Okay, this is another brief post of some thoughts. Here is what I'm contemplating--What is church really supposed to be? I know a friend of mine has been asking the Lord this since childhood, and I guess I've just gotten disturbed enough with current American church to start asking this myself. Are we really supposed to have lots of programs going, and always be asking people to help out? What purpose do those programs actually serve? Who do those programs actually serve? Is the church supposed to be actively drawing unsaved people to "church"? Are we supposed to be measuring important things like spiritual health by amount of service?
When I looked up the definition of "church" in the concordance, this is what it said. This word stresses a group of people called out for a special purpose. It designated a new society of which Jesus was the founder, being as it was a society knit together by the closest spiritual bonds and altogether independent of space. How does this definition work when discussing "church membership"? If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, aren't you already a church member? What is the real point to current church membership?
Yesterday I heard a missionary speak at my church. He was speaking out of Luke, and talking about when Jesus told Peter to go out in his boat to the deep and cast his net and he would catch many fish. He stressed the fact that too many people are comfortable on the shore, and not enough are going out into the deep.
I may agree, but let me ask you-- Are we Americans making church too comfortable with our classes, programs, etc.? What happened if we only met together to worship God Almighty? First of all, how many people would stop coming to church? Second, wouldn't that meet the need of the original intended definition of the church? If church is about people being knit together by our spiritual bonds, why should we need anything other than to worship God together?
I think part of this confusion is brought on by the fact that people don't read their Bibles or obey God like they used to do. If people read their Bibles and obeyed what was in them, the need for all these classes would go away. If you had a true reverence for God, and read in His Word what God says about tithing, you wouldn't need a financial class that teaches people about tithing and money. God answers all these questions, but we have to read our Bibles to find them. We want to take a short cut by letting someone else do the work of reading it in the Bible for us, then putting it into a curriculum so all we have to do is take the class. But the fact remains, if you don't apply what you learn, it is all for naught.
You may call me crazy, but I will admit that I like this one part of the Amish culture. I've been reading some fiction about the Amish, and it talks about how each family takes a turn hosting the "preaching" Sundays. They remove walls in the main floor of their home and clear the furniture and bring in benches. In the summer, they even had it in their barns. How simple it seemed. No big building funds, no asking people for money. No huge buildings to keep maintaining, pay the utilities for, keep track of who is using what room. Please bear in mind that I am not endorsing their theology, but the method of holding services. What would happen if this were the status quo in America?
Then I ask myself, can we really go back? Is it possible to regain the church of the New Testament, or is the ball rolling too fast? What would the impact be? I don't have any easy answers, but I know the One who holds all of life's mysteries. I would pray that we as American Christians would return to the God of the Bible. That we would revere Him, and His Word. That we would put aside the vain philosophies of man, and rely on the One True God.
Okay, I'm done for now, and it wasn't such a brief post. Let me make it clear that I am not advocating that we should all leave our churches in droves and start our own church. I am just trying to stimulate thought, and put my thoughts out there to see if I'm missing something here. Please don't be afraid to post your thoughts on church.
2 comments:
Some of what you are writing, I agree, some I do not. It would be wonderful if we could go back to a more simple church. Listen to the Pastor, sing songs, and spend time with people (sunday school in my days). Churches have become so big that they become a corp., not a ministry for people. I feel that some classes are needed (how to budget) because it seems it is not taught at home. What gets me about church is that you are always having to pay for something. Pay a fee for your kids singing in the childrens choir. Why? Why do you need t-shirts, fancy music, etc. Just have the kids be themselves and sing for the Lord.
When you spoke about having different people "preaching" on Sundays, it put some fear into my heart (even though I know you are not advocating this), but, it brought to mind the Mormons. This is what they do and so there is no consistancy of what doctrine is being spoken. For me it is a pleasure to listen to pastor speak. If I do not agree with what he is saying, I look it up in the Bible to see for myself and if I still do not understand or agree, I can go and ask him regarding my confusion.
I do not think that we can go back to the simple life anymore. Even in my home I would love to go back to the "simple life", but there would be mass rebellion. I have to become simple again and not run around like a chicken with her head cut off.
Just my thoughts.
Sandy, Just to clarify your comment about different people preaching, that is not the case. There are set preachers in the Amish faith, the family rotate hosting the church body for services.
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