A Christ-follower with a limp: focus

Sunday, February 4, 2018

When the church fails like the NFL

“Starve your distractions. Feed your focus.”

Just when you thought that the Super Bowl couldn’t get worse or the NFL more foolish, even if you aren’t into football, there were always the commercials. Sometimes, particularly in a lopsided game, the commercials were the only redeeming feature. Yet, now one traditional commercial has been canned. Budweiser’s Clydesdales have been put out to pasture.

The NFL has successfully alienated the military and veterans as players kneeled during The Star-Spangled Banner. Flag waving Americans have been disgusted much of the season. More recently, the NFL turned down a pro-national anthem commercial by a veterans group for the Super Bowl.

The interest in the game is way down since it’s an east coast Super Bowl with one generally despised team, the Patriots (though Eagle fans do little to endear themselves). And now the non-offensive Clydesdales have been given a pink slip, irritating animal lovers. Sunday’s winner may be The Puppy Bowl XIII, that’s been dubbed the “alternative Super Bowl.”

Remember when football was about football? It wasn’t about commercials, halftime shows or political statements. It was about 22 men pouring their guts out to move a piece of pigskin down the field. Those days are gone. With increased anxiety of brain injuries, football may be headed to the dustbin of sport’s history. Yet, much of the demise is because professional football lost its focus. Football is no longer about football.

A church can do the same thing. They become distracted on nearly anything and everything beside their God-given purpose, being the church.

Some churches are little more than political action committees. Though evangelicals have recently been accused of this, it’s long been true of African-American churches. God never called us to be a voting bloc, to be consumed with political issues or endorse candidates. While the church must make a stand on biblical issues, like life ones, that is not political.

Some churches are consumed with social issues. While hunger, homelessness and poverty are serious, they’re not to be our primary focus. If all those issues were resolved, (which would be wonderful), the greatest hunger of our world wouldn’t be. Our great need is “soul hunger” and only the gospel can satisfy our world’s greatest need.

Some churches are consumed with non-biblical rules. God is holy and the Scripture commands believers to be holy. Yet, some churches teach that holiness is externalism and become obsessed with mundane non-biblical rules about dress, music, even whether someone attends a movie. Scripture’s emphasis is heart holiness. While the principles never change, culture does. It’s why God is more concerned with attitudes than actions. When a Christ-follower has a righteous attitude, right actions are the fruit of that attitude.

Some churches are focused on increasing numbers not disciples. Many churches buy into the American success myth: bodies, bucks & buildings. It’s not a biblical model of success. Ultimately, Jesus ended with eleven disciples, a failure from our world’s perspective. One of the fastest growing “churches” is the Mormon Church, yet it denies the Deity of Christ.

Some churches are self-absorbed. Jesus did not command us to come in, but to “go out.” A church must focus on those still outside of it. While Body Life is important, our passion must be on seeing the lost come to Christ. It can’t be just about our own children and families. Many churches focus the greater percentage of their resources internally. Fear of a corrupt culture can result in isolation, but we’re not to be isolated from the world. God’s power is greater! We’re to be an assault team on the gates of Hell.

Some churches are seeker driven. They’re focused only on evangelism. Our purpose is not to make converts, but disciples. The Christian life is not just having your ticket punched for Heaven. It’s wholistic. It must revolutionize your whole life. We’ve not fulfilled the Great Commission until every believer has come to the place of maturity where they too are sharing the gospel and discipling others. Our purpose is to reproduce ourselves. We’re to equip believers so they’re able to reach their world.

Some churches are just a big show. God did not call us to entertain or make people feel good. Scripture is compared to a sword for heart surgery (Hebrews 4:12). Sin lies deep, usually undetected in each of our hearts. God has called the church to be like a team preparing for the Super Bowl. We will not fulfill our purpose unless we do exhausting spiritual work and sweat “holy sweat.” We don’t gather to have our ears tickled, but to be challenged, have our souls dissected, go through pain until we rip down every idol in our hearts so that we become more and more like Jesus. God’s goal is our sanctification. That means pruning, the refiner’s fire. It’s not comfortable, yet it’s the only way to have God’s best.

Should the NFL players care about the needs of African-Americans? Absolutely! But that’s not its purpose. The purpose of the NFL is to play football. Most of the things that distract a church from its primary focus are good things. They’re not bad or sinful. It’s why they’re so attractive.
Satan doesn’t usually do a frontal assault. Instead he loves to just distract us. I’ve never heard of a church being tempted to become a strip club. Our Enemy knows that if he gets us to focus on good things, we’ll forget the best things. King Jesus gave us our marching orders. The mission has not changed: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.

Monday, October 17, 2016

"Giving a little talk" just doesn't cut it....

