You know how sometimes you hear something and you just can’t
get it out of your mind? The other day, I had one of those moments. I was
having a conversation with my parents who had just returned from a preaching
conference in Florida. They were filling
me in on some of the details and topics, and my dad summed up his takeaways in
a couple of statements, one of which has stuck in my head. It was a call for a new reformation in the
Church. And as uncomfortable as that
makes me, I find that my spirit screams, “AMEN!”
This year, we Protestants celebrate the 500th
anniversary since Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the doors of the
Catholic church, thus sparking the Reformation.
And truth be told, much of Luther’s heart boiled down to the authority, centrality,
and importance of Scripture. He believed
God’s Word should be available to the common man (in his or her language) and refuted
the common teaching that salvation was earned by good deeds or absolution paid
for by indulgences (which really only served to fund a good ole church building
campaign). Churches and believers across
the world today, have in some way or another felt the effect and still
influential impact of Luther’s “95 Theses”.
Which is awesome. Really.
But that’s just it. Though
we today have more access to the Word of God than perhaps any generation that
has gone before us, we seem to be the least interested people in Scripture at
all. And when I say, “we”, I mean us,
the church people, the Christians. And I
don’t intend that to be a particularly antagonistic statement. I realize that there are individuals among us
who are hungering and thirsting for God’s Word, basking in its depth, applying
its life-altering truth, but I think it bears our honest observation and
admission that by and large, those individuals are not the common majority of
those who call themselves believers.
And to further state my point here, I think we have, at this
time, a generation of believers who instead of going straight to the Word for
spiritual nourishment or for sound doctrine or theology, or even comfort and
peace and answers, go straight to sappy, watered down, emotionally driven
devotionals, which, in an attempt to be fair, I will say, do serve a
purpose…much like how a Twinkie serves a purpose for someone who is hungry.
For years now, both in my growing up years as a pastor’s kid
and my adult years as a pastor’s wife, I have heard people say that when they
read the Bible, they just don’t understand it.
Now, admittedly, I do not have the gift of mercy and I don’t intend to
sound harsh, but that simply causes me to wonder, how long did you try? How long did you sit at His feet with that
Scripture? How many days did you go back
to it and reread it and reread it? Did
you ask the Holy Spirit, our Helper and Teacher, to reveal it to you? Did you
meditate on it? Did you actually try
before you quit? And if you have
resigned yourself that God’s Word is unknowable for you in your reading
straight from it, how is it that you have become ok with that? Why is that acceptable to you? Where is the verse that says, “Blessed are
those who read and don’t understand, for they shall be satisfied with
Twinkies”?
I fear we have become a people who are so accustomed to
things being quick and easy in our modern lives of dishwashers and microwaves
and washing machines and the Internet, that we have applied that concept of
modernity to our spiritual lives as well.
And, as a shattering result, we, the Church (as a whole) are biblically
illiterate and lazy. And we sit in our well-upholstered
pews (or super cool chairs) and criticize people’s clothes, the songs, the
sermon, the programming, etc. But,
seriously, who cares? Isn’t Christianity
far more than décor and music and clothes?
In our absence of biblical knowledge, we have lost the substance. How have we become comfortable reducing the
glorious nature of the gospel to temporal fluff? Is that really what Jesus died for?
Emphatically, I say no.
No. Christ died to redeem the
lost. To restore the broken relationship
between the holy, righteous, just, glorious God and a sinful, filthy, broken,
fallen humankind. And because of His
sacrifice, we can now have fellowship with the Almighty God…and with fellow
sinners redeemed by the Lamb. Through
Christ, we are now welcomed to approach the throne of grace in confidence (Heb.
4:16). Through Christ, we are empowered
and emboldened to walk in a manner worthy of His calling on our lives (Eph.
4:1). Through Christ, we gain victory
(Rom. 8:37). Through Christ, we cannot
be separated from the love of God (Rom. 8:38-39). Through Christ. Through Christ. There is no element of this Christian life
that does not hold the person of Christ as paramount.
And that is the message of Scripture. Jesus.
He is the message. He is the good
news. From cover to cover and on every
single page, it’s Jesus.
And, perhaps, you are thinking that I’m overreacting and
that this central Christian message is clear and is known among believers. I’ll agree, it is known (by believers), but
by and large, it’s not lived out. I fear
and observe that many of my brothers and sisters who have trusted the atoning
work of Christ for their salvation, now live as though God has given them some
sort of cosmic pat on the behind to go out and live on their own, working
toward some ambiguous or self-defined level of morality through their own
efforts and that their version of what is right or what should (or should not)
be done is, in fact, the best and only way.
And they come on Sunday because they think they should, since that’s
what their momma told them to do. And
they relax to a few songs, some which they love to sing because they like the
style and some which they refuse to sing because they don’t like the
style. And they listen to the sermon, hoping
it gives them a warm, fuzzy feeling, and that in 30 minutes they will be fed
enough of the Word to last them a week or sustain them while they “eat
Twinkies” til next Sunday. And they put
money in the offering plate so that now they have paid their dues. And they go home. And they spend the next 6 days working to
live up to their self-determined moral requirements, which can be adjusted
temporarily due to the pressing need to sin (i.e. Judy Sue has just got to know
what happened to Thelma Jane; or they stub their toe and words fly, etc.). And that is their Christian life.
You know why they do that?
