is that only 2 (Smyrna & Philadelphia) of the 7 churches receive good marks from our Maker, the other 5 are given some acknowledgements but are ultimately admonished for the way they carry out their lives.
The Laodicean church in particular, caught my attention a few years back when I first started reading the Bible in earnest. Jesus is telling them that they are neither cold nor hot and that He wished they were one way or another. In Revelation 3:16 Jesus says, “”So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” Say what? Man, that doesn’t sound like the Jesus we hear about. Paraphrasing of course, in essence I believe Jesus is saying – because you have no passion or zeal and just sit there like a nebulous bowl of jello, you make Me so sick I want to throw up. This verse hit me square between the eyes, big time! Jesus is not talking to unbelievers here, he is talking to church going folk like you and me. Does this grab your attention?
You see, that is exactly the way that I was. I grew up as a preacher’s kid and have always loved Jesus and asked forgiveness of my sins. But that is where my relationship with our Lord and Savior ended. It was shallow, empty and basically a “get out of jail” free card. Heck, I spent more time trying to be better at Monopoly than I did trying to have a relationship with my Father. I was basically riding the coat tails of my parents relationship with God without putting my own effort into the relationship. I know that I am like many of you who profess to love Jesus, we desire to be close to God but many times our actions do not line up with our words.
I believe Christian apathy is the norm. What do I mean by that statement? I believe that a large percentage of Christians are absent of passion, emotion, or excitement regarding our salvation and relationship with our Lord and Master. I don’t think we comprehend how super colossal this really is. I also believe that a large percentage of Christians are ignorant to what the Bible really says. I believe this for a few different reasons, but mainly from my personal experience with apathy and ignorance in my own life.
How do we wake up? For me, it was a traumatic experience of my Dad living in a coma for 5 years before going home to our Father. What began as a tragedy of losing my Dad to a coma at age 30 turned into a miraculous recovery from my apathetic Christian ways. I would dare say this single event was the most tragic, yet most fantastic event I have had in my life to date. When a Christian can point to the event or series of events that lead them to chase after God with more zeal and fervor than ever before, it must be viewed as one of the single greatest moments in their life. The ramifications are felt through eternity. Not only for the Christian themselves, but also for the family, friends and strangers that cross paths with this Christian. This is how it should be!
Sadly, I believe our secular culture is having a greater effect (infection) on the Christian than the Christian is having on the secular culture. This doesn’t make any sense when you think about it. We have the Author of life living inside of us. The single greatest and powerful entity ever in existence resides in our hearts. Then why are we such namby pambies?!
I have a theory why this is so. A relationship with God is not a convenience transaction. In Philippians 2:12 we are told “. . . work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Fear and trembling is not often associated with salvation in today’s Christian culture. Don’t misunderstand me, I believe in the free gift of salvation. It is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross and asking Jesus into my heart that gives me the pardon from sin and grants me eternal salvation. However, I believe that is the first step in a long, wonderous journey. I have not counted how many times the Bible says to “fear the Lord” or some variation thereof (one day I will count because it will be the topic of a future blog, plus I am a nerd), suffice it to say there are over 100 verses dealing with this topic. Allow me to lay a few verses on you for size:
- Psalm 25:14 The secret of the LORD [is] with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.
- Psalm 33:18 Behold, the eye of the LORD [is] on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy,
- Psalm 34:7 The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them.
- Psalm 111:10 The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do [His commandments]. His praise endures forever.
- Psalm 115:13 He will bless those who fear the LORD, [Both] small and great.
- Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of knowledge, [But] fools despise wisdom and instruction.
- Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One [is] understanding.
- Proverbs 14:27 The fear of the LORD [is] a fountain of life, To turn [one] away from the snares of death.
- Acts 9:31 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
Sorry about that, I tend to get a bit carried away regarding this subject matter. The point I am trying to make is the concept of fearing God is not a popular one in today’s church, but clearly is a principle that is extremely topical in God’s Word. Evidently, fearing God can help you gain wisdom, draw closer to God, and receive His favor and protection. Sign me up, I’ll take a double scoop of fearing God with some Holy Spirit sprinkles on top.
So what the heck am I trying to say?! I am saying that we need to get more serious about why God put us in the here and now. I am saying that we need to hold each other accountable. I am saying we need to be vulnerable to our Christian family to allow for accountability. I am saying we need to be strong in our knowledge, convictions and beliefs. I am saying that we need to be strong in prayer, not just a couple of minutes here and there. I am saying we need to be in our Bibles constantly (if your Bible is in pristine condition you may want to seize the opportunity to dive in and mark, underline, highlight, write questions, dog ear pages and possibly add a few coffee and tear stains). I am saying we need to STOP being afraid what other people think and have more fear of what God thinks. I am saying that we need to be very concerned that we are not infected with the disease of luke warm.
So what do you think? Are you ready to join The Ultimate Competition? The Bible is filled with references to competing, contending, defending, striving, exhorting, wrestling, and battling. So where do you fit in? Are you like me 11 years ago being content with a surface understanding of what God is? Or are you like me now, sharpening your sword and getting ready for battle? Whether you like it or not, you are currently in the battle of your life. Which side do you choose? I am writing this now, because at 12:35 a.m. CST, April 30th 2011 I declare I am sick of the spiritual sideline and I choose to get on the battle field.
Your brother and warrior in Christ,
Ty Adams
The Ultimate Competition 
Congradulations bro – proud of you! Looking forward to the iron sharpening!
