James MacDonald - Gripped by the Greatness of God

LAME, LAME, LAME.

Sad but true; that is the way I would describe most Sunday services in the country church I attended as a child. All that was alive in the Word of God had been smothered by a rules-oriented religion that had degenerated into a form-without-function faith. A dead orthodoxy that rang the bell of right doctrine but too often left the heart cold and listless. Tragically, many believers would call it the only church I have ever known. I would call it church without God.

Please dont get me wrong. Im certain my church leaders loved Christ with their minds. They faithfully studied, even memorized, huge sections of Scripture. Beyond that, I am confident they tried to live in obedience to Gods Word. But looking back it seems we most often missed the part God loves the most the heart part (1 Samuel 12:24).

Jesus warned of honoring God with our lips while our hearts are far from Him (Matthew 15:8). He was quoting Scripturethe prophet Isaiah circa 740 B.C .so obviously this is not a new problem. This kind of ritual religion may think and sometimes even act biblicallyin a military sort of waybut it doesnt prompt the followers of Jesus to feel what they should be feeling. You might label it apathetic, formulaic, even perfunctory. I just call it lame.

By the time I became a pastor, I was determined that I would never tolerate that kind of indifference in my own heart again.

It all changed for me the first time I was gripped by the greatness of God. I was sixteen years old, attending a camp in upstate New York. I met believers who loved God with obvious zeal and simple, genuine faith. I sang songs that felt fresh and alive with sincere adoration, and, most of all, I heard preaching that was passionate about God Himself rather than simply an extrabiblical code of conduct.

Yes, there on the shores of Schroon Lake, New York, in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains, I was gripped by the greatness of God. I was gladly captured at the core of my being. I felt incredible! Phenomenal! Totally immersed in a heaving sea of love and commitment to my Creator.

W hen was the last time you were gripped by the greatness of God?

When I got home from camp, all I could say to my parents was, Mom and Dad, I think I found God. Although my faith had its struggles for a couple more years, I knew deep inside that I was truly changed. Since that summer in 1976 the Lord has taken and shaken me many times, and I would not return to the faith I had before.

Never again would I be content executing religious obligation as a substitute for the touch of Gods greatness upon my heart.

Key question: When did God last take you to the mat with the reality of who He is, and with the nearness of eternity and the triviality of this life by comparison? Im asking you straight upwhen was the last time you were gripped?

My guess is that one reason you picked up this book is because you long to feel that wonder again. When was the last time you let God get a grip on your heart? No vague answers to this question, OK? Get specific. What year? What month? How long has it been? This isnt the kind of thing you can forget. Has it ever happened? Please, no guilt here. There was a time in my life when my honest answer would have been, no!

But there is hope. A couple of years ago I longed to see God grip the hearts of folks in our church. I loved them too much to see them live one more day apart from the grasp of God upon them. To this end, I chose to teach what I believe are the most gripping passages in Scripture. In my preparation of those messages, I was shaken afresh by Gods awesome, holy, sovereign character. And now Im grateful for the privilege of sharing these truths with you.