Early Church vs. Today’s Church

Since I have been preaching a series on the New Testament church from the book of Acts, it has made me reflect upon the differences between the first century church and the church of today.  This is not intended to be a criticism but just a comparison and a challenge for all of us to think about. 

I am personally challenged greatly by this list because I am in the midst of planting a brand-new church in Athens, Georgia and strongly desire this church to be more like the church in the book of Acts than the church we often see today.

The following are some distinct differences.  I first list the characteristic of the early church, followed by the description of the modern church.  Obviously there are exceptions on both sides. For example, the church at Corinth had some serious sin issues, while there are many churches today that are exceptions to the list below.  My purpose in this list is simply to get the discussion and prayer started about how we might be a more kingdom church today!

1.    Participatory church versus spectator church.

2.    Worshiping God church versus entertained church.

3.    Reaching out to others church versus consumer mentality church.

4.    Word and Spirit church versus Word-only church.

5.    Praying church versus non-praying church.

6.    Radically generous church versus hoarding church.

7.    Serving church versus receiving church.

8.    Every day of the week church versus once-a-week church.

9.    Sacrificial church versus comfortable church.

10.Miracles happening church versus nothing supernatural happening church.

11.Great reputation with outsiders church versus bad testimony to the world church.

12.Persecuted church versus comfortable church.

13.Growing church versus declining church.

Transformation Through Worship

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”  2 Cor. 3:18

As we behold His glory, we are transformed.  Being transformed means that we are becoming more and more like Christ.  This is called sanctification:  the process of becoming Christ-like.  As we all know, this is not an easy process.  Often we become more like Jesus through trials and difficulties, as the Lord chisels away at our character and reveals things we need to repent of.  In light of this, it is easy to become focused on our sin and shortcomings more than the glory of the Lord.

But in this passage we are told that transformation occurs by beholding the glory of the Lord and not by beholding our sin. What is the glory of the Lord?  The glory of the Lord is the fully revealed character and likeness of God.  The glory of the Lord is the brightness of God.  The glory of the Lord is His wonderful beauty and nature, in its fullness. 

Therefore, this passage teaches us that one of the best ways to grow as a Christian is to focus more on God than our own self and shortcomings.  As we see God for who He is (beholding His glory), we will fall more in love with Him and desire to be more like Him.

How do we behold His glory?  One of the best ways is through worship.  Worship is adoring God for who He is.   Worship is meditating on His many attributes.  Worshiping is repeating back to God who He is.  Worship is singing songs to the Lord that exalt His great nature.  Worship is surrendering our lives to Jesus!  The best way to be transformed into the likeness of Jesus is to worship God for who He is.

Finally, as we behold the glory of God, we will be transformed by His Spirit.  It is God’s Spirit that ultimately transforms us from the inside out.  We can rest in this great truth. 

One more thought on this awesome passage:  the only thing we are to do in this verse in order to be transformed …. is to behold God’s glory.

Behold God’s glory through worship, and watch God change your life!!!  

“Like the eye which sees everything in front of it and never sees itself, faith is occupied with the Object upon which it rests and pays no attention to itself at all.  While we are looking at God, we do not see ourselves – blessed riddance.  The man who has struggled to purify himself and has had nothing but repeated failures will experience real relief when he stops tinkering with his soul and looks away to the perfect One.”  A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God.

More Worship After the Message

I have a growing burden about the order of worship services in most churches.  First of all, let me make it very clear that I am not suggesting that what I propose in this blog is THE only or THE BEST method.  It is simply something to pray about and consider as another approach to consider, if not every week in a church, at least from time to time.

Most churches do musical praise and worship at the front of a service, then have the sermon, sing a song, and we all go home.  Notice I said “musical praise and worship.”  Worship is ultimately all that we do when we are walking with Jesus and living for Him.  Worship is a lifestyle.  Worship is Romans 12:1-2 – a life totally yielded to God.  In my book Pastoring with Passion I define worship as, “surrendering to the absolute claims of Jesus Christ upon our lives by living a life that is characterized by holiness, love, obedience, thanks and praise.  When we are living under the lordship of Christ, everything we do is an act of biblical worship” (p. 209).

