Life Matters

I Have A Complaint!

“Do all things without complaining (murmuring) and disputing” (Philippians 2:14).

Murmuring, complaining, and fighting are kill-joys in a believer’s life and in a church. These actions make you miserable and they make everyone around you miserable. The problem is these are hard habits to break. We are negative by nature and by nurture. We tend to naturally focus on the bad things of life. We are also conditioned by society to be negative. Bad news sells newspapers.

“Murmurings” have been defined as the undertones of dissatisfaction; “disputings” are the overtones of dissension. Murmuring is what you do in private, while disputing is what happens when you take your complaints public with the wrong attitude.

• Has a negative attitude built a stronghold in your life?
• Are you defensive?
• Do you complain more than you praise?
• Are you easily angered?
• Are you critical of others?

Murmuring and disputing can destroy your peace. These attitudes can destroy a marriage, a relationship with your children, and friendships. Murmuring and disputing can certainly destroy the fellowship and effectiveness of a church. It is sad when a church is harmed by the negative attitude of members. Some members expend more energy complaining and criticizing trivial things in the church than they ever do in trying to reach a lost soul for Christ. Their attitude is destroying their witness in the world. People will not believe the authenticity of our Gospel message until they see the reality of our love for one another. That is why Paul wrote, “Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world…” (Philippians 2:14-15).

Here is a challenge for all of us:

1. Ask the Lord to fill you with His Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23).
2. Measure your love by how you treat others. Don’t just say you love someone; show it by how you treat them. Anyone can declare their love with words. Christians are to demonstrate love by their deeds. “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7 [English Standard Version]).
3. Ask the Lord to tame your tongue. “And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself. People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right! Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? Does a fig tree produce olives, or a grapevine produce figs? No, and you can’t draw fresh water from a salty spring” (James 3:6-12 [New Living Translation, Second Edition]).
4. Repent when you find yourself being negative and work to maintain unity. “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1-3 [English Standard Version]).
5. Commit to coming to church this week and leaving your criticisms at the door. “For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another” (Galatians 5:13-15 [New Living Translation, Second Edition]).
6. Try to make your pastor’s job easier by exhibiting a positive attitude. Don’t grab him on Sunday to unload your latest complaint. You certainly should not jump him just before the service before he has to preach. Most pastors would appreciate you scheduling an appointment during office hours if you need to discuss a matter. To corner a pastor before the service is saying that your complaint is more important than what will happen in the service that day and that his attention should be on you instead of getting ready to lead in worship. “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you” (Hebrews 13:17 [New King James Version]).
7. Forgive. Most of our criticisms are over personal preferences not precepts of God’s Word. In that case, we need to build a bridge and get over it. Life won’t always be to my liking. However, if a person has sinned against you then you should seek to restore the relationship. Jesus gives clear instructions in Matthew 18:15-20 on how to lovingly confront a person who has sinned against you. In Colossians 3 we are commanded to forgive one another just as Christ has forgiven us. “Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive” (Colossians 3:12-13 [English Standard Version]).

What are other ways we can cultivate a positive spirit?

Our Vision - Fort Caroline Baptist Church of Jacksonville, FL

Our Vision

Fort Caroline Baptist Church is a regional Southern Baptist Congregation serving Southeast Jacksonville by reaching people from all walks of life.

Our vision is…

1. To be a Bible-centered and mission-driven fellowship.
2. To share the Good News of Jesus Christ with the thousands of people in our community.
3. To help people experience God in creative, spiritual, celebrative, and relevant worship services.
4. To impact our community through life-changing ministries.
5. To help every member fulfill his/her life’s mission in the world through the discovery, development, and deployment of spiritual gifts.
6. To send out hundreds of church members all around the world on short and long-term mission trips.
7. To continually foster an atmosphere where members are eager to invite their lost and un-churched friends to Fort Caroline Baptist Church.
8. To lead our LifeGroups to grow through proven principles.
9. To lead our church to expand opportunities for worship which will accommodate our continued growth.
10. To strive for excellence in everything we do, giving Christ the best we have to offer.

via www.fcbcjax.com

NextSteps Church Membership Class

 "Why are we starting this new ministry?" "Are we really trying to reach those 'kind' of people?" "You mean the church really believes THAT?" "Do I have to be baptized to be saved?" "Why doesn't this church observe Communion every Sunday?" "Do you baptize babies?"