“The preacher’s task is to declare what God has said, explain the meaning, and establish the implications so that no one will mistake its relevance.” Alistair Begg

If later today, you received a phone call from a good friend and they said to you, “I’ve got something fantastic for us to do this week!” As you’re thinking of all the wonderful things they might be about to suggest, they say, “There’s this new preacher in Milwaukee. I thought it would be fantastic if we went to hear him preach.” So what would your response be?

Would you suddenly remember you needed to give your hamster a bath? Maybe tell them, “I’ve got a big project and can’t. The ceiling tiles in my kitchen need to be recounted. We were debating the number last night and I must prove to my wife I’m right!” Or how about, “I’m trying to be more sensitive so this week I’m observing National ‘Don't Go Out At All Week.’ You haven't heard of that? Really, it’s very popular in Brussels right now!”

Last Sunday we worked through the feeding of the 5,000 and just prior to that miracle, the interruption by the huge crowd. Remember, Jesus was on an “Us Day” with the disciples, but somehow the crowds learned Jesus was in the area and began to gather.

So you’re with Jesus, you see this great ministry need, what do you do? What do we think Jesus should do? Organize a new ministry to take care of people? Teach them to care for themselves? At the very least start healing those who need healing (which Jesus does). Yet, it’s all secondary for Jesus. Jesus’ first priority is to preach. It’s to teach. It’s His number one ministry and primary focus: “When the crowds learned it, they followed Him, and He welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God”

To be honest, as a preacher it feels a bit disingenuous to talk about the importance of preaching. Yet, this is what the Bible clearly teaches.

We discovered that when we were in Luke 4. After a big day of healing with record crowds, the disciples come looking for Jesus so they can have another big day. Remember what happened? “And the people sought Jesus and came to Him, and would have kept Him from leaving them, but Jesus said to them, ‘I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.’ And Jesus was preaching in the synagogues of Judea” (vss. 42-44).

But preaching is not the focus of ministry of the typical church. It’s the band. It’s the programs. It’s the children’s ministry or youth group. Rarely is it the preaching. We may think drama or films are the way to reach people, to grow the church, but that’s not what the Bible says.

Think about this. You have a Bible. You can read. Can’t you just study it for yourself? Wouldn’t you do better in a discussion group where you can ask questions and all give input? Preaching seems so old and moldy.

Yet, preaching was the focus of Jesus’ ministry. We can’t sidestep that fact. God has chosen the foolishness of preaching, to quote 1 Corinthians, because God’s Word has power. It is not the messenger; it’s the Message. God has chosen Spirit empowered preaching to communicate His truth and bring glory to Himself.

Famed Canadian theologian, J.I. Packer, insightfully observed: “We shall never perform a more important task than preaching. If we are not willing to give time to sermon preparation, we are not fit to preach, and have no business in the ministry at all.”

Too many pastors are CEOs. Some spend the bulk of their time in counseling or head up the local coffee clutch. Perhaps they focus on visitation, being in homes, convalescent centers or hospitals. Did you know the Bible never teaches any of that is the Pastor’s calling or responsibility? Just a side note, Scripture teaches the Deacons are to do the bulk of ministerial care of the church family (Acts 6:1-6; 1 Timothy 3:8-13).

Scripture teaches that the pastor is to be a man of the Word and prayer. So if a pastor does not study, if he’s not faithfully in the Word, he should be terminated. He’s failed his biblical calling. Please do not come on Sundays to hear the preacher. Come to hear God’s Word taught. And if God leads you to some other part of the country, look for a church where preaching is central to that ministry. That’s a biblical ministry.

Jesus knew, much like today, the crowds came seeking other things, in Luke 9, healing. It was miracles they sought; it was divine truth they desperately needed. Preaching is important because God says it’s important—in His God-breathed Word through the Apostle Paul to Timothy (2 Timothy 4:1-5). He says that preaching the Word and hearing the Word are essential for God's people.

Preaching then is not just a good talk. The purpose is not to be inspiring or even funny. It’s to help us see Jesus. It’s to help us know God. It’s why at Grace we are committed to what is known as systematic, expository preaching. Typically, we work through a book of the Bible, verse by verse…or at least portion by portion. The reason we do that is so we have the context of what God has written for us. It also makes us study some of the tougher, even uncomfortable passages.

One of the central acts of worship is hearing the Word preached. John Calvin said that where the Word is not preached and heard, there is no church. To be the Body of Christ and to worship God, we need preaching.

Yet, a neglected element of faithfulness today, often neglected by preachers is time. A preacher who does not commit the time to study is unfaithful to his calling. Like a great meal, a good sermon requires time to prepare. John Stott in his book for preachers, Between Two Worlds, suggests the preacher needs at least twelve hours to prepare a sermon. Most preachers probably need more time than that and a healthy congregation will encourage the pastor to take that time.

Jesus’ and the early church’s example remind us that preaching is vital. It’s the power of God unto salvation. It needs to be valued by the Christian community as a family values food. Preachers must use the best of their time and abilities to nourish their flocks with the Word of God. It’s what God has called them to do!