This article was well-written and brutally honest, though not well-researched. The author admits that he has a hard time learning from the lecture format of sermons, and does better with personal Bible study or one-on-one Bible studies, where questions can be asked and answers sought out immediately. Some valid points were hit on. One of these was that the culture of church is such that everyone asks everyone else how they're doing, and the standard answer is "fine" no matter how they're really doing. In fact, this exchange ("How are you?" "Fine.") happens in passing, often without either party stopping to really talk or even make eye contact. That makes the exchange disingenuous. This man who wrote the article also came off as humble, admitting he doesn't know all the answers or the best solutions, but that he stands before God, not other people. This is all true, and these are the points from the article I can acknowledge as valid.
My problem is this. This well-intentioned man joins a long list of fringe-Christians who criticize the church institution. It is true that some people at church ask how others are doing without really caring or taking the time to stop for a deep conversation. That is unfortunate. But it isn't just a church problem. Churches aren't in a vacuum. They exist in a society, and are made up of human beings from that society. It is our culture (both inside the church as well as outside) to ask people how they're doing and to just expect a "fine" answer. It is basically our way of saying "Hi," because, even though it is a question, we really just mean it as a greeting, not a conversation starter. If someone actually gives another answer besides "fine," that often takes us off-guard. If we didn't count on that, we may not have the time to stop and hear their story of not being fine. We should care and make that time, but we don't always as a culture. Blaming this superficial relating on church alone is imbalanced. People do this everywhere. When I was in Zambia on a mission trip, I learned that their greeting "Muli shani" means "How are you?" So, if you were in Zamiba and someone were to say "Muli shani," to you, you wouldn't answer by saying, "Muli shani." You would say "Bwino," which means "Good." Sometimes, even in English, I'd say hello to a Zambian person, and the person would say, "Fine," even though I didn't ask how they were, because they don't have an exact word for simply hello. This just goes to show how worldwide our idea of superficial greetings can be.
My bigger concerns came from some of the other things said in this well-written article. The gentleman complained about people saying certain things were absolute truths. He had a problem with someone claiming that all who die without Christ will go to hell. He claimed not to believe that is true, and also, that one's eternity is between themselves and God. This is where I have an issue.
There are many things we do need to leave between the individual and God. However, when the Bible is clear about something, it is not only correct, but necessary to take that stand and agree with God. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes unto the Father except through Me. (John 14:6). Therefore, those who die without Christ don't have hope of eternal life. It might sound mean and exclusive to say this, but that is to superimpose our 21st century culture on the Bible. The truth is, God calls the shots. He is holy, and has demanded holiness in order to have a relationship with Him (Be holy as I am holy--First Peter 1:16). No human is capable of that, and God knew it. He was willing to do whatever it took for us to have a restored relationship with Him. He couldn't just ignore our sin, because He is holy. He didn't want to just punish us, because He is love. Jesus solved the dilemma by taking the penalty for our sins. He shed His blood and died for us, rising again on the third day. Through faith in what He has done, anyone can have eternal life. The invitation is open to all! Those who reject that invitation have only themselves to blame. So, no, it isn't wrong or mean for church people to say that those without Christ aren't going to Heaven. That is the truth, per the Bible. That should motivate us toward evangelism. If it doesn't, that's a problem.
One of his complaints was that a group of his church friends referred to a different belief system as "stupid." I would agree that this is an unkind thing to say. Calling someone's faith stupid just sounds ignorant and rude. It's better to at least understand why people hold those beliefs, and then refer to them as incorrect or erroneous. You can say something is wrong without being unkind or disrespectful. While I agree that stupid wasn't the best word for his church friends to use, it seemed like the man in the article has a problem with absolutes, which says a great deal more about him than about the church.
This man also claimed that the Bible is subjective, and means whatever you choose to read into it. His proof for this? The fact that there are so many denominations. According to him, these denominations are all reading their own interpretation into the Bible and are in complete disagreement with each other. What he fails to acknowledge is that most of these denominations interpret the core doctrines of Christianity the exact same way. You can attend a Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal or non-denominational church and still hear the exact same truths about who Jesus is. Denominations are a result of church history, not always theological differences. For example, the Southern Baptist Convention was formed in 1845 when it split from what is now known as the American Baptist Churches USA over political differences. Their biblical faith was exactly the same. Today, the political issues that divided them no longer exist, and their basic statement of beliefs are the same, yet they remain two different denominations. Other denominations arose out of great revivals and movements of God, such as the Christian and Missionary Alliance. There was no split off another denomination in their founding. Even when comparing denominations that were never related, such as Lutheran and Nazarene (for example), both groups would completely agree on who Jesus is and what He has accomplished for us. Their differences are mostly in the culture and traditions of the church. The theology where they might differ would be in the nitty-gritty, not the essentials of the faith. I have known very godly people in many different denominations, and all of them took the Bible as literal and true. Furthermore, some of the many denominations that exist today broke off of their parent group because that parent group started taking the Bible less seriously. Earlier, I referred to the American Baptist Churches USA. If you were to go to their website and read their statement of beliefs, you would find that it is totally biblical. Many of their churches are God-filled, Christ-honoring places of worship. However, some of the individual churches have de-emphasized biblical truth and elevated social causes above correct theology. I was part of a very godly American Baptist Church in California. The American Baptist Churches in that part of the country decided to break away from the denomination and become Transformation Ministries, a group that focused a little bit more closely on staying biblically-based. To this day, that church in California is still called First Baptist Church. It simply isn't affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA anymore. Like so many other movements throughout church history, that church broke away in order to retain biblical integrity. Many of these break-offs are not done because of a subjective view of scripture, as the article-writer would have us believe, but for the very opposite reason, to preserve biblical truth. Denominations are veins in church history, not diametrically-opposed views of the Bible. Most denominations I know don't consider other Christian groups their enemy either. I've seen great fellowship between different godly churches.
