Attempts at Honesty

Reflections on the interplay of the Bible and Culture

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Irresponsible Shepherds Bring Desolation

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Sheep with ShepherdEd Stetzer recently wrote an article regarding the decline of the United Methodists. This decline is not unique to that denomination, other “main-line” denominations share this experience.

These denominations have been in the news for abandonment of standards that held sway in Christendom for 2000 years. For example, The Presbyterian Church USA recently enacted rules that will open up ordination to homosexuals. As bad as this is, I would argue that this failure is a symptom of a larger problem.

The larger problem is the abandonment of Scripture as the authority upon which the Church should build its belief and practice. With the rejection of the inspiration of the original manuscripts, the church has lost her moral foundation. With the claim that Scripture is man-made comes the notion that Scriptural commands and principles can be set aside at will. This is done to the detriment of the church.

The pastors and leaders in these denominations, and those who have trained them, must bear a majority of the responsibility for the decline. By rejecting Scripture, they have also rejected Jesus Christ, no matter that they still use his name. Those who reject Scripture are irresponsible shepherds who are not providing proper spiritual care to their flocks.

Yes, I am aware of the attempts to explain that the Bible doesn’t condemn homosexuality. In their attempts, these shepherds perform exegetical gymnastics to stretch words into meanings that the writers and original readers never would have understood. This ploy has been in play since the beginning and is a variation on the theme of “did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1-7)

I recently read these words in Jeremiah 12:10:

Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard;
they have trampled down my portion;
they have made my pleasant portion
a desolate wilderness. (ESV)

God, through Jeremiah, condemned the shepherds of Israel that led that nation into rebellion against God. As the verse above states, that rebellion turned the Nation of Israel into a desolate wilderness. Rebellion against God and his commands and principles always carries negative consequences. Just as when one is on the top of a sky-scraper, one ignores gravity to his peril.

Later on in Jeremiah 23:2, he writes;

2 Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who care for my people: “You have scattered my flock and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for your evil deeds, declares the Lord.

As in ancient Israel, the shepherds today will be held accountable for what they feed their sheep. James 3:1 tells us that teachers will be held to a higher standard. God has given the gifts that enable the shepherds to lead and he expects that those gifts be used wisely and for good purpose.

The point of this is not to bash the main-line denominations, but to encourage those who are committed to the study, teaching and application of Scripture to stay the course. To care for the flocks that God has brought into your congregations requires that the flocks be fed good spiritual nutrition which can only be found in Scripture. Anything else is junk food at best and poison at worst.

If there is any temptation to stray from accurately teaching Scripture, I’d like to remind you of the words of Peter when asked if he was going to leave Jesus. When Jesus asked Peter if he would leave him, Peter responded, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68)

The Apostle Paul instructs us to “hold fast to the word of life” in Philippians 2:16.To do so will reverse the decline.

Remember that the drowning man needs a life preserver, not more water.

Church Membership – A Response to Matt Chandler

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Full disclosure update: As of 2012, I no longer attend a Calvary Chapel.  While I still feel that church membership is not mandated by Scripture, I am now convinced that membership is beneficial because the member makes a clear commitment to be accountable for the church and be in support of the church.

imageA friend of mine, @kksine, asked me to read and comment on an article by Matt Chandler entitled Is Church Membership Biblical? which was published on the 9marks.org web site.

The question is a valid one: should there be a formalized process for determining who is and who is not a member of the local fellowship?

I agree with almost all of what Matt Chandler writes, my response is intended to provide clarification rather than rebuttal. We share the same goals but choose slightly different paths to get there. This is a preference issue and we have freedom to have or not have a formalized membership process in the local body.

Clarification #1 – Formalized Membership Process

Scripture does not mandate, nor does it preclude a formalized membership process. The verses cited in the article identify what should be done, but do not specifically indicate that a formalized membership process is necessary for compliance.

In 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 and Romans 12:4-8, where Paul uses the analogy of the Church as the Body of Christ, it is not necessary to infer a formalized process to determine who is a member of the body. In a sense, any believer who attends a local fellowship is a member of it, in that he is a part (the most basic sense of the word member) of the body of Christ.

I attend a Calvary Chapel which does not have a membership process. In Calvary Chapel, we have elders who make decisions with regard to church polity, we have church discipline, we have submission to the ruling elders [Update: The largest reason we left Calvary Chapel was because it is not elder ruled. There is an elder board but they are there to support the pastor in his decisions. Calvary Chapel has an episcopal form of government with the pastor holding the power.] and we know who is associated with our body. We seek to be obedient to Jesus Christ as a body and we seek to follow the Apostle’s direction as to how the local congregation should function. All are done without a formalized membership process.

Those who attend our fellowship on a regular basis have a sense of belonging and understand that to continue belonging to our fellowship, a submission to Jesus Christ, Scripture and the elders is required.

Clarification #2 – The Goal of Membership

The goal of membership is not stated in the article. Is the goal to determine who can vote and who cannot?

I can find no direct support in Scripture for a congregational form of church government. What I do see in Scripture is that the elders are to rule and lead the church. Scripture gives no indication that church members should be allowed to vote on church policy, the calling of a pastor, electing elders, etc.

Congregational government requires formalized membership as a means of controlling who can vote. If you want congregational government, you have freedom to do so, but you cannot make a case that Scripture demands this form of government.

Clarification #3 – Accountability and Church Discipline

In the article Matt seems to assume that without membership, church discipline would be impossible. I’d like to assure him that this is not the case.

