The great divide in North American Christianity today lies in the same place as it did in the New Testament. 

But it is not in the theological tribes or denominational labels we cling to for a sense of identity and personal mission. 

It’s not in the myriad of micro-arguments (“what do you believe about”) and the ensuing acrimonious debates that we use to justify ungodly words, unloving attitudes, and militant actions towards one another. 

It’s not in the books we read, the schools we attend, the candidates we support, the causes we stand for, the neighborhoods we come from (or live in), the injustices we have suffered, or the traumas we have experienced. 

No.

Although these dear ones push and pull and strive and grasp, seeking to win arguments even if it means not winning any hearts, they are still approaching life in the same fundamental way. 

They are united on one side of the great divide in North American Christianity. 

What They Agree On 

Believers immersed in the arguing and debating and labeling of one another as this or that… well, they are in full agreement in their approach to problems and people. 

What do they agree on? 

It’s all on you.

Your life is ALL on YOU. 

Despite our creeds and confessions and “deeply held” convictions, our entire approach to life is to work it out on our own and for the outcomes we want relying on our very best efforts.

We leave it all on the field. 

We trumpet our visions and promote our solutions and work tirelessly for their achievement… only to wake up one day just plain tired.

Discouraged.

Depressed.

Ready to quit.

Questioning ourselves and everything we espoused as important. 

If we’re fortunate. 

There are others who never reach the end of themselves. Some people never quit or give up in the pursuit of their goals or vindication of their beliefs.

Strangely, we tend to exalt those people. Their biographies inspire us. Their resilience inspires us. 

But it is that very approach to life that is killing you. 

There is another way. 

Consider… 

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” ~ Matthew 11:28-30

“I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” ~ John 14:18

“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” ~ John 15:4-5

“And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?” ~ 1 Corinthians 3:1-3

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…” ~ Galatians 2:20

“Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?” ~ Galatians 3:3

“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” ~ Galatians 5:16

Passages like these strongly suggest that there should be a supernatural dimension to my approach to life. 

The focus of these verses is not on my determined efforts or innate powers to achieve, but on His presence within me, and my determination to joyfully yield my life and my resources to His directional control, and to “carelessly” rely on Him and His resources. 

The Other Side 

How did we become so convinced that spiritual maturity equals spiritual self-sufficiency? How did we drift from the supernatural expectation of New Testament Christianity to this exhausting performance-based version that leaves us arguing about everything except the one thing that actually matters? 

I watch believers burn themselves out defending positions they can barely articulate to people who aren’t listening anyway. I see them organizing, strategizing, mobilizing for causes that may be good but aren’t necessarily God’s assignment for their lives. And then I watch them crash.

Hard. 

The crash is actually a kind of mercy. 

Because it’s only when we reach the end of ourselves—when our best efforts fail, when our arguments fall flat, when our carefully constructed spiritual personas crumble—that we become candidates for the kind of life Jesus actually offers. 

“Without Me you can do nothing.”

Not “without Me you can do very little.” 

Not “without Me it will be really hard.” 

Nothing.

That’s not motivational in our current approach to life and ministry. That’s not inspiring. In fact, it can be terrifying if you’ve built your entire approach to Christianity on what you can do for God. 

But it’s liberating

…if you’re tired

…of carrying weight

…you were never meant to carry. 

Learning to Live Like This 

Learning to live like this—to pursue His presence and pleasure in every moment—will move you to the other side of the great divide. 

From “it’s all ON ME” to “it’s ON HIM in me.” 

This isn’t about becoming passive. This isn’t about abandoning responsibility or sitting around waiting for lightning bolts.

This is about discovering what Paul meant when he talked about being “strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” This is about learning to distinguish between Spirit-led activity and flesh-driven busyness. 

The branch doesn’t try to produce fruit. It doesn’t strain and strive and push harder when the growing season comes. It simply maintains its connection to the vine, and then fruit happens. Naturally. Supernaturally. 

“Apart from Me you can do nothing” becomes “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

The difference? One is exhausting. The other is rest. 

Time to Change

So where are you in all this? On which side of the great divide do you find yourself most days? 

Are you still trying to work out your spiritual life through sheer determination and best efforts?

Are you defending positions, promoting solutions, “leaving it all on the field” only to wake up tired and discouraged? 

Or have you discovered what it means to “carelessly” rely on His resources instead of carefully managing your own? 

The choice is yours. The invitation stands. 

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden…”

He’s not waiting for you to get your act together first. He’s not waiting for you to stop arguing or start agreeing or figure out all your theological positions. 

He’s waiting for you to come. Tired. Heavy laden.

Ready to learn a different way. 

Ready to discover that His yoke really is easy and His burden really is light. 

Ready to step away from the inner driving assumption that “it’s all ON ME” and to embrace the truth that “it’s ON HIM in me.” 

That’s the great divide.