Pandemic Chronicles #19: The opportunity of a generation...

As I write this one week before the 2020 Election, here is the question I have been pondering:

What has the church been doing for the last 10-15 years and has it been effective?

When churches shut down in the Spring of 2020, many people immediately blamed the devil. Others weren't so sure that it was the devil.  

I don't know for sure but I don't believe it was the devil as much as it was God offering us an opportunity to repent and get ourselves together for this revival we've been talking about.

Who else could shut down all of the church buildings except for the Lord?  I'm just not willing to give the devil that much credit.

As we've gone along the rest of 2020, I've observed to my other ministry partners that the people are dropping like flies.  

It's been very sad to watch but I'm not surprised because the people were not adequately taught, trained, or rooted in a solid foundation that would have prepared them for hardship.  

I'll be blunt: I don't love a lot of the popular preachers and ministries these days.  They all sound like the sales gurus that utilize motivational speaking techniques at business conferences I've attended in the past.  

With most of these people, they are excellent at finding pain points for listeners (relationships, singles, poor self-esteem). There's Not a lot of Biblical meat to hang your hat on...which is a problem because when people get into trouble all that fluff talk may get you hyped for an hour but it's not enough to sustain people for real life.

During the 2020 Pandemic, we saw people who dropped out of church altogether. According to Barna Research, about one-third of practicing Christians (32%) say they have done neither of these things. (Barna State of the Church 2020)

The New Religious: Hype Church

Pastor Josh Hart from All Nations Louisville posted about The New Religious on Social Media and he received a lot of agreement.

He's 100% Right.  

What happens when there are no conferences? 

What happens when there are no light and smoke shows?

What happens when there are no emotional environments for people to "feel" spiritual?

What happens when all the bells and whistles are swept away and it's just about Your Relationship with Jesus, The Word, and discipleship?

What happens then?

Will we see people who are rooted and grounded in the faith or will we see people who easily fall away?

What does that say about the last 10-15 years of "ministry"?

What we have been doing for the last 10-15 years is ineffective

Social Media changed the game for a lot of "ministry" 

To become a preacher, teacher, and Christian Thought leader in the social media age, all one needed was a camera and a social media account. 

Where before one may have needed the credibility of a local church and an actual physical following,  we saw a generation of pastors, evangelists, and "leaders" rise up who have the gift of gab, great pictures, good storytelling, and marketing savvy.

Now I'm not saying everyone who has risen in ministry because of social media is bad because I don't think that's true.  I think it's great for good teachers to get more exposure and for believers to have options. 

However, I do believe it has muddied the waters for those not so mature in the faith, given rise to problematic false teachers, and it's been ineffective for building strong Jesus following disciples.

This is where we must get off of social media and back to the local church

We must get back to the Local Church

I believe the local church is VITAL to growth, development, and accountability.  This is not to say our local churches are perfect but I believe if one is going to be in ministry and lead fellow believers, then they must be under the covering of a local church and also under leadership who will hold them accountable.  This is for the protection and safety of everyone involved.

Even in scripture, the early church had the Jerusalem council to deal with conflicts, and the most influential church leaders such as Peter and Paul were involved with local churches to hold them accountable when things went left. (See Paul dealing with a Jerry Springer show type incident in 1 Corinthians 5)

We need the Local Church to Teach and Equip Believers

Acts 2:42

And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

 

Important: They devoted themselves to LEARNING doctrine from the Apostles to develop and grow in the faith.  This is one of the missions of the local church to equip the saints for the ministry. 

Ephesians 4:11-12

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds[a] and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,

Part of The job of the local church is to equip the saints for ministry with teaching, training, and discipleship.  I'm sorry but watching a ton of YouTube videos and listening to different preachers is not equipping anybody for an effective ministry. 

Unfortunately, this is all the training some people do, and then they put their cameras, tripods, and microphones and start trying to preach and have a ministry on social media.

