Complacency

Last Thursday, our church prayer list sent out an email entitled "A Soldier You Should Know." I don't know if any of you had a chance to read it, but the soldier who sent it said something about their situation in Iraq that I think also really applies to us as Christians. Here's what he said:

"The enemy is always looking for an opportunity to exploit complacency."

I think that is something that our enemy is looking for, too. If we become complacent, then we pose no threat to him. When we become content with where we are in life and in our relationship with Christ and we stop trying to learn and grow, we cease to be effective. I think that's why Jesus has such a distaste for lukewarm Christians, as He says in Revelation 3:15-16, "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth." I think complacency is the most dangerous trap that the church can fall into. Even when churches split, most of the time it's because someone feels that there's something wrong with the way things are and they're doing something about it. It's when we stop caring one way or the other that we are in serious trouble.

With that said, I think the comments that this soldier made surrounding the one above are of extreme importance for us as we fight complacency. Here is that comment, along with its context:

"We remain cautiously vigilant to be on watch. We recognize that the enemy is always looking for an opportunity to exploit complacency. We keep each other in check. We encourage one another."

There are a lot of things that jump out at me in that as far as it relates to us:

1) Remaining cautiously vigilant to be on watch--Jesus commands His disciples to do that very thing in Matthew 24:36-25:13, Mark 13:32-36 and Luke 12:35-48. Those passages can basically be summarized by Matthew 24:42, "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come."

2) Recognize--They know what their enemy is trying to do. In the same way, we must know what our enemy is trying to do. 2 Corinthians 2:11, "...in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes."

3) Keep each other in check--We have to look out for one another! God gave us the church for a reason, and it's not so that we could have one more social event on our schedule for the week. Proverbs 27:17, "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." We're not supposed to sit around and let each other become dull, we are to sharpen one another! Ephesians 4:25, "Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak plainly to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body." We're all in this together, so tell it like it is! I like the way the Message translation puts Hebrews 3:13, "For as long as it's still God's Today, keep each other on your toes so sin doesn't slow down your reflexes." We can't let each other fall into the trap of complacency; we have to help each other stay alert and on our toes.

4) Encourage one another--That kind of goes with #3. In the NIV, Hebrews 3:13 says, "But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness." 1 Thessalonians 4:18 (after speaking about the coming of the Lord), "Therefore encourage one another with these words." Hebrews 10:23-25, "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we my spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching."

So just as the soldiers of the U.S. Army are doing, let us (as soldiers in the army of Christ) not become complacent, but continue to encourage one another as we strive for a closer walk with our God!