Do you ever feel the pressure the make sure your church is “worldly” so people will be attracted to it? If not I wonder what planet you live on. The pressure is on to make the church into an ecclesiastical version of the David Letterman Show or worse. This is epidemic in our time but it is not something new. Spurgeon felt the pressure to make the church “worldly” to make it effective in his day. Phil Johnson blogged an interesting quote on the subject recently.
John MacArthur has written powerfully on the subject. In Ashamed of the Gospel he compared the Seeker Movement with the Downgrade Controversy of Spurgeon’s day. More recently he has evaluated the Emergent Church in The Truth Wars.
How do we reach the world and love the world without being conformed to the world? John Piper addresses this in a message on Romans 12:1-2
The answer to your opening question is not an easy one, for many people. Much of it depends on what one understands to be “Worldly” – there are some churches who think that using ANY musical instruments at all during songs is worldly. There are christians who think that skirts that end at the knee or just above the knee are worldly. There are believers who think that quoting from catholic writers is not appropriate. And there are a whole host of perspectives, among christians, about various types of christian music.
It is clear that the unashamed and full potency of the Gospel should be preached and communicated, in the church. Sadly, the number of churches that have such preaching and communication are dwindling in number. May the Lord bless your work at Evangel, and may it be a haven for many.
Thanks for your comments, Perry. It’s nice to hear from you again.
Ken,
John MacArthur hosts a program entitled “Does the Truth Matter Anymore?” Great teaching and viewing! Here is a short description:
“Everywhere is apathy. Nobody cares whether that which is preached is true or false. A sermon is a sermon whatever the subject; only, the shorter it is the better.”
Those words were written by Charles Spurgeon MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO! Yet, he might have just as easily been describing the state of the church at the beginning of the 21st Century.
Well, in this “tell-it-like-it-is” indictment of the attitudes, methods and approaches of much of the modern church, Pastor John MacArthur picks up where Charles Spurgeon left off.
This is ‘MUST VIEWING” for the modern Christian.
Presented by: John MacArthur
John really deals with the issue of pragmatism in our day as Spurgeon did in his day. Below is the link where you can order the series if you so desire.
https://www.crosstv.com/GuestTeachers.htm#wp29
I hope all is well with you and the family. Know that we are well and think of you all often.
In Christ alone,
Manitou Mike