Pastor - Is This YOU?

I recently had exchange with a Pastor, a friend of many years (1973). His perception of folks such as I who are Church Consultants (I prefer the ID 'Pastoral Liaison') is quite low. In one of our exchanges I posted the following. Let me know if I am a "Grumpy Old Man" - our children got me that Video for Christmas one year - our spot on accurate.

Having said that, 70% or more of the people in evangelical churches are simply unregenerate. I am hated for declaring this but the conduct and the absence of genuine fruitfulness - - Disciples fully formed in the image of Christ - is exhibit 'A' that supports my thesis. When I started IgniteUS in 2000 I used the figure of 3,000 church closings each year. This week Thom Rainer in a BLOG post said that figure is now 8,000 - 10,000.

This is true because Pastors lack both the wisdom, courage, skill and tenacity to identify that lostness, lovingly confront those lost people, and see GOD change their hearts which only HE can do. Pulpits pump out bland moralisms rather than flaming heart transforming Truth. Quite simply most gatherings that fly under the banner 'church' are nothing more than a building whose architectural capital feature is a steeple. They have no exegetical/theological definition of what a Disciple is and therefore no process to measure spiritual formation. There is no Elder/Shepherd accountability applied to the sheep for the growth in grace Peter commands (2Peter3:18). They tell me if they attempt that they will get fired. Who are you serving? 57% of evangelical Pastors would walk out the door today if they had a way to care for their families. The Scripture calls them hirelings. They have activity that will wear you out but on December 31st the vast majority of those who are present for every service are no more like Christ than they were on January 1st. If they attempt to apply such the NAKED TRUTH will be revealed so they continue 'going through the motions'. My fear is that many/dare I say most will hear those frightful words - - Depart from ME, I never knew you!

When I started IgniteUS I chose the name "Neros Broken Fiddle". I did so because the church is fiddling while the nation/world burns, consumed by the culture in which they exist. The LORD warned the nation of Israel not to adopt the folk-ways & mores of the nations they were going to displace. They ignored Him and so do we. I was affirmed by David Wells many years later when I read in one of his five (5) titles that very description. We changed our name but the reality that I noted still exist, in fact the acceleration of decline is nothing short of stunning.

What say you??

The Almond Tree Blossoms

Solomon describes the aging process in Eccl. 12:5 by using the Almond Tree. When the blossoms come to full maturity they are grey in color. When an old man looks in the mirror his hair is grey (if he has any!)

This is the inevitable cycle of life. We are born. We race through the arrogance of our youth. All too soon we look in the mirror and we are grey! Yikes.

This cycle of aging is also true for churches, all organizations. They are born, they flourish. They age.

I am working with a church, once filled with 2,700 members. They now have 371 'on the role'. 47% of this number are age 70+. The actuarial table for a male in this state says the expected life span is 78 years of age. 38% of this number are already above age 75.

It is extremely difficult (as in nearly impossible) to affect transformation among such a demographic.

The Lesson - DO NOT squander the days of your youth local church. Constant unending relentless Reformation & Renewal from the day you are born is the best antidote to this Almond Blossom Syndrome.

What is the demographic age of the church where you serve? Better know this and sooner rather than later!!!

A Tribute - To the "Small Men in my Life!"

We are all profoundly influenced by people. Often the recognition of their influence comes long after they are gone. The "Small Men" I am writing about refers to their physical stature not their character or influence upon my pilgrimage. None were over 5'-7" tall. They are virtual giants in their continuing influence on me as a man and as a Leader of Men.

#1 - My Paternal Grandfather - William Fillinger. In 1929 when the market crashed he purchased a farm. He had been an engineer and traveled the country establishing manufacturing plants for the U.S. Gypsum Co. His eye sight was compromised. He wore 'coke bottle' glasses. In this new occupation I was privileged to learn much from him. He was intelligent and creative. In those days the 'sellers' walked away with only the clothes on their backs. Everything else, house, barns, livestock, equipment all went to the buyer.

