Aug 5, 2022
It is in human nature to be self-serving, dating all the way back to the Fall of Mankind. The default setting for any person is “comfort.” As such, anything that makes a person uncomfortable is equated with “wrong.”
This is where we, both as a society and as Christians (or really, any religion), utterly fail. Just because we may not LIKE something doesn’t mean it’s WRONG. Do you think Jesus LIKED being crucified? It specifically states in the Bible that he was praying for God to give him a pass and was so incredibly terrified of what he knew was coming that he was literally sweating blood. Yet, he still went forward and gave Himself in an utterly devastating fashion in order to gain the ultimate victory.
This is why I am so incredibly disillusioned with churches that raise a stink over things like music, volume, service times, appearance, etc. Make any and all arguments you want about sound doctrine, theology, etc., but at the end of the day, many of these arguments are the results of man-made rules, not God’s direction. This is why we see so many churches side-by-side, many of which are at MAYBE half-capacity.
It’s also why we are so divided as a society. When someone disagrees with us, it makes us “uncomfortable.” Again, we are equating “uncomfortable” with “wrong.” To be fair, it may be wrong FOR US, but it’s not necessarily wrong AS A WHOLE. This is what we fail to see. Each person is unique and has unique needs, ideas, strengths, and weaknesses. In a time where individuality is considered to be “celebrated,” it’s our individuality that is causing us to put such a focus on ourselves that we fail to take anyone else into consideration.
Recently, I chastised my son for breaking a decoration over our front door because he was throwing a toy around the house. When I asked why he did that, he said, “I didn’t think it would hurt anything.” I asked him if he stopped to think about what was around him before he started throwing, and his response was, “no.” He wasn’t thinking about anything or anyone around him; just himself. It was a teachable moment for him, and he now realizes that he needs to be aware of what is around him outside of his individual “bubble.”
This would go a long way towards addressing the seemingly-endless debates in churches. If one man can willing give himself over to be beaten beyond recognition and left literally nailed to a tree to die, then I think Brother Joe and Sister Jane can suffer through 15-20 minutes of electric guitars that they may not otherwise listen to in their car, because at the end of the day, the church service isn’t about focusing on only Brother Joe or Sister Jane. At least, that shouldn’t be what Joe and Jane are seeking, anyway…
Mar 27, 2017
Most every Christian (and many non-Christians) are familiar with the story of the prodigal son. A father has two sons and plans to leave a sizable inheritance to both upon of them upon his death. The younger son, being impulsive and impatient, demands he get his inheritance now while he is still young enough to enjoy it, and he promptly heads out into the world to live the “wild life,” blowing through every penny until he is left poor and homeless, living in a literal pig pen. At the lowest point of his life, he realizes that even his father’s servants live better than he does – at least they are fed and given shelter! He swallows his pride and heads back home, intending to ask his dad simply to have a job as one of his servants after all he’d done. His dad, however, sees him coming home, and immediately orders a feast and celebration, declaring, “My son was dead, but now he is alive! He has come home!” It’s a parable that is very well known.
But what about the firstborn son? Where does he fit into this story? Jesus tells of how the firstborn son was confused, and even bitter towards his father’s reaction when his younger brother returned home. Here he was, a loyal and faithful son, working for his father and earning his share of the inheritance. He never squandered his money, and he definitely was more deserving of a party than his brother was. And yet it was his brother who got the celebration after doing the exact opposite! The firstborn son was so angry that he refused to even come to the party. When his dad asked him what the problem was, he responded by asking, “Why does HE get a celebration?! I’ve stayed loyal, I’ve done your bidding, and I haven’t even gotten a young goat to share with my friends. That brat comes home after blowing everything, and you gave him the biggest steak we have!”
On the surface, it makes perfect sense why the elder son would be upset. I mean, he has a point. He never led the wild life. He was always at his father’s side, doing what was asked of him. And yet he never was given any sort of celebration. And in reality, it probably was never even expected. I mean, if you do what’s asked of you, why do you even need a celebration? It’s just part of life! But when your brother takes half of the family’s money and blows it, coming back home smelling like a pig pen and begging forgiveness, why should HE get a feast?! He got what he deserves!
How many of us are “firstborn Christians”? How many of us were raised in the church, or are long-time church members who show up every Sunday, volunteer for events, pay tithes, and play a large part in our church? Don’t we deserve to be celebrated? I mean, it’s because of US that there’s even a church here, right? If we didn’t show up every week, there wouldn’t be a place for prodigals to come. That’s why WE are the ones who matter here, not those losers who keep screwing up.