These are just a few of the questions I have been asked by members and prospective members alike. A lot of people have various answers to these questions; some have the right answers and some have the wrong answers. Without a clear communication of what membership means at Fort Caroline Baptist Church confusion invariably ensues.

Fort Caroline Baptist Church desires to make church membership meaningful. This requires that people truly understand and accept who we are as a church. Without a membership class people become full-fledged members possibly without knowing the basic doctrines and distinctive ministry objectives of our church. I teach NextSteps new member's class because it helps unify our members around four qualities of a healthy church.

1.    A Common Salvation (A Regenerate Membership)

Our church will never have unity of purpose until we have unity of faith. We must make sure our members start their journey of faith on the same starting mark – faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. This first segment of NextSteps Membership helps people understand the basics of what the Bible teaches concerning salvation. After focusing on how sin has disrupted God's original design for humanity – perfect communion with him – the class then shifts to the only possible solution to the sin problem: the death of God's own son, Jesus Christ. Many of the people who attend this class have never trusted Christ as their Lord and Savior. This class enables me to lead people to make this important commitment to Christ. Several people who have attended the class over the years have trusted Christ and followed Him in believer's baptism! We follow the lesson on salvation with the meaning of the two biblical symbols of salvation – baptism and the Lord's Supper.

2.    A Common Statement

Next, the attention of the class turns to the basic beliefs of the church, starting with the congregation's mission statement to "Love God, Love Others, and Serve the World." For many who are new to our congregation this will be their first introduction to what it means to be a part of a church with a clear mission. The class goes through all five purposes of the church (worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry, and evangelism) and explains how they impact our church's ministry. The class then focuses on the essential theological beliefs of our church, including what we believe about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, eternity, and more. Each participant receives a copy of The Baptist Faith and Message of the Southern Baptist Convention. This is the official doctrinal statement of our church. Each person who desires membership at FCBC should read and agree with the statement. Finally, we take a look at the lifestyle expectations of church members, including their responsibility to be regular in worship attendance, to tithe, to join a Life Group, to serve in a ministry, and to share their faith.

3.    A Common Strategy

If our church members agree on a common salvation and common belief statements but not on a strategy, we will still be climbing uphill on our journey to fulfill our mission in our context. The NextSteps Membership class helps us explain our church's strategy for reaching our community and world. Included in this session is information on the concentric circles of commitment (Community, Crowd, Congregation, Committed, Core). Explaining our strategy to help people move in their commitment to Christ and His church helps members understand why we do the things we do as a church (and why we don't do other things).

4.    A Common Structure

This section helps unpack different metaphors the New Testament uses for the church, including the church as a family, as the Body of Christ, and as a flock. It then helps show how these truths shape how our church structures itself with Pastors, Deacons, Small Groups, and ministries. As a prelude to what attendees will learn in NextSteps (Discovering My Ministry)the class also teaches the biblical role of pastors as administers of the church and members as the ministers. This will help prepare our members for learning their spiritual gifts and abilities and using them to serve others in the church. Few other biblical truths can have such a transformative effect on the life of our congregation and free our church to reach its ministry potential.

We also include information on our denominational affiliation with the Southern Baptist Convention, the Florida Baptist Convention, and the Jacksonville Baptist Association. Class members receive information about our church's history, staff, and ministry opportunities. We conclude with a discussion of membership expectations.

Finally, those attending the class are urged to join our team as church members. Best of all, new church members will be on the same page and will be ready to go to the next stage of their spiritual journey with us!

Please call the church office at 904-642-2288 if you would like to attend NextSteps Membership. The class is open to everyone and there is no obligation or pressure to join the church. The class is 2^1/2 hours long and child-care is available. It is informal and fun! We are offering the class on May 22, 2011 from 4:30 to 7:00 p.m. I hope you will join me soon!

Meaningless Membership: A Southern Baptist Perspective

 
I recently read a very thought-provoking article on the sad state of affairs in most of our Southern Baptist Churches. I am so thankful that our church has taken steps to restore church membership to a meaningful commitment in the lives of believers. You can read the article by clicking the link below.

http://www.9marks.org/ejournal/meaningless-membership-southern-baptist-perspective

Free To Disagree?

The following is the sermon manuscript from last week's message on Romans 14. And just so you know, I preached Romans 14 because it follows Romans 13! J No one made me mad just before the service. I preached this message because we are in a series from Romans 12-15. This sermon could be preached in any church in the world and members will feel like you are reading their mail! We all need to hear this message.