The desk in my study (cf. the photo) was in the house. It, like so many of life's richest treasures, was covered in black gum varnish. When stripped and refinished it sparkles as a marvelous piece of furniture that graces my Study. This is a tribute to my memory of my grandfather.

My Grandfather had turn signals on his cars long before Detroit added this feature. The only exception - his only worked when you turned the wheel. There were two (2) bushel baskets under a work bench in the garage. As a boy of 9-10 I was absolutely convinced that anything in the universe that you might need was in one of those baskets. He could fix or repair almost anything. His quiet intelligent creativity continues to influence me to this day.

#2 - My Maternal Grandfather - Lester Short. Hard work - diligence and persistence. I remember working side by side with him. When we built something it was done properly, no compromises. I suppose he as well as I would be characterized as 'driven men'. When we finished lunch he would say as the last fork full of food was consumed - 'OK, let's go!' At the age of 4 when my mother sat down for a coffee break while cleaning house I said to her - - 'Mother, isn't this wasting time?' (as recorded in my baby-book) WOW! Did he impact my life or what?

I remember sitting at the dinner table with him and the discussion centered on righteousness as expressed in the care of animals. He cited Proverbs 12 - Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast . . . (Prov. 12:10). He took me duck hunting. He guided my trembling hands while hunkered down in a duck blind to down a green-winged teal on a cloudy October morning. That memory is as fresh as every morning sun rise.

#3 - Dr. George Lawlor - Koine' Greek

I did not begin under graduate studies until age 27. My interest in High School was baseball not academics. So, when I began language study I was petrified to say the least. We began with 32 in the class - finished with 12. Dr. Lawlor insisted on precision in knowledge, especially in the language of the NT. I can hear him to this day beginning each class with the injunction - - 'know those endings!' I still have hanging in my study the 'vocabulary ring' I carried 24/7 in my endeavor to 'know those endings'!

He was impeccably dressed. He could serve as a mannequin for Hart, Schaeffner & Marx. His passion for Truth as revealed in the Greek text of the NT matched his dashing but humble appearance. I had the joy of knowing him up close and personal through a series of service opportunities. He was a scholar, a theologian and a dedicated instructor of men who would become pastors. Machen's Grammar mastered.

#4 - Dr. James Boyer - Gramcord

 Humility personified. He organized and systematized the Greek NT. This became Gramcord, one of the first digital versions of the Greek NT. He was quiet and dedicated. He retired early to care for his wife in her latter days. This was simply the only thing he could do because that is who he was.

He helped me and countless others acquire proficiency in the study of the Greek NT.

We must each be who God made us. Part of His 'making us' is the people He uses to shape and mold us. I am forever thankful for these four (4) men and their contribution to my life and to my capacity to serve the kingdom of God. Thank you William, Lester, George and James. I pray that I have invested well those skills and competencies you graciously built into my life.

Sound Doctrine & Church Health

Recently read the Book of Titus in my Bible Reading routine. I noted in Titus 1:9 & 2:1 the meaning of the word translated 'sound'.

The word is 'ugiainousei. (cf. Arndt & Ginrich pp. 839-840)

The ministry of IgniteUS is dedicated to seeing the church become Healthy & Effective disciplemakers. The church is a theological entity. When and only then the church practices Sound Doctrine can she be healthy. We provide what we have labeled our 14 Effectiveness Criteria. These areas when embraced with integrity result in a healthy & effective NT church.

More to come in the 10/15 News Letter. Ask yourself this question - - If the church I lead is only as healthy as our adherence to sound doctrine, what is the health of that church?

The Gospel & "Customer Service"

I like Panera Bread. I called in an order last Friday night and told them I would pick it up Saturday AM. Peggy & I went by after Nic's Cross-Country race. I was told they did not have the bread, it was my fault because I did not get the name of the person I spoke to. The 'Manager' after a brief conversation told me to 'just leave' which I did after getting the General Manager's name etc. I sent him an email when we got home.

