Attempts at Honesty

Reflections on the interplay of the Bible and Culture

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Why do we make church so complicated?

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ComplicatedJesus tells us in Matthew 11:28-30 that his yoke is easy and his burden is light. Why then do we make church so complicated?

We have programs and activities that would make the average cruise ship activities director envious.

We have men’s groups, women’s groups, singles groups, youth groups, coffee shops, concerts, ministry days, outreach events, the list goes on and on.

I’m not saying that any of these activities are wrong or not helpful. The question is, do we know why we are doing them? Do they serve a purpose or are we doing them because someone, somewhere decided that that is how we do church?

I know that the expectations of church shoppers are quite high and the competition is stiff. If the denominational outlet down the street has a gym, we better think about a building program to keep up. We don’t want to loose the families with athletic kids. If our air conditioning isn’t up to snuff, or the carpet is grungy or the seats are uncomfortable then visitors might not return.

My point is that many of the expectations people have of churches and church staff are not based on the Bible. We have often lost sight of what Jesus said we are to be about in an attempt to meet the perceived needs of the people.

The Church’s overarching mission, per Jesus, is to make disciples (Matthew 28:19). Do our activities help us accomplish this? Hebrews 10:24-25 tells us to encourage each other to love and good works. It seems to me that fulfillment of these two responsibilities requires more personal interaction than the Sunday morning blitzkrieg at the average church will allow. Sure, we can use resources such as gyms and air conditioners to do the work of ministry. But we often frantically do stuff without stopping to determine if progress toward the goal is being made.

In any endeavor, it is easy to mistake activity for progress. I’ve observed this mistake in both business and religious organizations. Gerbils on a wheel are being active. Salmon swimming upstream to spawn are making progress. The difference is whether or not we are arriving where we should be going.

I have observed in churches that while they say they’re all about fellowship, too often people are so busy getting kids to their proper classes and themselves off to their ministry stations that very little fellowship takes place. Church staff are busy plugging ministry holes left by vacationing volunteers so it is difficult to get in much more than a hello. Often we are more like shoppers at the mall checking items off our list than worshipers in fellowship.

Can we slow down this Sunday morning and really say hello to someone? Can we take the time to recognize the person who is barely holding it together? Can we create an environment where it is OK to be not OK? Can we show the breathless world how to rest? Can we be examples of people who know where to find true rest?

If we stop long enough we may discover that the yoke of Jesus is easy and his burden is light.

I don’t have the chutzpah to pick up the first stone

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I have heard it said that chutzpah is illustrated by the man who kills his mother and father and then pleads to the judge to let him off because he is an orphan. In other words, chutzpa is that behavior that knows no self limitation.

This evening a friend sent me a link to a web site which denounced Church A for associating with a man who associates with Group B. The author knows beyond a shadow of doubt that Group B is apostate and therefore Church A must also be apostate because they associate with someone who associates with Group B. I’d give you a link to the web site, but frankly it’s not worth reading.

The author of the web site condemned a whole bunch of people because of who they associate with. There was no indication that those condemned were leading people astray. There was no evidence presented that they were teaching heresy. They were condemned solely on the basis of association.

This reminds me of many of the encounters that Jesus had with the religious purists of his day. They condemned him for hanging out with disreputable people on a regular basis.

I’m not saying that what we believe doesn’t matter. I’m not saying that Scripture isn’t narrow and that the Gospel is not a narrow gate. Yes, Scripture is the truth and any belief that deviates from Scripture should be repented of immediately.

My point is that Jesus, not the self-appointed doctrinal policeman, is the gate-keeper and Jesus will know who is in relationship with him.

Jesus said to the would-be judges of his day, “he who is without sin should cast the first stone.” As I read the judgmental web site this evening, this phrase kept rumbling through my head. Who has the chutzpah to ignore his own sin and condemn someone else? Is that what we are to be about?

Can we stop with the condemnation of others and teach the truth? I know that the author of the web site in question is trying to be helpful. I have every reason to believe that he intends his work to be used to build up the church. Yet to me it seems rather to pull down than to build up.

How much damage does it do to create confusion where it need not be? How harmful is it to call someone’s character into question based on flimsy evidence? It seems to me that these tactics do more harm than good to the body of Christ.

I’ve heard it said that it is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. Can we agree to teach the Bible without compromise? Can we strive to preach “Jesus Christ and him crucified”, as the Apostle Paul did?

