11/16/2025
Consumerism drives the Transactional Church.
Transaction: an exchange or interaction between two parties; a business deal; buying or selling something; connected to consumerism
Intimacy: close; familiar; dear; cherished; faithful; devoted
In John 2:15 & 16b
So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables...he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”
Jesus was kicking out the transaction mentality overtaking the "church" in His day. I believe we too are turning into a "transactional" church again. Books, music, wearable merchandise, coffee.
Am I against all of those things, absolutely not. But don't we have websites, stores, etc. that can sell us those things outside of church buildings? I thought the purpose of church was to be where we gather together to worship the One we love?
You see, transaction, consumerism has over taken the priority of Loving Jesus. We just buy the books we want, listen to the preachers we want, pay our tithes, do our service, complete our attendance check lists and we have "paid" for the blessings of God (we think) through the avenues WE have chosen. you see...consumers have a CHOICE where to buy, what to buy and when to buy. True followers of Jesus surrendered that CHOICE by choosing HIM, His ways, His truth, His life. HE BECOMES THE CENTRALITY OF ALL THE TRUE BELIEVER longs for.
Intimacy pays tithes, serves, studies, prays out of an undying love for the One, Jesus, who gave His all for us at the Cross. HE ALREADY PAID THE PRICE needed for my blessings, protection, growth, life in the kingdom.
The obedience needed in all of this springs out of a reverence and thanksgiving for the finished work of the Cross by Jesus. I pay tithes, go to church, try to live a glorifying to Him lifestyle BECAUSE HE FIRST LOVED ME (1 John 4:19).
Do we truly have an intimacy hunger, desire, attitude in our relationship with God or is it transactional? Can we REALLY earn provision, protection and fulfilled promises by what we do?
It's sad, but we have transferred our cultural norms of consumerism (that's a nice way of say the sin of self satisfying, self promoting, self protecting, self BOUGHT everything) to the Altar of God and expecting Him to pat us on the head and say, "well done:. When in actuality, it displeases Him and breaks His heart because of the repercussions in our lives of this mentality.
The repercussion is that we have become foolish. Like the 5 foolish virgins so blinded by their own works that they didn't even come prepared and were turned away by these words: "Truly I tell you, I don't know you" (Matthew 25)
I know some of you are thinking I am on my "soapbox" but there is another scripture that is often overlooked in John 6:29:
Then they asked Him, :what must we do to do the works God
requires? Jesus answered "The work of God is this: to believe
on the One who He has sent".
Have we too turned into "workers", to "purchase" the blessing of God?
Have we turned the gospel into a Christian Book Store?
Have we turned away from the simplicity of the Relational Intimacy that sent Jesus to the Cross?
Jesus is trying to enter US, the TEMPLE of God, and overturn tables in our hearts that are stopping the flow of intimacy that he paid such a high price for and desires to have with us.
Is transaction driving you or intimacy?
True sheep follow the Shepherd anywhere because they trust in His character, abilities and because he has SHOWN them he is trustworthy.
Psalm 23 pretty much wraps all of this up....
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
Song of Solomon states God's heart for us...
He brought me to the banquet house and His banner over me was love...
