There is a common idea around now that says that the church (as in the church service) must be for the unchurched. Many surveys have been taken and many books and blogs are written about this very subject, "How do we reach the unchurched?" Unchurched is new language. (My spell check in google docs keeps underlining it.) It used to be the church's mission was, "How do we reach lost sinners?" Now, "sinners" is changed to, "unchurched". If we stuck with the Biblical language of "sinners" then we would know we couldn't survey a sinner as to what they would want in a church service because words have meanings. Sinner means transgressor of the law. A sinner would be a breaker of God's law... a lawbreaker. So a person who is breaking God's law would be in rebellion against God. The Bible puts it like this... when we are in that sinful, carnal state...Romans 8:7 we are hostile to God and not subject to the law of God nor can be! So why in the world would we ask that person what they want in a church service? It can only be rebellion! I don't say this to be harsh or judgmental, it's how the language defines itself. It's not subject to my interpretation, it says what it says.
Let's define the word "church" and see if we can define "unchurched" from that. A modern definition of church is a body of Christian believers. The Greek word, from the original language of the New Testament, is Ekklesia, meaning "the called out ones". So from the modern and original language we can conclude that church means people who believe in Christ and have been called out [from the world]. So to define "unchurched" by putting the prefix 'un' before the word 'church' makes that word a body of not or non believers in Christ. So, even when you define this new word of unchurched correctly, again with no judgment or opinion, just letting the words speak for themselves, you can conclude that the unchurched is not who you should be asking how they want a church service to be. The unchurched would want non-church or not church. And that's exactly what they get... so call it something else.
Jesus defined how we were to reach lost sinners. He said (Matt. 28:19,20) GO make disciples of all nations. Go meaning to leave a place. You go out of (leave) your assembly or your church building and you go to all nations and teach them about repentance and faith in Christ. You do not prostitute the church to be friends with the world (James 4:4) because you make yourself the enemy of God. There is one Seeker that we should be sensitive to and that's the Father (John 4:23). If we want to figure out how to reach the "unchurched" who clearly are not seeking God (Romans 3:11) we'd better ask the One who died for the Church.
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6 comments:
Isn't it funny how the term unchurched is arrived at? Nearly the whole nation claims to be Christians but most of them don't go to church (or bear any fruit for that matter). It's way too harsh to refer to people as lost because "who would want to be called lost?" So we say people are unchurched. Which is not untrue because they indeed don't go to church. Still God loves everyone and everything right? It's all good because God isn't a wrathful God. Ummm... Sorry Revelation 19:11-16
I have an idea let's know God for ALL of His characteristics, Let's call people what they really are (sinners, dead, lost, blind, God's enemy...) and let's call the church what it is (the church, the body of Christ, the called out, God's chosen, God's elect, Christ's bride, children of God, His people...) and let's not forget that hell is real and that if you are not His that's where you go.
And to think I was just going to say "I agree"!
Good point, Brent. How can good news be good news in the absence of bad news? It's not big deal that I have a parachute. But it is a big deal if you are in an airplane that's going to crash into a mountain and you gotta jump!!
If the unchurched go to church to try to be made right with God but never know the bad news of sin...what good is the good news of Christ dying for our sins? Call it something else so they don't think they are going to a place to learn about the God of the Bible!
Good, good, post, Cindy! We were reading another blog post from someone else the other night discussing the "unchurched" and our 10-year-old says they call it "unchurched" because it's not church! Duh! The simpleness of a child can speak such volume sometimes.
Excellent description of the problem we currently see in this "Seeker Sensitive" movement. As the church continues to design the church service around the sinners (unchurched), we will continue to see a decline in true, biblical repentance and faith. We will continue to see people that are inoculated to the Gospel message.
Matthew 7:22-23 "Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’"
Great post, Cindy! I hadn't really pondered "unchurched" before. I completely agree with your assessment.
Wonderful blog im not even familiar with the word unchurched until now. thanks for the insight and clearity. God bless you.
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