Because churches are made up of imperfect people, they are often also places of great disappointment. Most of us have expectations of how a Christian should behave, both during and outside of our corporate worship assemblies. Sometimes, our expectations aren't very realistic. We often forget that even though we are Christians, that doesn't make us perfect. The old saying, "Christians are not perfect, just forgiven" is very true. I once read a similar quote, "Be glad that your church isn't made up of perfect people. If it was, you couldn't be a member."

I think that most of us understand though, that even though none of us are perfect, we do come to worship with the church for a reason. We are trying to be better. At some level, we want to serve God and be His child. I think we need to take a look at the level of our involvement though. I think there are three basic levels of involvement that we see within the church congregation.

The first level is being interested. Some people attend worship services out of curiosity. They are interested in this religion thing, but they really don't have any type of commitment or personal dedication. Maybe they are interested in learning about God. Maybe they are just interested in seeing what goes on during a worship service. Whatever their motivation, they are just observers. They attend, observe, and then leave with very little participation.

The second level is being involved. My personal opinion is that most people who attend worship services would fall into this category. They faithfully attend worship and truly have a desire to please God. They participate in the worship services and activities of the congregation. They may teach a class or lead in the worship service. There is a difference between them and the next group though.

The third level is being committed. Unfortunately, I don't think enough of us have attained this level of involvement. Those who are committed have truly taken Christianity to heart. They not only participate during worship and engage in leadership activities, but they truly make serving the Lord their primary focus in life. Their daily activities are guided by the Word of God. They are prayerful people who constantly seek God's guidance and help. Everything they do, from the worship assembly, to their jobs, to their family decisions, to their recreation is based on trying to please God.

How do you know the difference between those who are just involved and those who are committed? To an outside observer, it is almost impossible because the primary difference is in their heart. However, you do know what your level of involvement is. In case you're not sure, let me give a couple of illustrations. In a breakfast of bacon and eggs, the chicken was involved, but the pig was committed. The chicken gave part of itself, but the pig gave everything it had. On a more scriptural note, Demas was involved (2 Tim. 4:10), but Paul was committed (2 Cor. 11:21-29). Diotrephes was involved (3 John. 1:9), but Peter was committed (John. 6:68, 18:10, 21:1; Acts 2:14). Judas was involved, but Jesus was committed.

Let's ask ourselves this question: Am I interested, involved, or committed? [ The End ]