Transformed In Your Acceptance of Others (Free To Disagree)

Romans 14 (NKJV)

Introduction: In his commentary on Romans, R. Kent Hughes recounts the story of two famous friends who had a falling out. Charles Spurgeon and Joseph Parker were both mighty preachers in London in the 1800's. They were close friends and even exchanged pulpits on occasion. They had a disagreement that made the papers. Spurgeon accused Parker of compromising with the world because he attended the theater. Spurgeon had a habit of smoking cigars, a practice many believers would frown upon. When Spurgeon was confronted about his habit he claimed that he did not smoke to excess. When asked what that meant, he replied that he did not smoke more than two at a time! Hughes asked, "Who was right? Perhaps neither, perhaps both! Better yet would be to realize that the two could disagree and both be in the will of God" (Romans, Righteousness From Heaven, p. 263).

Have you ever heard the phrase, "Free to disagree"? The phrase is usually heard when two or more people believe that their respective position or practice or opinion or belief is correct and the other side is wrong. After unsuccessfully trying to convince the other side to adopt their position they will say, "Well, you are free to disagree." Is it possible for Christians to be free to disagree on certain matters? Absolutely it is. Even though we are the body of Christ there is often a range of issues on which good Christians can and do disagree. Now I am not talking about doctrines the Bible clearly defines as essential to our salvation. Nor am I talking about practices the Bible clearly labels sin. Christians have no authority to condone sin or to compromise on essential doctrines of the faith. But there is a wide range of issues and practices that the Bible does not clearly label as biblical or unbiblical. Sadly, many churches have split and have lost their evangelistic focus because they fought over these non-essential issues. No church is immune from this danger, not even Fort Caroline. I could get a heated argument going this morning if I opened the floor to a discussion about

• the church budget,
• or the style of music suitable for worship,
• or whether our small group ministry should be called LifeGroups or Sunday School like Jesus said,
• or whether the term "Baptist" has to be in the church name,
• or whether the pastor should preach from behind a pulpit of wood or not,
• or whether men should wear suits and ties to worship on Sunday morning,
• or whether it is a sin for Christians to dance or smoke or go to movies or have tattoos,
• or whether it is a sin to work on Sunday,
• or whether drums ought to be used in the church,
• or whether Christians ought to observe Easter or Halloween or Christmas.

The list could go on and on. One of the reasons we divide over such issues is because we come from such different backgrounds. Look around this church and you will discover that we have a wide range of ages and generations represented here. We have people from different cultural and national backgrounds; Anglo, Hispanic, Korean, Ukrainian, Ugandan, Cuban, Columbian, Black, white, etc. We also have different philosophies of ministry, different personal preferences, and different traditions. Put all of us together and you are bound to have disagreements. Add to the list that we are all flawed, sinful, and at times difficult to live with and you see the recipe for disunity.

Another reason we disagree is because the Bible does not always clearly speak to our specific issue or concern. We have a desire to honor God in the matter and we often disagree on how best to do that. Many specific behaviors, methods, ideas, church traditions, and practices are not clearly spelled out in Scripture. Problems arise when well-meaning Christians, out of a desire to be holy, allow their attitude to turn sour when other people hold different views. This is especially dangerous and devastating when believers elevate their personal preferences over the clear precepts of God's Word. It is destructive when believers lift their traditions above God's commands. For example, some Christians believe that it dishonors God when men come to church without a suit and tie or women come in pants and make-up. Some church-goers believe that to change the traditional order of worship borders on sin. I have received scathing letters accusing me of borderline blasphemy because I used candles in a Communion Service once. Some of the people who get so angry and resort to gossip and sowing seeds of discord among the church over peripheral non-essential matters need to remember Jesus' words in Mark 7:9, "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!"

The 21^st Century Church is not the first to deal with these types of issues. The 1^st Century Church faced the same dilemma. Let me turn your attention first to Romans 14:19. "Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another." Romans 14:19 (NKJV)

This is a great verse for our church. We must always pursue things which make for peace in our fellowship. And we must look for ways to build each other up, not tear each other down. As we will see this is a great chapter to help us be transformed in our acceptance of others. We will discover how we are to relate to one another when we disagree. We have more in common with the church at Rome in the 1^st Century than we might first believe. The church at Rome was a very diverse congregation. Culturally they were made up of people who were from a Jewish culture and a Greek, Gentile culture. Talk about diversity. Now they were all members of the same church. They brought with them very distinct beliefs about how Christians should and should not live. They brought their own customs and idiosyncrasies. They were beginning to judge, criticize, and condemn each other over their differences. Paul knew that it was vital for them to learn to live together in unity as a mark of the Gospel. If the lost community of Rome saw the church fussing and fighting, disagreeing and dividing, it would ruin their testimony of the Gospel's power to transform lives and to bring reconciliation with God. The same is true in our community. Why should unbelievers in our community believe our message that Christ can reconcile them to God if we cannot be reconciled to one another? The world will not believe the authenticity of our Gospel message until they see the reality of our love for one another.

