12 thoughts on “Dear Church: Please Stop Trying to Be Relevant.

  1. I’m confused. You mention that the church blew it when it ostracized a large group of people, sounding like you means homosexuals, but it is ok with other sinners who continue to sin. But none of the rest of your article screams love to me. I don’t hear compassion for the sinner but just misunderstanding and judgement for people who seem to be sinning a certain way. Help me understand what your point is.

    1. Hi Colleen, my point is that the church, in an effort to be relevant, is sacrificing truth on altar of mercy. We are not called to do so. We all have sin issues. I was calling out the ostracization of homosexuals because it’s something that I’ve witnessed and frankly, I think it’s contributed to the backlash that we’re experiencing from the gay community. I am making an effort to remind the church that no one sin is worse than another BUT we must keep speaking the truth of God to this generation, even if we have messed up the message along the way. Our messup doesn’t change the power of the message. We have become a weak, powerless church because we’ve forgotten that the power of God is available to everyone who asks for it. We need to stop trying to be “relevant” and get back to what Jesus came to do: save the lost and dying. It’s a fairly straightforward message. Thanks for your comment.

  2. You have really given us something to think about. What do you mean when you say “in our natural self we’re are lost? It’s located in the paragraph where you mention Trey flanked by two of his pastors.

    1. Hi Lana, what I mean is that, if left to our own wisdom and desires, we are sure to fall into sin. The Bible says that the heart is wicked, and that apart from Christ, we can’t overcome it. Does that make sense? Thanks for the question!

  3. Heidi,I agree 100%, but the big question is, How is this done, practically speaking? Speaking the truth in love from the pulpit just Sounds like judgement and condemnation.

    I’ve seen it done both well and poorly on a one-on-one or very small group situation, but from the pulpit it Always sounds hellfire and brimstone. I’ve often wished/wondered if it would help if pastor would preach on ALL sin at the same time, show them all in the equal light that they belong….

    Our pastor does do a good job of preaching the difference between a mistake “missing it” occasionally here and there and a habitual lifestyle of sinning.

    But the practicalities of having the sin and loving the sinner are so very difficult. They are tricky on a personal/small group level. On a large scale,I see very knowledgeable and well-intentioned pastors try and fail at this all the time, which is what,I think, leads to this “experimenting with embracing everything”.

    1. Hi Sonja—you’re right. It’s hard to come across as loving and truthful, but we must trust and lean on the Holy Spirit to speak through us. The voice of conviction that comes from God never sounds like condemnation. I think it’s important to pray and ask God for His words, His heart for the lost and a healthy remembrance of our own sin whenever we speak about any kind of sin. However, I would also say it’s crucial to remember that once we have spoken the truth and done so in a loving way, the results are up to God. Our fear of man is overshadowing our fear of a Holy God. Thanks for reading! Stay strong in the power of God!

  4. So called “progress” has cost us our souls. American Christianity is always revising itself. Almost no churches do things the way people did them 50 years ago, and they did things differently than the way things were done 50 years before that. This desire to be relevant is part of the function of individualism in modern Christianity. Maybe someone will be interested in reading a book called, “Surprised by Christ.” I highly recommend it.

  5. Yes! You sum up my thoughts on this issue so well! Whenever I talk about how we have a responsibility to speak against homosexuality and warn our family and friends against engaging in it or supporting it, my fellow church members feel that that they have to “correct” me:
    “It’s not our place.”
    “We have to just love them.”
    Truly loving someone means you care enough to tell the truth, and it certainly is our role to open our mouths and speak.

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