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CHURCH STRUCTURE AND PROTOCOL
There are certain things we do in our churchs that have never been challenged! What I mean, is that they were never examined if they are appropriate or not and so we continue, oblivious of their harmful effects. Here are some examples.
PROBLEM: The pastor uses his authority during a preaching, to make his flock act or believe his wishes either premeditated or on a spontaneous whim.
EXAMPLE: Telling members to stamp their feet like a marching arming for a hymn like "Onward Christian soldiers". Ordering members to get to their knees for prayer. Forcing some decision upon the Christian who may not be ready to accept, by some outward act, like going forward to the alter. Order the congregation to stand as they read God's word, because the pastor has a personal conviction on the matter. I even attended one meeting where the pastor asked the flock that those who would die for Christ to stand up! Or in another case, the pastor requested those who wished for revival to step forward!
Now these situations may seem justifiable by some or considered trivial by others, but to the contrary, they harbor terrible consequences and go against New Testament rules. A pastor’s whim should never be forced upon others. What he considers appropriate or a personal conviction, may not apply to his flock. This may create a conflict between the pastor and his people in which those who go against his orders are branded disobedient or rebellious. They may even be shunned by their fellow members. This situation only breeds a bad judgmental attitude against the Christian and may go as far as causing divisions. Let us not forget that it also develops hypocrisy amidst those who are uncertain about what is taught.
Some Christians may also be hurt by the demands. For example, the pastor asks his people to evangelize a number of people during the week if they want to be obedient to God's great commission. Some sincere Christian will then go forward willing to obey, but if he does not succeed to accomplish his promise to his Savior, he will become discouraged or feel unworthy. This opens the door for the devil to ravage the Christian.
Now the problem is not the Christian, but the pastor who sets a command using God's authority. No man should be able to tell a Christian when, where, at what time or how much to witness. All a preacher can do is to encourage his people to witness and help them do it.
PROBLEM: In the appropriate manner, public exaltation is good, but when the result is detrimental to others, this is wrong.
EXAMPLE: The pastor exalts those who come regularly to church, evangelize or give money while subtly condemning those who do not.
First of all, this act may cause the "faithful ones" to glorify themselves. At the same time, it creates a division between the two groups. This may lead to members despising one another or initiate criticism. This of course is not right. We are commanded to love one another and not to bitter criticism. We are not to judge the quality of another Christian’s walk, unless it becomes harmful to the testimony of the individual or the church. Then the proper steps are to be taken to correct the problem. Trying to force or shame people into obedience never works. We are to pay attention to our walk with God and pray and help others with their walk.
PROBLEM: The pastor or teacher exalts his good works to encourage others to do the same.
EXAMPLE: Boasting of how many verses we know by heart or how much time we spend in prayer. Amazing victories in our life.
This leads only to pride and not humility. Does not the Bible say to exalt others, instead? Doesn’t the Bible teach to let others praise you and not your own lips?
Pr 27:2 Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips.
We should never try to compare people with the same yardstick. Every person is different and cannot be equally compared to another. What’s comes easy for one person, may be extremely difficult for another.
I am sure that you are surprised to hear that I state there is a problem with our church altar calls. In general, it has been around for many years and the aim seems right, but there is a problem with this church procedure. You might say its biblical, basing yourself on several occasions were people in the Bible had to advance to confess their decisions, but you would also have to admit that it was done on a special and significant occasion and not commanded in anyway in the New Testament as a standard procedure during church service.
But since we cannot be dogmatic, let us consider where I see as the problem and you judge. God, being a personal God, wishes to accept your decisions toward Him secretly. Jesus stated this in Matthew chapter 6, with alms giving and prayer in general.
"And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites [are]: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly." (Matthew 6:6)
Telling others of your personal decisions may turn out as boasting, which God condemns. If the person is a sincere Christian and is not seeking to boast, it may cause another type of problem. The same person could be greatly embarrassment before his church for failing to complete his promise. It may also cause unnecessary discouragement, or pressure as the Christian tries to live up to the altar call. What must be encouraged is faithfulness toward God on a personal level. The church does not have to know all the commitments or decisions people make to God. If a Christian fails, he fails before a compassionate God. He does not need the added embarrassment from the brethren. No person should be urged or prodded to manifest some change or decision before the assembly. This will avoid creating hypocrisy or pride amongst the believers.
