Like vs. Love
I like coffee, but I wouldn’t say I love it. My wife and kids, on the other hand, are worth dying for. I love them. I only like coffee. I’m not going to jump in front of a moving train to save an espresso.
But there are times when I like coffee more than I like my wife. Every once in a while I want a cup of coffee more than a kiss or a hug. I still love my wife, but she won’t fit into the French press.
Now, it must be said that I also like tea. Thanks to the influence of certain English folk, my tea consumption has increased a thousand fold! Yet, tea is not coffee. Sometimes I want coffee more than tea. Sometimes tea needs to leaf me alone. There’s a big difference between loose-leaf anything and some medium roast Jamaican Blue Mountain. That’s real coffee, and I really like it.
What is Real?
But wait! That raises a question. What is real coffee? What is the difference between freshly brewed coffee and let’s say, uh, freeze-dried instant? Both are real, aren’t they?
Fake coffee. Whoever still drinks that stuff on purpose should be psychologically evaluated. Coffee is only coffee if it comes about as the result of gently ground coffee beans being caressed by steaming hot water. Chicory is of the Devil.
Instant coffee. It comes packaged in a jar, but it is made from real coffee. It may not taste as good as fresh-brewed, but it’s real, nevertheless. The worst instant coffee is still better than dandelion tea, believe me.
Nasty coffee. Even the stuff you find in a gas station, an army mess tent, or a crazy relative’s thermos is still coffee. Coffee is coffee, even if it tastes like road tar.
“Unleaded.” What I don’t understand is decaffeinated coffee. Sure, it tastes the same to most people, but why would anyone want it? Without the caffeine coffee is…well…it’s just not coffee. It has the look and taste, but no umph, no kick, no power.
Powerless
Decaffeinated Christianity is the same way. It looks like the real thing. It smells like the real thing. It tastes like the real thing. For crying out loud, it even outsells full-strength, real Christianity 10 to 1! People love it! They wear t-shirts promoting their favorite brand. Yet, decaffeinated Christianity is no better than decaffeinated coffee without the Power.
You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that! – 2 Timothy 3:1-5 NLT
What are you drinking?
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The Recovering Legalist 
Reblogged this on Logos Speaks.
Yes. Most of the people who wear the name Christain in America nowadays are drinking in the decaffeinated word with no power in it,only the power behind it, I wonder who. So many People lost.:*(
Love this analogy!!!
🙂
Ok I LIKE this analogy! I love the Lord 😉
Excellent!
👍🏻
Reblogged this on I ONCE WAS LOST and commented:
Yes!!!!
Amen!!!
Outstanding analogy, Anthony! Love this!
What a perfect way to explain it! Very close to home for so many of us! Thank you, Anthony 🙂
You’re very welcome! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting. Much appreciated 🙂
You are most welcome, my brother! Keep up the great work 😀
Nice illustration Anthony (even though I’m not much of a coffee drinker).
Thanks 😊
I don’t disagree with what you’re saying here, but you don’t define what you think “decaffeinated Christianity” is.
Hmmm. Thanks for the comment. I’ll have to go back and see what I wrote.
Nick, I went back and read my post (it has been a while since I wrote it), and I don’t see what you are NOT seeing. I think the last paragraph pretty much summed up what I think “decaffeinated Christianity” is.
Powerless
Decaffeinated Christianity is the same way. It looks like the real thing. It smells like the real thing. It tastes like the real thing. For crying out loud, it even outsells full-strength, real Christianity 10 to 1! People love it! They wear t-shirts promoting their favorite brand. Yet, decaffeinated Christianity is no better than decaffeinated coffee without the Power.
Maybe I could come up with something more profound, if you want, but I thought that was pretty clear.
Thanks for your response. I guess what I think is unclear is this: How might one differentiate between powerless and powerful Christianity? What are the markers of each? How would I recognize one or the other?
Is it purely subjective, or are there things that you could point to in order to identify one or the other? Because if it’s merely based on subjective feeling or experience, then what might seem to one person to be powerful, might seem to another person as powerless.
Surely God’s Word has power on its own. I’m just curious how you define what powerless Christianity is. Thanks for your time and for considering my question!
Fair enough. Ok, I’ll give it some thought.
Love the sense of humour as well as the serious message
Reblogged this on Interdenominational Assembly of Churches.
Thank you for this post. It is a wonderful illustration of the state of the “church”. I had spent 6 months of the last year drifting from a Biblical church to politically correct, social justice oriented “church”. By the grace of God and the work of the Holy Spirit the truth was revealed to me and I was able to return to my church home. Many are being lead astray by a false sense of security by these decaffeinated Christian churches.
I’m glad it was an encouragement. Thanks for letting me know. God bless!
I reblogged this on https://threeyearswithgod.home.blog