The Church Service
Posted: Mon Mar 05, 2012 11:53 am
Is today's Church service doing the job that Christians are supposed to be doing?
The worship service seems to be geared toward both the body and to the unbelieving visitor. A message is given, an alter call is extended, and some come down and say the sinner's prayer. Are we counting on that worship service to do the thing we're supposed to be doing every day?
Do we go out into the world, rub shoulders with our pals, show them how "normal" we are? That we can dress like them and act like them. After all, God forgives. It feels like that is where we're at. We want to act as worldy as we can and not get burned, or maybe do ( I speak from experience) and show our unbelieving friends that God isn't a bad God that expects anything weird out of us. You won't be asked to change. Then we invite them to our "cool" new church that everyone's talking about. Then they go forward for the alter call, and maybe get baptized (if they're doing them that weekend).
I think that's creating a body of believers that has had seed sprinkled on them.
And when temptations, troubles, or repetitive sin comes along and snatches the seed away, we aren't equipped to counsel them. We look to the Pastor, after all we're just a body of seed-sprinkled people.
Is the getting together of the body supposed to be a getting together of fruit-bearing citizens of the Kingdom?
Have the worship services taken the responsibilty off of our backs and placed them on one man-the Pastor. And has the Thursday night Study in James become the gathering of the body?
Thoughts?
The worship service seems to be geared toward both the body and to the unbelieving visitor. A message is given, an alter call is extended, and some come down and say the sinner's prayer. Are we counting on that worship service to do the thing we're supposed to be doing every day?
Do we go out into the world, rub shoulders with our pals, show them how "normal" we are? That we can dress like them and act like them. After all, God forgives. It feels like that is where we're at. We want to act as worldy as we can and not get burned, or maybe do ( I speak from experience) and show our unbelieving friends that God isn't a bad God that expects anything weird out of us. You won't be asked to change. Then we invite them to our "cool" new church that everyone's talking about. Then they go forward for the alter call, and maybe get baptized (if they're doing them that weekend).
I think that's creating a body of believers that has had seed sprinkled on them.
And when temptations, troubles, or repetitive sin comes along and snatches the seed away, we aren't equipped to counsel them. We look to the Pastor, after all we're just a body of seed-sprinkled people.
Is the getting together of the body supposed to be a getting together of fruit-bearing citizens of the Kingdom?
Have the worship services taken the responsibilty off of our backs and placed them on one man-the Pastor. And has the Thursday night Study in James become the gathering of the body?
Thoughts?