At the same time, God’s Word often mentions music as an important means by which we can express our thanks, praise, and love for God. This is why I specifically use the phrase “musical praise and worship.” 

The book of Psalms speaks much about musical praise and worship, and it should be an important part of our worship gatherings.  “Come before His presence with singing” (Ps. 100:2 KJV) … “I will praise God’s name in song” (Ps. 69:30) … “come before Him with … music and song” (Ps. 95:2).  In the book of Acts the early church “met together in the temple courts … praising God … and the Lord added” (Acts 2:46-47).

Since musical praise and worship is an important part of our corporate gatherings, we should seek to be biblical and practical in our approach.  I believe it is not only more biblical but also more practical to do a significant part of our musical worship after the Word is preached. 

I find this pattern in the book of Nehemiah.  Nehemiah is about rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, as well as the people of God.  Physical and spiritual walls needed to be rebuilt. After the physical wall was completed, lives needed to be rebuilt.  The same is true today.  In Nehemiah 8 the Word was read and explained to the people.  This resulted in people confessing their sins and getting right with God in Nehemiah 9.  Finally, Nehemiah 12 says they “celebrated joyfully … with songs of thanksgiving and with music of cymbals, harps and lyres” (v. 27).  Could this be a pattern we should follow today?

I suggest we consider having musical praise at the front end of a service, and musical worship after the message.  Musical praise is one significant way to “enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise” (Ps. 100:4).  This is a great way to start a corporate service.  After this praise time we are ready to hear an anointed message from God’s Word.  Through the Word our hearts are challenged, stirred, convicted and encouraged.  At this point we are in the best position to confess our sins, get right with God, get prayer from others, and worship at a heightened level.  Prayer and worship can be a response to the Word.  Therefore, if we allowed more time for musical worship and prayerful response after the Word is proclaimed, I believe people would encounter God and worship Him at a deeper level.

“I cannot sing before I have seen. All worship is a response to a revelation - it's only as we breathe in more of the wonders of God that we can breathe out a fuller response to Him."

Matt Redman, Facedown (pg. 98)

Lessons from the “Perfect Storm”

Recently I had what some would call “the perfect storm.”  In a matter of two weeks my computer was stolen, all my data lost, and I bought a replacement computer, only to learn it was stolen.  The stolen computer was returned to its rightful owner (good news), but I am still out $900 (bad news).  The thought of having to recreate so many documents that I use in ministry and life is almost overwhelming.  Today I finally had the clarity of mind and spirit to record my lessons from this ordeal.  Here they are:

1.    Eternal Perspective. 

Hebrews 10:34 says you “joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.”  Wow.  If we really believe that what we have on earth is temporal, and what we have in heaven in eternal, then we will grip loosely our earthly possessions, even those as helpful and “needed” as a computer.  I want to be able to have joy in the midst of my stolen computer.  This is certainly possibly if my focus is on what is eternal.  Perhaps this is when it is especially important to “set your mind on the things above, not on earthly things” (Col. 3:2).

2.    Forgive Others.

If we truly understand that we have been forgiven a huge debt before God, then we must forgive those who sin against us.  Eph. 4:32 says to “forgive as you’ve been forgiven.”  If I don’t forgive the one who stole my computer, and the one who sold me a stolen computer, then bitterness and resentment will conquer the joy of my walk with God.  In the end, especially in this case, since the individuals who wronged me don’t even know me – and certainly don’t know that I am angry with them – the only person suffering over my anger and un-forgiveness is me!

