Tag: Adventists

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Church Hopper or Minister

Photo by Marco Gomes
I recently heard a preacher preach about a common phenomenon in all of Christiandom, the church hopper.

What is a church hopper? It is one who simply moves from church to church following the next big “high.” When a new exciting pastor comes to town, they go join it. We often see this when a Mega Church grows at the expense of many smaller churches. In the city in which I live, I have seen some jump from church to church as pastors come and go. One very dynamic preacher left town and the migration to another powerful speaker started. Then a new preacher came to town and now the “place to be” moved to that new locale.

However, sometimes a church hopper moves to a new church for added responsibility. Sometimes a church hopper comes to a new church because the leader of the new church has inspired action that gives added spiritual growth and ultimately a stronger witess in the community and the world. Sometimes church hopping may strengthen the member. Sometimes God may even call you to move to another church and the community is strengthened. Sometimes church hopping can be a blessing.

However, much of the time people church hop not to be involved in the church community or to be stronger witnesses in the larger commuinity, but to find better religous entertainment to consume. That entertainment may be preaching, singing, or programs put on by the church.

But then there are other hoppers who have been displaced or run off by new leadership. Sometimes when a new pastor comes to town current leadership of a church takes the time to move on. Other times pastors move some current leadership out. Some pastors displace the leadership in a church when they come into a church. These people have been sat down by the pastor for whatever reason. Sometimes the pastor has a valid reason for setting them down, sometimes they don’t.

The preacher’s main point is that none of these really increase the number of Adventists. Neither does it really increase the amount of people who have heard the message we have been called to preach. Tithe may increase at that local congregation, attendance may increase locally, but church hopping does not normally increase the number of Adventist members in the city.

Why are we here and what are we to do? If we are here to “preach the Gospel of the kingdom for a witness to all the world.” Then it is time to judge our ministries and our work by whether it is providing a witness in the world and whether we are warning the world of the coming crisis. It is time for us to stop acting as if church is solely about our needs and our entertainment and recognize the responsibility of church membership and Get in the game. It is time for all members to move into that category of member that is not just an attender but a minister.

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Package of Beliefs or Mindset

Is Adventism primarily a package of beliefs or a mindset? It would seem that the dominate view is that it is simply a package of beliefs. These beliefs are either important or not so important or kind of important depending on who you ask. This package includes the sanctuary, state of the dead, and Sabbath. Some lament the objective fact that many are no longer preaching sermons on these doctrines. However, when you dig a little deeper and ask them what kind of sermon they are referring to, it seems as though they mean sermons that didactically defend or teach these doctrines.

While it is true that there is a time to hear these doctrines defined and defended, I question whether the 11:00 service Sabbath morning is that best time. No wonder people got turned off on these doctrines. They may have simply heard them taught over and over again until they assumed that all know them. I mean do we really need a sermon every week (or every other week) that simply delineates why a doctrine is true?

The key thing that is missing in this analysis however is that Adventism is more than a package of beliefs, it is a mindset. The Sabbath flows from that mindset. The Sanctuary doctrine was once an organizing principle that helped to describe the mindset. Our great problem is not that we don’t hear any sermons calculating 1844 anymore. Our great problem is that there is no underlying “Adventist” mindset through which we preach any of our sermons. In short, if T.D. Jakes preaches a sermon on the Goodness of God, that does not mean Adventists should not preach a sermon on the same subject. Adventists must preach sermons on the same subject. My contention, however, is that when an Adventist preaches that sermon it will include aspects, views, insights, and even definitions of “goodness” that come from our interaction with Sabbath, Sanctuary, Bible Wholeness, and yes the Third Angel’s Message.

We don’t need a regurgitation of a package of beliefs that no one sees having any relevance to daily living. We need a deeper understanding of who we are that will affect any sermon we preach. Even, yes, on those occasions when we preach from the package of beliefs.

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Stop Fighting…Nobody is Winning

I remember looking at a TV show a while ago where a soldier thought that WWII was still going on long after the final defeat of Germany. The warrior was in a cave with his last orders from command and never received notice that the war was over. Sometimes in our churches it seems that many are just like that warrior. I hear people fighting “those who emphasize jewelry, makeup, and movies” going on in some contexts. They wonder why Adventists spend so much time teaching and emphasizing the doctrines. They wonder why your average Adventist can cite 1844 but can’t tell you about the Jesus they love. People of this mindset seem to assume that we are living in an era where doctrinal understanding flourishes while love and knowledge of Jesus languishes.

On the other side are those who see that the doctrines are totally ignored in today’s Adventism. They find it ridiculous to argue that Adventists overemphasize lifestyle issues and wonder where are these Adventists who can derive 1844 from the Bible. They believe it is high time we stop leaving the doctrines aside. they argue that yes we need Jesus, but Jesus calls us to doctrinal integrity.

I agree that it is ridiculous to argue that your average Adventist knows 1844 or can defend the State of the Dead or even the Sabbath. I doubt many modern Adventists could defend 1844 from the writings of Ellen G. White let alone the Bible-alone standard that we are called to use. Certainly there are groups out there that emphasize these doctrines. Probably there are some who do it to the detriment of a Jesus emphasis, but to spend your time fighting a battle against the Ellen White Worshipers is to fight a very limited fight. Come on, who worships Ellen White?

However the other side, a smaller but more vocal group, in its emphasis of the doctrines. Also miss a key point. We need more than just a regurgitation of doctrinal facts. It takes more than just proving your point, relevance must be a part of any theological discussion. Tell me why I care if the doctrines are true in your presentation.

Along those lines, I think that the Sanctuary message has marvelous keys for connection. Its “story-like” presentation of the gospel appeals to the narrative angle.

In addition, today there is a call towards spirituality and prayer. What is better suited for that discussion than the Sanctuary where every sacrifice was a prayer. We cannot simply continue to use the “brute force method” of relevance and assume that we will win the day. The day where you simply attempt to prove you are right and therefore you win is over.

So where do we go from here? We need to get past the “1844 is true…no it ain’t” arguments that have characterized a lot of theological discussion since the 1980s. No one is listening to that anymore. Folks wonder “what is 1844?” We also need to get past the “theater…no theater” arguments because it is irrelevant as well. We need to start over. If you want to teach modesty, teach it, but don’t teach rules that condemn one form of jewelry and not another one. If you want to teach health, teach it, but don’t teach rules that allow obese people talk about their vegetarianism as if it is some kind of virtue. If you want to teach love and grace, stop acting as if everyone else is teaching doctrine.

In short, the old fight is over, and no one won. Lets come together on the platform of truth and attempt to understand what vision our doctrines give us to understand Jesus, His love, and His work in us and for us and the entire world.