The Parable of The Legos

I think just about every kid in America has played with Legos at least once in their lives. Everyone knows what they look like - little plastic blocks with round, knobby things that snap into each other. Legos were first made in 1949 in Billund, Denmark and, as of 2013, 560 billion Lego parts have been made. That's a lot of Legos!!

It's fun to build things with Legos, using only our imagination as a guide. My grandson likes to stack them WAY up high, as high as he can get them to go. But lately Legos have changed. Not so much the Legos themselves but the way they are packaged and marketed.

I recently visited a young friend of mind who, only a few days before our visit, had lost a friend of hers to suicide. She told me about this young man whose favorite things in life were chocolate milk and Legos. So I thought it would be nice to send my young friend a small set of Legos as a remembrance.

As I strolled down the Lego aisle at Walmart it soon became obvious that I was not going to be able to complete my mission. There were absolutely no small sets of just plain Legos. All the Lego boxes were now kits of some trademarked TV show or movie.

There were Star Wars Legos, Hulk Legos, Arctic Basecamp Legos, Super Heroes Legos, Minecraft Legos . . . they even had Frozen Legos! But no plain old Legos could be found. Sad.

As I thought about the Legos and its company straying from the tried and true "standard" Lego format to all these theme-focused marketing offerings it occurred to me that what happened to the Lego company is also happening to our churches today. They are more interested in "selling" than their original intent - worship.

Many churches have decided to alter the tried and true Gospel of Jesus Christ into a watered down version of what God's Word really proclaims. That too is sad.

Our congregations want more than the plain old Gospel. We need to get a new high-def big screen so the worship lyrics are crisp and clear. And let's take down the crosses so no one is reminded of that bloody scene when Jesus died . . . for us. And let's "reach out" and do something nice for the community so the unsaved will flock to our church! The unsaved are not going to wander into any church because they saw us picking up litter on the side of the road!

None of these things have anything to do with the Gospel.

Legos - Logos

Our churches should not be about entertainment or seeing how many people will come to Polkafest Sunday. Churches are for edifying the body, not entertaining it.

The word logos in Greek means "I say" or "a word" or "THE Word."

"And the Word (logos) became flesh and dwelt among us." - John 1:14

The disciples asked Jesus, "What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"

And guess what Jesus told them . . . of all the possible warning signs In Matthew 24, Jesus spoke about deception in the church . . . first.

"4 And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray." - Matthew 24:4-5

We should listen to Jesus' warning and compare everything we see and hear to what has been written in the Bible for us. We don't need churches who make us feel good. We need churches who preach the truth! Otherwise, we shall become lost.

Legos are wonderful things . . . but when we can no longer get the basics . . . just "designer blocks" that give us entertainment, we have lost the origin, the beginning, the whole basis of understanding. NOT a good thing.

Here's a tongue-in-cheek blog post about the seeker-sensitive church . . .

Why I Left Your Seeker-Friendly Church - Bill Blankschaen

A nice worship song telling us that Jesus is all we need . . .

In Christ Alone - Kristian Stanfill

A really good two-hour movie about the seeker-sensitive movement - Rick Warren, Bill Hybels, Bob Bufford & Peter Drucker . . .

Church of Tares Film

Leaders

Each year, Bill Hybels and his Willow Creek Church, hold a "Global Leadership Summit." Here is their mission statement.

"To transform Christian leaders around the world with an injection of vision, skill development and inspiration for the local church."

Well, that certainly sounds . . . like a mission statement. And who wouldn't want to be injected with "vision", right? But what are the attending Christian leaders being "transformed" into? It doesn't really say in their mission statement, but apparently those in attendance are going to be transformed, injected, developed and inspired en mas somewhere near Chicago in early August.

I was reading Romans 12:2 the other day. It's a good "every day" verse. We are supposed to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. And from what I gather, this can be accomplished right where we are. As Christians, isn't God's Holy Spirit transforming us already? And shouldn't we be looking to Jesus when seeking transformation? And leadership? Hmm, I wonder . . . How did all of the world's past Christian leaders ever become great Christian leaders without Mr. Bill's leadership event to transform them? Mind boggling!

This year Bill's keynote speaker is Colin Powell. Mr. Powell first became a public figure during the Gulf War back in the early 90's. He was a general in the army and was a very good leader . . . in the army. But where does he stand as a Christian? As a Christian leader? And should we be really following HIS example like Bill Hybels obviously does?

Collin Powell is pro-choice. That means he supports abortion. The following statement is from his speech during the 1996 Republican National Convention . . .

