T
TexasSky
Guest
I know that on the surface that sounds like a silly question, but I was thinking about some things I've observed over the years, and it has given me pause:
Observation One:
The majority of people entering the ministry, at any level, do so for all the right reasons. They love God, they feel called by God, they study the word of God, they pray, they seek God's will in their life.
Observation Two:
Congregations are made up of all kinds of people; some of them are "old Christians," some of them are "old church goers who pass themselves off as Christians, then later admit they never knew the Lord," some of them "grew up in the church," and many of them are very, very new babes in Christ.
Observation Three:
The secular world and the demons of Satan have caught onto observations one and two.
Evidence 1:
I read somewhere that the election of a "gay bishop" to the Epsicopalian Church was a deliberate planned scheme carried out by members of the gay pride movement. (This was a bragging article, a "how to" for gays, not a "we're really innocent, don't blame us article.) It said that, having discovered how the elections of high church officials were held, they realized that if they could infiltrate certain churches in certain areas and get enough gay representatives or gay-sympathizing representatives sent as delegates, they could change the structure of certain types of Churches. They specfically targeted Epsicopalian Churches.
Evidence 2:
My own church was a wonderful "family" of God. We knew each other, we had no "in-fighting". Our Pastor knew the congregation, in general, approved of him and his staff. We were growing and we were reaching out to the city at large.
Then we built the new building. It is apparently much lovlier than we realized because with the opening of those doors, membership seemed to double. LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of people coming in by promise of letter.
Suddenly all these new people are making changes, and frankly, causing disruptions. They don't like the music, they question the Pastor's authority, they don't like the deacons and make accusations that they are "old guard." They chased off an associate pastor. A lot of these new people are also new Christians, have accepted Christ as recently as this year, and feeling they should "run the show." And yes, they seem to view it as a production rather than a worship.
So - how do churches today protect themselves against this? Not to knock new Christians, but lets face it folks - you don't know everything about God's word the day you are baptized.
Observation One:
The majority of people entering the ministry, at any level, do so for all the right reasons. They love God, they feel called by God, they study the word of God, they pray, they seek God's will in their life.
Observation Two:
Congregations are made up of all kinds of people; some of them are "old Christians," some of them are "old church goers who pass themselves off as Christians, then later admit they never knew the Lord," some of them "grew up in the church," and many of them are very, very new babes in Christ.
Observation Three:
The secular world and the demons of Satan have caught onto observations one and two.
Evidence 1:
I read somewhere that the election of a "gay bishop" to the Epsicopalian Church was a deliberate planned scheme carried out by members of the gay pride movement. (This was a bragging article, a "how to" for gays, not a "we're really innocent, don't blame us article.) It said that, having discovered how the elections of high church officials were held, they realized that if they could infiltrate certain churches in certain areas and get enough gay representatives or gay-sympathizing representatives sent as delegates, they could change the structure of certain types of Churches. They specfically targeted Epsicopalian Churches.
Evidence 2:
My own church was a wonderful "family" of God. We knew each other, we had no "in-fighting". Our Pastor knew the congregation, in general, approved of him and his staff. We were growing and we were reaching out to the city at large.
Then we built the new building. It is apparently much lovlier than we realized because with the opening of those doors, membership seemed to double. LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of people coming in by promise of letter.
Suddenly all these new people are making changes, and frankly, causing disruptions. They don't like the music, they question the Pastor's authority, they don't like the deacons and make accusations that they are "old guard." They chased off an associate pastor. A lot of these new people are also new Christians, have accepted Christ as recently as this year, and feeling they should "run the show." And yes, they seem to view it as a production rather than a worship.
So - how do churches today protect themselves against this? Not to knock new Christians, but lets face it folks - you don't know everything about God's word the day you are baptized.