Month: September 2016

Times are a Changin…

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changes-ahead

Unless you live under a rock…an exceptionally large rock, you are aware that there was yet another terrorist bombing over the weekend in New York.  This time, the bombs were located in pressure cookers, of all things. I can’t wait to hear what the President and Presidential hopefuls have to say about this latest incident. New York…that’s quite a distance from me.  Here in my neighborhood just this weekend, a small 9 month old baby was stabbed along with a few adults.

Whew…when will it ever end?

Well, that’s just it…it won’t end.  The results of this coming election will not remedy the problem of uncontrollable craziness that is going on in our nation and around the world. So, what’s gotta change?  What has got to happen in this nation for things to turn around? Can I tell you that the necessary changes have little, if anything, to do with who stands or who does not stand when the national anthem is played.  Nope.  While that might get your blood pressure rising as an American Patriot, getting athletes to stand isn’t going to fix the problem.  Here’s the problem.  Now, before I continue, please understand that my diagnosis of the issue is going to be so simple that it will not reflect the fact that I have spent the last three years in a seminary and am getting closer to earning a MDiv. This diagnosis is so simple that you might be tempted to chuckle when you read how simple and direct it is.  However, I will go ahead and offer it regardless. Here I go.

The problem in our nation and, therefore, the main thing that must change is found in Scripture in Psalm 33:12, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!” (ESV)

Now, before you post comments about this verse applying to the nation of Israel in its original context, let me stop you and tell you that I am completely aware of that fact. However, the truth of this verse is applicable to any nation which recognizes יהוה (Jehovah) for its אלהים (Elohim).

Simple reasoning will allow one to ascertain that if the above statement is true, and I certainly believe that it is because I believe His Word is true, then, it stands to reason that the opposite of the conditions presented and, therefore the ensuing results from those reversed conditions would be true as well.  In other words, if a nation’s blessing or happiness is based upon their acknowledgment of God as their LORD, then, if a nation fails to acknowledge God as their LORD, those blessings will be minimized.

News Flash!!!!

Jehovah has not been recognized as the Elohim of the USA long before people started standing or failing to stand for our flag or anthem.  We are now a nation that values tolerance above truth, acceptance above accountability, and personal preference above prescribed practices.  We are a “if it feels good, do it” society now and God is nowhere to be found.  Are we really surprised?!  Are we really daring enough to ask, “where is God?!?”

What Do We Do Now?

Remember this…

Psalm 46:9-11

“He makes wars to cease to the end of the earth; He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two; He burns the chariots with fire.“Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.…

It may not be today or tomorrow.  You and I may not live to see it happen in this nation, but rest assured friends that His Word is true and one day, “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.…

Be Blessed!

“They Don’t Care”

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If your neighbor wants a cup of coffee, they will most likely go to Starbucks or a nearby coffee shop to get their coffee fix…they are not going to come to your church for a cup of coffee.

It amazes me the great lengths churches have gone to in order to “attract” the postmodern, dechurched, and uninterested. If we dress hipper (it is now a word), sing louder, serve better coffee, etc., etc., surely they will come.

Well, we have had over a decade of this rat race in the church and guess what…they don’t care. The majority of growth that has happened has been transfer growth because your church is cooler than the one that I have been going to so I will start going to yours. I know pastors that get extremely excited about transfer growth.  They blog and post about their big and sudden increases in attendance on Facebook.  They Tweet about their boom in attendance this week on Twitter. They would be wise to remember what a wise, old pastor once told me; “The way that they come to your church will be the way that they leave your church.”

If they left their last church mad because things didn’t go their way.  Guess what, they will leave your church when things don’t go their way there as well. If they left because of dissatisfaction and an overwhelming feeling that the last church was no longer meeting their “spiritual needs” (yeah, that’s Biblical…NOT), as soon as the church across towns seems to be more exciting than yours, they will be out the door because you will no longer be meeting their “spiritual needs.”

These things might do well when it comes to attracting those who are dissatisfied at their current house of worship or even creating interest in someone who is simply not attending but who normally does attend worship each week.

But, and it is a really big but, the world could care less if you have a coffee shop in your foyer or a pizza kitchen after the morning worship service. Your skinny jeans really aren’t impressing them nor are your pyrotechnics. They are seeking authenticity and community. After interviewing college students this past semester, I discovered a growing reality amongst 20 somethings who do not attend church…there is a great level of distrust for the church and a cup of coffee and a donut are not going to fix that.

So, what are we to do in our churches to be attractional to the postmodern, the dechurched, and the uninterested?  The answer is…

Ask a different question.  Here it is. What can I do to be attractional to the postmodern, the dechurched, and the uninterested?  Notice the emphasis on the word “I.” I think it was a guy named Jesus who said that we should let our lights shine in such a way that others around us where we live, move, and have our being would be drawn to our heavenly father when they witness our good works.

What if the church, instead of training our people to do mass evangelism each week or investing in our Starbucks wanna-be vestibules, started training and encouraging our people to be salt and light in a dark and decaying world where they live each day?

What if we trained our people in Apologetics so that when their neighbor or co-worker challenged their faith they didn’t stand there like Elmer Fudd when he lost Bugs Bunny. What if the church took seriously the challenge to equip the saints for the ministry and realized that a huge part of the ministry is being able to give a reason for the hope that is within us?

Okay, okay.  Drink your coffee.  Shoot your fireworks from the stage if you must. But please understand that those things have not and never will attract those that are completely uninterested in the church.  They will never attract the lost to the saving message of Jesus Christ.  That’s my opinion at least.  What’s yours?