Chapter 5: Leftovers for a Holy God

Offering Leftovers

The road is narrow and few will actually find it.  What does that mean?

God wants our best, deserves our best and demands our best.

In our current lives how do we gauge our relationship with God?

·         Do you use the Bible?

·         Do you compare yourself to others?

How much room do you have in your life for God?

·         Francis stated, “It’s easy to fill ourselves up with other things and then give God whatever is left.”

·         Hosea 13:6 says, “When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.”

·         What do we fill our lives up so much with that we run out of room for God?  How do we set our priorities?

In Malachi’s day the priests thought their sacrifices were sufficient.  They had spotless animals but chose to keep those for themselves and give their less desirable animals to God.  They assumed God was pleased because they had sacrificed something.  Read Malachi 1:8 on pg 91 in book.

·         What are your priorities?  Who and what really matters in your life?  Are leftovers good enough for a holy God?

·         What prompts us to love God, give to God and praise God?  Is it out of Love, Obligation or Guilt?

·         Later on in Malachi God is so displeased with the people uselessly using His alter that he wanted the temple gates shut. He was telling the people that NO worship is better than apathetic worship.

·         Francis makes the statement, “I wonder how many church doors God wants shut today.”

God asks his people to give up what they think is necessary and valuable in their lives in exchange for what really matters.  God says our greatest fear in life should not be failure but instead succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.

·         We have to know what really matters in life, to God, to succeed at it.  What really matters to God?

·         God says he measures our lives by how we Love.

·         Paul wrote that even if “I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.”

·         What does that mean?

·         Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 pg 1342

·         Challenge yourself by putting your name in the place of Love throughout those verses.  Does it still sound as good with your name there?

“Following Christ isn’t something that can be done halfheartedly or on the side.  It is not a label we can display when it is useful.  It must be central to everything we do and are.”

·         Francis uses the example of pursuing Christ being like swimming upstream.  What happens when, going upstream, you slow down or quit swimming even if just for a moment?  You begin to be swept downstream.

·         If you try to swim upstream in a river you have to make a conscious decision that whatever is upstream and caused you to make that decision is well worth the risk and effort.

·         Christ is standing upstream on the bank and we know he is so much more than worth the risk and effort then why are we constantly drifting back downstream?

We all know that by the Grace of God we are saved through Faith and if you have that true Faith then it will show through your actions.

·         In James 2:17, James wrote that “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead”

·         There are so many people today right in front of us that lack the actions revealing their true Faith in God.

Don’t raise your hands but, how many of us, here today, would really leave our families, jobs, our education, our friends, our connections, our familiar surroundings and our homes if Jesus asked us to?  If He just showed up and said, “Follow me” with no explanations or direction.

·         You could be following Him straight up a hill to be crucified.  Maybe He would lead you to another country, and you would never see your family again. Or perhaps you would stay put, but He would ask you to spend your time helping people who will never love you back and never show gratitude for what you gave up.

·         Could you do it?

·         A lot of the time our thoughts are centered on the money we want to make, the school we want to attend, the body we want to have, the spouse we want to marry, the kind of person we want to become.

·         Why do we so easily turn our backs on a Mighty God that created the heavens and the earth and everything in between?

Every day of our lives we choose God or reject him simply by how we spend our free time, what our money goes to, and where we invest our energy. 

True Faith, on the other hand, is holding nothing back and putting Everything we have into an eternity with God in Heaven.

 It is a very simple concept but so complicated at the same time.  Why is this?

Jesus himself said that the road is narrow and few will actually find it…

“Don’t assume that you are one of the few on the narrow way.”



Click here to view the video that accompanies Chapter 5.

Chapter 4: Profile of the Lukewarm

Chapter 4: Profile of the Lukewarm

What matters to you?

Matthew 13:44 pg 1108 – Hidden Treasure

·         This man knew that the treasure that he had found “The Kingdom of Heaven” was more valuable than anything so he gave everything he had to obtain it. 

·         Do we share the same enthusiasm as the man in the story?

How are most social events gauged?

·         Impressed with numbers

·         How many attended? How many came forward?

·         Should the numbers matter as much?  What should matter most?

Are we more interested in making sure everyone is happy with our approach or message or are we more interested in telling the truth and bringing non believers to know Jesus Christ by any means necessary?

 Read Luke 8:5-15 pg 1186

“Don’t assume you are good soil.”

What kind of soil are you?  What kind of soil are most people made of?

·         Verse 14 states that the thorny grounds are those who clearly hear the message but the message is very quickly crowded out by the riches and pleasures of life, the thorns.  A meaningful relationship with God will not grow to maturity if the extras in life are piled on top.  Know your priorities. 

·         If you are made of good soil then you will plainly see a difference in the way you live.  If you don’t see the difference you may want to re-evaluate. 

Is it easy to whole heartedly follow God and fit in at school, work or church? 

Francis says, “The goals of American Christianity are often a nice marriage, children who don’t swear, and good church attendance.  Taking the works of Christ literally and seriously is rarely considered.  That’s for the “radicals” who are “unbalanced” and who go “overboard.”  Most of us want a balanced life that we can control, that is safe, and that does not involve suffering.”

What does Lukewarm mean?

Let’s discuss a couple of examples and Bible verses that follow along with Francis’s definitions of Lukewarm People.

·         Lukewarm people attend church fairly regularly.  It is what is expected of them, what they believe “good Christians” do, so they go.  Read Isaiah 29:13, top pg of 69 in book.

·         Lukewarm people give money to charity and to the church… as long as it doesn’t impinge on their standard of living.  If they have a little extra and it is easy and safe to give, they do so.  After all, God loves a cheerful giver, right?  Read Luke 21:1-4 on pg 69.

·         Lukewarm People – They desire to fit in both at church and outside of church; they care more about what people think of their actions than what God thinks of their hearts and lives.  Read Matthew 23:5-7 on page 70 in book.

·         Lukewarm people don’t really want to be saved from their sin; they want only to be saved from the penalty of their sin.

·         Lukewarm people are moved by stories about people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act.  They assume such action is for “extreme” Christians, not average ones.  Read James 1:22 & 4:17 on page 71 in the book.

·         Lukewarm people rarely share their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, or friends.  They do not want to be rejected, nor do they want to make people uncomfortable by talking about private issues like religion.  Read Matthew 10:32-33 on page 71 in the book.

·         Lukewarm people probably drink and swear less than average, but besides that, they really aren’t very different from your typical unbeliever. 

·         Read Luke 9:57-62 pg 1190  Lay down all you have and follow God when called.

·         Read Matthew 22:37-38 on mage 73 in the book.

·         Read Luke 14:12-14 on page 74 in the book.

·         Read Matthew 10:28 on page 77 in the book.

·         OUCH!

If you found yourself fitting into many of these categories then this should be a wakeup call and we should be eager to examine ourselves and re-prioritize our lives.

There is a real difference in truly serving God how he wants us to and just merely going to church and calling ourselves Christians.  We have to GET this and get engaged.  Reference to Top Gun – Maverick

We somehow believe that we can bend the rules of being a Christian just because we are uncomfortable or because it will interfere with our “real life.”  Read Francis’s example of joining the Marines on page 80 in the book. 

Read Luke 14:34-35 on page 81 of the book

What does this verse mean and how does it apply to you?

God says, “lukewarm and uncommitted faith is completely useless.”

I don’t know about you but I really don’t want to be completely useless in God’s eyes.

It’s time to wake up and smell the “salt.”
You can watch the video that accompanies this chapter by clicking here.