Do You Like The Idea of God?
“I Like The Idea Of You, I Just Don’t Like You”
As a teenager, someone told me some heart-piercing words I have never forgotten.
When I was around 15, I gave my life to Jesus. I immediately became passionate about the Lord and served Him. In my private Christian school, I became an increasingly visible leader. I would be asked to lead prayers, teach messages, and share Bible studies.
But then something wild happened: girls started to like me —specifically, Christian girls.
Of course, I was not opposed to this benefit of leading for Christ! My 15-year-old self enjoyed the newfound attention I got from the girls in the youth group. Many of these girls were discipled and taught by older women Godly wisdom and advice about love, dating, and marriage. Plus, they were cute, so that’s a plus, right?
Specifically, there was one girl who was my friend that took an interest in me. She loved the Lord but had dated several other guys who didn’t in the past. While she appeared to like me, she would not commit to dating me.
That’s when my friend told me something I will never forget. She said:
“I think she likes the idea of dating someone like you. She just doesn’t like you.”
She liked the idea of dating a Christian.
She liked the idea of pursuing a leader.
She liked the idea of a relationship that was set apart.
But she didn’t actually like me. — It crushed me as a kid.
And the more I think about it, the more I believe we often do the same thing with God.
Kingdom Without The King
I think often we like the idea of God, but we don’t actually like God.
We like the idea of an all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-sovereign God.
We like the idea of someone perfect, righteous, and holy.
We like the idea of a Being that is for justice, beauty, and love.
But when push comes to shove, we don’t like it when the sovereignty of all-powerful God clashes with our cherished autonomy. We want a God who rules the world, but we often do not want that same God to rule our lives, schedules, and finances. We like the idea of God, but we don’t actually love God.
As Mark Sayers says:
We want the Kingdom without the King. - Mark Sayers
This means we want the benefits of the Kingdom of God without the King who rules and reigns over every speck of dust within His Kingdom's Lordship.
Think about this…
Most people want a world marked by love. This is good. It is a value of the Kingdom of God. But we do not want to obey what the King says is loving.
We don’t want to obey God’s standard of sexuality.
We don’t want to stay married our entire lives.
We don’t want to declare abortion as evil.
We like the idea of love. We don’t want God to define love for us.
Or take the issue of caring for the environment. We know our world does not work the way it was created. We live in a world of climate change, dirty air, polluted waterways, and wars and famine that wipe out entire communities. Most of these problems stem directly from our overconsumption and love of money. But in the Kingdom, this is not so! For in the Kingdom, creation is perfectly cared for, but here on earth, people do not want to do what the King says to bring about this “peace on earth.”
We don’t want to stop over-consuming.
We don’t want to stop spending more money than we have.
We don’t want to avoid consumer debt & tithe.
We want the benefits of the Kingdom of God here on earth, but we do not want the King telling us what to do.
The Hard Question & Good News
The hard question we need to ask ourselves is this: Do we really love the one true God, or do we like the idea of God?
In our world, we have many what I call “Almost Christians.” In this case, an Almost Christian is someone who likes Jesus' words, values many of his commands, and maybe even teaches their kids to generally follow his principles. But are not “Authentic Christians” because they haven’t surrendered to King Jesus' authority.
The Almost Christian wants the Kingdom but not a King. In contrast, the Authentic Christian receives the Kingdom by following the King.
For example, if there is an all-powerful and all-knowing Creator who is King, then it is safe to say that the Being who created the world knows how it works best. The Creator knows that if you do an “A,” you get a “B,” which will go well for you, but if you do a “C,” then you will get a “D,” which will be really painful and unhelpful.
If you created it, you know how it works best.
Similarly, the creator of a roller coaster knows how his machine works best. The engineer knows that riding the roller coaster with a seat belt will make you laugh and have a great time. But if you decide to take that harness, it will be excruciating, and you will likely die.
Rejecting the King for the Kingdom is like rejecting a roller coaster harness for the enjoyment of a roller coaster.
Here’s my point: If you want the Kingdom, its benefits, delights, culture, and lavish beauties, there is only one way to get there—by obeying its’ King.
“The Almost Christian” likes the Kingdom without loving the King but ends with neither.
“The Authentic Christian” loves the King and His Kingdom and ends with both.
Do not think you can love the idea of God without actually loving God.
For The Local Church,
Pastor Landon 📍
PS—This Sunday at the Local Church, we begin a new series called “Almost Christian.” This series is all about authentic Christianity and how there is no such thing as an “almost Christian.” We hope you will join us for one of our gatherings at 9:30 or 11 AM. You can plan your visit by clicking here.
When You Are Ready, Here Are Three Ways We Can Help You:
1 - Join Us This Sunday: Have you heard the news? Starting in 2025, the Local Church now gathers weekly at 9:30 & 11 AM at Jubilee Banquet Hall in the Powell community. This month, we are in our new series titled “Almost Christian.” We hope you will join us this Sunday. You can plan your visit by clicking here.
2 - Get Involved At Local: Want to learn more about Local and take your next step of disciples? Then, we invite you to join us for “Welcome To Church.” This three-part partnership course is designed to teach what a local church is, who Local Church Knoxville is, and how we partner together in making disciples. The first session of our class is a dinner at one of our pastors' homes. Dinner is free, and childcare is provided for babies through early elementary. You can register for the next “Welcome To Church” on January 19 here.
3 - Join A Group: Are you looking for a community of people to connect with? At Local Church, we are not merely a Sunday morning crowd but a community of people who share meals together, read the Bible together, pray together, and serve together. If you want to connect, we invite you to join a community group. Our groups meet bi-weekly in homes across North Knox County. You can join a group here.