"We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves." (Romans 15:1)
How many times have I seen Christians promise or boast some commitment, and then fail to accomplish it to their own hurt?
"But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:" (Matthew 5:34)
As for altar calls for salvation, it should never be the only means to invite commitment. People can get saved from their seats too! I am one such person. I even know someone who got saved from watching the gospel presented on TV! So to limit people from getting saved only by an altar call is wrong. To end an invitation after no one comes forward can create an unnecessary stumbling block. Always include God’s openness through other means of accepting Him. Explain and lead someone to accept Christ from the pulpit. This might create conversion at the sinner’s level.
Legitimate shyness or fear on the part of a lost person must never be allowed to stop his/her coming to God. And we as the ministers of reconciliation must not place people in this situation.
REMEMBER: You are dealing with a church filled with diverse people with diverse problems, attitudes and manners. Sensitivity must always be on our mind.
RECOMMENDATION: The altar call should be for special occasions. It should never be the only manner of producing commitment. Christians should be taught to settle their problems with God, secretly and on a one-to-one personal level. A good Christian walk is all that God wants to manifest a changed life. This will reduce situations for the devil's grinder or pit holes.
SEPERATION OF CHURCH AND CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS
You might find the above statement odd, but in fact Christian schools have in some cases have devastated local churches! Let’s consider what are the problems.
First of all, the education of our children is the responsibility of the parents. It is not the church’s problem nor the pastor’s, even if the parents are members of the church. The church has been given a particular program that does not include educating children (except for Sunday school or occasional church activities). Once a church places its time or money into Christian schools, it deviates from the biblical plan. A school should be entirely autonomous and separated from a local church. Although its members belong to the same church, it should not effect the churches program. At the same time, the school should be governed and supervised by the parents. No person should be involved in both ministries. For example, a pastor or deacon should have no part in a school’s administration. The church should emphasize the importance of developing children at home, especially in spiritual matters.
When parents are incapable of home schooling or organization a Christian school, and that public school becomes the only choice left, the church should support the parents as best as they can. I’ve been in one church where parents were condemned for sending their children to public schools. This should never happen. Sending Christian children to public schools does have its benefits. One pastor noted that some of the greatest men in the Bible were educating in the public schools! Moses was taught in the schools of Egypt, Abraham in Babylon, Daniel and his friends in Babylon as well and many others. It may offend and surprise some, but I’ve seen a Christian school destroy the faith of many young people, pushing them into the world. Public school will challenge a young Christian to stand and commit himself/herself to the faith. It will also give opportunity to witness. The child will see the difference between the world and the Christian home and be less tempted to join the world!
On the other hand, if a Christian school is badly administered, the child will associate Christianity with the school, destroying any interest or turning the child off. Sheltering children from the world can also create a void, only filled by departing from the faith. We must be careful how we judge what is best for our children. Nothing can or should replace the family’s place in raising children. It is the true and only foundation for our children.
A school, if attached to some church, can be a time bomb ready to explode. I am not saying it is not impossible for a church ministry to manage a school, but it’s still a bomb ready to explode the minute it’s badly managed.
If a church has taken the decision to build a school, it should not try to intrude into the church program. I have seen a Christian school almost be the entire focus of the church. Every second message from the pastor spoke concerning the school. How to raise children was a constant subject. This should never happen. The church should never be bogged down by a single subject or ministry! The apostles spent their time preaching and teaching the gospel of Christ. The church is to build disciples and further the gospel. Schools should concern parents not the ministry. Some call it a ministry of the church, but the Bible program does not include it in its affairs.
Church funds should never be used to help the school. Because church funds is primarily for God's program. Because those who give and who have no children or do not believe in the Christian school, should not give their money for the support of it. This is like going back to the days when biblical churches were forced by the government to pay for the support of other religions or denominations! The church should never impose where a Christian puts his/her money. This may cause strife and should be avoided.