I would turn this around and ask what he would do with someone attending his church without being a member who gives evidence of living in sin. Would he confront the sin? Or, is it only those who go through the formal process who are confronted? Do you allow the “sinner” to continue attending and only confront the issue when he comes forward for membership?

We have found that church discipline works without membership. When an issue comes to our attention, it is confronted. Typically what we find is that the one confronted either repents and works toward change, or he stops attending or goes to another church.

Clarification #4 – Maturity and Membership

Matt assumes that membership is necessary for a believer to progress toward maturity.

I agree that associating and belonging to a local fellowship is an expectation that Scripture places upon us. I also agree that belonging to a local fellowship is necessary for optimum spiritual growth. I do not agree that a formalized process and the signing of a document are necessary to have this sense of belonging.

In our fellowship, we see people who sit under the teaching of Scripture, interact with other believers in small groups, serve in the body and progress toward maturity, all without a formalized membership process.

Conclusion

There is nothing wrong with having a formalized membership process. Scripture does not have anything negative to say about this that I can find. If your fellowship functions in this way, I am happy for you.

My point is that it is not mandatory to have this formalized process. Many local church bodies function according to Biblical priorities without this process.

This is a preference issue and if you prefer membership, I’m totally OK with that.

Great Packaging + Great Product = Integrity

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Question Mark

As consumers we know that beautiful packaging does not guarantee the quality of the product inside. The photo on the box often looks much better than the content. On the other hand, with the rise of store brands, we know that good stuff can be found in very plain packages.

Visually stunning packaging is done because it sells product. Good products will sell better with attractive packaging. Effort needs to be extended toward development of both.

This morning, I was thinking about three areas to apply this idea. The first is on an individual level, the second is with regard to web media and arena for application is the Church.

Personal Behavior

One of Jesus’ criticisms of the Pharisees was that their behavior did not match how their public appearance.  In Matthew 23, there is a long discourse given by Jesus in which he condemns the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. He says of them in 23:3, “they preach, but do not practice.” Later, in verse 5, he says, “they do all their deeds to be seen by others.” From this, we get the proverbs that we should practice what we preach, or we should walk what we talk. This speaks to personal integrity, something that we should all strive for.

Web Media

Recently, I started paying more attention to site design as I looked around on the internet. I found some web sites that were visually stunning but lacked compelling content. I found some other sites that had great material but the site layout made it difficult to navigate or the format hindered the reading. It seems to me that there needs to be a balance struck between the form and the content. It is not an either/or decision, both the form and the content must be considered. Good content must be presented in a form that is both functional and pleasant for effective communication to take place.

Churches

Impressive buildings, talented musicians and diverse programs are all for naught if they are devoid of solid, Biblical teaching. Paul warned Timothy this in 2 Timothy 3:1-5 where he writes,

1 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.

It is possible to have a beautiful presentation that is devoid of content. The key phrase in the Scripture above is “having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.” If the function of the church is not based on Scripture and aimed at deepening relationships with God and each other. There is no power in the congregation.

On the other hand, we need to structure the local church body so that it is accessible to the people in the community. The “packaging” should not deter someone from participating in the church. The music, style of dress, decor of the building, etc. should be within the “bell curve” of the surrounding society.  If people are to be offended, let them be offended by the gospel message, not how it is presented.

The Challenge

The word that seems to run all through this is integrity, having our individual or corporate behavior match what we claim to believe. I see two basic steps to living in integrity:

  1. Discover a sense of purpose. Ask yourself, why am I doing this thing?
  2. Continually assess if what I am doing helps me fulfill this purpose.

I heard someone say that the person who knows how to do something will almost always have a job, but he will work for the man who knows why it should be done. The “why” should be asked before the “how” question.

In what other areas do you see needing this balance?

 

Getting off track: 5 Enemies to Service in the Church

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Recently I was asked the question as to why there is a reluctance for people to serve in the church. Here are some ideas in response to this question:

  • Misdirected Priorities are enemies to service – We run the risk of making good things ultimate things and seek to find our satisfaction in stuff, pleasure or achievement rather than in the God who loves us and gave himself for us. One of my favorite C. S. Lewis quotes is from his essay, The Weight of Glory. In that essay Lewis indicates that we are like children making mud pies in a slum when we are offered a holiday at the sea. We should find our delight in God and in serving him. Yet, too often, we can be too busy and too distracted to be available for service.
  • Comfort is an enemy to service– The point is that too often we are not willing to get out of our comfort zone and try new things. The answer to this is try something new and if it doesn’t work out, so what! You’ve really got nothing to loose other than the blessing of finding out that that new thing is something you enjoy.
  • Feeling unqualified is an enemy to service– Let’s be honest here. None of us are qualified in ourselves for ministry or service. We all fall short of our own expectations. Yet, if you are called to a ministry, God will equip you to do it. He will use that ministry experience to stretch you and grow you into the person he wants you to be.
  • Pride is an enemy to service– The opposite of feeling unqualified would be feeling over qualified for a ministry that needs to be done. Pride might cause me to be unwilling to be in a situation where my skills are inadequate. Pride might prompt me to avoid a ministry where I might fail and look stupid (in my own mind). Pride might cause me to avoid doing a service that does not fully utilize my skills yet needs to be done. The solution is to repent and do the thing that God is calling you to do.
  • Fear is an enemy of service – It could be fear of failure, fear of not knowing what to do, fear of looking stupid (see comments on pride above), it could even be fear of personal safety. Yet, if God is calling you to do it, he will protect you. Also, with regard to fear of failure, I would offer this advice. Use the “so what?” question. If I fail at this “so what?” The result of failure is often exaggerated by the fear.

What else would you add to the list? Please add your ideas as a comment.

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