Are you Majoring on the Majors?

It's no secret I enjoy many types of movies. But one genre I am not into is horror/monster movies.

So it may be a surprise that one of my favorite films is Cloverfield. Cloverfield is a monster-movie that effectively uses a found-footage/shaky-cam perspective, giving the film an authentic feel.*

One of the parts I loved about Cloverfield is the storyline. In the beginning of the film, two formerly-platonic friends, Rob and Beth, are clearly developing romantic feelings for one another. However, Rob is preparing to head overseas for a job, while Beth is staying in New York. Their group of friends are throwing a going-away party for Rob. Beth shows up at the party – with another guy. This incites Rob's jealousy, and Beth leaves upset at Rob's behavior.

But when the monster attacks Manhattan just a couple hours later, Beth calls Rob in a panic. Suddenly, all the petty issues between them disappear, and the only thing that matters is Rob trying to get to Beth’s apartment to rescue her.

(Nothing like a good-ol’ monster coming along to help give a little perspective…)

What Truly Matters

So often in life, we get caught up in the meaningless things. We get bent out of shape by someone's opinionated Facebook post, we turn sad when we don’t get invited to a party everyone else seems to be going to, or we get indignant when we find out what a certain family member said about us.

But when we find ourselves at a funeral or facing a major crisis, the petty issues vaporize and disappear. The small things don’t matter anymore.

At Riverwood, I want us to be about the majors. I don’t want us to get caught up in the tangential doctrinal issues that don’t play a significance in the gospel.

The reason I say this is that right now on Sundays, we are in a two-week series called Battle of the Sexes. As we study 1 Corinthians 11:2-16, we see Paul talking about head coverings. There is a small movement within Christianity that would argue that if a woman does not wear a head covering then she isn’t properly worshipping God.

As you’ll hear Sunday, the issue of head coverings isn’t truly about head coverings. When we make this passage about just the surface issue Paul was addressing, we miss the gospel-undertones, and end up making a minor a major.

So are you majoring on the majors? Are you keep Jesus front and center in your life? Are you marked and defined by the gospel story of Jesus’ death and resurrection? If you are getting all worked up that someone doesn’t worship exactly as you do, you might be getting caught up in petty issues.

But the gospel story of Jesus is such a major, life-changing event (kind of like a monster that shows up wreaking good), that if His gospel has truly penetrated your heart, the minor issues fall away, and we can see clearly what truly matters.

So today, I encourage you to keep Jesus first and foremost in your thoughts. Because when you do that, you are majoring on the majors.

*My wife watched Cloverfield on DVD with me months later. She wasn't nearly as impressed as I was. So your mileage may vary. 😉