The Church of the New Millennium
I remember the church of the 80's and 90's and the concerns about "apathy" in the local church. I remember it peaking in the late 90's, when mega-churches started to become a nationwide phenomenon. Then, I remember the swell of interest in all things spiritual following 9/11...LOTS of people started going to church.
Then, something happened: while all those "terrorphobic" Americans were flocking to the local church to get right with God before Armageddon, the media began broadcasting a new tune to the vulnerable, uneasy culture: Liberal, anti-Christian, atheistic newscasters and talk-show hosts began preaching the gospel of tolerance as the new Christianity; stating that only true followers of God would be loving enough to allow people to do whatever they want to do and believe whatever they want to believe about truth. And, embarrassingly, young believers all over America bought it.
A different line of thought pervades the church of this new millennium. It is the by-product of the genX and genY movements, which consequentially led to the "buffet-church" mentality of the early millennium, riding piggyback on the existence of the mega-church. Don't get me wrong, I have absolutely no qualms with what the researchers call the "mega-church" as I believe they are doing excellent jobs. It is the media's coverage of these congregations (and perhaps even the Christian media's coverage) that has led today's church-going society to be threatened by the success of the kingdom of heaven on earth.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="375" caption="Turning Jesus' Church Upside-Down"]
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What is happening now is a movement based on the translation of truth, instead of active service. While the liberal media preaches tolerance and convinces immature believers that Christians are hateful people, because of their belief in a perfect God and the existence of sin and wrong-doing, the young church-goers feel compelled to "test the water" by shopping around the church culture to see if this accusation rings true. The preferred method of "church shopping" is, visit local congregations who strike you as "right" and find out what they believe. Confirm flexibility, tolerance, and open-mindedness in their Biblical doctrine, and present your views to someone in the church to make sure no one disagrees with what you think. In the end, as long as "sin" is a debatable topic, you are guaranteed room to breathe and do as you please, and this is a good thing...in the minds of this new culture.
The next step is even more painful. Instead of getting involved in active service, learning what it truly means to follow Christ, these believers (some of them actually "wannabe" Christians) may choose to play their agenda up by creating dissension among other members and attendees. Sometimes it is over a personal set of ethics, morals, or beliefs about the basic truths of Scripture. Involvement in small groups (like bible studies, home groups, etc.) begins with a desire to "belong" and leads to the desire to make the church fit my mold. If within the first year this process does not go well for the "church-shopper," they will begin looking elsewhere, taking no prisoners and exacting casualties all over the battlefield they created.
I'm hurt to admit that I have personally watched this scenario play out multiple times in every church I have ever attended or served in. At the end of the day, it comes down to one thing: the ability of the believers to focus on asking for help when our beliefs fly in the face of the Word, and offering ourselves in service and discipleship to the King. Why is discipleship and service the key? Simple - if you fill the believer up with the Spirit of God, there is no room for Satan to dwell. The passive believer can quickly become the active tool of our enemy simply by filling his life up with the things of God. The active believer (the one engaged regularly in ministry and hand-in-hand cooperation with the local church) becomes the fortress that thwarts the enemy's intent.
But maybe I over-exaggerate...your thoughts?
Then, something happened: while all those "terrorphobic" Americans were flocking to the local church to get right with God before Armageddon, the media began broadcasting a new tune to the vulnerable, uneasy culture: Liberal, anti-Christian, atheistic newscasters and talk-show hosts began preaching the gospel of tolerance as the new Christianity; stating that only true followers of God would be loving enough to allow people to do whatever they want to do and believe whatever they want to believe about truth. And, embarrassingly, young believers all over America bought it.
A different line of thought pervades the church of this new millennium. It is the by-product of the genX and genY movements, which consequentially led to the "buffet-church" mentality of the early millennium, riding piggyback on the existence of the mega-church. Don't get me wrong, I have absolutely no qualms with what the researchers call the "mega-church" as I believe they are doing excellent jobs. It is the media's coverage of these congregations (and perhaps even the Christian media's coverage) that has led today's church-going society to be threatened by the success of the kingdom of heaven on earth.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="375" caption="Turning Jesus' Church Upside-Down"]
[/caption]What is happening now is a movement based on the translation of truth, instead of active service. While the liberal media preaches tolerance and convinces immature believers that Christians are hateful people, because of their belief in a perfect God and the existence of sin and wrong-doing, the young church-goers feel compelled to "test the water" by shopping around the church culture to see if this accusation rings true. The preferred method of "church shopping" is, visit local congregations who strike you as "right" and find out what they believe. Confirm flexibility, tolerance, and open-mindedness in their Biblical doctrine, and present your views to someone in the church to make sure no one disagrees with what you think. In the end, as long as "sin" is a debatable topic, you are guaranteed room to breathe and do as you please, and this is a good thing...in the minds of this new culture.
The next step is even more painful. Instead of getting involved in active service, learning what it truly means to follow Christ, these believers (some of them actually "wannabe" Christians) may choose to play their agenda up by creating dissension among other members and attendees. Sometimes it is over a personal set of ethics, morals, or beliefs about the basic truths of Scripture. Involvement in small groups (like bible studies, home groups, etc.) begins with a desire to "belong" and leads to the desire to make the church fit my mold. If within the first year this process does not go well for the "church-shopper," they will begin looking elsewhere, taking no prisoners and exacting casualties all over the battlefield they created.
I'm hurt to admit that I have personally watched this scenario play out multiple times in every church I have ever attended or served in. At the end of the day, it comes down to one thing: the ability of the believers to focus on asking for help when our beliefs fly in the face of the Word, and offering ourselves in service and discipleship to the King. Why is discipleship and service the key? Simple - if you fill the believer up with the Spirit of God, there is no room for Satan to dwell. The passive believer can quickly become the active tool of our enemy simply by filling his life up with the things of God. The active believer (the one engaged regularly in ministry and hand-in-hand cooperation with the local church) becomes the fortress that thwarts the enemy's intent.
But maybe I over-exaggerate...your thoughts?
Thanks for speaking the truth, Jeff.
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