I can't address denominations without addressing looser affiliations that don't consider themselves a denomination, but have a connection of churches that are under their banner. The biggest of these affiliations that I am personally related to is Calvary Chapel. The Calvary Chapel movement started in my home state of California in the 1960's as part of the larger Jesus Movement revival. Even churches that are not part of the Calvary Chapel movement have been influenced by their worship music and evangelical culture (before Hillsong, Calvary Chapel had all the latest worship music, and it was a lot more biblical than Hillsong! A lot of the lyrics were taken directly out of the Bible. If you were a Southern California Christian in the 70's, 80s and 90's your church probably sang praise songs that originated in Calvary Chapel). The man credited as the founder of this movement, a kind, humble gentleman by the name of Chuck Smith (who went to Heaven in 2013), had been a pastor in the Foresquare, a Christian denomination. He disliked some of the constraints the denomination put on his ministry, and ended up breaking away. God did an amazing work through him. But he didn't disagree biblically with his former denomination. Calvary Chapel churches are very similar to Foresquare churches theologically. Actually, as a Baptist, I have often been to Calvary Chapels, and I don't see any real difference at all. The differences are only noticeable to me when I look at the organizational structure of leadership, and that is more church government philosophy than theology. As for what really matters, there is NO DIFFERENCE. My point? There are so many biblical groups of believers-- denominations, affiliations, and completely independent churches. These different organizations are not indicative of the Bible being subjective. These groups are not divided in hostility toward one another. Disunity is occasionally seen, but isn't the norm between Christian groups. Most believers would consider themselves to be unified with each other, despite different church backgrounds. For more on denominations, non-denominationalism, and church history, see my May 24, 2020 blog post (De)Nomination.
Admittedly, there are churches and groups of churches that see the Bible subjectively. However, this doesn't mean that the existence of different denominations (and non-denominations) indicates a lack of Biblical inerrancy. The article's writer really didn't do his homework on that.
All in all, I was right. The article was basically complaining about church. What the writer fails to realize is that: 1) God never promised the church would be perfect. 2) Church is made up of fallen men and women that God chooses to use to accomplish His purposes. We are told as Christians not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:25). We are commanded to go to church, meeting with other believers. We need each other. It is a spiritual discipline we are commanded to practice. When we don't follow that command, we're the one's who lose. The pastor who impacted me as a teenager used to always say, "The church service you missed was the one you needed the most." I grew up in church all my life. I love church. Yet when I grew up and started driving, I had to develop the habit on my own of getting up and getting myself to church Sunday morning. It had to be a choice, and now it is a habit.
Listening to a sermon is also a discipline. The writer of the article said that's not his learning style. I can understand that, but that doesn't get him or anyone else off the hook. We can and should be doing personal Bible study ourselves. Attending an additional study with a more question-and-answer format is great for aiding in study. But that doesn't negate the value of church services. The Holy Spirit is stronger than your learning style and can speak to you through the Word of God being preached. Church can be messy, and it has been that way from the beginning. Sometimes hurtful and even terrible things happen at church, and that breaks the heart of God. But there is no reason to be down on church. Find a church that's a better fit for you, but realize that all Christians are part of God's body. There is really only one church, and all believers from all congregations are part of it. Jesus said of believers in John 17:22, that they may be one, just as We are one. Other Christians are your family! You need to be with them. They're not perfect...but you aren't either. You can complain about how things should be different, and you're probably right in many instances. A lot of things happen in church that shouldn't. But it is still God's institution to bring the gospel to the world, and to disciple the saints. If someone in church is behaving and speaking wrongly, we should rejoice, because church is exactly where they belong. It isn't the healthy who need a doctor (Mark 2:17).
I once heard a radio skit about the importance of church. The church was likened to a noble group called the Brotherhood of Dutiful Youth--or the BODY. The BODY served to help other people. Each member of the BODY had skills that were necessary to accomplish their purpose (their ironic names indicate their strengths). The leader of the group was Mr. Headly. Another member, I.C. Clearly, had good vision, and kept a lookout for those who needed help. Another member, Miss Lipman, talked to the people they found. Still another member, R.U. Listening, would listen to them and hear their problems. Hans Armstrong, the physically strong member, would do whatever they needed. There was one more member, John Lafitte, was the transporter, and after I.C. Clearly had spotted those who needed help, it was his job to take the rest of the BODY to the people. John gets tired of this job and wants to do something more important, like talk or listen, or do their repairs. He decides to leave the BODY and help people on his own. He fails miserably, because he is trying to do what other people are good at instead of what he is good at. He decides to go back to the BODY, but unfortunately, it's too late. When he left, the BODY couldn't do what it was supposed to. Without him there was no one to take the group to the people who needed help. The narrator ends the skit with, "And so, the Brother of Dutiful Youth dissolved. And though each of the members went on to other things, they all were a lot sadder. Where once there was a group who helped people, now there was just an empty room. The body in it had died." A powerful reminder of the vital roll each member of the body plays.
Go to church. Maybe your being there--with all its imperfections--will encourage others to be faithful to the Lord.
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