Oct | 07 | Eggnogstics

Key Word:- CONSIDER

Title:- Eggnogstics

John 6:26,27 “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”

Typically this is known as a ‘Christmas drink,’ made not too hot to curdle the milk but kept just lukewarm, to keep the chills at bay. It’s origins are apparently in England, descending from a hot and spicy drink called ‘Posset’. I am talking about Eggnog of course and rather than being just a Christmas consumption, was originally the extravagant and exclusive drink of the hoi polloi, the very, very rich.

The recipe for Eggnog, (eggs beaten with sugar, milk or cream, salt, nutmeg and some kind of spirit) meant poor people in England couldn’t produce the drink! At the onset of the Eggnog frenzy the average city commoner, rarely saw a fresh glass of milk, there was no refrigeration and much of the farms belonged to large and titled estates. It was only the rich who could get their hands on enough milk and eggs to mix drinks with them. In ‘America the plentiful,’ however, things were different. The abundance of fresh produce and access to cheap Caribbean rum changed the focused market consumer, from the ‘hoi polloi’, to ‘every man and boy’. In America, the rich drink of the very rich, became the rich drink of everyone. I suspect the Eggnostic was first seen in America.

Now we all know that an agnostic is a person who feels that God's existence can neither be proved nor disproved, on the basis of current evidence. An Eggnostic doesn’t care either way because he is both enjoying, consuming and being consumed by God’s bounty.

You would think that an Eggnostic was an irreligious rascal with no time for morality, community or church. You know? Someone who crawls half drunk out of bed every morning and hurries into hedonism for the rest of the day. You would think you could spot an Eggnostic from 500 yards by the bags underneath their eyes, the fat bellies, the fine cars and lumpy wallets. Wait a minute! Stick a Bible underneath the arm of a man I’ve just described and you could be in a typical American church parking lot! Am I being cruel here?

Christian Eggnostics are sometimes hard to discern because we are so good at playing the game. Respectable, clean, giving, handshaking, smiling people, who both abound and are happy to be around, any organization that might justify and certify the abundant life, as expressed by consumer Christianity. So how can you recognize the Christian Eggnostic; those consuming and being consumed?

1) Well, the Christian Eggnostic is firstly seen by their open legs. Having a foot in the world and the church is quite a stretch you know.

2) Secondly, they are recognised by their open mouths and rubber necks. During the message, they will be found absent from the body but not present with the Lord, snoozing and dreaming of things to be done, said, acquired and admired, my dear.

3) Lastly, they are recognised by their concerns and their conversations; the new house, the desperate need of a new car, the vacation in Hawaii, stocks, shares, and cares about the pension fund, you know how it goes? Don’t you?

The rich and abundant blessings of God Almighty when taken for granted and mixed with selfish ambition and over consumption are indeed a heady cocktail. My personal confession this morning, is that given half the chance, I might just wholeheartedly embrace Eggnosticism as a good and profitable way of life, especially if it’s dressed in good old religious clothes. How about you?

Listen:- “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing' and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Revelation 3:15-22

Pray: - What can I say to You dear Jesus, when I love the rich mixtures of You creation, rather than You, their Creator? Forgive my open legs and my fly filled open mouth and rather grant me, open arms to receive and enjoy all things from Your hand, and open fingers that I might let go of that which is passing, passing, passing away. In Your great name I pray, amen.