3.    Pray.

When someone mistreats you, your flesh wants to get angry, dwell on the wrong, get revenge if possible, and feel sorry for yourself.  But Jesus said to “bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you” (Jn. 6:28).  This is not easy to do.  Because it is so contrary to our flesh, we can only do it with God’s power.  Thus, my next lesson:

4.    Be filled with the Spirit.

The only way I can do any of the above is by the power of the Holy Spirit.  God’s Word assures us that the moment we receive Christ we receive the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead (Rom. 8:9-11).  In other words, I have the very power of God working in me.  This means it is possible to live a supernatural life.  These commands in the Bible to do such things as forgive, rejoice, and pray are actually possible, but only possible if I am filled with the Holy Spirit.  Hard times are designed to push us toward greater dependence upon God.  God allows hard times into our lives to accomplish His purposes.  We may go through difficulties in this life that we will never understand this side of eternity.  But what we can know for sure is that God is working in us, that which is for our good and His glory.

5.    Testing of our Faith.

We don’t talk enough about this, but God’s Word speaks often of our faith being tested (Jas. 1:2-5; Rom. 5:3-5).  Many verses speak of God testing His people (1 Chron. 29:17; Ex. 20:20).  I believe God is sovereign over all of our circumstances.  I don’t believe anything happens that hasn’t first been sifted through His loving hands.  Therefore, I believe what has happened to me over the last few weeks is a direct test from the Lord.  Like tests we take in school (to determine our knowledge and application of the material), if we pass the test we advance, and if we fail, we either have to retake the test or we get demoted.  I desire to pass this test.  I need to prayerfully determine what God wants me to learn from this.  I need to be filled with the Spirit in order to pass this test.  I certainly don’t want to have to retake this test, that’s for sure!

6.    Be Wise.

One lesson for me in this is to be more careful in the future.  I am about a plant a new church in a rough part of Athens, Georgia.  Perhaps God wants to use this to toughen me up and make me wiser in my actions as I minister in this part of town.  Jesus said, “Be wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Mt. 10:16).  I know one thing: I will NEVER leave my computer in my truck again!  And now the ultimate lesson in all of this:

7.    Joy in God.

Whenever we go through tough times, it is a great opportunity to see if our joy is rooted in God Himself or our circumstances.  If I can have true joy in the Lord, amidst some really tough situations, then that means my life is coming from Jesus and not my circumstances.  Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (Jn. 14:6).  Many of us know Jesus as our way and truth, but how many of us really know Him as our life?  “Whom have I in heaven but Thee, and besides Thee, I desire nothing on earth.  My strength and my heart may fail, but you are the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Ps. 73:25-26).

I pray that one of these lessons from my “perfect storm” will somehow benefit you.  If that happens, it will make my pain a lot less severe.  Let’s all seek to live more totally sold out to Jesus, and get our life from Him, no matter what comes our way!!!!

It Hurts So Good

“Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. “ John 12:24

We all need to die.  For salvation to occur, we must humble ourselves, admit our sin, repent of living for self, and trust fully in the work of Christ.  Justification requires death to self.

In the same way, sanctification (i.e. the process of becoming more and more like Jesus) requires death. For us to grow in Christ and increasingly yield to His will in our lives, we must die to pride and self-reliance.  2 Cor. 4:11 says, “For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body.”

Spurgeon once said, “When God wants to do an impossible task, He takes an impossible man and breaks him.” Brokenness is painful no matter what.  However, if we willingly yield to Christ, the brokenness process is a bit less painful.

“Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.” Mt. 21:44

We can either “fall on this stone” of Jesus, and the brokenness process is less painful.  Or, we can be the one “on whom it falls” and thus be “crushed.”  The choice is ours.  Either way, God wants to break us, because being broken is the means by which we get be rebuilt according to His plan and purpose.  We can willfully submit to Him, or we can have Him crush us through circumstances that defeat our pride and self-dependence. 

