The Consumers View of the Church

There’s no doubt about it... we are a consumer society. There are bumper stickers that say 'Born to Shop,' and shopping malls have become entertainment and cultural centers.  We are no longer patients in a hospital, we are now 'health care consumers.' 

This attitude has crept into the church. We have become consumers of religion, and we even speak of 'church shopping.'  We come to church to have our spiritual needs met; and if they are not met where we’re attending, then we will try the next church, consume their religious goods and see if they satisfy.  

Perhaps the main feature of the consumer church mentality is that the church is seen, maybe even unconsciously, as a “dispenser of religious goods and services.” People come to church to be fed, to have their needs met through quality programs, and to have the ‘professionals’ teach their children about God.

Now at first blush that may not sound so bad.  I’m certainly fed and enriched by Sunday services, and I hope you are, too.  And I think many needs are being met through the programs offered through the church.  Children and adults are being taught about God, His ways and His love. That’s all fine and good, and people should expect these things from a church. So where’s the problem?  

Well, the problem is kind of a subtle one.  It’s a problem of attitude as much as anything.  I think it comes from that perception of the church being the “dispenser of religious goods and services.”  Do you hear the mechanical overtone in those words?  A “dispenser mentality” suggests “lather, rinse, repeat,” something repetitive, cyclical, something done, then its over until the next time you do it.    Kind of like, you put a coin in the slot and the religious product comes rolling out for he taking. The religious product might be the music, or a youth group activity, or the sacraments, or even the good feeling you get from Sunday worship. Insert your coin and a product appears.  Everything’s OK for a while.  

That attitude works until you don’t get exactly the product you want.  The consumer mindset is focused on getting certain things from a church experience.  Like a gumball machine: insert your coin and you get that really sweet and tasty red gumball, but suddenly a green one comes rolling down the dispenser, not what you wanted.  You don’t like the way green ones taste.

So what do you do?  You begin to re-evaluate [this whole church thing].  Is this machine still worth “investing” my coins in if I don’t get what I want [the church]?  I might grow suspicious of the motives of the gumball company [the church].  And I’m really not so sure any more that the machine’s giving me “customer satisfaction” [the church].   And you know what?  Occasionally the gumballs get stuck in the shoot and nothing comes out.  Oops.  We all hate it when that happens.  Smack the machine around a bit.  Kick it.  Complain to the the management of the gumball company.  You get the idea.

The church is not a gumball dispenser, a supermarket or a shopping mall filled with exactly what you want, or even “pick and choose” options to please our every desire and whim.  It’s NOT a 'God store' dispensing spiritual nourishment for the masses in a wide array of flavors.  If you attend a church hoping it will meet your spiritual needs, you will be mistaken. The church cannot meet your spiritual needs.  I remind you, WE are not a religious institution. What we are, is a community of faith.  We are believers, coming together to worship God, to be edified by the Word, to support one another in fellowship and to bear one another’s burdens.  God and only God is the one who can meet our spiritual needs. The church is not a service provider; it is not a retail outlet; it is US... a community of people bound together by faith in God.

One of our greatest challenges of today is to help lead people out of a consumer mentality and to recognize the WE are part of a kingdom that is much different and far greater than any contrivance and philosophy of man.

When the church buys into the consumer approach, it may try to feed people what it thinks they want, [red gumballs] rather than trying to preach and teach God’s pure and undiluted truth, the way He wants it done for all of us. In God’s Church, there is no democracy. The idea that the "customer" is always right is a fallacy created by God’s adversary, Satan.  If the cross on the building or over the baptistry is offensive to 25% of the “clientele” would you vote to get rid of it?  

How can we overcome a culture that encourages the church to behave like a merchant, and encourages the churchgoer to behave like a shopper?  Why is a shift in attitude so important?  Non-believers should be able to look at US, the Church, and see lives that are so in tune with Jesus, so filled with grace and care for others that they would want to be around us.  We should be seen as a body of people on a mission... who gather in assembly for worship, encouragement, and teaching from the Word of God... that supplements what they’re feeding themselves throughout the week.  

We cannot be just Sunday Christians.  We must be a people immersed daily in a Christian life, who come to church not as individual consumers, but come together joyfully as the living body of Christ fulfilling the Great Commission of spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ throughout the world... being the “light of truth” in our local communities.  

