Saturday, November 15, 2014
I am afraid to leave Church. I look and
look and cannot find almost any correlation between what exists and
the community that Jesus describes, I have tried, believe me. But,
even though I have come to the point where I am only attending
worship a couple of times a month, there is something in me that
makes me want it. Like a drug, that I know is not really good for me,
isn't even giving me the high it used to, but I still have a need for
it.
I tell myself that it is about wanting
a community, that I would miss the fellowship, but to tell the truth,
much of the “church fellowship” I have experienced in the last
ten years has been anything but beneficial and much of it has ended
poorly. I would like to say through no fault of my own, but I am
prone to insist on certain Biblical standards, and when people are
abused by an administration under one set of verses, while completely
ignoring another set that they are violating, I have a tendency to
speak up.
That is really not what I am trying to
talk about with this post, however, so, let me see if I can get this
started properly. While today's modern church, with its larger than
life real-estate portfolio and 501c3 non-profit status, is not found
in scripture, many of us were raised to believe that it was the
Kingdom of God. That is a problem.
A friend shared an article last night
that spoke of a group of believers who are fully committed to Jesus,
but are leaving the church because it is not giving the opportunity
they desire to minister to lost and hurting souls in the ways they
feel called to minister. The article was aimed at telling pastors how
to re-engage these people before they are lost forever. But, I don't
think they need to re-engage, I think they need to get away and
explore God! If this is you, don't let them lure you back in!
They are sick of authoritarian
leadership built on seminary degrees, or right of succession,
“plugging people in” where they think is best, while reserving
major decisions about direction, funds and other resources to
themselves. And I, for one, agree, but, even if it is only once a
month, I can't seem to shake the habit,and (Again, for me) I have
noticed there is a good bit of fear involved in that hesitancy. So,
what are we afraid of?
We are Afraid of Abandoning our
Faith
If you ask any
American, mainstream, evangelical Christian, what makes you a
Christian? Their answer is sure to include a few words about their
“personal” relationship with Jesus. But, although we have an
understanding that our door to conversation and relationship with God
is an individual one, that we must walk through alone, we still feel
that we need to the Church to help us maintain it.
Here are some
teachings that I have been going through to sort out good from bad,
that pertain to this.
- I need to be under “authority”, although 1st Samuel ch 8 kinda puts a big dent in this
- We should not foresake the assembly, although, I think that meant something different then
- I need a frame of reference for my “wroldview”
These things,
although I believe much of what I was taught was false, are still
lingering in my psyche.
We are Afraid of Being Judged
This is a huge one
for many of us. It is something I have dealt with my whole life, the
idea that I should live to avoid the “disapproval” particularly
of my elders, and church leadership. But the truth is that:
- Each man makes account for his own life (yeah, I know that one verse says they make account for us, but there's much more in there about personal responsibility)
- I am accountable only to God for how I spend my time
- I believe that there is no condemnation for me, as I am in Christ
This one probably
less now than in the past for me personally.
We are Afraid of Being Shunned, or
Worse Yet, “Evangelized”
We have all seen
it, the person who “refuses to repent” and continues to “live
in their sin” is turned away from, quoting a verse from Paul that
no one really understands about handing them over to the Devil. Or,
they put you on the “back-slidden” list and bug the crap out of
you to come back, after all, the only reason to leave is because
you're a prodigal, right?
The worst part of
modern shunning is it is silent. There is no agreement between
parties, they don't tell you you're out, they just stop calling, and
fill in any place you took with someone else. This is probably the
hardest part for many of us.
- Can I still be right with God, and not in “fellowship” with a local congregation of believers?
- Is it really worth losing all of my friends? (were they friends anyway, if you can lose them?)
- Will I be able to relate to people outside of the Church setting?
I believe all
three of these are clearly answered with a yes. It may take time but
you will find you have extra time to do things you have always
wanted, and as you think back, how much of what you spend time on in
church settings is really about God anyway?
We are Afraid to Trust Our Own Heart
to Hear God!
Scripture teaches
that the Holy Spirit indwells each believer, and that He is our
teacher. We know that God has talked to His followers down through
the ages, in the still small voice of the heart, and Jesus told us we
know His voice, and yet.....
We have been
raised to believe that, although it was stated otherwise, we need
professional guidance to find, interpret, and follow the will of God.
- We worry that it is our own pride, or laziness, or whatever, and not God calling us
- We worry that we will fall into sin if walk out the door
- We worry that we will miss some blessing which can only be received in a “corporate” setting
These may all be
legitimate concerns for some, but for most, these are deceptions too.
This is the drug talking, telling you that you need it to live!
It's Scary Hearing God for Yourself
Now it's time for
us to grow up and do something we should have been doing all along,
actually hear God for our own lives! He will speak, He does speak, He
is speaking and He will continue to Speak, whenever we listen, we
hear it.
It will take some
practice but you probably already noticed that church leaders have
been making up crap as they went along for a long time now anyway, so
don't sweat it.
- God's promise is to never leave or forsake us
- We can begin to truly see the Kingdom, maybe for the first time
- We are free to act on what God is prompting, without waiting for human guidance, or permission.
Of course you
should have relationships with others that you share this life with.
Of course, you should ask God to be clear, and even wait for specific
leading. That only makes sense, but you don't need anyone else to
tell you that, or do it for you!
As with so many of
my posts, I find that I am speaking to myself as much as I am to
anyone else. Here is my encouragement, if you feel God calling you
out, go! Go joyfully and freely, and do what He is showing you. Don't
be afraid of associating with churches, or church members, they love
Jesus too, but don't feel compelled, unless God is compelling you. Be
at liberty to serve when, where, who, how and in what way He shows
you with no apologies to anyone else, regardless of job title or
number of followers.
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1 comments:
Mark, at the risk of seeming to evangelize, I must respond to this blog. The church is very important!
--Jesus said, "I will build my church." He wouldn't build something that is dispensable.
--In the records in Acts, people who were baptized were added to the church.
-Jesus is the head of the church. Eph, 1and 5, Col 2, et al.
--The church is the bride of Christ. You can't have fellowship with him and leave his bride out of your life.
The church is full of problems. I agree with you that huge real estate empires are wrong, pastoral abuses are rampant, along with multiple other problems. But we can't be His body and do His work apart from His church.
Make your priority correct, pure doctrine. Then try to make the church where you are better.
We love you.