"You all know that I believe in a woman’s right to choose and I strongly support affirmative action. And, I was invited here by my party to share my views with you because we are a big enough party -- and big enough people -- to disagree on individual issues and still work together for our common goal: restoring the American Dream."

Why would someone who supports abortion be asked to speak as an example of a Christian leader at a Christian leadership conference? I thought most Christians were against abortion? I thought GOD was against abortion?

And "a woman's right to chose" . . . You mean someone has the "right" to "choose" to take someone elses' life just because just because they want to? Isn't that . . . umm, like . . . murder? Or in the case of abortion, maybe genocide. As a Christian, am I to follow a leader like that?

As a side note, do you know what those who favor abortion like to call it now? They no longer call it "pro-choice." Now they call it, are you ready for this? They call it . . . "women's health." Who could possibly be against women's health, right? (sigh)

President Obama on Women's Health.

I'd like you to read a verse and dwell in its meaning for a few moments. Take as much time as you need. Read it over a couple of times and let it sink in.

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart" - Jeremiah 1:5

God knew us BEFORE we were born. How does a Christian embrace abortion and yet claim to follow Christ? And Colin Powell, this leader Bill Hybels wants our pastors and church elders to learn from and emulate, supports killing living babies BEFORE the wonder of God's creation can even see the light of day. That sickens me.

This leadership summit of Mr. Bill's . . . I wonder where those in attendance are being led?

God uses a very different training method from those Bill Hybels suggests. I'm kind of glad too. He tends to use untrained, inadequate, inept, bungling, stuttering leaders to accomplish His will. Look at Moses. Most would say we was a great leader, yet he had a speech impediment.

"10 But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” - Exodus 4:10

Why does God use inadequate people to lead? Psst. It's so that everyone will know that GOD did the leading, not the "leader."

Looking to other men for leadership is complete foolishness. There is only one place to look for leadership and that is God. God raises up leaders, not man.

This past weekend I attended a conference on biblical leadership up in Green Bay.

Stand Up For The Truth - Watchman Conference on Biblical Leadership.

There were over 300 pastors and elders and other church leaders in attendance. What an uplifting yet frightening experience. The leadership examples we were given were all out of the Bible, except for Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Probably the best take-away from this past weekend was the concept of what makes up a good leader - a BIBLICAL leader. We are to lead . . . by following. Perhaps Mr. Hybels should have a FOLLOWING Summit! There should be no opinions of man in our leadership, only the following Christ. He is the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). Later in Hebrews we read this, good instruction for those who would be leaders. Oh, and we ALL are leaders my friends. Every last one of us. So lead. Lead . . . by following . . . Christ.

"12 Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. 14 Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; 16 that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears." - Hebrews 12:12-17

"15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." - Ephesians 5:15-17

You Lead by Jamie Grace

Seek

Everyone likes to feel welcome when they go to church. We all like to have someone smile at us and to greet us with a handshake or a hug. We love to be loved, no matter who we are or what we have done. We would never say this out loud but we also might want people to comment about the nice clothes we are wearing, or ask us about our jobs, or our family. And we want to feel comfortable. Being able to bring a cup of coffee in to worship helps. And we certainly don't want to feel bad about ourselves. Not when we've dragged our butts out of bed at eight stinking AM to go to (gulp) church. Because if we didn't "feel" right, we might not come back. Welcome to the Seeker Sensitive church.

Some of that sounds good. We SHOULD be welcoming at our churches. We should feel loved. But we really need to ask ourselves a few questions like, "Should these things really matter to us?" Another question to get answered first is, "What is the purpose of "the church"? Why do we go to church in the first place? Is it for us? Or is it for God?

The Seeker Sensitive Church Model (as described here by GotQuestions.org) is designed to get people to not only feel welcome when they come to church but to keep them coming back. To feel that they are loved, despite what they may have done, or despite their personal opinion of Jesus or The Cross. They are focused on retaining the "seeker" and having them eventually come to a faith in Jesus. They also would tend to be welcoming to ALL faiths and denominations - the Mormon, the Muslim, even the agnostic or the atheist.

I am all for "seekers" coming to saving faith in Christ, but WHICH Christ? Are they hearing the complete gospel message? Or a watered-down version so that no one becomes offended?

There also is a tendancy for these churches to put a lot of emphasis on "the experience" and the "feelings" we have while at the Seeker Sensitive church. "The music was really awesome today!" "The doughnuts were a little stale this morning, and the coffee? Do we ever wash those coffeemakers?" Our "experience" is often what matters most and we tend to forget about the main purpose of the church - to teach, to exhort, and to preach the gospel. When we get right down to it, the real problem with some of our churches today is that they are MAN centered, not GOD centered.

