Chipotle Christianity

Chipotle Christianity

The news spread like wildfire.  A frenzy of texts and pictures clogged the airwaves.  It was November 2019, and a tiny sign appeared in a vacant lot just down the street from our church… 

Coming Spring of 2020
~ Chipotle ~

This might not sound so amazing for you.  Maybe Chipotle isn’t your thing.  Maybe you already have a Chipotle in your area.  But for us, the nearest location had been a 90-minute round trip.  Now, with glorious visions of Barbacoa, Carnitas, and Steak burritos after Sunday services, we could literally see the sign from our parking lot.  

After many delays, the new Chipotle finally opened last summer… but it was really just more waiting.  Traffic jams and long lines plagued the area.  Workers couldn’t meet the demand.  Eager fans waited in mid-summer heat for over an hour for their favorite burrito.  Popularity had become problematic.

2,000 years ago, this is how people acted around Jesus.  We might say He went viral.  The paparazzi chased Him.  He made the cover of People magazine.  He sold out Madison Square Garden.  But the celebrity status and inevitable crowd control issues forced Jesus out of the cities into less populated areas.  Popularity became a hindrance. 

Believers these days often equate popularity with spiritual success.  We want our church to be as cool and marketable as Chipotle.  The “likes” on our catchy Christian social media memes make us feel spiritually accomplished.  Often we think if we follow all the right pop trends, then unbelievers will surely be compelled to believe in Jesus.

It may sound illogical to our modern mentality, but Jesus actually never sought popularity.  He knew the massive draw He could get with a “magic show”… free fish sandwiches… complimentary medical care... but he never flaunted those things to gain followers.  He didn’t avoid hard biblical truths, even when it meant loss of status or outright rejection.  He never minimized holiness and the pursuit of a godly lifestyle for the latest trend or a high profile.

Jesus wasn’t against popularity, but it didn’t dictate His actions.  Do we follow His example?  In the words of Billy Graham, “Christians should be attractive and winsome, but never compromise their convictions for the sake of popularity.”

Galatians 1:10 – “I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.” 

- Ron Reid

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