The Shame of Living In A Consumer Culture

Many Christians live ashamed because we don’t have God we have stuff. While living in a consumer culture we can be deceived to think we have everything we need while truly having nothing. It is the curse of our blessing. When stuff becomes our focus we can lose sight of the reason we are here in the first place.

Let’s look at the shame found in church of Laodicea. Unfortunately it is very close to our current situation. We have become rich and in need of nothing while being poor, blind and naked.

Consumer Culture in Laodicea

Write the following to the messenger of the congregation in Laodicea, for these are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation:

I know all that you do, and I know that you are neither frozen in apathy nor fervent with passion. How I wish you were either one or the other! But because you are neither cold nor hot, but lukewarm, I am about to spit you from my mouth. For you claim, “I’m rich and getting richer—I don’t need a thing.” Yet you are clueless that you’re miserable, poor, blind, barren, and naked! So I counsel you to purchase gold perfected by fire, so that you can be truly rich. Purchase a white garment to cover and clothe your shameful Adam-nakedness. Purchase eye salve to be placed over your eyes so that you can truly see. All those I dearly love I unmask and train. So repent and be eager to pursue what is right. Behold, I’m standing at the door, knocking. If your heart is open to hear my voice and you open the door within, I will come in to you and feast with you, and you will feast with me. And to the one who conquers I will give the privilege of sitting with me on my throne, just as I conquered and sat down with my Father on His throne. The one whose heart is open let him listen carefully to what the Spirit is saying now to the churches.
Revelation 3:14-22 TPT

Shame of Consumerism

On Monday I spoke on the shameful Adam-nakedness and how to live naked and unashamed. I said that Adam and Eve lived naked and unashamed until they needed something beyond God. The day they needed more than God, shame entered in. It is only when I look for more than God alone that I become ashamed. It is a set up for shame. Shame is the addition of something beyond God and His Will and always is shameful.

“But Israel soon became fat and unruly; the people grew heavy, plump, and stuffed! Then they abandoned the God who had made them; they made light of the Rock of their salvation.
Deuteronomy 32:15 NLT

Does this sound oddly familiar? When I read this I thought immediately, “But the USA has become fat and unruly; our people grew heavy, plump, and stuff! We have abandoned the God who made us, and made light of the Rock of our salvation!”

God’s My Provider

Living in a consumer culture we have to continually remain open-handed. We have to see our blessing as God’s provision and grace not as our right. We are entitled to NOTHING. Making an idol of our stuff is to leave our Provider. Our Father wants us to have His provision, but He won’t jeopardize our eternity for the amassing of things.

While our “Laodicea” nature is a reality, it doesn’t have to lead us away from our destiny. We can live in the naked and unashamed reality of “God being enough.” This is freeing and liberating, rescuing us from the shame and defeat of abandoning God. You see, being naked is being vulnerable to the God who created us. It’s standing secure in His Will and thoughts for our lives.

Our Father gives sufficiently. Our richness is beyond measure. But the wealth we amass is Him….everything else is just stuff. And no one can take Him from us, in this life or in the life to come.