For the last several months, there has been a sagging sign placed outside of a local church in our area that is known to be dying a slow. tedious death. The sign reads:
Musicians Wanted
For Modern Worship Band
Call Us
Based on how long the sign has been outside weathering in the elements, my guess is that no one is applying for the “job,” except perhaps that very young, inexperienced musician who just wants to play music and might need the money. This small, aging Nazarene congregation reminds me of a saying I’ve heard associated with their denominational flock; ‘They don’t smoke, chew, or hang out with those that do.” They also don’t dance or drink, and the older people within this denomination use the Law frequently (incorrectly in my opinion) to support their long Do Not Do list. Just the fact that this sign has even appeared reveals that they are beginning the slow walk of compromise, as other churches before them have done. I’m not talking just about the music. I’m talking about what they are willing to do in the eyes of man to become like the world around them; the beginning of the never-ending desire to conform to the world.
I would tell this congregation that hiring “modern musicians” won’t fix their troubled church. Since I’m that musician, I know it won’t help. I constantly wonder why people insist on believing that choosing to follow another new cultural trend or conforming to the cookie-cutter, confused, contemporary, evangelical church at large will fix all of the ills of their own church. Of all the places that should remain set apart from the world, it is the Church. God’s Church.
Absolutely, there is nothing wrong with change, but in my personal experience, I have not seen that toying with worship, integrating new cutting edge ideology, the blending of theological systems to make them more palatable, the addition of service opportunities, and similar innovations into the worship service have helped the Church. These things end up distracting believers from the simple message of the gospel. We gather as the body of Christ to hear the gospel. We need to hear that message. Sadly, it gets lost in the smoke and haze. We live in a fast-paced world where few take the time to quiet their mind to think well. A hurried, flurried church only facilitates a mindset which never learns to quiet itself before the Lord of the Universe.
In the Reformed tradition, we have a rule of thumb called the Regulative Principle of Worship. This understanding prevents us from doing anything in our worship service that would compromise the conscience of another believer. The end result? Our services are very simple. We only do that in a service which has been commanded by God in the Bible. We sing mostly the Psalms; God’s words. Sometimes a great hymn of the faith or a more contemporary version of a passage from the Psalms (or other scripture which was sung in God’s Word). We hear the preaching of God’s Word. We receive the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We set aside that day as the Lord’s Day alone. That is the extent of what is done in each worship service. No beautifully crafted, heart-provoking videos or “My Stories.” No stage sets. No blazing monitors, flashing lights and cameras. No jumping up and down. No plea for monetary support for this or that cause. Nothing that would bind the conscience of another believer. Revolutionary worship rooted in historicity. A place you can think; a place to devour the meat of the Word.
When the worship service is kept this simple, there is no place for legalism or excess liberty to offend any other person. I was not raised in this tradition, but I have come to appreciate this simplicity with an abundance of joy and peace in my heart. For those who understand this principle, it is indeed the purest form of freedom. There is nothing to put your heart in bondage. There is nothing to bind the heart of another. God’s way; not our own. In addition, I have found that people are not too mentally weary to fellowship after the service has ended. It is not rare for us to stay one and a half hours after church to talk with our fellow believers about all kinds of things, including deep theological discussions. There is no race home after the “show” has finished and we have used up all of our neurons with the noise.
Like many others I know, I was restless in my search for a Church home because the three true marks of a Church were absent in most of the churches we visited, and my heart knew. It knew. Some may not be able to self-identify their source of frustration with the contemporary Church due to spiritual immaturity. Some may not be able to identify their concerns because they are not aware that a true Church can be defined.
For instance, I once had a friend tell me, “Is this all we learn in church? Why bother?” (Referring to the lack of teaching in that church.) Her words still haunt me. She had come to that church learn about God. Her entire purpose for leaving the Roman Catholic faith was to discover the gospel preached. Her heart craved and desired the Word of God preached accurately and well. She did not find it there. She does not go to church anymore. She wasn’t as persistent as me. I’m stubborn. I knew in my spirit that I needed to belong to a properly functioning local church, one that taught the accurate message of the gospel. My heart still grieves for her.
There are three marks that identify a true church:
- the accurate preaching of the gospel (not a life lesson or entertaining story)
- the proper administration of the Sacraments (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper)
- the rightful exercise of church discipline
In my experience, all three were lacking in most of the contemporary evangelical churches I visited during those empty years. Not only was the teaching superficially slim to none, the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper was reduced to an inconvenience. One megachurch I played at never held the Lord’s Supper. Too many people. How would they serve The Supper in such a big congregation? It would take precious time away from the presentation of the specially-prepared video or reserved time for ‘worship’ music. Little did they realize the importance of God’s means — He tells us to feast with Him at the Table and in the Word.
I would venture to say that if the first item is not present in a church, the other two will have no meaning or substance to them. I stand behind the statement that people come to church to learn about God. To know more of God. Only when the Church functions the way in which God intended are we able to worship fully. As His creatures, we are instinctively drawn toward a desire to know our Creator God. Those who have been pierced by the Lamb know they are being called to worship as a body. Romans 10:14-17 reminds us:
And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
The Church is living in a very dark age right now. Other generations before us have suffered through this affliction, but that doesn’t soften the ache of the believer who desires to fellowship as God has intended within a fully functioning Church. Sadly, sometimes there are painful consequences for those Christians who persist in their quest to find a true Church. It is not unusual for fellow Christians who have established themselves in a local church (whether it has the true marks of a church or not) to chastise and ridicule those of us who have wandered in and out of a few congregations — trying to find a true church. Ironically, they are the same people who will not leave their church, even when they know it is not acting as a true church. It qualifies as a social club, though, so they are content to stay within the walls of a church which is guilty of serving unauthorized fire before the Lord.