If the Church is not that, then an indictment against Christians looms.   An indictment that says... WE look and act no different than the secular culture around us. Could it be that one of the main reasons people aren't attracted to Christ is that those who claim to be His followers look pretty much the same as everyone else? That’s not surprising when WE the Church have a consumer mentality when it comes to the essentials of faith, worship and fellowship.

Christians must be people who realize that the church is not just about getting our individual needs met, but instead its about giving glory to God and offering hope and love to our fellow human beings.  Do you hear the difference?  It’s not about what “I” can get, but about what “we” can do.  Did you get that?

Are Christians really Closed Minded?

The way a Christian thinks about the world is important.  The sources of information that shape the thoughts and views of the Christian mind are critical to building and sustaining a balanced and Godly view of the world.  The question then... does such a "God influenced" view of the world make you closed minded?

A world view is a set of presuppositions and beliefs that someone uses to interpret and form opinions about his humanity, purpose in life, duties in the world, responsibilities to family, interpretation of truth, social issues, and so on.  A Christian should view all these things, and more, guided by the light of truth as found only in the Bible.

The Bible has much to say about the nature of man, the world, purpose, truth, morality, etc., and so does the world. More often than not, the secular world view is in conflict with the biblical world view.  For example: Where the world asserts that man evolved, the Bible says he was created and ultimately responsible to God.  Where the world says that morals are relative, the Bible says they are absolute.  Where the world says that there is no need of salvation and redemption, the Bible clearly states that all people are in need of deliverance from their sin.  The contrast is obvious and profound.  Both cannot be true.

The secular world exalts man to the apex of evolutionary development, the sovereign over all he dominates.  God is relegated to the belief systems of the uneducated and superstitious.  Such opposing views are polar opposites.

Christians are frequently singled out and criticized for being narrow minded.  You hear a lot about having an "open-mind" and being flexible and adaptive to social and cultural change.  Being “opened minded” is one of the biggest fallacies of secular humanistic societies.  People who think they have an open mind, are actually very closed-minded to real truth. 

The fruit of the secular world view can be seen all around us . As we observe society, it is evident that not all is well.  Television has degenerated into a bordello of violence, soft-pornography, anti-family sit-coms, commercials that appeal to immediate gratification, and senseless children's cartoons that are full of violence, occultism, and disobedience to parents.  It often portrays religious people as insecure, ignorant, inflexible and bigoted.

The Media is extremely biased and when speaking in areas where religious and secular morals collide, it uniformly presents information with loaded words.  Instead of "pro-life" we hear "anti-abortion rights."  Instead of "conservative" it is "right wing fundamentalist."  Other words are used such as "Bible thumpers," "censorship," "intolerance," "bigoted," and many more slurs for labeling the closed minded.

As one considers the way a Christian thinks about non-biblical things, you must always consider the subject matter. A Christian ought to be narrow minded toward the secular philosophies of men and broad minded toward the truth of God found in His Word. Further, a Christian ought to be open minded toward the doctrine of Christ and closed minded toward the doctrines of men, which are in fact self-willed deviations from the truth of the Bible and therefore heresies.  A Christian ought to be conservative when it comes to a “Thus saith the Lord” and liberal minded when it comes to giving of ourselves and our means to spreading the gospel and caring for those in need. 

The Apostle Paul in Philippians 4:8 speaks to a Christian about the kind of things we should think about. He said, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”  Just as important, is how a Christians thinks about things that do not explicitly involve true doctrine and faith. How you react to things of the secular world and live your life will shape how others see you... as narrow or broad minded, open or closed minded, conservative or liberal minded.

There is life in truth.  There is security in being loyal and faithful to genuine truth.  There is only one truth in this universe and it comes from God.  If you consider me closed-minded because I believe that the Bible is God's Word and the source of all truth, and that Jesus is the only Christ, then so be it.  I’m okay with being viewed as narrow-minded when it comes to believing and living on God’s truth.