My brother who wrote the article meant to do well but his words and the seeming emotion behind them hurt me. I was not encouraged, I was not built up, nor was I instructed in the truth of Jesus Christ. I was drug through the mud.

And in spite of this type of stuff, we wonder why the world thinks that the church is useless. Shame on us, we should know better.

Jesus said that the world would recognize us by our love. He did not say that the world would recognize us by our doctrinal purity. Love must be the priority.

Seven Types of Robbers In The House Of Prayer

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House of Prayer“My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of robbers” is a statement of Jesus found in Luke 19:46. He made this statement in response to those who were selling animals and changing money in the Temple.

In my lifetime, the church has done a pretty good job of preventing the sale of animals and banking transactions from taking place on church grounds. On the surface, we have followed the teaching of Jesus in this regard.

As I reflect on this statement, I have an increasing level of discomfort about how well we’ve done in following the principle behind the statement.

What are robbers? There are two aspects of a robber that come to mind. The first is that he is not concerned about what is right and what is wrong. The robber is willing to take what is not his.

The second is that he is acting on his own behalf and not concerned about the welfare of others. The robber satisfies his own needs at the expense of another.

We don’t sell animals and we don’t cheat people by making them exchange their money. That’s good, but there are other ways we can emulate the people condemned by Jesus. We can keep the letter of the law while violating the principle behind it.

The principle is that we are to be about our Father’s business which is that of reconciling a hurting world with the loving Father. We are to be about His business and not our own. But, too often on a Sunday morning, our involvement is all about what is good for us and not what is pleasing to God and beneficial to others. If we do not come to the church meeting with the right motivation, we can then become like the robber.

We become like the robbers when we:

  1. Are More concerned about attendance than spiritual growth
  2. Are more concerned about appearing holy than being holy
  3. Are manipulating people into giving money rather than depending upon God
  4. Are more concerned about the buildings and the campus than the people, the true church
  5. Are more concerned about being served than serving
  6. Are more concerned about our reputation than God’s
  7. Misrepresent God to the people who need him most, causing them to walk away feeling condemned

So, instead of smugly reading this passage and patting ourselves on the back for not allowing commerce to take place on church grounds on Sunday, let’s look at the real business that we are to be about.

The ancient Israelites missed the point of Temple worship and if we are honest, we sometimes struggle to stay on track. We live in a culture that encourages us to live for self first.

We need to allow God to show us where this selfishness has corrupted our worship and practice. The proper response then is to repent and allow God to bring change.

Because of wrong belief and practice, we’ve abandoned a lot of spiritual territory to the Enemy. It’s time to begin the battle to take it back . . . before it’s too late.

Salt or Dirt, Make a Choice

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Salt PileIn Matthew 5:13, Jesus tells us that we are the “salt of the earth.” In Luke 14:34-35, the theme of salt is picked up again

“Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

Jesus is saying that if you remove the flavor from salt, it becomes dirt. Therefore every believer wants to be salty and maintain flavor.

The problem comes in when I try to be salty on my own. My experience is that when I try to generate saltiness, I end up peddling repackaged dirt. I do not have the ability to generate saltiness on my own. Salt in food enhances the flavor. On the other hand, dirt in food is just annoying. I want to be salt and not dirt.

One of the downsides to growing up in a Christian environment is that I can get very good at playing the game and making things look better than they really are. I can become phony by appearing more holy than I really am.

“How are you?” “Fine.” “You?” “I’m good too.” The kids could be on drugs, the IRS could be knocking at the door, the mortgage company could be about to take the house away, but still things are “fine.” If you have been in the church for more than a few weeks, you have probably witnessed a thousand variations on this same theme of fake “fine.”

We as the body of Christ have to get past all this phony nonsense and do a better job of being real. Like the Velveteen Rabbit, we should be on a quest to become real to the world around us. If we do, the warts, struggles, shortcomings, rebellion and pride will show through at times and we I need to learn to be OK with that knowing that Jesus loves us enough to get us past it into something better.

The only way I can become not-phony is to understand my helplessness and to rely on the Holy Spirit to make me salty again. Galatians 5:22-23 gives us a list of the characteristics of one who is yielded to the Spirit. This is the salt that the world needs. Against this there is no law.

Lord, make us salty to a world that needs the flavor and preservation that only you can provide.

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