January 28, 2010
Turning the Tables
Last Sunday a woman wanted to stand in our church foyer to get signatures on a petition. Though she had a worthy cause, I think she also had poor motives. She wasn’t looking at us as a body of fellow believers worshipping God, rather she just saw us a group of people where she could get numerous signatures in one fell swoop. For her we were no different than the customers coming and going at the grocery store. It sort of reminds me of Jesus turning over the tables of the money changers. “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.” (Matt 21:13 ESV)
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1 comment:
Gail;
-----Out of its own organization, church has become an entity in itself. But there is no Biblical principle or precedent for this. Instead, the Biblical perspective is of church being all those who have given their lives to the Lord. Each believer has interests and objectives that are pruned, grown, and guarded by their ability to understand Scripture through His Spirit. A church’s discernable character and personality should then mostly become visible in the pooling of the interests and objectives of His followers who gather. But the fact that people tend to be creatures of habit, living their lives in the confines of local areas, raises the reality that they tend to meet at certain places with certain others. So certain gatherings do take on more or less fixed attributes. Yet these should not rise to rules in the church lest its service to the Lord and the Lord’s service to it becomes subjected to a truly tiny box bounded by rules beyond what is written.
-----I Corinthians 14 pictures a church service being much less controlled and programmed than we find it in the church today. “When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.” (I Cor 14:26) Of course, there must be some control and program, “...but all things should be done decently and in order..” (vs. 40) However, the service is not to be the program; the program should simply be the service guide. The vitality of the Spirit in the issues of His people’s lives rests in part upon the flexibility of their interactions amongst one another.
-----I know nothing about this lady who stood in the foyer of your church. I know only that you felt her cause worthy. Suppose she passed the first test an orderly Biblical gathering should make: she was known to be given to the Lord in His Word. Should the fact that she does not habitually meet there with your familiar brothers and sisters exclude her interests and objectives from the program of the Sunday gathering? Personally, I would say absolutely not! Maybe there is something about them the Spirit needs for your congregation’s participation. She is a body part, too, having met the first test. What then might exclude them? If her motive was to just get signatures on a pet petition, bid her good-day, for the assembly probably faces more important issues. But if her issue rose to a significant level of importance, then her motive would not merely be for her self. The issue would bear implication on the lives of the people comprising the church, which, remember, impacts the character of the church. What is edification other than to build up one another? Should it be defined into a tiny box as well? In as much as some issues are very important culturally, it is certainly edifying to be able to take part in their shaping. Which thing signing a petition does. Besides, if the issue rises high in importance, and if it is not commonly known, I believe prudence moves her from the foyer into the gathering to edify even more with some education about it. If there must be concern over the sanctity of the pulpit, then I think the pulpit has lost the Spirit’s opportunity to vitally engage with the Word fundamental issues of both culture and His own people. For the preacher always gets his turn next.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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