So let's read from Romans 14 to learn how we can be free to disagree. We will start with Romans 14:1. ¹ Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things. Romans 14:1

Transformed In Your Behavior Toward Other People (video sermon)

"Are we going to allow a church to be held captive to the personal preferences of a few in our attempt to bring salvation to the many?"

This morning I received a thought-provoking and convicting e-mail from Walter Bennett who is serving as the interim Director of Missions for the Jacksonville Baptist Association. I have posted the entirety of his e-mail to pastors below. I love and respect Walter more than he knows. He has spoken into my life in so many ways over the last few years. As I reflected on his question I realized that I have often been guilty of focusing more on those I am trying to keep rather than those I am trying to reach. I know there has to be a healthy balance between reaching out to the lost and ministering to the saved, but most of the time our church is too focused on the latter group. Try changing "the way we have always done it" (what ever "it" is) and you will raise the ire of many who care more about their preferences than reaching the lost. Don't misunderstand me. I am not one for railroading changes in the church for the sake of being trendy. I am not one who acts quickly without first trying to communicate the how and why of the changes. But I am increasingly convicted that the world is going to Hell too quickly for us to drag our feet before getting serious about reaching the lost. That is why I will never apologize for asking the members of Fort Caroline to remain committed to our common Master (the Lord Jesus Christ), our common message (the Gospel of Jesus Christ), and our common mission (to reach the lost by sharing the Gospel, and to disciple the saved so they will increasingly love God, love others, and serve the world). Here is Walter's e-mail:

??? A Penetrating Question???

Steve Furtick is lead pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, N.C. which has experienced an incredible blessing of God. In a recent article, he noted that people often ask him what he has done to be able to reach so many people.

Listen to his response: "I could tell you a lot of things that we have done. But none of it will help you until you make the decision we made in the early days of our church. That was the decision to be more focused on the people we are trying to reach than on the people we are trying to keep. As others have said, TO BE FISHERS OF MEN, NOT JUST KEEPERS OF THE AQUARIUM."

That response caused me to do some serious thinking. We talk about our desire to reach people, but are we more focused on keeping than reaching? When we look at our church calendar, budget, and what we enlist and train people to do, what does it say about our priorities? Is our vision and ministry shaped by the people we now have or by those we are trying to reach?

Furtick speaks to those who would pit evangelism against discipleship. He responds, "I believe true disciples should care more about making disciples than freeze-framing the church the way it was when they became a disciple.
...if the mark of Christian maturity is a bunch of people who want to create a museum glorifying and preserving their personal preference, and then sanctify it by calling it a church, count me out."

The penetrating question: "Are we going to allow a church to be held captive to the personal preferences of a few in our attempt to bring salvation to the many?"

Steve set me to thinking, and I know he does you. Wasn't it Reggie McNeal who said "the church does not have a mission, the mission has a church"? My prayer is that God will give each of us a compelling vision of His work in our lives and the passion for it that will ignite every person around us!

Walter Bennett, Interim DOM
Jacksonville Baptist Association

Have We Forfeited Our Right To Exist As A Church?

  "…He showed them His hands and His side…Then Jesus said to them again, 'Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you'" (John 20:20-21).

 

 

The work of Calvary is complete, but the WORD of Calvary is not complete. There are untold millions yet untold! "…All authority has been given to Me…Go…make disciples of all the nations…" (Matthew 28:18-19). Out of His divine and sacrificial authority Jesus commissioned His disciples to their own mission in the world. Fort Caroline Baptist Church, hear your pastor well. We have a mission from Christ. Our mission is not to be a country club for comfortable Christians! Our mission is to be a lighthouse in a darkened world, a lifesaving station on the seas of sin, and a hospital for the hurting. God has called us to be fishers of men, not keepers of the aquarium! Every decision we make as a church must be motivated by a desire to fulfill our God-given mission to reach the lost! George W. Truett, the late pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas used to say, "A church that is not missionary does not deserve the ground upon which its buildings stand." (Building An Evangelistic Church, Paul Powell, p. 65). If we refuse to live as missionaries in our culture and community then we will forfeit our right to exist as a church! If we are not living as "sent-ones" in our daily lives then we have missed the imperative of the Great Commission.