I also recommend that Christian schools make sure the academic content not suffer because of an overemphasis on the Bible. You may be shocked at what I say, but listen to the reasons.
Prov 25:16 (av) Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it.
Although honey is delicious, even God knows that we cannot bear too much of it. So must we be careful not to over feed our children leaving no place for desert! If children are given the Bible at church, then at school and at home, I guarantee you they will get sick of it before they hit their teens. They will know so much of the Bible or become so familiar, that the only other thing new to explore is the lusts of the world. Do not push the Bible on them to send them over the cliff! I think children should gradually learn the Bible, leaving always something to learn in the future. I use this method with my children and when I speak of the Bible, they are hungry and eager to hear and enjoy it.
We must all remember that before the printing press, the average Christian home did not have a Bible. In the Old Testament, the only Bible available was in the temple and only the priests read from it to others. Something rare, is usually precious!
Josh 1:8 (av) This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
You might use this verse to prove me wrong, but this verse, for that matter all verses in the Bible, should always be properly understood by their context and historical background. First of all, the people did not have a copy of Bible to read for themselves, so this command did not apply to them. It applied to the leader. He was capable of having a copy and it was because of his important position. In our day, we are blessed that everyone can have a copy of the Bible, but we are also human with human frailty. We live in a time of quantity, but not quality. It should be the reverse.
GRACELESS BELIEFS AND ATTITUDES
Intolerance
One of the most shocking attitudes I've seen amongst Christians is the lack of tolerance.
The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
Romans 13:12 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
Romans 13:14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to [fulfil] the lusts [thereof].
Romans 14:1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, [but] not to doubtful disputations.
I bring you this thought, if God expects us to love our enemies, how much more should we love the brethren? Too often I've seen Christians treat others harshly from the pulpit or from the pews. It is unthinkable that this attitude is prevalent in the house of God. Some back their unbiblical attitude by using Old Testament references were men of God acted abnormally severe and tell us that Christ commands us to do the same today! No! Like certain Old Testament ordinances, which were abolished or replaced by New Testament values, so must this attitude vanish from among us. Did not Jesus say,
A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. (John 13:34)
If a brother or sister acts in this way, he or she must be reprimanded. I heard a saying that we are the only army that shoots its own soldiers. This is sadly true.
In any situation, we must have compassion and patience. We must act kindly to them within and without. Let's not search for verses to condone such attitudes, but rather look references to graceful dispositions.
Insulting or condemning the brethren
Often I heard preachers and teachers condemn or insult members of the house of God, purposing to awake the Christians to obedience or faithfulness. This is wrong. First of all, trying to shake a few Christians amongst many, is a waste of time. Too many times I've seen pastors or teachers spend their time shooting down carnal Christians at the expense of the faithful. When you only have about three preachings a week and you waste one or more on this behavior, the whole church suffers for it. On top of this, the carnal believers are never motivated by this attitude, but rather become the more discouraged or resentful. Pushing Christians by guilt never works either, and even if it does, it is done with the wrong motives which God does not appreciate.
In short, this kind of action is not according to Christian norms and should be avoided. Weak Christians will always attend our churches as true as Jesus said about the poor being ever present. We must help them, love them and accept them for whatever good they offer. As long as they do not cause trouble or manifest a bad testimony, we are to care for them.
I've seen pastors spend a good portion of their time behind the pulpit, ranting about Christians who do not attend all the church meetings. They go as far as condemning them, labeling them as carnal or abasing them in other ways. This, of course, is a bad attitude toward them. First of all, you can never force people to do things without a willing heart. Second, it dishonors the house of God when any member is abased. Sin can be hated, but not the brethren. It may also cause others to feel superior by their faithfulness or instill a critical and judgmental attitude toward the ones that do not come. How many times a Christian decides to go to church is a personal decision he only must face God with it. It is no other Christian’s concern, unless it maybe for warning the person of his/her falling away. How many times we go to church cannot be used to evaluate the level of spirituality either. There are Christians who are present at every meeting and every occasion, but their spiritual life and maturity is shallow. You might state the famous verse,
"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25)
Paul is not saying that we should be at every church meeting, although preferable, but that we should not end our going. Forsake, means to totally abandon the gathering. To use this verse for those who miss a meeting, with good reasons or not, is going beyond the literal interpretation.
