Mark Driscoll: 4 Warning Signs of Christians Who Are 'Spiritually Dead'
Arizona-based Trinity Church Pastor Mark Driscoll says there are four signs Christians can look at to determine if they are in danger of being "spiritually dead," pointing to Jesus Christ's warnings in the book of Revelation.
Driscoll wrote in a blog post on his website Wednesday that Jesus spoke out against the church in Sardis in the book of Revelation for its lack of genuine faith, and warned that Christians today are "just as susceptible to decay and death."
The pastor said the first warning sign is when people treat their faith as a routine.
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"Routine is a life of check-marking the boxes of minimal obedience and compliance. Ritual is when there's meaning, value, purpose, mission, and passion in what you do because of Jesus. If your faith in Christ is more routine than ritual then you'll inevitably stop marking off the boxes because you don't really love him," he wrote.
Next, he said some Christians are not passionate about Jesus.
"Where are you with Jesus? Are you passionate about Him? Do you invest a lot of time and energy into your relationship with Jesus? If not, then don't go and pretend to be. Be honest with yourself. Get with Jesus," he advised.
"Spend time with Him in silence, prayer, and Bible reading. I also encourage you to spend time with other people who are passionate about Jesus."
Driscoll said the third warning sign is Christians treating faith as an obligation, rather than something they really want to practice.
"Is reading the Bible like reading a phonebook? Do you treat participation in the life of the church like something that needs to be done so that you don't get into trouble? If so, then you have it all wrong," he wrote.
"Christianity is not about laying upon people a burden of religious duties and moral obligations. It's based upon a relationship with Jesus. Christianity is not a religion of have-tos. It's a relationship with God where we get to do a lot of things. We get to hangout in relationship with God and other Christians."
Lastly, he said some people have closed their eyes to Jesus' mission.
"Do you care about Jesus and people? Or, are you the type of Christian that says, 'I don't see any opportunity for the Gospel where I'm at. I can't see any needs in my community.' If you are, then you have intentionally closed your eyes to Jesus' mission for the people in your life and community," the pastor wrote.
"Instead of focusing on what you don't see, by God's grace, change your perspective by asking, 'What am I not seeing? Where am I not caring? Where are the opportunities that God has given me that I am either just too busy, indifferent, or hard-hearted to really see or care about?'"
Driscoll, who has faced controversy in his pastoral career, including allegations of plagiarism, fraud, and fostering an abusive work environment at his former Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington.
Earlier this month, the pastor suggested in a blog post that there are three types of Christians Jesus might turn away.
The pastor said loosely religious people, secular religious people focused only on social causes, and devoutly religious people who think close obedience to the rules of religion will lift them up in the eyes of God are all in danger of missing out on a true relationship with Christ.
