Preaching a different gospel was the very thing Paul warned against. A different gospel seeking the approval of man, not God. One thing is clear with the onset of social media and hyper-autonomy: this is the generation of self. Much of the evangelical church has joined in with an underlying focus on social issues and personal well-being. The church shouldn’t be a marketplace for positive feelings, life direction, or community action. These days, many ministries seem more like rotary clubs or community centers. The only notable difference is there may be a cross on the roof and a meeting on Sunday. We have many social services, community centers, and personal growth seminars. The church needs to be the church and not morph into another moral people networking club. 2 Corinthians 2:17
I have been a believer for 30-plus years now. Over that time, I’ve seen many good efforts to reach the world. Good bible believing ministries have gone to the inner cities, suburbs, and marketplace to reach the lost. We are charged with reaching out and helping the least of these in a real tangible way. Before I proceed, let me state that many churches are still reaching out in compassion and preaching Christ to the glory of God, the ultimate result.
Wanting to see the body of Christ grow and lost people enter the kingdom is paramount and is one of the church’s main purposes. I’m not anti-large church, conference, or church growth. I attend a very large church. The leadership passionately loves Jesus and makes the ministry all about him; that’s the difference. I’ve attended some great events and left re-charged and fired up about Jesus. I believe any pastor, teacher, or leader who sees growth as a direct result of unashamed, unapologetic preaching of the gospel balanced with truth and love glorifies God.
Here is the problem: Replication, revenue, books, events, conferences, sales, members, and growth seems to be the end game for many ministries, not the gospel. There has been a very disturbing trend over the past few years. Ministries are adopting a marketing mentality. Large events are held by well know names in evangelical circles that espouse tactics for attaining mega-growth and being relevant to the world. Many ministries today focus on achieving a shallow result: numbers.
There is a focus on what people want in a ministry, what would make them want to attend, and how to create an experience. This marketing and selling of the Christian life is an idea peculiar to this generation. There is no model in scripture for making the church an experience or how to draw a crowd that will want to return. The biblical model is a community of believers dependent on the Lord to show up. He and he alone will draw the lost in…..not the color of the welcome signs or an overabundance of activities for everyone, which won’t matter. It’s not that those things are wrong, but the people in the world who are at the end of themselves and seek hope come to church looking to encounter Jesus, not for the property, experience, or a sermonette.
The marketing & growth scheme that’s popular in much of the evangelical church today is wrong and won’t make true disciples. But why won’t it work you ask? First, because it’s man-breathed…not God-breathed. Secondly, like all sales pitches, it focuses on benefits vs. cost. If the benefits outweigh the cost, then it’s a deal. But when cost dwarfs the (perceived benefit), well buyer’s remorse sets in. We need to quit placating and squirming to get people to accept the different gospel of self-worth, my wants, and little personal commitment with big benefits. The goal shouldn’t be to fill the pews but to make disciples. Because when real life happens, people need a genuine relationship with Jesus to draw strength from. We need to tell the truth: Following Jesus will cost you everything, life will still be hard, and you’ll need to find your identity in Christ alone and die to yourself daily, but living for him is so worth it. Luke 9:23
It’s sad to see numerous ministries adopt this posture. Teaching about living a successful life, being a better person, or compassion, for compassion’s sake, and then a prayer at the end doesn’t make this right. If we want to attract the world, then we need to quit acting like it. Lost people won’t see the need for a savior if we push a: what’s in it for me type of gospel. They will respond to the gospel when the word is spoken boldly, and they see the condition of their heart before a holy God. Nothing is more effective than a believer full of truth and grace lovingly living out the gospel before a hurting world.
As Christians, we can’t afford to compromise this message. If we do, it puts us on par to be spewed out like the Lord describes the Laodicean church in Revelation 3:14. Lukewarm, apathetic, comfortable, and complacent. This is not a game. We can’t go through the motions. Eternity is on the line for a lost world.
Marketing our church’s aesthetics, making Christianity a life enhancement, and making God seem relevant to our generation…that’s the prevailing wind today. Any Christian with their eyes open can see this growing trend in the church today. A.W. Tozer saw it coming. He said,
“Much of our difficulty as seeking Christians stems from our unwillingness to take God as he is and adjust our lives accordingly. We insist upon trying to modify him to bring him nearer to our own image.” Tozer – The Pursuit of God.
Friends, Jesus, and the Christian life isn’t a commodity to be marketed. The early church saw explosive growth. But how was that possible? There were no growth seminars. There were no focus groups. There wasn’t program after program. So why the growth in the 1st century? Jesus was enough! 1 Corinthians 2:2
Lost sinners of Paul’s day are no different than the lost people in the world today. There was the same sin, blight, loneliness, hard hearts, and death that we have now. Paul didn’t try to find common ground with the world, but he did have a broken heart for the world. How was his message relevant? He just preached the gospel. The simple, perfect, life-changing power of the Holy Spirit is the only thing we need to see the lost in our generation come in. Like the early church’s Christians, we must preach the gospel. This is done by living a life that glorifies God in our world, the marketplace, home, and everywhere. We do this with our words and our actions.
In a season when a significant part of the evangelical church is plagued with worldliness and desires big numbers but bears little fruit, we need a real change. I say this not in a critical spirit but with a heart that longs to see believers live out a genuine faith before a sad, dark world. People need to see what a life changed by the gospel looks like. Christians who realized their heart condition was hopeless without Jesus are powerful witnesses to a hurting world because we know he is the only hope. If believers are faithful to the gospel, the unchurched, unloved, and hurting around us will respond. Buildings, an experience, and activities don’t change people. People in the world see us; the power of God changes people, and that transforms people. They will see how we love one another and the Lord. That’s what a hurting world needs to experience.
Some words seem foreign and outdated to some ministries now. It’s as if we’ll mention them and scare would-be converts away. Words like: sin, judgment, hell, conviction, repentance, atonement, forgiveness, love, submission, fruit, and Heaven. They represent a life-changing relevant gospel. These words will be the only things that matter in 100 years.
What would happen if we made our walk and ministries about Jesus and Him alone?
We would have true converts, not decisions. We would have true disciples, not attendees. We would see real, lasting fruit in people’s lives, not momentary emotional change. These believers would impact the folks around them; that is where true growth comes from. Christians that walk in humility and love and are rooted in the word of God are truly effective.
Hell doesn’t fear growth seminars, campus structure, and strategic planning sessions. Hell shudders and Heaven rejoices when a Christian lives holy, speaks the gospel boldly and bears fruit. Let’s get back to basics, prayer closets, fasting, wholehearted worship, hunger for the word, love for fellow believers, our church, and this lost world. The gospel is enough. It has been effective for 2,000 years. Let’s not take our cue from the world. Luke 14:23
If we want to do something so radical and so different that the world and religious people around us will stand up and take notice, then we must quit tampering with the gospel and boldly live it out. Jesus: He’s our only purpose.
All for Him,
Howard