I see this all the time in pastoral ministry.  If a person is willing to submit to God and walk in His will, there will still be pain, but it will be a lot less painful to be broken, because we are willingly yielding to Him.  On the other hand, if a person refuses to submit to God, goes his own way, lives a life of sin, then God will have to bring circumstances to bear, and often pain, to break this person of self-reliance. This is the person who is arrested for a DUI, has a spouse walk out on him for his abuse, hit rock bottom in his addiction, or “broken” through some other situation.

Never forget that God’s motivation in breaking us is love.  He loves us so much that He is committed to our development.  “The Lord disciplines those whom He loves… No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.  Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Hebr. 12:6, 11).  It hurts so good when we see the fruit that brokenness brings.

Finally, in humbling ourselves and going through the brokenness process, we are identifying with Jesus.  For He humbled himself to death, was broken for our sin, and in so doing accomplished eternal redemption. 

Is brokenness worth it?  You bet.  Does brokenness bring glory to God? Absolutely.  Be broken. Be like Jesus.  For God’s honor.

The Dangers of Santa Claus

The Dangers of Santa

By Pastor David Holt and Mark McAndrew

We certainly do not mean to be a “scrooge” in this blog, but we do want to offer some thoughts about modern day Santa Claus.  Consider these four concerns:

1.    Santa is presented as a “god” figure.

Children are told, “He watches when you sleep; he knows when you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake.”  He supposedly flies all over the world, able to enter every home, and bring glad tidings of great joy.  This gives omniscience and omnipresent qualities to Santa. 

My (David) daughter was recently babysitting for some neighbor children, and they said to her, “Sarah, we have to be good or else Santa won’t come to see us this year.”  Kids really believe this stuff.

2.    Santa presents a works’ salvation.

You might think we are going to an extreme here, but think this through.  In telling children that if they are good, then Santa will come with gifts, we are subtly communicating a works’ righteousness.  The common belief today is that if your good deeds outweigh your bad deeds, then God will accept you into heaven.  And yet, God’s Word says we are “saved by grace through faith, that not of ourselves… not of works least anyone boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).

If good works could get us to God, then Christ did not need to die. Our only hope of being made right with God is through the substitutionary blood atonement of Jesus Christ.  He died to pay for our sins.  This is the only payment God will accept.

In addition, it is interesting how Santa ends up coming to all children, regardless of whether or not they were really good that year.  In much the same way, most believe that all will go to heaven, regardless of their behavior, unless of course they are someone like Hitler or Adam Lanza.

3.    Santa promotes self-centered idolatry.

We have never met a kid who loved Santa. Not one. But we have met hundreds who love his stuff. Every second a child spends on Santa's lap is spent doing what? Asking him for stuff. No one is asking for Santa. Santa is a means to the child's end. The Santa Claus "gospel" is idolatrous and trains us to use God rather than love him. We begin to think that we should be good so that God will give us nice gifts.

However, Scripture shows us that the greatest gift of the gospel is not God's presents, but his presence. "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God" (I Pet. 3:18). The highest and best gift that Jesus purchased for us was entrance into the presence of God.

4.    Santa Claus is not real.

The bottom line with Santa is that he is not real.  Duh!!  But parents who go along with the whole Santa thing are promoting a lie.  Now I know most will object by saying, “It’s just fun and games, and they will eventually figure out that it isn’t true.”  Perhaps, but also think about a comment I heard recently from a college student.  She said she really struggled with believing in the reality of Jesus as a young child, because she thought to herself, “If the whole Santa Claus thing wasn’t real, but my parents presented it to me as if it were, then how can I believe them when they tell me about God became a man by being born of a virgin, performing miracles like walking on water, dying on a tree, and then being raised after three days?”  Which is more absurd sounding to a young child?

Now, as an alternative, I suggest parents tell their children the truth.  And the way to not totally throw Santa under the bus is to tell them the true story of how Santa came about.  Remember that guy St. Nicholas?  Look him up and tell the story to your children. 

Merry CHRISTmas!