What can one do with Christians who do not attend regularly? Well, a visit by the pastor or a spiritual member can be a start. Finding out what takes away the desire would be a good question.
If the church is boring, cold, not filled with life or does not fulfill the basic needs of the Christian, can become a good reason after the person has done his or her part to help the situation. There are ways to improve Church time. Some examples will be given in another section of this site.
I once heard of a pastor who dictated to his female Sunday school teachers, that if they wore pants at home, they were not qualified for the position. The Bible teaches that men and women should be decently clothed, but the context in which it is stated, concerns public appearances. Second of all, decency means that a person should not dress in such a manner to expose and entice the opposite sex in any manner. It would be hard to find a man, who is enticed by woman who dress in casual pants. Now, I do disagree with tight pants, which try to flatter the curves and parts of the human body, but this is not what we are talking about.
Further more, our culture allows women to dress in pants without being considered a shame or cause a bad testimony to our Lord. I’ve seen Christians dress so conservatively that the lost label them as being in a cult! Does this create a good testimony to the church? Nope. Even Jesus condemned the Pharisees in the Bible for their fashion show.
You might say that the Bible teaches a woman should dress like a woman and be clearly distinguishable from the man. True, but a woman is still distinguishable and respected in pants. If we can treat lost women wearing pants with respect, why do we treat our sisters differently?
What I do find wrong in most churches, is the attitude that if a woman wears a dress, although the dress is very sensual or flimsy, she is considered biblical! Wearing pants will be quickly condemned, but a woman in a provocative dress is overlooked. That’s hypocrisy!
This is a typical situation were a Christians condemn one sin that they personally and self-righteously abhor, while overlooking more prevalent sins on themselves and others.
If pants is considered a grievous sin and important enough to disqualify a person for ministering in church, then we should all stop going to church, because we all sin or have some bad habit that I am sure can be considered worse.
Some Christians believe that all Christian families should have many children. They also believe that if a couple plan to have a certain amount of children they sin against God's command to multiply. They believe it is up to God to make it clear when to stop or it's Him who will end the child bearing processes when He sees fit. These beliefs are not biblical and can be very harmful. One pastor believed this way and lost his wife in child bearing.
First of all, there is not a Bible verse that tells how many children we should have. I heard that one pastor dogmatically preach that we should follow the example of Jesus' earthly family and have at least seven children. Then how do we explain Abraham's situation, the man of great faith who only had one child born to him? And what about the faithful Joseph who prayed God for years to have children and God gave him only two sons? What about Noah? He lived in the early days of earth and had only three sons. Were all these men disobedient? Wasn't it God's will and great desire to bless them with many children? On the opposite situation, if a couple cannot conceive children, does this mean that God is against them? Or maybe they lack faith? Definitely, not! Ungodly people bring children into the world and in great numbers having no faith in God nor pleasing Him in anyway. No person can judge another for his or her decision on how many children he should bear. Paul said,
"Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in [his] brother's way." (Romans 14:13)
Now it is true that we live in a world today, where couples want their freedom and comfort rather than have children. But even so, it is not our life, but theirs. Each person must live according to his will and should not be condemn for it. When a pastor or teacher attacks such people from the pulpit, he is only venting his self-righteous and immature state of mind. It also may cause division in a church and make those who have many children to esteem themselves above what is normal.
DEBASING THE BRETHREN OR THE LOST
I am always amazed to see Christians debase lost people as if they were never of the same stock. They condemn them as if they should know better, although Jesus said they are lost sheep without a shepherd. What's worse, in their self-righteous ignorance, they ridicule what the unsaved do and believe. This of course, is an ungodly attitude.
"Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth:" (Proverbs 24:17)
Instead of being compassionate to them, we glorify ourselves as if we were self-made christians!
