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This picture is of a billboard in Chattanooga, Tennessee and is a perfect example of what Dru Morgan is talking about in the following note that he wrote on Facebook:
Many in the church today believe that the only way to reach the world is to give the unchurched multitudes what they want. Hundreds of churches have followed precisely that theory, actually surveying unbelievers to learn what it would take to get them to attend.
Subtly the overriding goal is church attendance and worldly acceptability rather than a transformed life. Preaching the Word and boldly confronting sin are seen as archaic, ineffectual means of winning the world. After all, those things actually drive most people away. Why not entice people into the fold by offering what they want, creating a friendly, comfortable environment, and catering to the very desires that constitute their strongest urges? As if we might get them to accept Jesus by somehow making Him more likable or making His message less offensive.
That kind of thinking badly skews the mission of the church. The Great Commission is not a marketing manifesto. Evangelism does not require salesmen, but prophets. It is the Word of God, not any earthly enticement, that plants the seed for the new birth (1 Peter 1:23). We gain nothing but God's displeasure if we seek to remove the offense of the cross.
My complaint is with a philosophy that relegates God and His Word to a subordinate role in the church. I believe it is unbiblical to elevate entertainment over biblical preaching and worship in the church service. And I stand in opposition to those who believe salesmanship can bring people into the kingdom more effectively than a sovereign God. That philosophy has opened the door to worldliness in the church.
Adapted from Ashamed of the Gospel, © by John MacArthur. All rights reserved.
http://www.gty.org/Resources/Articles/511
During my last trip to Memphis, I attended the Sunday morning service at Kirby Woods Baptist Church. I did a church search on the Southern Baptist Convention website and after reviewing the KWBC website, I felt like it would be a good place to worship.
I wasn't sure what to expect but when the pastor prayed the opening prayer and said "I pray that if there is one here that doesn't know you that they would be convicted of their sins and turn from them and put their trust in Christ", I knew it was going to be a wonderful service.
Rev. Jim Collier preached a message titled "Who Is God?" This was his opening statement:
"There are many different concepts of who God is all around us. We hear different things on the radio and see things on the tv and we read things in the newspaper and we hear things like well as long as we all believe sincerely it doesn’t matter what we call God. And we hear things like as long as we just love one another then we’ll honor God and we’ll all eventually get to where we’re going as long as we do what we think is right. Friends I want you to understand that while that might be nice and while that might be generous it’s not biblical and so we need to see what God’s word says."
I won't spoil the rest of it for you but please take the opportunity to listen to this sermon. I promise you won't be disappointed. It is directly from God's word and teaches repentance and faith in Christ. Click here to listen to this message in it's entirety. I pray that you will be as blessed as I was.
