February 21, 2007
Comparing Notes
At a recent writer’s conference I visited with people from coast to coast and occasionally we shared with one another the struggles taking place in our churches. I asked one woman if she’d read And the Shofar Blew by Francine Rivers. “Yes,” she said laughing. “My friends and I were calling each other saying can you believe how this sounds like our church.” During a similar conversation with others, another woman fired rapidly, “It’s not just my church. Other churches are going through what we are? What’s going on? Is there something spreading across the country through all the churches?” I believe there is in fact a mutated virus spreading through churches. The diagnosis and cure will come when we begin honestly sharing our collective symptoms with one another. As you’ve read in previous blog posts, my church is running a temperature, breaking out in a rash and experiencing heart palpitations. So, how’s your church feeling?
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Gail;
-----I was attending XXC during much of the time it was breaking down by the ravages of this virus you have mentioned. I took note of not only the manner by which the virus attacked the various functions of that church body, but also the resultant symptoms. Among many important symptoms, your blog of today touches upon one that is particularly important to success of the viral attack. It seems to be some form of laryngitis driven by the church leader/carriers of the virus.
-----When XXC had arrived at the disease’s stage of deeper gagging and coughing, I recall hearing regular exhortations from the pulpit to go to the leaders with your complaints. Any talk among one another was equated with gossip. Any talk with another outside the church was represented as that highest disloyalty of not “keeping it in the family.”
-----I know you remember those days too. Malachi 3:16 was always close to my mind, because I have always known that ideas kept within die, but ideas shared grow into plans, strategies, and accomplishments. But I worried about wearing out my welcome by beating this verse to death, and you know I did beat it often. The whole throat of the body seemed to be clogged with the fear of being perceived as evil if they failed to keep their ideas under quiet cover.
-----Malachi is a short book about the opportunism of the wealthy, a growing cynicism among the people, unfit tithes and offerings being given to the Lord, insufficient tithes and offerings, and unfaithfulness. Form this book the universal exhortation to support your local church has gone out, “Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house…” (Malachi 3:10) Numerous preachers and church leaders have conveniently found this passage, but have conveniently not noticed what proceeded it, “And now, oh priests, this commandment is for you. If you will not listen, if you will not lay it to heart to give glory to My name, says the Lord of Hosts, then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings…that My covenant with Levi may hold, says the Lord of Hosts. My covenant with him was a covenant of life and peace, and I gave them to him that he might fear…True instruction was in his mouth and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with Me in peace and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity. For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and men should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of Hosts. But you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble by your instruction; you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of Hosts, so I make you despised and abased before all the people, in as much as you have not kept my ways but have shown partiality in your instruction.” (Malachi 2:1-9)
-----I remember the partiality shown by the leaders of XXC when they were pushing to overturn its traditional culture. I remember the pleas to them for more traditional hymns. These only received rebuke because “traditional” was not the style the leaders had decided to be partial towards. I remember the days when anyone who came to the leaders with a complaint about too much contemporary celebration and too little traditional reverence were told, without hesitation, that if they did not like what was happening at XXC, there was a church down the street where they would be happier.
-----At the same time this was occurring, the current preacher at XXC delivered one memorable sermon in front of the stage-full of musical instruments, music stands, and strewn about electrical cords that were so instrumental (pardon the pun) in the offense felt by so many of our grandparents. There he stated that if anything he did offended even one brother or sister, he would not do it. A bit over a year later he delivered a fine sermon on the necessity of compromise within the body the week before he and the leaders of his church flat rejected another written request for compromise on the issue of church culture.
-----So easy it is to glean Scripture from one page to feed our intentions, and ignore what is on the other side of the leaf which condemns those very plans. So it is important for laryngitis to settle deeply and securely in the throats of the sheep in order to make one of these magnificent mega-churches come to life. The leaders can not have anyone knowledgeable in the Scriptures going about and revealing these mega-church ambitions for what they are in the light of the Holy Bible.
----Six verses beyond the favorite “give to the church” text is another little noticed Scripture of the interesting 3:16 series. “Then those who feared the Lord spoke with one another; the Lord heeded and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before Him of those who feared the Lord and thought on His name.” (Malachi 3:16) How different it is to fear the Lord and think on His name than it is to fear the church leaders and think on their rebukes. “They shall be Mine, says the Lord of Hosts, My special possession on the day when I act and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him.“ (Malachi 3:17) How much more blessed and secure is the church when those who fear the Lord take the opportunity to speak the truth from the wisdom that has begun within them. “Then once more you shall distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.” (Malachi 3:18)
----Thank you sincerely, Gail, for this blog where those who fear Him may talk with one another. And may we all muster the courage to speak the truth in love, even about the wrongs in the church.
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