Church, please hear my heart. I know that I do not always make decisions that please all of you. I have never intentionally tried to antagonize you or change things for the sake of change. I do not want to be trendy. I am not trying to make our church like some famous pastor's church. Every decision I make as your pastor is motivated out of a deep desire to lead our church to fulfill our mission of reaching the lost. Christ has called us to communicate the Gospel to our generation. Like a missionary who serves overseas, we must communicate the unchanging message of Jesus in a way that the people we are attempting to reach can understand. The MESSAGE never changes, but METHODS often do. Jesus did not die for our methods; He died for men. He did not hang on the cross for our preferences; He gave His life for people. He did not sacrifice His life for styles, but for souls! I know that you will not always like my methods, but at least you can appreciate my motives! A lady once complained to D.L. Moody, "Mr. Moody, I don't like your methods." Moody reportedly replied, "Well, my dear, I don't care for some of them myself. What are yours?" She replied, "I don't have any." Moody then responded, "In that case, I like the way I'm doing it better than the way you are not doing it." The point is, if I made all my decisions based on what I like or only on what Christians like then things would be a lot different. We would never change anything. We would do things like we used to in the "good-ole days." But Christ has not called us to turn inward and do things only for ourselves. He has turned us outward towards a lost and dying community! I have no problem calling Christians to sacrifice their preferences in the name of the One who sacrificed Himself for the world. Our church is trying to reach your neighbors, your co-workers, your friends, your family members and your grand-kids. Help me as I follow Christ on this mission!

The Dangers of Criticism

 

I began a new message series last Sunday titled, "Meet the Savior Who Was A Servant." This series will take us through the Gospel of Mark. You can click here for the transcript of the sermon I preached last Sunday from Mark 1:1-8.

I am still working on this Sunday's sermon from Mark 2:1-28. In my studies, I found it interesting that Jesus is constantly criticized for His ministry. He forgives a man of his sin, and He is criticized. He fellowships with sinners at Matthew Levi's home, and He is criticized. He does not demand that His disciples fast, and He is criticized. His disciples pluck and eat grain on the Sabbath, and He is criticized. It seems that no matter what He did, there were always people around to complain. What is worse, the most vocal critics of the Lord were the religious leaders! These are people who should have known better. It is no different in our day. Christians can be some of the most cantankerous and critical people in the world. It seems that no matter what a pastor may try to do in following God's will for the church, there will always be someone to complain. And make no mistake about it, criticism is not always a harmless pastime. Sometimes we need constructive criticism because even pastors have biases and blind-spots. But much of the criticism pastors deal with is just sour grapes because someone did not get their way. The constant drumbeat of complaints has caused many churches to split, and has led many pastors to lose heart and quit.

So it is comforting to realize that even the Lord Jesus Christ had His share of critics, yet He never gave up on doing the Father's will. If we are going to be faithful to Him we must do no less. We must keep our eyes on God and do His will no matter what others may say.

"In the Final Analysis," by Mother Teresa

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered...
forgive them anyway.
 
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives...
be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies...
succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you...
be honest and frank anyway.

What you may spend years building, someone may destroy overnight...
build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, people may be jealous...
be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow...
do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough...
give the world the best you have anyway.
 
You see, in the final analysis, it's all between you and God...
it was never between you and them anyway.

How To Remain Flexible When Your Church Is Changing

We live in an ever changing world. From technology to health-care, things are changing at breakneck speeds. However, it seems that in the church people often confuse man-made tradition with truth. We must be able to carefully distinguish between what is unchangeable from what is temporal. If a church is to effectively reach its community with the Gospel of Jesus Christ then it must learn to see the difference between the message and the methods; that which is sacred versus that which is merely traditional.

Let’s make sure we understand what is sacred, and therefore, unchanging. The Word of God is sacred! Psalm 119:89 reads, “Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens” (ESV). Many things change is this world, but the Word of God remains unchanged because God Himself is unchanging. It is comforting to know that we can rest upon the Word. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” (Matthew 24:35). As our church presses on to reach the community with the Gospel we will do so with the same message of God’s redemption through Christ that has been declared by believers for over 2000 years.