This is doing a tremendous disservice to people who are young in the faith because they tend to gravitate toward the people who can appeal to their emotions, have great pictures, and tell them what they want to hear.  There isn't much growth because talking about hard things isn't popular.  

Breaking down the scriptures isn't as exciting as someone doing cartwheels through hot coals while screaming, "Forget the Haters! I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!"

That's why if we really are growing and developing in the faith we will begin to "outgrow" certain ministries. Once we realize that they're Johnny one-note and talking about the same thing over and over again or there isn't much scripture, we know it is time to move on.

We equip the people so that they are able to stand when trouble comes

What is the Intended Outcome of Equipping the Saints for Ministry? Ephesians 4:13-14 tells us

13 until we all reach oneness in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, [growing spiritually] to become a mature believer, reaching to the measure of the fullness of Christ [manifesting His spiritual completeness and exercising our spiritual gifts in unity]. 14 So that we are no longer children [spiritually immature], tossed back and forth [like ships on a stormy sea] and carried about by every wind of [shifting] doctrine, by the cunning and trickery of [unscrupulous] men, by the deceitful scheming of people ready to do anything [for personal profit]. 

• Reaching Oneness in the Faith
• Knowledge of the Son Of God (Growing Spiritually)
• Becoming Mature believers
• Reaching to the measure of the fullness of Jesus (manifesting his spiritual completeness and exercising our spiritual gifts in unity)
• So that we aren't spiritually immature
• Going back and forth and jumping on to every bandwagon of shifting doctrine
• Not falling for false teachers and crap peddlers 

Nowhere on this list do I see: Relationship Goals, Finding a Man, Making Money, Stomping on my haters, Improving my self-esteem, Starting a Business, Becoming a Christian Superstar

Sadly that's what has been selling in the Christian space for the last 10-15 years and in the last 5 years, it has gotten really bad.

Is it any wonder that once uncertainty hit and a time for real faith came in 2020 that people died on the vine en masse.  It shouldn't because Jesus already covered that in the Parable of the Sower

The Parable of the Sower: Mark 4:16-19

In a similar way these [in the second group] are the ones on whom seed was sown on rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy [but accept it only superficially]; and they have no real root in themselves, so they endure only for a little while; then, when trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately they [are offended and displeased at being associated with Me and] stumble and fall away.

And others are the ones on whom seed was sown among the thorns; these are the ones who have heard the word, but the worries and cares of the world [the distractions of this age with its worldly pleasures], and the deceitfulness [and the false security or glamour] of wealth [or fame], and the passionate desires for all the other things creep in and choke out the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

I am thankful God has given us this Great opportunity to repent, refocus, and get ourselves together for this great ingathering of souls into the Kingdom .

This is the Opportunity of a Generation

Many of us have believed for a great revival for years and that there would be a great harvest of souls into the Kingdom.  I continue to remind myself that we revive what is dead.  You don't revive something that is thriving and while it may seem like ministries and churches have been "thriving" these last 10-15 years, I don't believe that to be true at all.  

We've been insulated and catering to ourselves with high-energy events but what about the lost?  

What about the lost people that show up every Sunday? 

What about those who were just there because it's a better alternative than the world but never had a relationship with God like Pastor Josh pointed out?  

Have we been making disciples or are we making numbers for our own platforms?

Due to the sociopolitical climate, I don't even think we've scratched the surface for the hardship that we may have to endure these next few years and if that's true, then superficial sermons about stomping on the haters and Lord send me a man aren't going to make it because people need the savior and not your motivational speech. 

Using Jesus to sell your crap won't work either because they won't have any disposable income to buy it so we better be ready to preach and teach the gospel FOR FREE.

Instead, we have the opportunity of a generation to speak the truth to the lost. We have the opportunity to go back to the Great CO-Mission and Go back to Basics: 

• Making Disciples
• Baptism
• Teaching

Matthew 28:19-20

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Let us not waste this time and the great opportunity that we have been given!

May God have mercy on all of us in these coming days!