Cool Is Stupid and So Am I

"Do not love the world or the things in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him," 1John 2:15.

     Has your pastor, er, the guy who says stuff from the pulpit, er podium on Sunday, opened up a can of 'whoop bass' on you, had a porn star as the guest of honor or spoke a series of messages based on the latest craze at the box office?  Hopefully not, but it is the latest craze in our celebrified version of consumer driven American Christianity.  It is all done in the name of reaching the lost.  But does it lose or, more likely, confuse the found?  It is all about reaching the lost by being cool.
     Well, I'll restate the title: cool is stupid.  Don't do it.  "For the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" both the Psalmist and Solomon teach us.  Do pastors fear that preaching the fear of the Lord will not be cool and people will not attend?  Yes, that is more than likely the issue and what is more, they are probably right to a large degree.  Yet, the Apostle John makes it clear, if people love this world, God is not in them and has nothing to do with them.  The problem is, we have bought into the purposeful lie that church is for the unbeliever.  Now make no mistake, when the unbeliever goes to church and the word of God is preached, He will save those whom He will.  His word does not return void and the dead will rise from their grave as they sit in the pew.  Church is not the place where we invite unbelievers to be entertained or enticed by our hipness.  The Bible is emphatic that church is the place where we corporately glorify the Lord and the pastor is supposed to preach the word, in and out of season, and edify the saints of God.  This is the main focus of corporate worship, church, the preaching of the word.  This preaching is to glorify God and teach us about Him and all His perfections and how we are to surrender to Him in everything we do and think.  The Bible from beginning to end tells us how men instinctively hate God and the Church is the place, school, where we learn how to love God with all of our hearts.  Paul taught that our teaching is foolishness to the world, especially as we focus on the most offensive doctrine ever taught: that Christ died for us, wicked sinners who deserve Hell.  I don't know how we ever can make that cool.  I do know we have to quit trying to impress men and we need to continually humble ourselves under God's mighty hand.  As we do this, we will grow to love our fellow man more, even as they think we are less and less cool.
     We need to quit drinking in every fad brothers and sisters.  We drink in this poison and as we become cool to the world, God turns His back on us.  We must examine ourselves in this light.  If we desire to please man above God, is He in us?  We need to heed the John's word and repent of our worldliness.  God bless you and learn, love and live the glorious gospel of our risen Savior!