He called me later that day. He was returning from Montgomery going back to Decatur where the Penera store he manages is located. He ask me for our home address. He stopped in Birmingham, got the bread I wanted and delivered it to our house! That is Customer Service!! I witnessed to him and told him to get Raving Fans by Ken Blanchard, read it and teach the principles to his employees. He ordered a copy Saturday night. I told him he would own Panera Bread in 5 years if they apply all that is in that title. He continues to correspond with me.

This morning I read a BLOG post by my friend Kevin DeYoung on "Customer Service" as transacted by the church. He gave two examples of experiences he recently had in this realm. One was similar to the anecdote I posted above. The other was horrific. He lists some probing questions to help you evaluate the kind of service your church provides to the people you minister to. Answer this list and give yourself a score using a scale of 0-100.

    * Does your church have a website that is easy to navigate?


    * Are the basic things like worship times, directions, and contact information easy to find online?


    * Is your automated phone system simple to understand and to operate?


    * Do you have a system in place to respond promptly and friendly to general inquiries?


    * Does your office staff (and everyone else for that matter) know how to graciously answer questions (even dumb ones) or connect people with the right person who can?


    * Do you convey an attitude that says “I am happy to help and glad you called/wrote/stopped by” or one that says “You are a bother and your problems are unimportant to me”?


    * Is your Sunday morning crew (ushers, greeters, check-in folks, etc.) friendly and knowledgeable or territorial and easily frustrated?


    * Are the rooms in your church well marked and the appropriate signs clearly displayed?


    * Is the information on your website and in your bulletin up to date and accurate?


    * Can people depend on the church staff to follow through on commitments, remember their calendar, communicate ahead of time about meetings and important events, and respond to reasonable questions (or direct them to people who can)?


    * Is your church clean?


How did you do? It really does matter!!

The Pathology of Theology

A century ago Charles Haddon Spurgeon was a leading light in the evangelical world. His sermons were published each week. His influence was enormous. His battle for the preservation of orthodoxy among evangelicals soon found him standing pretty much alone. He took on the establishment and was pummeled for his stand. This has been true down through the annals of Christian History. The war is always raging in the struggle to maintain orthodoxy.

In March 1887, Charles Spurgeon published the first of two articles entitled "The Down Grade" in his monthly magazine, The Sword and the Trowel. The articles were published anonymously, but the author was Robert Shindler, Spurgeon's close friend and fellow Baptist pastor. Shindler wrote the articles with input from Spurgeon, who footnoted the first article with a personal endorsement: "Earnest attention is requested for this paper. . . . We are going down hill at breakneck speed."[2] Tracing the state of evangelicalism from the Puritan age to his own era, Shindler noted that every revival of true evangelical faith had been followed within a generation or two by a drift away from sound doctrine, ultimately leading to wholesale apostasy. He likened this drifting from truth to a downhill slope, and thus labeled it "the down-grade."

 A cursory examination of the state of evangelicalism in the United States reflects vivid parallels with this 'down-grade'. Only a blind man or a heretic will disavow this trend.

Doctrine is a seamless garment. Heresy in one area pollutes and corrupts the whole. To pretend that some aspects of foundational Truth are subject to varying interpretations and application is at best naieve and at worst consigning the church to a trajectory that leads to apostasy. History confirms this premise over and over and over.

Spurgeon sounded the alarm. He was largely ignored. History has confirmed the accuracy of his concern. The question before us is this - -"Will we engage in aimless dithering or will we take a gracious, irenic and compassionate stand for Truth? Joshua and Caleb understood the wretched end of following the 'majority rules' approach to doctrine and Truth.

Where do you stand?

Ceasar - Keep Your Nose out of Our Prayer Tent!

Monday, August 5, 2013 Organizations

ERLC defends sectarian public prayers

The public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention says in a legal brief that the government has no business parsing prayers delivered at public gatherings.

The Southern Baptist Convention Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court Aug. 2 defending prayers offered in Jesus’ name at government meetings.
The first legal brief filed since Russell Moore took over as the new chief of Southern Baptists’ moral- and religious-liberty concerns agency weighs in on The Town of Greece v. Galloway, the Supreme Court’s first major case testing the constitutionality of legislative prayers in 30 years.
Until 1999, city council meetings in the upstate New York community near Rochester began with a moment of silence. Since then board meetings have started with spoken prayer led by an invited member of the local clergy.

