Worldly Christianity?

When We Substitute Philosophy for Doctrine...

The last few weeks in Missouri have not been without internet controversy for the religious community. On February 21, the preacher at First General Baptist Church in Malden, MO gave a sermon that landed him in the national news (and not in a good way). It seemed as though my Facebook feed was full of comments from religious and non-religious friends alike about the horribly carnal perspectives of the message. Among the valid claims against the sermon were these:

• It reduces the value of women in marriage to mere physical attraction.

• It implied that if a man commits adultery, it is at least partly the wife’s fault for not trying hard enough to be attractive. 

• It claimed that man has an excuse to commit adultery (at least with his eyes) because we are “visually driven” and “God made us this way.” 

• Points in the sermon included “Weight Control”, “Make Up” and “Flattering Clothing”

• The sermon included multiple jabs at women who did not fit the preacher’s vision of the perfect wife. 

There is obviously a lot wrong with this message, but I firmly believe that the issues listed above are just symptoms of a more common and deadly disease. Unfortunately, I was unable to find a recording of the full sermon online (the church has since taken down the video and deleted their facebook page), but I was able to view about a third of the sermon that was screen recorded by a member. In that portion of the message several points were made…..without a shred of scripture. According to articles I read about the controversy, the preacher did at one point quote I Corinthians 7:4, “the wife has no longer all the rights over her own body, but shares them with her husband”, drawing points from that part of the verse before acknowledging its second half: “And likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife.” 

When so little scripture is used in a sermon, and when so many points are made without the foundation of inspired word, we really must ask ourselves whether the words we are hearing are the teachings of God or just the opinions of the man speaking them. I truly understand the outrage that is pouring out of the woodwork towards this disrespectful and misogynistic sermon, but I do question why we should be surprised. This is just an extreme example of the real problem that has infected America’s churches: the problem of replacing scripture with psychology, doctrine with philosophy, a thirst for spiritual knowledge with a quest for intellectual dominance, and the willingness and eagerness to suffer for Christ with a “Your Best Life Now” brand of Christianity. “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.” (Col. 2:8). It’s not always so glaringly obvious as in this example, but in any sermon that replaces the wisdom of God with the wisdom of men, the teachings are going to be equally gross and foolish in comparison with the perfect teachings of God. 

The favorite memory verse of many, II Timothy 3:16-17 reads, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” We have been given the perfect tool for teaching (ourselves first and then others!) by God. Not only is it helpful, but it’s all we need to be complete and wholly prepared! And yet, in so many of the nation’s pulpits we find sermons not only barren of Scripture, but in contrast to it. It makes no sense to me when we have access to the infinite wisdom of God, why anyone would revert back to the wisdom of man, or why any preacher would not put it to use in his sermons. “The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” (I Cor. 1:25).

 “But Sam, it’s just so outdated,” they say. “People don’t want Scripture, they want to be entertained! We have to attract the masses somehow!” Ah yes, the market driven approach. Give the people what they want... but what about what God wants? Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that “the hour is coming, and now is, when *true* worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23-24). People come out in droves for the light shows and smoke screens provided by American mega churches, to feel the emotion packed into the guitar riffs, to have the ever so valuable “religious experience” they are looking for. Of what use is all of this if it is not done “in spirit and in truth”? None. It is not true worship. Paul said that he would rather speak five words with understanding for the benefit of others, than ten thousand words in a tongue that were not understood (I Cor. 14:9). Similarly, are not five “true worshippers” who want to serve God better than ten thousand who are there for their own gratification, to be like the world but at the same time feel righteous? The former are effective, the latter are vain.

In another recent controversial article from last week (this time, I think, in a good way), John MacArthur wrote about “the demise of frivolous religion” in America. In this article, he outlines how he believes that the struggles of the last year will deal a death blow to the “what can God do for me?”, irreverent entertainment brand of megachurch Christianity, as well as the failed “prophet pastors” who claimed to have inspired knowledge regarding COVID or the Presidency (of course such claims fell flat). Though I distinctly disagree with John MacArthur on a wide variety of doctrinal issues, he rightly observes that these fake brands of Christianity “lack the solemnity, stability and sobriety that characterize authentic devotion to God.” 

As a nation, those who claim to be Christians have horribly confused the words “edification” and “entertainment”. The culture of modern churches is casual and carefree instead of reverent; even the architecture of modern church buildings is theatrical, often having a stage front and center. Of course there is nothing necessarily wrong with such architecture, but it is illustrative of the broad selfish attitude that is characteristic of too many American churches. Instead of focusing on service to God, the goal is to give the worshipper a “good experience”. 

Leviticus 10:1-2 reads, “Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censor and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.” So many times I have read these two verses when studying the authority of God- specifically in regard to the mode of worship and the attitude of presumption that goes with doing what God “has not commanded”. These are great lessons to take from these verses, but too many times I have overlooked the *big* point of this story, found in verse 3: “And Moses said to Aaron, ‘This is what the Lord spoke, saying: ‘By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; and before all the people I must be glorified.’” 

God is holy! He is sanctified, hallowed, pure, and clean! By those who come near to Him, He must be treated as such. That is the real lesson. It is easy to look through history and watch the church become more like the world, following and adopting aspects of surrounding cultures and religions along the way. In cases like the February 21 sermon in Maldon, MO it is glaringly obvious when a church slips away from the wisdom of God and begins to follow man made theories (and poor ones at that). It’s not always that obvious though. As Christians, we are to be set apart and holy, just like God is holy. I Peter 1:13-16 reads “Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’” We cannot be Christians and be like the world. We cannot divide ourselves up, keeping one foot in the church and one foot in the world. “A house divided against itself cannot stand” (Matt 12:25),  we are supposed to be a spiritual house for God (I Pet 2:5, Eph. 2:22, I Cor. 6:19) and we cannot serve two masters (Matt. 6:24). “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Rom. 12:2). 

We are “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that [we] may proclaim the praises of Him who called [us] out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.” (I Peter 2:9-10). How ashamed should we be if we realize that we, God’s “own special people” aren’t acting so special? If our church services are indiscernible from a rock concert, or a theatrical performance, or a comedy routine, or a philosophy/psychology lecture, or a worldly marriage seminar, then how are we acting any better than we were before we gave our lives to Christ? We are following the same flawed wisdom as before. The very next verses say that we should be “pilgrims” and “sojourners”, that “our conduct be honorable among the Gentiles” in such a way that people will know that we are not just citizens of earth. They should view us, and we should view ourselves, as foreigners. 

Take a good look at the church you are attending. Is it adapting and molding itself to the ideologies and preferences of the world around it, or are the members living holy lives that are distinctly different from the world and molding themselves to the ways of God- trying to pull people out of a sinful and corrupt culture and into the love of Christ? Is the church service centered on God- worshipping Him His way, focusing on His word, edifying His people with His love and knowledge to advance their relationship with Him? Or is it “seeker-centered”- the focus on giving the congregant an experience, trying to use psychology and self-help advice to advance physical lives?  

Churches that embrace the world and worldliness will not last. It is amazing to me that so many churches who change with the times in an effort to be “different” are in fact leaving behind the only thing that separates them from the rest of the world! As a wise brother said to me a few years ago, “if you try to out-world the world, the world will win.” Your church is going to reach people by making an exciting movie…. More exciting than Star Wars? They will draw people in with an epic rock band…. More epic than Pearl Jam? The attractiveness of the church is and forever will be simply the gospel, “for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes!” (Rom. 1:16).  Let us not be “ashamed of the gospel”, rather embracing it wholly and leaving behind the wisdom of the world from which we were called.