Written by Mark Driskill:

Read Mark 3:31-35

Who is in the family of God? Jesus says it’s those who do the will of God. Funny how in our religious culture all you have to do to be in the family of God is say the right prayer and believe the right things. In most denominations it’s all about Orthodoxy, which means right teaching. People are funny. They imagine that it doesn’t really matter how you live as long
as at the end of the day you claim the right beliefs. You can commit adultery, lie, gossip, and mistreat your neighbor all you want, just make sure you say the right things about Jesus, Church and the Bible. But following Jesus means going beyond Orthodoxy into Orthopraxis, meaning right actions.

Now before you go hiding under the blanket of grace understand that you are saved by grace…through faith (Ephesians 2:8). Faith without works is dead (James 2:17). So real Christianity comes down to how you live, not just what you believe. Jesus makes it clear that his family is made up of those who do the will of God. What is the will of God? We have made God’s will to be this ominous dark thing we pronounce over tragedy that we cannot otherwise explain, or a murky fog that blinds us to the future. But Jesus spoke pretty openly about doing God’s will.

Take some time to reflect on these statements:

1. We are to pray for God’s will to be done in our lives. (Matthew 6:10)
2. Only those who do God’s will have eternal life. (Matthew 7:21)
3. God’s will must supersede my will. (Matthew 26:39)
4. God’s will is eternal life for those who have faith in him. (John 6:35-40)
5. Those who want to do God’s will recognize God’s truth. (John 7:17)

Jesus clearly expects of his followers that we seek, pray for and pursue the will of God in our lives. Unfortunately we have a religious culture that is satisfied with right beliefs (orthodoxy) and falls short in expressing any particular way of life (orthopraxis) beyond our ever decaying cultural morality. As long as we are fairly well behaved not much more is expected. But Jesus calls us to a lifestyle that turns the world upside down. We are falling headlong into a kind of Christianity that is completely alien to the life, ministry and teachings of Jesus. Jesus said that his family was known for doing the will of God, not just discussing it. Are we doing the will of God? Is our Orthopraxis in line with our Orthodoxy?

What would happen if our churches added to their statements of Orthodoxy a statement of Orthopraxis? What if we insisted for example, that a deacon in a church actually had to live like a follower of Jesus in order to be a deacon? What if churches put away their business models and started acting like communities or families where we were all expected to be involved in doing the work of the kingdom together? What if membership in a church meant that your and I were committed to each other, rather than just consumers looking for a comfortable fit? What if church discipline was for those who refused to walk in love? What if churches moved back into the inner cities and mountain hollows so they could be with the poor like Jesus. What if we started small communities, or families of people who were helping each other practice the life of Jesus? What if they worshipped together and worked for the will of God in their communities? What if our orthopraxy matched our orthodoxy?

Challenge: Write out your main beliefs as a follower of Jesus. Then write out your main practices based on your beliefs. How will your lifestyle reflect your beliefs? How will you show you are a member of God’s family?

Mark also preaches in youth rallies and revivals upon request at no charge. Their vision is to see true spiritual awakening come to the mountains of Eastern Kentucky and to the nation.

Contact information:
Email: driskill@hilbillymail.com
Facebook: Mark Driskill
Address: PO Box 1159 Jackson KY.