Two citizens – one Jewish and the other an atheist – objected that the overwhelmingly Christian content of the prayers violated the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause by favoring a particular faith over all others.

The 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled in 2012 that the town’s process for selecting prayer-givers virtually ensured a Christian viewpoint and “had the effect, even if not the purpose, of establishing religion.”

The ERLC brief argues that government officials cannot be asked to police religious speech in a public forum.

Russell Moore“ We shouldn’t have a state-sponsored Baptist church, I agree,” Moore said in a statement, “but we shouldn’t have a state-sponsored Unitarian church either, and that’s what some are attempting.”

The brief, drafted in part by Michael Whitehead, a Kansas City attorney who represents the Missouri Baptist Convention as general counsel, says the appellate ruling makes judges “the arbiters of this new orthodoxy of ‘neutrality,’ setting standards by which deities may be addressed in public prayers.”
“Of course, such impulses have existed for almost as long as prayers have been given,” it argues. “King Darius, the Mede, was also concerned about civic religion in an ancient incident involving the prayers of government employees and a den of lions.”

“There, too, public prayers were allowed, if directed to the government’s watered-down deity,” the brief continues. “It is a questionable improvement that the 2nd Circuit would punish prayers to the wrong gods by casting officials into a mere den of lawyers.”

The brief also invokes John Leland, a Virginia Baptist minister and important figure in America’s struggle for religious liberty that led to drafting of the First Amendment.
“Parsing the words of a prayer is no business for federal judges,” commented Whitehead, co-counsel in a 1981 victory before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of equal access for university students at the University of Missouri-Kansas City to use the student union for prayer and Bible study.
“Judges should leave the parsing to the parson,” Whitehead said. “There should be a wall of separation protecting praying citizens from a government-mandated civil religion.”

The 2nd Circuit noted that “a substantial majority of the prayers” in the lawsuit record contained uniquely Christian language. Roughly two-thirds included references to "Jesus Christ," "Jesus," "Your Son" or the "Holy Spirit." Almost all such prayers concluded with a statement that the prayer had been given in Jesus Christ's name.

“It is no small thing for a non-Christian (or for a Christian, for that matter) to pray ‘in the name of Jesus Christ,’” the court said. “Prayers delivered in this fashion invoke a deity in whose divinity only those of the Christian faith believe, and do so to the clear exclusion of other faiths.”
Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which filed the lawsuit against the town of Greece on behalf of two women plaintiffs in 2008, says by sponsoring persistently sectarian prayers, the town board publicly aligned itself with a single faith.

“In so doing, the board sends the message to non-Christians that they are unwelcome at board meetings and that the board does not represent non-Christian concerns,” the complaint alleged. “Making non-Christians second-class citizens in the body politic runs afoul of the United States Constitution.”
The Supreme Court upheld the Nebraska legislature’s practice of opening with a prayer offered by a state-employed chaplain with its Marsh v. Chambers decision in 1983, finding that legislative prayer was “deeply embedded in the history and tradition of this country.”

“In light of the unambiguous and unbroken history of more than 200 years, there can be no doubt that the practice of opening legislative sessions with prayer has become part of the fabric of our society,” the high court said in Marsh. “To invoke Divine guidance on a public body entrusted with making the laws is not, in these circumstances, an ‘establishment’ of religion or a step toward establishment; it is simply a tolerable acknowledgment of beliefs widely held among the people of this country.”
Hollyn Hollman, general counsel for the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, said just because something is constitutional doesn’t make it right.

“A moment of silence before a board meeting is preferable,” Hollman said in the June 2013 edition of Report from the Capital. “While the legislative prayer practice was upheld in Marsh, there has been a tendency to stretch that ruling’s boundaries in ways that undermine the expectation of government neutrality toward religion.”

Holman said the Supreme Court’s decision to hear the Greece case “provides an opportunity to clarify an aspect of religious liberty law that has become the subject of a great deal of litigation in recent years.”

Posted at AB Press on 2013/08/05