Learning from Yesterday
In yesterday’s post, I shared some of the weaknesses that came into the American church during the revival of the 1960s and 70s; I’ll discuss more of them today. I’m doing so to enable us to learn from those mistakes, pray with understanding for these deficiencies to change, and also to pray that they are not repeated in the coming revival.
(Today’s post is a follow-up to yesterday’s. If you did not see or hear yesterday’s post, today’s may not make much as much sense. Consider reading/listening to yesterday’s first.)
Continuing the List
5) Once the church redefined success to speed and size, redefining our mission was inevitable. The mission became to attract more believers to our church, which of course demanded that we focus on what the sheep want - not what they need or what God wants. Nicer buildings and facilities, shorter services, entertaining messages, fun and fellowship - these and more became the goals, as we sought to please sheep and grow the flock. What the King of the Kingdom wanted and needed - as well as the culture around us - barely entered the equation. “Don’t rock the boat by talking about sound doctrine, government, morality, abortion, etc. Don’t make the sheep uneasy; they may find another shepherd. Just make them happy.”
6) This led to a consumer-based approach in our congregations - models were driven by the needs, preferences, and behaviors of individuals, rather than the Scriptures and Holy Spirit. People became customers and consumers, rather than disciples and stewards of God’s Kingdom. This eventually spawned a welfare mentality in the church: “Someone else take care of me. Someone else do the giving, praying, sacrificing. The mindset of many church goers became: “Who will give me the most for the least?”
Rather than producing disciples and responsible citizens of the Kingdom, we generated “takers” with a “what’s in it for me” mindset.
7) After the first six problematic changes occurred in the church, it was inevitable that our messages and worship services had to be altered. Shorter messages were needed, more innovative and entertaining - ten, fifteen, twenty minutes at the most. Forty-five minutes to an hour for the services - “a couple of songs to wake us up, a cup of coffee and some handshakes, a short message, and we’re outta here!” Doctrine and theology were ignored - who wants to hear that boring stuff?! This resulted in untold damage to the body of Christ.
Deception seeped into churches. Sin was not discussed, foundations were ignored leaving no moral compass. Soon, humanism crept in, and truth was lost. Many evangelical “Christians” no longer believe in the inerrancy of the Bible or that it is God’s Word. They don’t believe in a literal Holy Spirit, heaven, hell, or the virgin birth of Christ. Biblical standards of morality became outdated, compromise became common, the church had to change with the times.” Sadly, with a weak church, the nation lost its salt and light, allowing depravity and godlessness to prevail in our land.
8) Obviously, many leaders conformed to these new ideals in order to grow. The pressure on pastors to perform and compete became almost overwhelming. The contest to transfer the most sheep and have the biggest sheep pen became great.
Holy Spirit’s desire to restore all the five-fold ministry gifts of Christ to the church was hindered. (Apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher - Ephesians 4:11-12) The only gift needed or wanted was that which cared for believers - the pastor gift. As churches grew, we added worship pastors, singles pastors, youth pastors, children’s pastors, etc. The attitude was: “We don’t need the other four gifts. Well, maybe a few times a year we’ll bring in a guest teacher–you know, to help us grow. But we don’t need the others.”
All staff positions were to feed, bless, take care of the sheep, not reach our communities and train believers to become members of Christ’s ekklesia. Make the sheep happy in order to keep them here, and transfer more of them to our flock.
9) This, of course, produced flocks but not armies. Families, but not ekklesias. Fellowships, but not nation-discipling training centers. This watering down of God’s Word and altering of our calling also resulted in less authority from heaven. But no problem - sheep don’t need authority; soldiers and ekklesias do, but not sheep.
These tendencies shifted the church from dominion to survival, from occupation to existence, and from countering sinful culture to conformity. Romans 12 warns us against being conformed to the world (verses 1-2), but we were.
And every step we made in these wrong directions not only weakened the church, they allowed the antichrist spirit to become stronger in our nation. The city on a hill lost its light. Laws were changed, standards lowered, and our nation crumbled from within. We now have depraved leaders, open borders, and kids who can’t read, write, or do arithmetic. Violence is rampant, and laws are ignored; criminals are freed while parents who don’t want boys in their daughters’ locker rooms are arrested. Fraud is allowed, and those who oppose it are called racists. The American boat has been sinking fast, so riddled with holes that only God can save it.
This is why so many of us talk not only of revival, but of reformation. Revival will change hearts, allowing reformation to change laws and culture. A reaping body of Christ is being prepared, and a transforming ekklesia/church is being built. As this continues, the great commissions of both Mark 16:15-20 and Matthew 28:18-20 will be fulfilled simultaneously–winning the lost and discipling nations.
Let’s pray.
Pray with me:
Father, much of the American church has gotten off track; we slid off the rails, ending up in the muck and mire of compromise and ineffectiveness. Now we need a mighty revival and a great reformation.
Restore our biblical focus and foundation to the church, and the power of the true gospel. Bring back to us the truth of Scripture and the success seen by the church in Acts. Break the spirit of the world off Your body, and make us a light to our nation once again. Raise up messengers of fire, and believers with eternal purpose. Grow our churches through the passion and fire of Holy Spirit, not innovation and good ideas. Give us a revival of unprecedented proportions, as You have said You would do, until Your glory covers the earth like the waters cover the seas. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Our decree:
We decree that the church Jesus spoke of in Matthew IS being built, and WILL emerge in our day.