There's not a more closed-minded group of people today than those who have adopted the thinking of moral relativism and the many facets of New Age teachings.  Most people today have been infected with New Age thinking and don't even realize it.  If you believe that there are many paths to God, then you are seriously infected! People who stubbornly refused to let go of the notion that goodness, kindness and sincerity is all that matters, are truly infected.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  

The Bible was written for humanity... to guide our lives and save us!  God's will is revealed in His Word.  Yet, so many people today foolishly think that God will honor their sinful self-righteousness, false religion, and misguided sincerity.  Such thinking is delusional, as Matthew 7:22-33 warns, Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’  Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

People who are truly open-minded will accept the possibility that Jesus Christ just might be the ONLY way to salvation.   An open-minded person would eagerly investigate the possibility that God is leading you to His truth. To deny this is the epitome of being closed-minded.  Most people today are very close-minded, and hostile towards the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Someday, the world will be caught off-guard and unprepared to face the reality of real truth.   Closed mindedness toward the Word of God is an ever pressing danger. 

We need to be “open–minded” like the Bereans who received the Word with all readiness of mind and searched the scriptures daily, to see for themselves whether the things they had heard were true (Acts 17:11).  When they heard teaching, they examined it thoroughly, they proved it to be truth, accepted it and lived by it.  

Therefore, let us consider our own state of mind which can be best examined by our reaction to the truth when it is shown to us. How do you react when confronted with real truth?  Are Christians really closed–minded people... or just convinced that their minds are shaped by the only knowledge and wisdom that matters, God’s Truth?

Transforming the Mind and Heart

Romans 12:2...  Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.  NIV

2 Corinthians 3:18... And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. NIV

The goal of a Christian is to become like Christ. Just what exactly does that mean? What characteristics of Christ are we supposed to develop?  Becoming Christlike is a transformation... changing from one sort of person to another.  Is it our work or does it transcend us to a power beyond our control?

Our conversion from sinner to child of God includes a change of mindset. One of the first steps in becoming Christlike is to adopt the mindset of Christ. “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus...” (Philippians 2:5) When we choose to surrender our lives and our will to God, we take a first step on the path towards developing a fully functioning Christlike mind. What does this mean?  Simply stated... we are using our will to intentionally choose God over the world, just as Christ did when He went to the cross for our sakes.  Many of the characteristics of Christ, like kindness, goodness, patience and obedience, will be easier manifest in our lives by first using “our will” to make a decision to change.

Once we make a choice to become more Christlike, the Holy Spirit begins the work within us of transformation. “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” NASB  (2 Corinthians 3:18) First, we surrender by our willingness, and the Holy Spirit begins the transformation of our spirit to a Christlike spirit. His work in us is what makes the transformation possible.

Total commitment to Christ is what makes it possible for the Holy Spirit to transform us into Christlike beings.  Look at the example of Matthew: “As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew, sitting in the tax collector’s booth; and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.” (Matthew 9:9) While the other disciples had professions they could return to if they needed, Matthew was a tax collector and when he left his booth to follow Christ, he left behind his ability to earn a living. That took total commitment and faith and that is the kind of commitment we must make to be truly transformed.

Choosing discipleship to Christ was Matthew’s way of expressing his total commitment. The point of discipleship is to become like the teacher. “It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord.” (Matthew 10:25) While Matthew was able to follow the human Christ, we also choose to be disciples by following the teachings of Christ. In these teachings we learn what our teacher was like and as His Spirit is revealed to our spirit, we become more like Him.

Matthew’s commitment shows us that he made a significant sacrifice to follow Christ. We too may find ourselves in circumstances that requires such a sacrifice some day. “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.” (Mark 8:35) This is where the rubber meets the road and our true commitment to Christ is fully revealed.  Think of it as the ultimate in spiritual transparency... nothing is hidden from full view.  

In the U.S., we have not had to make many sacrifices to be Christians, but in many other countries, Christians have been terribly persecuted for their dedication to Christ. It bears thinking about how much we are willing to sacrifice for Christ. The answer will reveal a great deal about your commitment and how far you have come in the journey to become Christlike.

What characteristics reveal Christ in us? Humility will probably be at the top of the list. “and whosoever wishes to be chief among you, let him be your servant” (Matthew 20:27) God came to us on earth not as a richly robed king but as a humble servant. He suffered shame and degradation for our sakes. Are we willing to suffer the same for His sake?