This attitude will cause us to look down upon our fellow person and then lose the desire to win them to the Lord. Also, pride will instill and render us blind to our own faults, weaknesses.
If Jesus asks us to pray even for our enemies, what should then be our attitude towards them? Christians that defend their actions, often use the old testament scripture to sanction them, but this is a narrow view of the Bible teachings. Its amazing how these christians say they want to be like Christ, but then act contrary to His teachings.
Even worse then abasing lost people, I see christians abasing others of the same household! Can God be pleased if we slander one another? If God asks us to love the enemy, how are we to act towards the brethren? The christian historian Eusebius said, that in the early days of the church, there was a lapse in the persecution of the christians. During this pause of hostility, the christians created their own by fighting amongst themselves, until persecution arose to end it. There was no doubt to Eusebius who sent the persecution. God will not allow his children to go on with such a bad attitude unpunished.
The church budget can always become a troublesome subject. Churches have fallen, become indebted or split by budget problems. Here are a few troubles that may be averted.
In our day of bad press, money and pastors should not be spoken in the same sentence. One way to avoid this kind of problem is to make sure the pastor is not one of the co-signers of checks. Obviously when church are at their beginning stages that the pastor assumes this responsibility, but once trusted members are available, the task should be passed on. This principal should include most aspects of budget management. If the members are the givers, then they should be responsible to manage it with the pastor's guidance. This method will deter any false assumptions and insinuations on the part of God's ministry.
Budget structure should never be left only to the Pastor or the church council. I believe all the men of the church should be involved and then they present to the rest of the church. This will reduce any problems occurring because of hidden agendas.
A budget should be built on conservative estimates. Building a budget based on faith can be dangerous. I’ve been in a church were "spiritual" people overruled common sense and increased the church’s budget only to reduce later when the income didn’t arrive. It caused a lot of frustration and anxiety for the members. It is in good practice to take the average of the previous year as a barometer for the coming year and aim a little lower. People are the more encouraged to see a healthy budget then see them fail to meet it.
Remember what Jesus said;
Lu 14:31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
Common sense is required in making budgets.
If a church has problems reaching its budget goals, you can begin to remedy the situation by consulting with the church members on how to correct the problem. Blaming the churchgoers should not be done. Placing guilt feelings on the members will not work either. They are individually responsible to God how they manage their money. A fund raising campaign is good only if it is done once to relieve the situation. Constantly chasing members for money is a bad sign that things are not well in the church or the budget. It fund raising doesn’t work, then the budget must be reconsidered and changed. One pastor, after reviewing the previous years monthly income, stated that those who might of failed to give one Sunday, did not catch up the next time. Now how could he said that? A chart cannot tell you if a person gives regularly and how much! If there are several months of good offerings, followed by a bad one, it doesn't mean that people are cheating God! The bad months could be the real amount on the others a period of special offerings by the people of God. In any case, a church must work with what it has with no condemnation or criticism of the results. It's God church, he will work the hearts, not the pastor or anybody else.
The Bible version issue is quite large to handle, but I would like to state some things that might help us to avoid certain problems in our churches. One thing that should not be done, is to create doubt amongst the Christians concerning a specific version. I've seen this done too many times. A preacher or teacher during his study, tells his listeners that the words given were not well translated or chosen. Now in some cases it may be true, but if we go on to do this often, this creates an image of a faulty Bible and a lack of confidence will follow in the reader. It is better to clarify the sense of the passage, then to chop it up and leave it as a defective blotch questionable if it should be read. No salesman can successfully sell his goods while focusing on questionable parts.
If ever questions arise concerning the different Bible translations, a study should be given to explain the situation while focusing on the preservation of God's word. The Christian must be confident without any doubt, that he has the word of God. It is the fundamental document of our foundation and should never be shaken.
My recommendation is to use a common Bible in the church, so that all read the same thing. I've been in Church's where people were asked to read only to create confusion. If lost people attend the meeting, they will find a consistency in the reading rather than be confused and increase their belief in a man-made faulty book.
Arthur Miriello