NATIONWIDE CHURCH COMMUNITY WHICH
FOLLOWS MAN
AND NOT CHRIST
Mark Driscoll, now former pastor of Mars Hill Church in
Seattle, Washington, has recently resigned amid a flurry of accusations of
financial mismanagement, bullying church members, and a palpable self
righteousness concerning the role of pastor as well as his own absolute
authority. He seems to have admitted to much of that. The entire network/kingdom
of Mars Hill Churches which spanned across the area and in which they viewed
Driscoll’s sermons each week was disbanded. He was also known for his
provocative “teachings” on sex which he claimed he got from Scripture but to
most of us he made out of the whole cloth of his own mind. Many of them were
too bizarre and too offensive to even repeat. He was appealing to the younger set and was a kind of a "Gene Scott" self absorbed provocateur.
But this is just another case of celebrity
evangelicalism. It is heavily weighted by the power of a person’s personality
and oratorical delivery. Before long it has morphed into a well oiled machine
complete with intelligent use of media, books and CDs, and all kinds of “Christian”
paraphernalia. And in almost every case the founder/idol becomes very wealthy
and holds power and persuasiveness over many people. Many times going to hear
them speak has a rock star atmosphere. By the way, this same phenomenon can be
seen among orthodox communities who may teach a more Biblical perspective but
who also have their heroes and are willing to spend great sums of money and
much time and energy just to hear them in person. Many times people leave that
kind of aura claiming their lives have been changed. Although sometimes that
may be true, but are they changed by the Spirit or by the power of a man’s
image?
The interesting thing about all this is that it is
diametrically opposed to the ministry of Jesus. Sometimes the crowds would swell
as they came to hear Christ, but then He would challenge them with words and
truths which would make them turn away. How many preachers say things that turn
people and their wallets away? But all across the evangelical landscape there
is a tangible sense of self righteousness and personal pride revealed in an
aura of Biblical authority. You can see how major conferences are orchestrated
and how certain men seem to embrace their popularity. Even the auditoriums are
sometimes decorated and the events are adorned with the most polished music.
Sometimes you have the guest speaker rise to speak after
his colleague has just introduced him as though he was one of the apostles. The
crowd is not there to be broken or to attend long seasons of prayer and
repentance. They are there to hear this man or woman articulate usually what
they already know and believe. And some have a few well known "theologians" sit on the stage and field questions as though they had the Urim and the Thummim. And the crowd listens to their favorite preacher speak words of wisdom and many times that elicits applause. Again, it is hollow idolatry.
But the entire construct, whether it comes from the
prosperity realm or the orthodox realm is a humanistic construct designed to
elevate man. It seems every corner of the evangelical community has their
heroes, and when they come to town they draw crowds similar in excitement to
those drawn by a Papal visit. How did we ever allow such a spectacle to become
a part of a church which is supposed to follow and emulate Jesus? The answer is
simple. The church sees and emulates the culture, and men and women seek wealth
and notoriety just like the secular world.
But Mark Driscoll is just one of many hundreds if not
thousands of men and women who have become particular darlings of their
evangelical sphere of reference. The minute preachers and teachers began to
make money from the gospel and increased their bank accounts the trap was
sprung. It is irresistible. You see, the average professing believer has those
same lusts only the preachers have found a way to capitalize on those lusts.
With television, mail outs, conferences, CDs, books, and other media outlets
they have tapped into a resource that had until now had been fallow and
unreachable.
And every preacher must have some gimmick or some
provocative way of communicating and a subtle way of suggesting, many times
without words, that he or she has an intimacy with God unavailable to the
average pew dweller. That in and of itself creates an atmosphere of celebrity
and spiritual exclusivism. The entire spectacle centers around certain people
and what they know and how they can share it. And when you attend these
evangelical gatherings which herald a person or persons you can be sure the
messages are hardly ever about Jesus, His teachings, or a challenge to follow
Him. Oh they many have a message about the exclusivity of Christ which is a
well crafted treatise, but it usually lacks the spiritual essence abut Christ
and the cross which should provide an opportunity to make a profound
application upon our lives and lead us quickly to the threshing floor of
repentance. And without that element being a major component then the entire
thing is little more than attending a Broadway play about doctrine.
Paul warned us of being known as a follower of men. Apollos
and Paul and Cephas have been replaced by Osteen and Warren and McArthur and
others. Yes, we now are divided into cliques which are identified by men’s
names. And the entire thing is centered upon men and what they teach rather
than Jesus and who follows Him. The conferences are not about obedience. They
are about knowledge and more knowledge and exciting messages that reinforce
beliefs you already have and they lend an air of doctrinal superiority. Doctrinal
self righteousness muscles out the challenge to die and pursue a crucified life
which is manifestly remarkable within a carnal church community to say nothing
of a fallen culture.
I am literally a nobody. But I cannot help but be shocked
at how believers by the millions from all camps cannot see the wave of self
righteousness that is open and public and unmistakable in the community of
faith. I have seen it in blogs where people rant about this sinner or that
politician or the gay agenda and without an ounce of love or redemption in
their words they climb a pedestal of self righteousness and yet no one notices?
Sometimes it is so offensive and so blatant that it would take a strong
deception not to see it even if you agree with the sentiment being expressed.
I believe this has destroyed the faith that once sought
to follow/emulate Jesus. The faith has become man centered even among those who
lambast a man centered gospel. It is not enough to have a “God centered”
statement of doctrine. If it does not find its way painfully and remarkably and
dramatically into our lives then it is just sounding brass and tinkling cymbal.
And that is what we have today. A structured faith with a lot of money and
noise, but who looks around and says, “Wow! Those people are so different than we
are. I guess they are following Jesus.” We have been led astray and have grown accustomed
and even fond of this deviant path.
What am I suggesting? I am documenting that the
evangelical church is wandering in a cultural wilderness and has completely left
any hint of searching for the Canaan land where Jesus dwells. In fact, in order
to return to His teachings without compromise and cultural ingredients the
entire ecclesiastical structure and practice would have to be scrapped and we would have to begin all
over with only the Chief Cornerstone as our foundation. And then before placing
anything upon that Cornerstone we would have to fast and pray carefully with a
searchlight to guard against any hint of man’s glory or ingenuity as well as
any diversion from the New Testament plumb line.
But make no mistake. That may sound exciting to some and ludicrous
to others, but it would be a massive undertaking which would consume the lives
of those who desired to please Christ. And many, if not most, would fall by the
wayside because of some disagreement or some pressing family issues or the sirens calling to a return of the familiar or just
through spiritual exhaustion. And it would take excruciating repentance that
stripped us of us and allowed the Spirit to enter with the Sword of God’s Word
and slay many dragons we have fed and housed and petted. It is a very painful
thing to have your idols toppled over when you have spent so much quality time
on them. And our flesh would scream and wail and reason, and the Spirit would
inflict much damage to our pride and self worth. It would be a spiritual blood
bath and I do mean a blood bath with His blood!
But even if there is no gathering of likeminded people
who see what you see that does not excuse us from attending our own funerals
and seeking and begging the Spirit to do in us what we can never do in and
through ourselves. There is only one thing that keeps us from the glory of a
personal repentance clothed in humility.
Ourselves.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment