SIDE EFFECTS

Don’t you just love to hear all the potential side effects listed for taking certain drugs? Things like, growing hair where you don’t want it, muscle cramps, skin rashes, bloating, nausea, vomiting, suicide or heart failure. Makes you want to run right out and try their new drug, I mean who doesn’t want to feel bloated all day or throw up every twenty minutes? Obviously we must be pretty desperate if we will trade our present circumstances for some scary side effects because drug companies do advertise these potential side effects and yet they still sell millions of drugs.

Listing side effects could help all of us deal with life a bit easier. There are many places I can see an advantage to this. I think all churches should be made to list in their bulletins possible side effects if you become a member. For example:

A church going through an extensive building program should say–Warning! While building program is in motion church members may become overburdened with guilt because the pastor doesn’t think everyone is giving enough.

A church with a new pastor should post–Caution! Church membership may rebel and ostracize those who agree with the new pastor. Church is very likely to split within the next two years.

Those churches that believe strongly in healing should say–Caution! Your perfectly fine child may suddenly experience one of their legs becoming longer than the other.

If a church is deeply steeped in tradition their bulletin should say–Warning! Any thinking on your part will not be tolerated.

All churches claiming to be non-denominational should say–Caution! If non–denominational is what you want go somewhere else because we do not tolerate a different opinion than what we believe.

I am spoofing here but there is also some truth in each of these. I don’t know if you have ever read the warning labels in the Bible but there are many. God is a firm believer in listing possible side effects from becoming a follower and believer in Him. Here are a few of my favorites:

“Indeed, all who desire to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3:12)

“These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)

As you can see, God has no problem putting warning signs in the Bible concerning the side effects of believing and following Him. These are only a few of the many times God warns us. There are plenty more. My question for you is what do you do with the side effect warnings from God? They can’t be ignored for they come from God Himself. They are as truthful as John 3:16. Did they cause you to think before turning your life over to God? Did they stop you from following God with all your heart, soul, and mind?

What I like about them is God is not afraid to put out there for all to see what it will cost someone to follow Him. He doesn’t hide what it will be like to live for God. He tells us truthfully and not because there is some governing body of Christians who will discipline God if things go bad and He didn’t warn us. God tells us because He wants us to consider what it will cost us to serve Him before anyone jumps in with both feet.

No Christian should ever be caught off guard when trials and tribulations come crashing down upon them. That is the way of life for those who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus. Just desiring this will bring persecution upon us. You can imagine what will happen then to those who actually do live a godly life for God. Satan doesn’t like us and the non-Christian world doesn’t like us. But know this – God loves those who follow Him!

People who are desperately sick will know all about the side effects of a drug and take them anyway. Why? Because of the hope of what the pill might do for them. This is the real reason God lists the side effects of following Him. We are desperately sick humans and those who know this don’t care about the side effects. All they care about is taking God’s solution for their sickness. Side effects be damned, give me God’s resolution.

See you soon