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Are You Looking for a Church?
10/05/2003
They
devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe... Every day
they continued to meet together... and ate together with glad and sincere
hearts... And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being
saved. Acts 2:42-47
Recently, I was
"surfing" the television channels during a pause in a football
game. Then all of the sudden I saw an old series I had not seen for many
years, "The Lone Ranger."
Though, I must admit I watched the remaining few minutes of the show, I
thought about how in this day and age many who profess to be
"Christian" are, so to speak, "lone rangers." In other
words, they are not involved in a local fellowship.
The questions come,
"Do I need the church? If so, what should I be looking for in a
church?" Jesus taught we that we should worship "in spirit and
truth." Also, though our faith should not rest on a man, the Bible
teaches the necessity of relationships to avoid the deceitfulness of sin.
(Hebrews 3:12-13, 10:24-25)
As we look at different
fellowships, sometimes it is easier to rule out which congregations are
not God's churches. Here are the seven warning signs of a dying or false
church:
- The singing lacks joy,
reverence and "spirit". Only a few in the congregation know
and sing the hymns. With the absence of joy, teens and children
usually are bored and do not want to attend this church. (Ephesians
5:19-20)
- The sermons are not
centered on the Scriptures. The preacher is not straight-forward about
"sin, righteousness and judgment." He preaches to please the
people. He views preaching as merely a job not a calling of God.
Therefore, since he does not want to lose his job, he preaches to not
offend people. (II Timothy 4:1-5)
- Throughout the service
"Christ and Him crucified" is rarely heard. Communion is not
centered on self-examination and God's infinite grace. (I Corinthians
11:23-32) Therefore many in the congregation have double lives,
hypocritical lifestyles.
- People are late for the
service, displaying a low priority in their lives. When the
congregation is seated, they are literally spread out in the entire
auditorium. There is little warmth and most leave at the last
"Amen." (John 13:34-35)
- There are few visitors
and fewer baptisms. The church is not growing. (Acts 2:47) They are
very inwardly focused. There is no sense of mission, especially world
missions.
- The congregation is
always spoken well of -- no persecution for truth and godly lives.
(Matthew 6:26; II Timothy 3:12)
- The entire congregation
is not "sold out", "devoted to apostles teaching,
fellowship...prayer." They rarely come to more than Sunday
morning fellowships. (Acts 2:42) Consequently, they are stingy with
their financial sacrifice and care little for the poor. (Acts 2:45)
These are "outward"
characteristics that allow us to see the "inward" truths. Pray
that God will lead you to His church, because most likely you will become
like those you are surrounded by.
Kip McKean
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