Let's talk about church for a bit. Should we be modeling our own churches after big churches like Willow Creek (Bill Hybels), Saddleback Church (Rick Warren) or Lakeland Church (Joel Osteen). They're big. They must be successful, right? Let's turn to God's Word for our answer. Let's take a look at the book of Acts and read about the very FIRST church. What was IT like? What should OUR churches really look like and "feel" like today?

The Fellowship of the Believers

42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." - Acts 2:42-47

Wow! There's a whole list of church characteristics! If you're church shopping, if you're "seeking," you might want to take the following checklist with you from Acts 2:

• They were devoted to the teaching
• They were devoted to fellowship
• They were devoted to the breaking of bread
• They were devoted to prayer
• Everyone was filled with awe
• They were together and had everything in common
• They sold their possessions
• They gave to anyone who had a need
• They met every day
• They ate together
• They praised God

Nowhere in that list does it say ANYTHING about the style of music, or the freshness of the doughnuts (although it DOES mention bread), or greeting people at the door or the latest video and audio technology. That stuff is all MAN-centered. We're forgetting that, as churches, we should be CHRIST-centered. We are CHRIST-ians, not MAN-ians . . . we might as well be mannequins!

In 2007, Bill Hybels, lead pastor at Willow Creek Church - a very seeker-sensitive church in suburban Chicago, announced to his congregation that all of their seeker sensitive plans and models, all the millions of dollars their Willow Creek Association had spent on programs, were "not working all that well." It was determined after a massive survey of their members and several focus groups, which is another seeker-sensitive characteristic, that what was REALLY desired by the people of their congregation was to "grow closer to God." Duh.

Please watch this video. It's amazing. Bill Hybels stands in front of his congregation and tells them that he and many of the Willow Creek programs have failed. Bill is supposed to be a great leader but he led his flock nowhere. Survey after survey after survey (enough with the surveys Bill!) showed them where they were failing. They strayed from the Acts 2 church model.

Bill Hybels - Seeker Sensitive Failings.

Amen to that!! Amazing stuff Bill. Thanks . . . I guess.

The problem with the seeker sensitive church comes when they become SO seeker sensitive that they begin to tweak the Gospel message because they don't want to offend anyone. The seeker sensitive churches grow because the people hear what they WANT to hear. They seldom hear about sin and the need for repentance. God calls these people, "people with itching ears" in 2 Timothy 4:3. Read it . . and weep. It applies to many of our churches today.

"For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear."

We are so focused on the "nickels and noses" these days, and about being politically correct and not offending anyone, that we forget that we are most likely offending a holy and righteous God!

I pray that ALL churches would be God-centered, not man-centered - just sprinkling a little Jesus dust on the service to make it "official." Jesus is what matters most, my fellow Christians, not us. Everyday, we need to be reminded of the Gospel message, we need to be in fellowship EVERY DAY. We, as churches, are to be a family of believers, not "seekers."

Here's a test to try sometime. Once you get past the greeters, try counting the number of people greeting each other in love. The pastor of our church encourages "healthy touch" (hugs, handshakes, holding hands during prayer, etc). That's good! And what ever happened to the "holy kiss" that is mentioned in scripture SEVERAL times? I'm not suggesting we french-kiss our neighbors but would a kiss on the cheek be so bad? And let our affection for our brothers and sisters be real, not fake or forced.

One more verse for you before I close. If you are still open to the book of Acts, go back to the beginning of the chapter. Read about the Holy Spirit coming amongst the fellowship of believers, then about Peter as he stands up and preaches the Gospel, and THOUSANDS were added to their number.

The Gospel message was read, people believed and were baptised. The church began! And then we read how the church grew. It wasn't because they were "cool" and had amazing treats, worship music and special lighting. It wasn't ANYTHING that man did, it was all God's doing. Read the last half of verse 47 . . .

" . . . And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

Yes, we should greet others when they arrive at church, but not because we are "assigned" to do so or "because we want to appear welcoming." We should all have the Spirit of Christ in us. And the feeling welcomed part? Everyone should feel welcomed because of our love. As the old song goes, "They will know we are Christians . . . by our love" - not by the ornate, flowing robes and collars that priests and pastors wear, Not by the number of Hawaiian shirts in the crowd, or by the "cool" bumper videos.

Church, and this is US, not a building, should be about praising God, worshiping God, and loving God. We should be all about God and nothing else. If our focus is on things above, on Jesus Christ and Him crucified, everything else will take care of itself. God will add to His church. It's HIS church. We should keep it that way.

A church family is a wonderful thing. There is no need for bells and whistles when there is the love of God to warm us. God, thank you for the church, YOUR church. May we always be an example of your love here on earth . . . as it is in heaven.