A local newspaper article reported the business-like operations of some Asian mega-churches recently and created quite a stir among Christians. Well, we should read the newspaper article with a pinch of salt and grace. But sometimes, God uses even a donkey or an unbelieving journalist to prophesy.
A Japanese businessman once commentedthat when he meets a Buddhist monk, he sees a holy man, but when hemeets a pastor, he sees a MANAGER!
Well, I'm sure it is good for pastors to be effective stewards in managing God's resources but it seems like the trend of running a church these days (with its emphasis of being relevant, scratching where it itches, meeting targets like 3000 souls by 2030, etc) increasingly resemble the way the world runs a corporate entity.
Are we changing the world by having our minds renewed or are we conforming to the world's patterns? A pastor, was it Jack Hayford (?) commented that in some churches, the machinery is so effective that if the Holy SPirit left the church, nobody would notice.
I'm not saying size doesn't matter and small is beautiful... but that success for the church is not measured by offering figures and head counts. A sister also raised up two areas which we could learn from, if not tear our shirts, put on sackcloth and sprinkle dust on our heads.
That is, 'feel good' songs during worship and anecdote-ridden, humour-filled pastors trying to beat the TV stand-up comedian. But let me affirm that emotions have a vital place to play in our worship. Infact I would insist that our emotions should be stirred up as fervently as they could by the awesome reality of God's glory. Singing high pitch hymns with rich theology is as appropriate as "I-feel-good" choruses, but it's *not* worship unless truth fuels a fiery heartfelt passion for the God of truth.
Singing upbeat songs is fine but does that good feeling terminate in ourselves or in the reality of God's glory? (undercurrents of John Piper here)
We need to recover a worship that is passionate but also pregnant with a vivid vision of God Himself. "I Stand In Awe", "I Have a destiny," "Heart of Worship" are some popular songs that I believe have good theology.The primary duty of a pastor is preaching God's Word, not being a David Letterman, Oprah Winfrey or self-help motivator. While a humourous story can break ice and drive home a point, I'm also saddened by the common practice of preachers starting with a bible text and then veers off to some 'personal testimony' that is totally irrelevant to the text.
Well, it is argued that this type ofpreaching is more 'practical', 'relevant' and 'easy to understand'. No wonder some young believers are implicitly led to think that theBible message is 'hard to understand', 'irrelevant'or 'impractical'... so why bother reading it if the pastor can process it for me?
On the other hand, I also believe that it is almost a sin forcertain truth-oriented pastors to bore people to tears with extended discussion of what the original Greek or Hebrew says or make things harder than they really are, etc.
God's Word is relevant and practical, we dun have to make it so. The preacher's task is not to gloss over it with humor but to explain it clearly, derive his message from the text faithfully and then apply it to the hearers current situation. That is the kind of expository or topical preaching I find hard to get from pulpits nowadays. If the newpaper doesn't speak a word, then the stones should cry out!
A Japanese businessman once commentedthat when he meets a Buddhist monk, he sees a holy man, but when hemeets a pastor, he sees a MANAGER!
Well, I'm sure it is good for pastors to be effective stewards in managing God's resources but it seems like the trend of running a church these days (with its emphasis of being relevant, scratching where it itches, meeting targets like 3000 souls by 2030, etc) increasingly resemble the way the world runs a corporate entity.
Are we changing the world by having our minds renewed or are we conforming to the world's patterns? A pastor, was it Jack Hayford (?) commented that in some churches, the machinery is so effective that if the Holy SPirit left the church, nobody would notice.
I'm not saying size doesn't matter and small is beautiful... but that success for the church is not measured by offering figures and head counts. A sister also raised up two areas which we could learn from, if not tear our shirts, put on sackcloth and sprinkle dust on our heads.
That is, 'feel good' songs during worship and anecdote-ridden, humour-filled pastors trying to beat the TV stand-up comedian. But let me affirm that emotions have a vital place to play in our worship. Infact I would insist that our emotions should be stirred up as fervently as they could by the awesome reality of God's glory. Singing high pitch hymns with rich theology is as appropriate as "I-feel-good" choruses, but it's *not* worship unless truth fuels a fiery heartfelt passion for the God of truth.
Singing upbeat songs is fine but does that good feeling terminate in ourselves or in the reality of God's glory? (undercurrents of John Piper here)
We need to recover a worship that is passionate but also pregnant with a vivid vision of God Himself. "I Stand In Awe", "I Have a destiny," "Heart of Worship" are some popular songs that I believe have good theology.The primary duty of a pastor is preaching God's Word, not being a David Letterman, Oprah Winfrey or self-help motivator. While a humourous story can break ice and drive home a point, I'm also saddened by the common practice of preachers starting with a bible text and then veers off to some 'personal testimony' that is totally irrelevant to the text.
Well, it is argued that this type ofpreaching is more 'practical', 'relevant' and 'easy to understand'. No wonder some young believers are implicitly led to think that theBible message is 'hard to understand', 'irrelevant'or 'impractical'... so why bother reading it if the pastor can process it for me?
On the other hand, I also believe that it is almost a sin forcertain truth-oriented pastors to bore people to tears with extended discussion of what the original Greek or Hebrew says or make things harder than they really are, etc.
God's Word is relevant and practical, we dun have to make it so. The preacher's task is not to gloss over it with humor but to explain it clearly, derive his message from the text faithfully and then apply it to the hearers current situation. That is the kind of expository or topical preaching I find hard to get from pulpits nowadays. If the newpaper doesn't speak a word, then the stones should cry out!
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