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Today in much of the post-modern era church, the ethic of Utilitarianism is alive, well, and growing in unconscious popularity. Mills and Bentham I’m sure would feel right at home in many of these churches, as they may be comforted by the “using” for the “greater good” that they would find there.

You see, no longer should the Shepherd leave the many to seek out the few. No, the church should now be focused on ascribing the value of the individual based upon their merits in contributing to the overall utility. Basically meaning that you are only worth as much as you are able to contribute to the mission of the church in which you are involved. The church, in its activities, will only focus its energies on developing the individual Christian inasmuch as it believes it will benefit the greater good for the greatest number of people in the community of that church.

This sounds very good to most, when really it shouldn’t. It’s the unconscious effect of the ethic of Utilitarianism, which indeed sounds appealing until you consider the consequences. The consequences of forgetting that the command in Matthew 28:19-20 wasn’t just to “go”, but was to go and “make disciples”. Most of the energies of such churches are focused instead on another “d” word–”decisions” for Christ. Once that “decision” is made, the greater good has been fulfilled. As a new Christian you can be certain that opportunities for discipleship, evangelism training (so that you in turn have a biblical context from which to go and make disciples of those whom God has placed in your life), and even learn of simple steps to get you started on your spiritual journey will be few if not nonexistent.

Never mind Jesus’ parable of the seed ( Luke 8:7-8 ) that fell on the rocks and withered due to lack of moisture (spiritual nourishment) or was choked out by thorns (ideologies of the world). No, such seeds are suppose to go out and invite their friends to join them in their rocky or thorny soil so the church can “reach” more people.

Must we be reminded that only those who stand firm until the end will be the ones who see Christ ( Mark 4:13 )? You see, if you aren’t making disciples, then you really aren’t reaching anyone. Instead you are “reaching” people with a message that doesn’t even get them started on the journey, and which leaves them to be choked out by the thorns of life just as soon as they think they were starting to make their way.

So next time you are asked to take part in helping someone make a “decision” for Christ, listen intently to hear if there is any follow-up. Ask yourself (or ask them if they even make themselves available to you) “what’s the next step after I invite my friend to church and they make this decision?”. If you hear no answer, then your church isn’t interested in making disciples, but is instead (mostly due to their ignorance) intent on growing something built on sand.

Don’t so quickly abandon the Gospel for what seems exciting and satisfying. Instead remember that Christ spent most of his ministry time pouring his life into only 12 men, which in turn were directly/indirectly responsible for us hearing the message that their Christ died so that those who would believe in him would be saved.

Piper quotes from John Stott Today, and I believe it is a helpful reminder to everyone seeking to Glorify God in all things–that they be careful not to relish the thought of their own glorification:

From one of the best books on preaching that I know comes this word on the danger of pride in us preachers:

Pride is without doubt the chief occupational hazard of the preacher. It has ruined many, and deprived their ministry of power…. In some it is blatantly obvious. They are exhibitionists by temperament and use the pulpit as a stage on which they show off…. Other preachers are not like Nebuchadnezzars, however, for their pride does not take the form of blatant boastfulness. It is more subtle, more insidious, and even more perverse. For it is possible to adopt an outward demeanor of great meekness, while inside our appetite for applause is insatiable. At the very moment when in the pulpit we are extolling the glories of Christ, we can in reality be seeking our own glory, and when we are exhorting the congregation to praise God, and are even ostensibly leading them in praise, we can be secretly hoping that they will spare a bit of praise for us. We need to cry out with Baxter, “O what a constant companion, what a tyrannical commander, what a sly, subtle and insinuating enemy is this sin of pride!” (John Stott, Between Two Worlds, 320-321)

I keep up with postings from DesiringGod.org via an rss feed and one from today kind of caught me off guard. In the Church there seems to be this trend as of late to not allow children into main worship service, but instead place them in a “kid-centric” area that is more appropriate for them. I generally do not have a big problem with the practice, as this practice tends to take place in services that are more outreach focused. So it would make sense to remove as many distractions as possible–including unruly children that parents cannot control so that the unchurched might hear the gospel without distraction right?

Still I don’t know though, because if God is who he says he is in his Word, I really doubt that a kid screaming is going to stop the Holy Spirit from speaking to someone and redeeming that person through the blood of Christ. So, if God isn’t distracted by kids in church who is?

Often times in my experience, the main motivations for removing such distractions (ie. children) seem to come from the speakers. I have seen plenty of pastors/speakers get very irritated at such distractions to the point where they “lose their train of thought”. So, they then search for a “biblical justification” (if the church is so lucky) for creating “kid-centric” environments for children and decide not to allow them in “big church” instead of possibly learning how to to speak without getting distracted.

That’s why I found this article on Desiring God written over 10 years ago now so refreshing. It was refreshing because it acknowledged that there can be distractions, but instead of placing the value on a distraction free environment, they chose to place the value on the ultimate Goal of the Church gathering together to worship and Glorify God. The problem with kids in service is not that kids behave like kids, but instead that their “parents do not cherish the time” and “do not love to worship God”. That’s a tough sell though for churches searching for an easier way and/or looking for a way to avoid such irritations.

I was looking at a friend’s blog earlier and came across a great post dealing with the redemtion of people from the sin of Homosexuality.You can read the post by clicking HERE.

I must be honest, I am at very best a skeptical person–especially when it comes to people in leadership positions in the Church. I believe I have come by my skepticism honestly.At the ripe old age of 25, I have already experienced a slew of things in the presence of poor leaders in churches and para-church organizations. Everything from an ego-driven pastor not knowing when to call it quits by leaving his church in hopes of someone else being able to salvage it, to a bitter pastor (that I use to work for) unable let go of a bad situation that runs a “church” out of his house with embittered ex-members of his ex-church. One of my favorite speakers/pastors/writers had an affair with his secretary for years–during the time he was becoming one of my favorites. Then there was the pastor of another church I worked at that lied to my face about a situation surrounding the “resignation” of a fellow employee, talked bad about me (called me incompetent and lazy) behind my back to church elders (who stood idly by), also talked badly about my now wife behind her back, and last but not least cheated on his wife with someone in the church. Who wouldn’t be a little skeptical? I’ve considered agnosticism, believe me:)Looking back at these situations, I now know that I was naive in many ways in these very personally painful circumstances, but I still trusted. On one hand it’s my job to keep those in authority accountable, to make sure they’re true to their word and to God’s Word. On the other hand, the situations we often find ourselves in are situations God has led us to. If we are constantly doubting our leaders, we are undermining their authority, thus dishonoring God who gave them that very same authority. If God has placed them there, it is for a purpose. If we cannot trust our spiritual leaders’ leadership, then we cannot trust God who has placed them in leadership.Sure I followed these men and even looked up to some of them, but they are still just men with faults like the rest of us. But they still have to lead under the authority of a Sovereign God who appoints everything for a reason. For example, if I wouldn’t have worked at one of these churches, I would never have met my now wife. Looking back now, it would be worth enduring the painful situation all over again just for her.God is also just. If those in positions of authority misuse their authority they will have to answer to God if not in this life, then certainly in eternity. As for some of these pastors I mentioned: one now sells insurance for a living, another works on people’s messed up PC’s all day, while another works at a jewelry store and gets to tell women “that ring just simply look fabulous on you, it complements your eye color” all day long.As I said before, God is just and sovereign. Leaders don’t misuse your leadership or you won’t be a leader for long (personally I think having answer to the God of the universe is scarier). And Christians, trust those he’s placed in leadership over you. He really will take care of the rest.