A Marriage Made in Heaven

November 17, 2009

By Gary Rogers

The Lord has been stirring my heart with an intense passion for Him and the ministry entrusted to me here at First Assembly.

I’ve been told that being too serious and too intense makes people uncomfortable. I’ve heard that the norm for today is for the church experience to be low-key, with little to no demands placed on the attendees. Low expectations from the pastor. Little commitment and virtually no involvement from the congregation. No stern challenges in the preaching.

But if these restrictions are necessary to be called a postmodern church, then let me stay pre-modern.

In Scripture the Church is referred to as the bride of Christ. In Ephesians 5:22-33 extended comparison of human marriage and the relationship between Christ and the Church, we see that Jesus holds himself responsible for the welfare of His Bride. He loves the Bride with a sacrificial love. He nourishes the Bride to help her be the best she can be. He cherishes her by letting her know how special she is. Without question there is an intense passion from Jesus toward His Bride, the Church. There is nothing low-key about it. There are no low expectations seen in Christ’s love for us. He gave everything for us. In Christ’s love there is high commitment, tremendous involvement and maximum investment. How can we give Him anything less?

The Bride, the Church, should overflow with passion for Christ, the Groom. In marriage the bride wants to give herself to the groom. The bride wants to please the groom. The bride seeks his approval. The bride wants to make him happy. The bride anticipates his affection and desires to receive his love. The bride longs to be with him and responds openly to his acts of love. This is passion.

I don’t believe passion should be checked at the door when we come into the presence of Jesus Christ our Lord. Relationship with Jesus should not be head-knowledge-driven, nor resolute-determination-driven, but heartfelt-love-driven. Igniting passion for Jesus is what drives my personal ministry. Thank God for the zeal for Him that is consuming our church. May your passion for Jesus become more intense with mine.

— Gary Rogers is senior pastor of First Assembly of God in Coweta, Okla.