Jump Start # 3585
1 Thessalonians 2:14 “For you, brethren, became imitators of the church of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, for you also endured the same sufferings at the hands of your own countrymen, even as they did from the Jews.”
It’s a question that seems to be asked in every generation. It’s nothing new, but it is something that needs to be looked at and addressed. The question is: “Should the church change?” Some are so bold to say that unless the church changes, we are doomed. Our survival and existence rests in changing our ways.
When one has preached for a while, like I have, you realize that this is an old song that resurfaces with a new title every so often. And, change is something that we find throughout our Bibles in both a positive and negative fashion.
The very core idea behind repentance is change. One turns from one direction and turns toward God. The prodigal got up out of that pig pen and headed home. He left the house demanding. He came home asking. He was not the same person. He had changed. Cornelius, Saul, the Ethiopian, they all changed. They repented. So, not all change is bad. In fact, if we do not change, or repent, the Lord said we will perish. It’s not a matter of simply adding church to our busy schedules. We have been converted. We have changed.
But some change is not necessary and in fact wrong. Jeroboam offered Israel a new place to worship. A new god to worship. A new day to worship. And, new priests to help in that worship. All those changes made things easy, convenient and nice. But all those changes took the nation away from God. The sons of Korah wanted to ditch Moses and get a new leader. God would have nothing to do with that.
Here are a few thoughts:
First, we must understand and distinguish between our traditions and what the Bible teaches. The two are not necessarily the same. Covid was helpful for that. Many places adjusted the times they gathered and even the way they administered the Lord’s Supper. Changes took place. Some congregations are hopelessly stuck in the 1970s. They refuse to step into technology. They believe the methods that worked then still work today. And, the refusal to consider new methods, new traditions, frustrates a younger audience. Old elders need to get with the times. We do not change the message, but we can certainly change how we deliver that message and find the best methods that encourage and teach.
Our worship services ought to bring us before the Lord. It should not be viewed as spending an afternoon with your grandpa.
Second, some want a church that is less offensive. Less doctrine and more feelings is what they are after. Moral issues, teachings about what is right and wrong, are viewed as offensive to friends. And, some are more concerned about their friends feelings than God’s feelings. There were times when Jesus offended some. There were times when some walked away from Jesus. Now, one can be in your face and ugly and that’s not what Jesus did. But, neither did He water down the message to make it more pleasant for the audience.
Third, some want the church to change to be more like other churches in the community. They want more community projects and involvement that makes the church more friendly to others. While this may sound wonderful, we must not forgot that the call to be like those around us is often very dangerous. Israel wanted a king like the other nations. And, they got that. Kings that ignored God, just like the ones around them. Kings that were abusive and mean. Just like the kings around them.
God wants us to be separate. We are to be a holy nation. Holy, meaning special, unique, separate. It’s hard to be the light when you look like everyone else.
When some declare that they are not happy, that does not mean that everyone else feels the same. Rather than changing ourselves, it’s easier to say, “the church should change.” We must realize that the way God designed the church and set up the church, that it is capable of doing everything that God wanted it to do. It is sufficient to do the work God intended. The problem comes when we start doing things that were not intended. Then, the boundaries get pushed and rules get broken and people get upset.
Our verse today, shows that the Thessalonians imitated the churches in Judea. They did not set out to be different than everyone else. They did not try something new. They did not strive to be unique. God never calls upon us to do that. He wants us to follow the leader.
Should the church change? Some of the methods and ways we do things, sure. From what God told the church to do? Never! That stake has been put in the ground along time ago by Jesus and the apostles.
Roger