If we are, it will show in our love for others. Jesus suffered for us because He loved us. He asks us to love each other in return. “This is my commandment, That you love one another, as I have loved you.” (John 15:12) The progress of our transformation can probably be best gauged by our love for others. And, not just the people that are easy to love, but our love for those who have hurt us.

Loving those who have hurt us requires forgiveness.  That is a huge intentional choice. Christ came to us to make forgiveness for our sins possible. We didn’t earn or deserve forgiveness on any merit of our own.  He gave it to us because of His love for us. He had every right to not forgive us but he forgave us anyway. He is our example of how we are to forgive. “bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.” (Colossians 3:13) Even if we have every right to not forgive, we must do it anyway... to be truly Christlike.

Christlike behavior includes spreading the gospel. Jesus came to save us but He also came to teach us. “And he said to them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19) He passed on the responsibility of teaching to us. Spreading the Gospel everywhere to anyone, carries on His work and makes us more like Him.

As we teach we also learn and grow till we no longer find the old dead spirit in us but see Christ in us. “who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself” (Philippians 3:21) The change will be gradual and we will slide backwards sometimes. It will not be complete on earth, either, but we should strive to become as much like our beloved Savior as we can while we are in this world. Only in heaven will the work be completed in us... “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2)

We cannot make ourselves Christlike, we must rely on the Holy Spirit to do that work. Our job is to be willing to change and to live in the changes the Spirit makes in us. We must be committed to change completely. When we are, the love of Christ will shine from us and we will become forgiving and humble teachers of the Gospel. 

Remember “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 1:6)

America... a Nation Established Under God

"The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: that it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity." - John Quincy Adams

America became a free country on July 4, 1776, however, what many may not know, or forget, is that America is also a nation established “under God” founded on Christian principles.

Fifty-four of the fifty-six signers of the Declaration of Independence were Christians, 27 of the signers held theological degrees. Many went on to form Bible societies involved in establishing churches, spreading the gospel through Bible printing and distribution and sending missionaries throughout the world.

The signers intended the document to officiate the separation between America and Great Britain. However, they based the Declaration which has served as a foundation to the beginnings of the American nation upon a greater foundational belief that God, or as written in the Declaration “Creator”, was the source for men’s irrevocable rights.

Samuel Adams, who signed the historic document and writer of the Rights of the Colonists (November 1772), once said, "Just and true liberty, equal and impartial liberty, in matters spiritual and temporal is a thing that all men are clearly entitled to by the eternal and immutable laws of God and nature, as well as by the laws of nations and all well-grounded and municipal laws, which must have their foundation in the former."

Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration, also believed "God who gave us life gave us liberty.”

Two of the Continental Congress’ first actions were to hire military chaplains and to purchase 20,000 Bibles to remedy a national shortage.

Although America was already a free nation during the presidency of George Washington, the first president of the United States, he suggested that only religion could uphold its morality. During his farewell address he said, "And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle."

Even if America’s roots were traced back to its primitive stages, the marriage between the early inhabitants of the land and Christianity are inseparable. The Pilgrims clearly stated the purpose for their voyage even before stepping off the Mayflower: “...undertaken for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith...”

The U.S. Supreme Court also identified America as a Christian nation in 1892, after 10 years of examining hundreds of documents on the foundation of the country. The justices came to the unanimous conclusion that the documents undeniably "add a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic utterances that this is a religious people, a Christian nation."

John Quincy Adams, the sixth president of the United States, summed up the historic event that led to America's independence best when he said, "The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: that it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity."

The conviction that God cannot, and should not be moved from the social and governmental construct of America echoed in the mind and heart of one of America’s the most revered leaders.

The late Ronald W. Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, spoke these sobering words... "Without God there is no virtue because there is no prompting of the conscience... without God there is a coarsening of the society; without God democracy will not and cannot long endure... If we ever forget that we are one Nation Under God, then we will be a Nation gone under."

As we pause to reflect on and celebrate the greatest of human pursuits... freedom, may this 4th of July serve as a reminder that we in America are part of a nation, with a great history, wonderful privileges and important responsibilities that extend beyond our borders... to the entire world.   May we never forget that the truest freedom, lasting freedom, comes only from God through His son Jesus Christ.  

May our legacy live on as we cleve to the Godly values and principles of our founding fathers.