I was speaking a couple of days ago about the fine line between "truth" and "love" in modern-day Christianity, and regarded how it is easy to be guilty of promoting one over the other. While I was guilty in my posting of proclaiming the truth without love, many of our modern-day churches do the exact opposite. This article was on my "Yahoo! Religious News" feed this morning, and once again, the journalist did a great job of preparing me for what was in store when I read the full piece.
The churches mentioned in the article have begun to not only bring entertainment and activities into their church sphere, but eschew the ideas of "traditional" (read: boring, resulting in waning attendance) church services and structure all together. That does not mean the Gospel is not being properly preached, but it does make you question if people can stop rollerskating or step away from their mocha half-caf whip latte long enough to be "bothered" by a sermon.
I have been reading John MacArthur's The Gospel According to Jesus for the past couple of weeks, and it has reminded me nightly about how we as Christians are known to the outside world and to other Christians.
There are a couple of quotes that I want to take from the article to begin that discussion:
"Congregations are trying to find a way to tie people together, but also find ways to present the Christian message that isn't so direct or in-your-face, to present a side door into the life of the church," said Scott Thumma, a religious sociologist at the Hartford Institute for Religious Research.
"The megachurch especially has really led the way in these kinds of strategies," he said. "What a lot of congregations want is to have multiple avenues open so that they can bypass the resistance people have when they hear the word 'church' or 'Jesus,' whether it is a coffee shop or a bowling alley."
To be fair, this is not a member of the pastorate, and I would be surprised if he was a Christian at all. But there is a particular part of what he said that should alarm anyone subscribing to this blog:
"the resistance people have when they hear the word 'church' or 'Jesus,'"
Paul in 2 Timothy 4 tells those who preach the Word (which, in essence, should be all Christians) that they should be steadfast and unashamed for Christ, that people should be reminded and confronted with their sin. True teachers will do that, because many will turn away for a kinder, gentler gospel. 2 Tim 4:1-5 (NKJV):
I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
Sound doctrine is Biblical doctrine, and any other gospel is mere "fable". "Itching" is translated from the Greek "knetho", which means to itch or tickle. This seems to me to imply that the true and living Gospel is like a buzzing fly to the unregenerate believer or nonbeliever. It won't go away, it just keeps coming back...but they want no part of it. They would rather hear a new gospel, one which is pleasing to the ears: a message that their God is one of love, acceptance, and tolerance. It's too "itchy" and "abrasive" to remind a congregation or group of their depravity and separation from God without the crosswork of Christ. One blog that I read recently quoted Curtis C. Thomas': "The truth should comfort the hurting but also unsettle the comfortable."
Another quote from the article which gave me an uneasy feeling was the following from a "lifelong church member":
"When you're in a community, you're trying to gather people whichever way you can, and sometimes you can disguise your message with extracurricular activities," said Tamela Booker, 34, an insurance worker and lifelong church member.
"We want to reach out to the community with God's message with things people can relate to, so they feel loved."
While I recognize that Ms. Booker is not clergy, nor is her statement and spiritual health indicative of the larger body, given the tone of the article and the "fruits" of her church described in the article, I believe this quote can be representative of the general attitude of this movement.
"Gather people any way you can,"
"disguise your message"
"...God's message with things people can relate to,"
Once again, this article is not meant to question this new method of offering community services in order to expand evangelistic outreach to a community; churches are and should continue to offer opportunities for individuals and families to find their way into a church family...but the number one reason for all of the softball leagues, rollerskating rinks and Starbucks coffee shops in the lobbies of our churches is the same: To spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
I can only hope that Ms. Booker has talked to her pastoral staff once they read her comments, and reminded her of this fact. These activities are not supposed to "trick" people into coming to church. They are not to "disguise" the message of Christ!
Like the man who build his house on a foundation of sand in Matthew 7, those churches and the individuals who attend due to "disguised" activities that do not take heed to Christ's message of repentance and turning away from sin to holiness will blow away at the first sign of trouble.
Jesus Christ came to seek and save the lost. The words "accept Christ" appear nowhere in the Bible. Those who recognize their sin, and turn from it because of the awesome gift of His son, and bear spiritual fruit of their new life in Him are true believers. As such, we must not water down our message to appeal to those who are wrapped up in our modern culture. We must seek to make disciples with "all longsuffering and teaching," offering the culture-transcending message of repentance and forgiveness through Him.
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