Posted by Todd | May 2, 2011, 12:01 pmGood going for putting yourself out there. My congregation is working on becoming better with evangelism through developing new ministries (getting off our butts and becoming less “luke warm”) so this hits home right about now.
Posted by Tony Poulin | May 2, 2011, 9:22 pmAlways the competitor. Congrats on finding a way to align it with your faith values.
Posted by Seth | May 3, 2011, 10:19 amI figure there is a reason God made me this way, might as well use it towards the kingdom instead of basketball, monopoly, fooseball, uno, or whatever else that doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. . .
Posted by Ty Adams | May 3, 2011, 10:59 amMonopoly yes, fooseball…that’s a tough one. I’m pretty sure thats where the sound of thunder comes from.
Figure I’ll throw a challenge your way cause I have no chance if this is a Knowledge Bowl of sorts!
Challenge: be mindful of the invitation to your competitive passion. I’m certain the bible is full of references to this aspect as well, but the answer lies within.
Posted by Seth | May 6, 2011, 7:09 amI should say “within the challenge”.
Posted by Seth | May 6, 2011, 9:45 amOh great, so now you change your response while I am responding to you . . . good stuff either way.
Posted by Ty Adams | May 6, 2011, 9:52 amThis is definitely not a knowledge bowl, but it is a quest for knowledge no doubt.
I find your challenge quite interesting. Kind of vague, but inspires thought. The answer only lies within if you have Christ in your life. Then the answer is only heard if you are following the leading of the Holy Spirit. But having the answer and hearing the answer is different than doing something about it.
I think the invitation to draw closer to the Lord and have a greater zeal for that relationship is a worthy invitation. However, it is interesting how some people will take this as an insult – like you are judging them. My response to that would be – Who among us could stand to get closer to our Father and exhibit a greater passion for the sacrifice Jesus made for us at the cross? I believe the answer is everybody. When Christians react adversely to this idea I believe pride is getting in the way. Pride is an offense to God. 1 John 2:16 For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
Psalm 51:17 The sacrifices of God [are] a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart–These, O God, You will not despise. The word in Hebrew for contrite is ‘dakah’ which means to crush, be crushed, be broken. Again, this is something that is contrary to the thought of everything should be happy go lucky and if you are a Christian everything should just be so peachy keen.
Food for thought anyway. Thanks for provoking the thoughts.
Posted by Ty Adams | May 6, 2011, 9:51 amChallenge: be mindful of the invitation to your COMpetitive PASSION. I’m certain the bible is full of references to this aspect as well, but the answer lies within the challenge.
Pride is a powerful thing.
Posted by Seth | May 6, 2011, 11:47 amI was just reading about David’s Mighty Men (2 Sam 23:8-23). Thinking about their bravery, skill, talent… WOW. It makes me wonder if I could be one of God’s mighty men. Yes I think I could be, we could be, if we are willing to practice and put in the time and effort.
If you haven’t read about the mighty men recently, go do it now and ask God to show you his desires for your life.
Thanks Ty for the iron and the push!
Posted by Chad G | May 4, 2011, 7:24 amGood stuff Ty. Loved the spark of thought, as I was traveling on a business trip. I like Seth’s response, at least what I think he was trying to say (hopefully don’t mis quote). Some people can be intimidated by competition. The word by itself can be perceived as winners and losers. Most are also intimidated by anything that relies upon “proving” ones faith, value, worth, or knowledge.
1 Corinthians 9:25
Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.
I do believe though that Ty’s passion for sharing God’s word is pure in nature, pure in his intentions. The Lord has inspired him, and in turn has Ty trying to inspire others to go into “training”. All in an effort to “compete” against sin, against the Devil and all that he represents. I think when we surround ourselves with people of strong faith, we can “train” together… in fellowship, helping each other to be accountable through inspiration, not damnation, to live our lives as God intended us too.
My tongue may not always speak of great wisdom, but hopefully my actions in life speak for me.
God’s Grace,
Scott
Posted by Scott A | May 6, 2011, 4:15 pmWell done Scott!
Posted by Seth | May 9, 2011, 3:57 pmGood to hear from you Scott. I agree, most are intimidated to prove (or defend) their faith. But they are intimidated because they are not equipped. And the ones that are equipped many times don’t want to hurt somebody’s feelings. I contend the problem is two-fold: 1 – The Church has stopped talking about judgment and hell – 2 very real things ( Why? Because it is scary?!) 2 – Many western Christians have become complacent and are only worried about their own hind ends. Confronting somebody else would be too strenuous.
The competition is not to see who is the best or strongest Christian. The competition is to NOT be devoured by our enemy.
I like the way you phrased it, training together. This is the ultimate team sport. Isolation is a friend of the devil. We need to get as many off the bench as we can, there is a spot in the starting lineup for anybody willing to get in the game . . . unfortunately , not everyone will be in the final roll call from the Book of Life. This is supremely sad.
Posted by Ty Adams | May 9, 2011, 10:58 pmTy, welcome to the battlefield. Make sure to gird up in the full armor everyday. I am so thankful that Jesus loves me and God always has my back. But, I always need to stay prayed up and ever aware the enemy is lurking.
I work everyday with men recoveirng from addictions. It’s amazing that some who have been in prison (behind bars or in their minds), don’t know how to live in the daily bump and grind. I try to show them what I get from following Jesus, and hope they want it. Some get it, most don’t. Most are caught up in thier pride and ego. Most are unwilling to “let go and let God.” I turn my life and my will over everyday; most of the time I don’t take it back. Then things really work for good because I work according to His calling.
Posted by David F. Adams | May 14, 2011, 2:50 am