Methods, traditions, and worship forms are never to be confused with the sacred Word of God. A dynamic church must regularly abandon old methods that are no longer effective. It must embrace new methods that that will not compromise Scripture, but will aid the church in fulfilling its mission. A church can become so attached to its traditions that its members lose sight of why the church exists. When this happens, it is usually the beginning of the congregation’s decline. It has been said that the last words of a dying church are, “We’ve never done it that way before.” In his book, Shepherding the Church into the 21^st Century, Joseph M. Stowell wrote, “…we must realize that those of us who are unwilling to wrestle with the issues of a radically changed society and who assume that the old forms are the best and only forms will soon be presiding over ministries that are passing from the scene with the passing of the last generation that understands those forms. In light of our changing society, the reevaluation of and reconfiguration of forms within a proper theological context, without compromising biblical functions, may no longer be a preference but a necessity given the fact that the thought paradigms and cultural languages of the modern American have radically changed. Reaching them and discipling them demands a clear understanding of the appropriate and effective passageways to both their head and their heart” (p. 35).

Changes in church methods is nothing new. For example, the church has not always had the same worship format for the service that we have today. In the year 1690 a controversy was raging in the Baptist Churches of England. It centered on a movement in many churches to allow congregational singing. It was considered by many to be worldly and disrespectful. Today we could not think of a service without congregational singing. Thank God for change! Martin Luther also created a controversy in his day when he put “sacred” songs to “secular” music. Remember that the next time your church sings, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” You are singing a song put to the melody from an old bar tune. William Tyndale also helped initiate a radical change in how churches operate by being the first to translate the New Testament from Greek into the English language. He died a martyr’s death for his work of giving the English people the Holy Scriptures in their own tongue.

Countless other changes have occurred throughout the centuries of Christendom. Architectural styles, musical styles, worship service schedules, the length of sermons, the attire of the ministers and congregation (pastor’s once would not consider preaching without a black suit and black hat!), and many other traditions have changed over time. Some changes have been harmful to the church, but most of them were helpful in helping that group of Christians reach their culture and generation.

There is one point that remains constant; some people do not like change. People like routine because it is less threatening than constant change. People find comfort in what is familiar. Change can be especially true hard on the older generation of believers. They have watched the world change before their very eyes at a pace no other generation has experienced. Their world is becoming less friendly and familiar. So they turn to the church for a source of stability, and lo and behold, the church has changed too!

It is imperative that we make the necessary changes to fulfill our mission of making disciples. The bricks and mortar, the style of music, nor the order of worship are inspired of God in Scripture. The church must change or stagnate and die. However, we must also seek to help the congregation understand the reasons for the changes. The majority of senior adults are not inflexible. They are just fearful that all they have worked hard to achieve in the church may be thrown out for the sake of change. I have discovered that if I help people see from Scripture what God has called us to do, if I show them from Scripture that the changes being proposed are not un-biblical, and if I love people no matter what, the majority of them will be supportive. They may not like all that is done, but they understand the vision God has given us.

The apostle Paul had to remind the Corinthians church of the motives behind his missionary methods. He wanted them to know that he was willing to change his methods depending upon the situation at hand and what was required to best share the Gospel. He found common ground with Jews when he was trying to reach them. He found common ground with the Gentiles when he was with them. Never did he compromise Scripture! He wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:19–23, For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings.(ESV)

Pastor John MacArthur gives three keys to helping a church remain flexible in the midst of change. Here they are:

1. First, recognize that spiritual life takes precedence over structure.What goes on in a Christian’s life outside the church is more important than what goes on inside its walls. The church building is not God’s house; the believer is (1 Cor. 6:l9). Greek scholar Kenneth Wuest translates 2 Corinthians 6:16 as follows: “As for us, we are an inner sanctuary of the living God” (The New Testament, An Expanded Translation [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, l980], p. 426).
2. Second, be open to the Holy Spirit. If the Holy Spirit is the One behind change, believers should be ready and willing to change.
3. Finally, make sure that procedure follows needs. To remain spiritually alive, a church must adapt to the needs of people. If society changes, then the church is going to have to be flexible so that it can minister effectively. A church must get rid of the attitude “We’ve never done it that way before.” Citation: MacArthur, John. The Master's Plan for the Church, p 115. Chicago: Moody Press, 1991.