Wednesday, August 31, 2022

CHURCH THEATRICS

Church Theatrics

The church now has multiple showings of the same weekly sermon, sort of like showtimes of your favorite movie so you can go when its best convenient for you! Even better, (cough, cough) the church has adopted the streaming method so now you don't even need to go at all! They have preachers preaching simultaneously to multiple satellite churches on large screens and the only thing missing is the popcorn! It used to be that churches hired choir directors, but now they are looking for Music directors, Sound directors and Lighting directors! (Maybe the big donors can be the Producers?) And the award goes to...! 

During worship they have even replaced the cloud of glory with a fog machine! (I'm not kidding! I've seen it!) Some have light shows that dance to the thumping music and the worship team are all hired professionals that think they are doing a concert. (I'm surprised they're not asking for autographs... maybe if you by their CDs in the back!) But alas, church has become more about being cinematic than being about "sin matters"! 

Why does the church feel the need to copy the world? How do we draw in the people? The church was dying in the dark ages so in the medieval days they built colossal cathedrals to bring in the masses. The problem was the poor seldom came in, yet it attracted the affluent and rich people (hmmmm!). Mega churches, satellite churches, campus churches, its all about the masses and less about the message! 

"And you shall raise up the tabernacle according to the pattern of it which was shown you on the mount." -Exo 26:30

Moses was instructed to be careful to build the tabernacle according to the pattern that God had given him. Solomon built the temple according to the revelation given by God to David. The church has a New Testament pattern that we have ignored and instead we either copy one another or the pattern of the world.

It's time for the church and its leaders to repent and come back to the simplicity of Christ and the sublime message of the gospel instead of regurgitating the same copy off of sermon.com! Faith is about fellowship not livestream, or facetime, or YouTube reruns of Sundays service! Church today is no different than the Roman coliseum. It's just a spectator sport except the Christians are being sacrificed in the stands not the arena! We must stop with the church theatrics otherwise it just may go the ways of the movies and not just the drive ins. More and more movie chains are shutting down because people can just stay at home and be entertained without any social interaction. The world is getting more wicked, perverse and immoral, while the church has lost its salt. We need to be a light to the world, not mimic its darkness. Maybe it's not the masses we need, but the few. Like Gideon, we need to choose the right fighters, instead of the whole useless army! Funny how after the pastors began building their mega churches, the pandemic closed them down. Hmmm!

“For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?" 1 Peter 4:17

Yet many went back to rebuilding their little kingdoms again. People keep saying that what we need is a revival but maybe what we really need is a remnant! Maybe! Just maybe, before we start cooking again, we need to just get the leaven out!  Let's turn off the fancy lights, worship him in spirit and truth and open up the Word of God again and teach the people about Jesus!