The church

Before I get into this post, I want to point you to the Schroeder's blog here: http://jkschroeder.blogspot.com/ They also have a caring bridge site here: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jordanschroeder
They're great ways to stay updated on current prayer needs.


I recently received a thought-provoking email from a friend. What could we do we do well as a denomination? What could we improve on? Do you agree with the author?I thought I would share some of these thoughts by Kim Riddlebarger. I think he hits on some great points that get us thinking about the church, its purpose, and what is really important. This is not an entire article, but rather a few excerpts.

--

"Like water running downhill, [lowest common denominator churches] have taken the line of least resistance. They settle for the lowest point so as to be most attractive to all. Sadly, all these same churches now look alike and sound alike. They are no longer divided by doctrine or their histories. The only real difference among them is in the programs they offer....The focus of the church of the lowest common denominator is me. The sermon is about problems I face. The music is music I like. The church service is designed to entertain me. That explains why they all look and sound so much alike. Somehow, God got lost in all the talk about my felt needs. The theology of the church of the lowest common denominator is utterly man-centered. It is all about me—or at least that's how I am made to feel....

The solution is to take the focus off me, and put it back where it belongs, on God. Instead of the church of the lowest common denominator, a...church should be the church of the highest common denominator. But what does a church of the highest common denominator look like? It looks like this—it is a church where the theology, worship and evangelism is God-centered, not man-centered.

In a God-centered church of the highest common denominator, God is the evangelist, not the minister, and where every member is an ambassador of Christ. Instead of adopting an unbiblical “seeker” philosophy, in which the church “dumbs-down” its worship service, supposedly, to reach non-Christians...Christians are to take very seriously what the Bible says about “seekers.” They don't exist! According to Paul “there is no one who seeks God” (Romans 3:11). Rather, our confidence is in the God who seeks sinners!

How does God seek sinners? He seeks them through his preached word (Romans 10:14)! Therefore, a growing...church is a word-centered church. A church of the highest common denominator is a church where the word of God is preached....It is a place where the promises that God makes in his word are trusted and diligently sought....the minister is not an entertainer but a preacher....not a motivator, but a man of prayer. He is not a manager, but a student of God's word. The members of such a church likewise attend to the word. They read it, they learn it, and they teach it to their children.

[It] is a church where the law is preached in all its terror, the gospel in all its sweetness, and where the Christian life is centered in gratitude for all that God has done for us in Christ. The sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper will be prominent, since these are holy signs and seals for us to see, and which confirm in our hearts the faith produced by the Holy Spirit through the preaching of the word. These are the “techniques” God uses to move sinners to repentance and to confirm the saints in the joy and comfort of their salvation. Programs are fine as they serve and support the preached word and sacraments. But they can never replace them. Why? Programs are about me. Word and sacrament are about God."