This actually happened to me. I had enough of the core of the gospel in my soul to know that every cell in my body needed to be fed in a true church. I just couldn’t find it in the places we visited (sadly, for years). Sometimes you trust and believe that treasured Christian friends will understand and sympathize with your journey, only to find out that they laugh and scoff at you behind your back. It is during those trying times that you learn to lean on the promises of God to His beloved. The covenant body of Christ.
I know I’m often very hard on the contemporary Church, but for good reason, don’t you think? The Church, the corporate body of worship, is worth preserving and cherishing. I know, I know; many claim that the Church isn’t a building. They make a distinction saying that it’s a people, not a building. While the Church is not a building, it is a covenant people of God who corporately gather together as the body of Christ.
I promise I’m not trying to be disrespectful and I know I may be disappointing some when I say this, but the Church is supposed to gather as a local body, flaws and all, in corporate worship. This was the Old and New Testament model and one I believe is still valid today. That’s why Elders and Deacons were/are chosen — and church government was ordained and still exists. This is why God chose certain men to lead the Hebrew people in the Old Testament; some to teach, others to listen, some to serve.
And those who went out and did their own thing? Some of them ended up dying for their personal choices and preferences. Nadab and Abihu come to mind — only one instance of many recorded in the Bible. The presentation of unauthorized fire to the Lord (Leviticus 10) — fire God didn’t ask for – didn’t end well for them. The end result of their disobedience? Leviticus says that ‘fire came out from before the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.’ There is no doubt that Nadab and Abihu meant well, but they chose to work outside of God’s model — His design for the Church. My contention is that unauthorized fire is being offered to God not only by some who have left organized religion, but within the established Church itself.
Based on the number of denominations we have in the world, it’s easy to see that we have experienced many generations of “everyone doing what was right in their own eyes.” It’s an interesting study to look up that recurring phrase in the Bible, “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Even more revealing when you search on the shortened phrase “own eyes.” Numbers 15:39 is one good example: “And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after.” What are we humans inclined to do? Whore after things which are not of God. Even in the Church. Especially outside of the Church. The things that our hearts desire are not necessarily things in which God has approved.
We don’t get to choose our local body. It it true that theological systems form different congregations within the local body, but we must be reminded that the arm needs the foot; the eye, the mind. We need each other.
Galatians has much to say on the topic. If you haven’t read it lately, pull it out and dig in. There are so many great theological thoughts in this book but I don’t have space to go into much of that right now. Here’s just a glimpse:
- For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man?
- Yet, because of false brothers secretly brought in — so that they might bring us into slavery
- When I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel…
- …even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified.
- Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?
- A little leaven leavens the whole lump.
- But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
- Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
It stands out to me that in Galatians 5:13 we are told, “do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh.” I think that is exactly what happens in our churches when we jump from one new thing to the other, supposing that it is better than God’s original plan for worship. I think that is exactly what happens when one tries to jump ship or decides to re-design the Church, whether this be within the walls of a church building, or within the walls of a home church. The letters to the Corinthians also hold some great advice for those who are concerned about the Church.
It shouldn’t be this hard. It shouldn’t be this hard to find a true Church. I’ve had friends leave the historic Christian faith and join various cults — all because their previous churches failed to faithfully teach the real gospel. I mourn for these friends, yet I understand why they were pushed in that direction. I’ve had to place them into the hands of our sovereign God, who knows whom He has called.
Thankfully, there are still some churches that do understand these three simple things (the marks of a true church). You see, it has nothing to do with adding “modern music” to a worship service. The heart of a Christian is drawn to God’s Church because His Word is loudly and accurately proclaimed within its doors. The heart of a Christian can only rest when it is fed, each and every Lord’s Day with the gospel. We can only rest when the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper is fed regularly to our souls. We need this food even more than we need beer and pizza. The heart of a believer can only rest when they know the promise is not only for them, but for their children, as well.
If the current trends continue, we are going to see more attrition in the church in the years to come. (This article shares some possible trends coming for the next decade.) Only some will continue to look for a true church. I urge you not to give up. My prayer is that every one who leaves a non-functioning church will not give up their search for a body that functions in the model I described above. They do exist. It does take a bit of effort and patience to find them, though.
The gospel is food for our souls. It is sustenance. It is not optional. It is life or death. When a Church doesn’t preach the gospel each and every week, accurately and deeply, as the gathered body of Christ, it will die a slow death, just like the church in the photograph above. You see, my guess is that the reason the church in the picture above is dying is because they are failing to preach the accurate Word of God. Further, while huge megachurches like Joel Osteen’s church continue to thrive, size alone is not an indication of a healthy church. In fact, because Osteen’s church does not preach the gospel, it is indeed a dead church.
I’m happy I didn’t settle for a social club. I’m happy I didn’t isolate myself from the body, even though it was a great temptation. I’m happy I didn’t succumb to the temptation of remodeling God’s thoughts on the matter, either. Though the journey to find a true church was tedious and painful, I learned so much along the way. Valuable and precious truths. Hebrews 12: 7 reminds me that “it is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons.” He must really love me….
I have a feeling that sign will be out there a very long time. O Foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?
Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12: 28-19)