Because they aren’t discipled.
Know why they aren’t discipled?
It’s because today’s church is full of other undiscipled believers who
aren’t mature enough to disciple anybody due to their own lack of biblical
knowledge. And half of them refuse to
put in the time to get discipled, even when they know they need it, because
they’ll have to cut something else of massive, critical importance out of their
lives…like football or something. And
that cost is just too great. (I told you
I don’t have the gift of mercy.)
And tragically, the church itself perpetuates this behavior,
both by some leadership and some laymen.
But, y’all, American churches are bleeding out. And instead of repenting and seeking God’s
face and pouring over His Word to know His will and be rejuvenated and
recharged by His healing balm, we rely on flashy gimmicks and popular programs
and religious quippy clichés to assuage our community in order to, in the words
of one of our deacons at a former church, “get butts in the seats”. Frankly, it’s no wonder American churches are
losing ground and are becoming more and more ineffective. We’ve stopped preaching the Word…and I’m not
necessarily talking about pastors, though I realize there are some cowards in
the pulpits of America…I’m really talking about members. And worse yet, we’ve stopped even reading the
Word…and we’re ok with it. Jesus said,
“And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” (Jn.
12:32) Now He said that to indicate how
He would die, but isn’t that just the whole gist of our message? The whole gist of the Bible itself? It’s not about laboring for butts in the pews,
it’s about proclaiming Christ Who is the good news! And we do that through His Word.
D. L. Moody once said, “It’s the Word of God that saves and
not our comments on it.” So right, Mr.
Moody. Folks, we’ve got to be honest
about what’s going on and even more open to see our part in it. “All Scripture
is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction,
for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped
for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:16-17)
We need adequate, equipped believers, who will go out, teaching others,
who then become adequate, equipped believers, who will go out, teaching others,
and so on and so on. The only indispensible
and foundational tool given to us for discipleship is God’s Word. That’s what He gave us because that alone is God-breathed,
sourced in Him, which of course makes it profitable to us. It is sufficient and capable of more than we
often give it credit for. “For the word
of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing
as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able
to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Heb. 4:12)
It is for comfort and revival. It lights our path. It brings us understanding. It protects us from sin. It is a treasure. It is the theme of our very song. I could go on, but I’ll let the psalmist
(inspired by God) say a few words instead!
“This is my comfort in my affliction, that Your word has
revived me.” (Ps. 119:50)
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
(Ps. 119:105) “You are my hiding place
and my shield; I wait for Your word.” (Ps. 119:114)
“Sustain me according to Your word, that I may live; and do
not let me be ashamed of my hope.” (Ps. 119:116)
“The unfolding of Your word gives light; it gives
understanding to the simple.” (Ps. 119:130
“Establish my footsteps in Your word, and do not let any
iniquity have dominion over me.” (Ps. 119:133)
“I rejoice at Your word, as one who finds great spoil.” (Ps.
119:162)
“Let my tongue sing of Your word, for all Your commandments
are righteous.” (Ps. 119:172)
Do you see why my spirit cries for a new Reformation, a new
season in the life of the Church where we once again take hold of the precious
gift of the Word and embrace it and devour it as insatiable children longing to
know their Father more, longing to know their purpose in life, longing to know
how to cope with life’s troubles, longing to yield to His strength, longing to
walk in the light of what pleases Him, longing to be equipped, longing to be
unashamed, accurately handling the Word?
Oh may we be a people who refuse to play religious games and
instead commit to walk by faith, believing God and taking Him at His Word. May we remember God’s Words through Paul that
whatever is not from faith is sin (Rom. 14:22-23) and that faith comes by
hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ (Rom. 10:17). May we embrace repentance. May we desire sanctification. May we discipline
ourselves for the purpose of godliness (1 Tim. 4:7). And may we actually read the Bible, readily
asking God for clarity in the things we don’t understand.
For a really practical step here, if you’re looking to grow
more in your knowledge of the Word, check into joining a Bible study going on
at your church. If there’s not one, I
would happily recommend any of Precept Ministries books in the Lord
series. (I’m not getting a thing for
recommending these. They’re just
good.) These are called devotional
studies, but they are in no way sappy, watered down, or emotionally
driven. They will most definitely keep
you in the Word. There is also some
great explanation and application all throughout if you are looking for that.
If you don’t want any book in hand besides the Word itself, go for it! If you come to things you have questions
about, remember, nobody ever has ALL the answers. God’s just too big for us to break Him down
and digest Him and His truth in its entirety.
But if after prayerful and diligent work to study it out using the whole
counsel of God you still have some questions, ask somebody. If you don’t know somebody, ask me. I’ll do anything I can to help you. If this is your method, perhaps start with 5
Psalms per day…or less if you have questions.
Studying the Word is never about quantity…it’s all about the quality!
I can’t help but believe that when God’s people get serious
about seeking Him, little by little, a true Reformation, a true revival will
break forth in our national churches, which will impact not only our homeland,
but also the world with the good news of Jesus.
(I do want to make a quick disclaimer here. I have certainly not written this blog post
with any individual, any specific church, or even any specific denomination in
mind. These statements have been made
based on years and years worth of personal observation, which I suppose started
when I began attending church…which would be 9 months before I was born. My heart here has been to speak my
perspective and opinions with a raw honesty, desiring to see God glorified
through His people.)
