Quotation
I think this is the time for us
to humble ourselves. This is a time for us to weep for ourselves and our land.
Our world is a mess. The church appears to have lost its mind. What are we
becoming, what will happen to us and our children? Have we approached a
cataclysmic reordering of our priorities? Does this present challenge qualify
for such a change? We must defend each other from this challenge by Satan. We
must stand with Jesus, who never changes. When we stand with Jesus, this gives
us a certain hope for the future.
Barry Denzil Haney, MD
Scripture
Therefore seeing we have this
ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not; but have renounced the
hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word
of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to
every man’s conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid
to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of
them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is
the image of God, should shine unto them.
2 Corinthians 4:1-4
Reflection
Has the church lost its mind?
In the spirit of religious tolerance, some Christian thinkers have embraced
pluralism, the belief that all religions are equally valid pathways to God,
with no need for Christ and the belief no single religion can claim to have the
final word on truth. This postmodernist thinking leads to a moral relativism
where judging what is right and wrong is a matter of personal taste.
Religion based on this kind of
postmodern thinking leads to a cookie-cutter type of spirituality and idolatry,
not requiring institutional religion. These postmodernists believe Christians
are exclusivists who are arrogant and intolerant of other faiths, not to be
trusted or believed.
The danger for those
postmodernists who believe in religious pluralism and moral relativism comes
from the slippery road they travel along. This intellectual journey may lead
the individual further away from the foundation of his Christian faith. When
Jesus is no longer the subject, a belief in humanism, followed by agnosticism
and even atheism may soon follow.
Yes, today’s church has lost
its mind! David Watson agrees stating “we have lost the mind of Christ.”
(Watson)
Author and leadership coach,
Bob Dale believes culture is shaping churches today and points to two powerful
influences affecting today’s church, individualism and consumerism. He states, ““In most American denominations and religious
bodies, it’s more a me faith. It’s more individuals. We’re more self-absorbed.
That’s really not very biblical.” (Kaylor)
In
his article, “Four Reasons the Church Has Lost Its Power”, Trevor DeVage gives
us the following reasons Satan has succeeded and the church has lost its power:
sin is less offensive; heaven is less appealing; hell is less horrific; there
is less urgency in preaching the Gospel. (DeVage)
Religious
non-affiliation in the United States has risen from 5% in 1972 to 23% in 2018
based on the source, General Social Survey. According to the Atlantic, this
grab bag includes atheists, agnostics, and spiritual dabblers. (Thompson) In
this same article, Derek Thompson believes “religion has lost its halo effect
in the past three decades, not because science drove God from the public
square, but rather because politics did.”
In his article, “8 Reasons Why
the Church Lost the Culture Wars in North America”, Joseph Mattera gives us
these eight reasons for the loss of church influence in today’s church: pastors
have abandoned the Gospel of the Kingdom; the 1954 Johnson amendment resulted
in the legal ability to revoke the 501C3 non-profit status of churches; church
growth has become more important than making disciples; the secularists on the
Left have become more committed; the Church has become more relevant to the
culture, providing therapeutic motivational messages instead of preaching the
truth of the Gospel; believers use God to chase the American dream; Christians
on the Right are more focused on politics instead of Jesus; the Evangelical
Church has been divided politically.
With all of this negativity,
what are we to do about the church? First, we need to realize the church is not
a human invention, it’s God’s idea. Most of the New Testament is about the work
of the church that Jesus started and ordained. As a Christian, church is not
something we go to, we are the church. If we try to get rid of the church, we
will need to get rid of Jesus. The only way to change the direction of the
church is to stand with Jesus, who never changes. When we stand with Jesus,
this gives us hope for the future and will result in changes in the hearts of
those falling for the lies and deceptions of Satan.
And
he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some,
pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity
of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto
the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more
children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by
the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to
deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things,
which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together
and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual
working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the
edifying of itself in love.
Ephesians 4:11-16
Illustration
In any flesh-and-bones body,
there are a variety of cells. There are nerve cells, blood cells, muscle cells,
and many others, each having a distinct function. The body operates smoothly,
not because the cells get together and vote on what to do, but because each one
does what it was designed to do. It is the function of the head to bring all
these different functions together, so that the body operates effectively as
each cell gives itself to the task of functioning according to its design.
Certainly the body would not
operate properly if its cells chose to go their own way. Do you know what we
call a rebellion of the cells of your stomach? We call it indigestion! A revolt
of your brain cells is called insanity. Any time the cells in our body don’t
operate properly, it means that the body is sick, that something is wrong with
it.
Many of the problems in the
church today are a result of our forgetting that the church is a body with a head, Jesus
Christ. Instead we sometimes try to operate the church as an organization. As a result,
the church has no more power than any other human organization at work in the
world. (Green)
Prayer
Our Heavenly Father,
Help
us to remember that it’s time for us to humble ourselves.
We
must defend each other from this challenge by Satan.
We
must stand with Jesus, who never changes. When
we
stand with Jesus, this gives us a certain hope for the future!
Protect
us from the negative influences of individualism
and
consumerism, which are destroying our churches today!
Help
us to stand with Jesus in everything we do to help
protect
us from the lies and deceptions of Satan!
In the precious name of Jesus
Christ our Lord and Savior,
Amen!
Worship
Never Lost by Elevation Worship
God Bless You,
Barry
Watson, David. “When the Church
Loses Its Mind.” Firebrand Magazine, November 16, 2020. https://firebrandmag.com/articles/when-the-church-loses-its-mind.
Kaylor, Brian. “Experts Warn
That the Church Has Lost Its Way - and Its Influence.” Baptist News Global,
February 14, 2017. https://baptistnews.com/article/experts-warn-that-the-church-has-lost-its-way-and-its-influence/.
DeVage, Trevor. “FOUR REASONS
THE CHURCH HAS LOST ITS POWER.” Trevor DeVage. Trevor DeVage, December 5, 2018. https://www.trevordevage.com/blog/5/12/2018/four-reasons-the-church-has-lost-its-power.
Thompson, Derek. “Three Decades
Ago, America Lost Its Religion. Why?” The
Atlantic, September 26, 2019. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/09/atheism-fastest-growing-religion-us/598843/.
Mattera, Joseph. “8 Reasons Why
the Church Lost the Culture Wars in North America.” Mattera Ministries
International, January 12, 2021. https://josephmattera.org/reasons-church-lost-culture-wars-2/.
Green, Michael P. 1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Books, 2000. Print.
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