Or is it????
As the prodigal’s father explained, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.” The firstborn was already guaranteed everything the father had because of his loyalty. Why did he need his father to give him a young goat (or anything, really), when he already had everything he needed? And aside from that, why couldn’t the firstborn be happy that his brother, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time, had returned home?
Why can’t we as Christians, especially “firstborn Christians,” celebrate when sinners are found instead of complaining about how “our needs are not being met.” God has already met everyone one of our needs, and will continue to do so. So put away your griping and let’s welcome the lost, for they now are found.
Jun 6, 2016
I’ve been listening to a wide variety of music lately. It seems to vary day by day. One day, I’m listening to 80’s synth pop music. The next, I’m listening to old-school country music. Today, it’s been church music. Not your stereotypical hymns and organ music, mind you! I’m talking old-time, down-home, runnin’ and jumpin’, pentecostal music – the kind of music that if you played it in a baptist church, they’d kick you out for being over the top. The kind of music where you don’t sing the words so much as you preach and shout them.
This is the kind of music I grew up listening to in a small pentecostal church. Not a single person had any formal music training, and a good portion of the singing would be considered mediocre at best to the trained ear, but there was SOMETHING about it that just reached down and grabbed you. It bypassed polish for passion and exactness for excitement. It’s also where I first learned the basics of playing “open jams.” These songs never had a set structure, and often would go on for anywhere from 3 to 10 to even 30 minutes at a time (depending on how the Spirit was moving). When you’re playing the music for those songs, you learn very quickly how to pay attention to where the singer is going and respond accordingly. To say I have a fondness for this music would be putting it lightly.
While listening to this Holy Ghost music, a thought crossed my mind: it sure would be fun to play this during a service at our current home church – a baptist church. And not just play the song, but play a video of these pentecostal singers as well. The shouting, the jumping, the dancing, the running….all of which would be looked upon with a bit of, shall we say, distaste.
Yes, I got a chuckle out of that vision. Then I was saddened. Not because I can’t show said video, necessarily, but the reasons WHY I can’t show said video.
We used to live in a town that had (no joke) approximately 10 churches on one 5-mile stretch of road. Some of these churches sat literally next door to each other (and unless you were familiar with each church, the odds of pulling into the wrong driveway or parking lot were quite high). Baptist churches. Nazarene churches. Churches of God. Non-demonimational. Catholic churches. Methodist churches. All on the same road (which was locally referred to as “Church Street,” despite being officially named otherwise). Why are so many churches present in a single location? Heck, why are there so many DIFFERENT churches at all? And why is one church so completely against what other churches are doing?
In some instances, I feel that some of it is just flat out petty competition. No matter what this church does, that church will have a problem with it, or vice versa. This church believes that. That church believes this. They do this, which we don’t agree with, and we do that, which they think is wrong. It’s no wonder so many view Christianity with disdain – we Christians already to it each other, so why should the non-believing world by any different?
Now, I get that there are some churches that are fundamentally flawed in their teaching and theology (Westboro comes to mind), but where I have a problem is when the doctrines are the same, but the “day-to-day” aspects are separating us. “They do things THIS way, which we don’t like.” Well, is it biblically WRONG? “No, not necessarily, we just don’t do it here.”
Have you found the common link in all of these arguments yet? It’s a very simple word: “we.” The focus is not on God; it’s on US. WE can’t get along with that church because WE think THEY are wrong. Linear focus.
It’s not even other churches necessarily. A lot of times, it’s the people within a single church. “She said this. He did that. I have a problem with that.” Well, I’m sorry you have a problem with it. Why are you looking at them instead of focusing on God? Is your eye completely healed from that plank?
Then we have the issue of numbers. Our goal is to reach the lost for Christ. Instead, churches are too busy reaching members for tithes. Again, don’t get me wrong; I know that there is definitely a business aspect to the modern church (whether we like it or not), but what good does it do us if all we’re doing is bringing in people and not feeding them? How effective is a hospital that brings in hundreds of patients, but fails to treat any of them? Sure, in the short-term, the numbers go up, but failure to help those in need means that the solution is temporary at best.
I admit this is one of my biggest struggles when it comes to my faith – dealing with the church. I’ve dealt with so many different aspects of this same problem for most of my adult life. I have somewhat learned how to handle these issues, but it doesn’t stop me from feeling like we’re failing somewhere. It’s as if we’re just too busy being a church that we forget our calling to be THE CHURCH.
