I was at the doctor’s office yesterday and the topic of
church came up. The doctor was telling me
he had left a church because the former pastor retired and the new pastor didn’t
fit his preferences. He said he just
didn’t feel comfortable there any more and then said (and I quote) “…and being
comfortable at church is the most important thing.” Not “an important” or “somewhat important”
but “THE most important thing”. Comfort.
As I drove home I thought of the dozens of conversations I’ve
had over the years with people that I talked out of coming to our church. You won’t find this tactic in the church growth
books but it’s one I use pretty regularly.
Of course, I’m as interested as any pastor in filling the seats in our
auditorium on Sundays. However, there
are some people that I really don’t want to come to our church.
Not too long ago I met a guy at Starbucks that had emailed
me to discuss attending. The conversation
started with him telling me about his family’s commitment to faith and how
important church was to them. Despite his love for the local church he was only
able to cite examples of how the last few churches they attended had not met
his expectations. He littered the stories
with obligatory Christian-ese but made it clear that he had been let down. He went on to interview me about the programs
and features our church had to offer. I
stopped him about five minutes into this part of the conversation and told him
he probably shouldn’t come to our church.
He chuckled for a second thinking I was joking and then realized I was
serious. I told him that, as a mature
follower of Christ, given his expectations to be served (rather than serve) he
would not like our church. I guaranteed
him I would be the next pastor that disappointed him. I encouraged him to skip us as the next bad
example and move on to some other church.
The conversation got awkwardly short at that point and, no surprise, he
and his family never came. I don’t believe
my rejection put his salvation at risk, but I do believe it saved both of us
some heartache.
I would lie to say these conversations do not bother me. We (the church) created these problems and
now we face the consequence. When we
build organizations built on the idols of comfort and convenience, we can’t be
surprised that is what comes to be expected.
This is not, yet another, blog bashing the mega church or
the seeker/attraction model of evangelism.
The truth is, only 10% of Christians go to these types of churches. And of the two examples I mentioned, neither
attended large churches. This problem is
bigger than a church or a model.
I don’t have an answer. There were times, early on, when I
did promote our church to comfort seekers, but it always ended with them
leaving. The examples usually cited
their schedule, or their children’s preferences or the convenience of another
church. No one ever said I was the
problem. Not because I wasn’t, but because
I’m too much of a coward to ask and they were too polite to say so.
I think the issue comes down to what we believe the role of the church is and the emphasis we place on certain pieces. I describe the Church's role using the acronym HASA:
Hospital – The church
is a place for healing and broken
people. Those attending and those
outside her walls.
Army – The church
has a mission to take the Gospel (in word
and deed) to all the world and our neighborhood.
School – The church
teaches us how to be more like Jesus
by following his Spirit. Discipleship.
Altar – The church
regularly asks me to lay down my
idols and live a life of sacrifice.
It’s the Altar piece that becomes so much a problem for us
today. We are so far removed from the persecution
and marginalization that the Church has suffered throughout her history that we
can’t help but be comfortable. The
problem is that becoming more like Jesus is largely about sacrifice and giving
up. There is abundance, there is joy, there
is purpose and peace, but it starts, and lives on, surrender.
If you don’t know Jesus.
If your life is a mess. If you’re
addicted and poor. If you’re broken and
lonely. You are always welcome at our church
and we have an solution for all these things.
If you’re a follower of Jesus that wants to know what it means to live a
life on purpose, serving, growing, connecting, giving, sacrificing you’ll find
a home. Our church isn't great but it is pretty good. If you’re a follower of Jesus
and you want your church to make you comfortable we’ll probably let you down so
you’d be better not to come.
