Thus says the LORD: "Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls."
-- Jeremiah 6:16, ESV
We live in a new world where many of us miss the old one. In the old world, "You knew who you were then, girls were girls and men were men," according to the infamous Archie Bunker. If you are younger or more progressive than me, I know that world included levels of racism, chauvinism, homophobia, and many other wrongs no one should want back.
But there was a world where we were born without the threat of abortion, went to school without the sound of gunfire, got jobs and worked without welfare, got married to someone of the opposite sex, had children and stayed married to raise them, and did all of this pretty much in that order. It was not a perfect world, perhaps it was an overly white world, but there was something right about it too, slower, saner, safer, even more spiritual.
People attended church services on Sunday, whether they believed or not. It was a way of at least paying homage to the God who had so blessed America. Those who came to believe did so because the churches of all stripes revered the Bible as the authoritative word of God and preached the gospel of Jesus Christ. Worship was a joyful and serious experience marked by the regulative principles of the five S's: singing, supplications (prayers and offerings), scripture readings, sermons, and sacraments. Therefore, every week began with people gathered, then going out, in the presence of the Lord.
My, how times have changed. They've changed the world and in the church. Perhaps they've changed in the world because they changed in the church. Perhaps it's time to reconsider and old sermon from the old prophet, Jeremiah. "Stand ... , look ... , ask ... , walk."
If you lived in the land of Israel during the days of the prophet Jeremiah, you knew your world had turned. Gone were the days of freedom, prosperity, and spiritual fidelity under the reigns of David, Solomon, and good kings like Josiah. Bad kings had ushered in bad times, and an ominous mushroom cloud was forming called Babylon. The number one song played on radio stations was "Highway to ... ," the place the nation seemed to be sliding into, unless things changed. By the way, they didn't, and Israel met their end.
What does God see when He looks at His church in America today? He sees false pastors fleecing the sheep with the prosperity gospel. He sees megachurches with worship services that are almost indistinguishable from late-night discos with laser light shows. He sees a Southern Baptist Convention where, up to now, predators and plagiarizers were allowed to preach. Perhaps worst of all, He sees churches in the majority where the Bible is not taught and the gospel is not preached. We need to hear God's old words afresh and anew.
"Stand." The church should never be less than what we should be, but neither should we be more. We should not be the social justice warriors, worrying about everyone and everything else except the gospel and the word of God. We should not be the capitalistic enterprise, growing our business with various means of marketing strategies. We should not be the entertainment center, fiddling with people's emotions while Rome is burning.
"Look" at what we should be doing. If Jesus, Peter, John, and Paul wouldn't do it, neither should we. I think they would use electricity, good lighting and sound, and a modicum of present tense technology. But mainly they would use preaching and teaching, praying and singing, loving one another, reaching out with the gospel, and doing good works.
"Ask." To ask is to risk. We must ask God whether or not our church is biblical, then listen to His answers and make it right. We must ask others to come to Christ and to His church, risking rejection and ridicule. We will have not, if we ask not.
"Walk." Christianity is a long walk down an old, narrow, road. I think the older, the better. Let's walk this road together with God.
Chuck DeVane is the pastor of Lake Hamilton Baptist Church. Call him at 501-525-8339 or email [email protected].