Why is Church
Important?
Pastor Joe Fuiten, November
6, 2005
The
church in public life or politics
In the early days of
Over time, the sermons became somewhat
standard in their approach giving rise to a new word. The term jeremiad refers to a sermon
or another work that accounts for the misfortunes of an era as a just penalty
for great social and moral evils, but holds out hope for changes that will
bring a happier future. It derives from the Old Testament prophet
Jeremiah, who in the seventh century B.C. attributed the calamities of Israel
to its abandonment of the covenant with Jehovah and its return to pagan
idolatry, denounced with "lurid and gloomy eloquence" its religious
and moral iniquities, and called on the people to repent and reform in order
that Jehovah might restore them to his favor and renew the ancient covenant.[1]
The current application of the idea of
separation of church and state is only a few decades old.
I often carry a type of coin minted by many
Roman Emperors over a period of centuries about a thousand years ago. On one side would be a portrait of Jesus. On the back it would read, “Jesus Christ,
King of Rulers.” It was a testimony that
above the authority of Presidents and Senates was a greater authority before
which the whole world should bow.
Mostly through the work of liberal courts,
Christian influence has diminished. I
would like to see that trend reversed.
Children
The painting of the children’s area begins at
the Sanctuary. We want it to be very
clear to those who visit here that this is a kid friendly church. Through art we make our vision known.
What happens to kids is very important. Last week Thomas Blackshear told of getting a
comic book at age six that resulted in a demon attaching itself to his life,
influencing his thinking about issues.
He was not possessed but there were aspects of his life that made it
easy for such demons to hang around. The
kind of material they are exposed to makes a difference. They should be kept from violent, degrading,
demonic, or ungodly ideas. In place of
that they should be exposed to virtue, courage, faithfulness, and godliness.
When I was a boy, I learned a song about
Daniel. It went like this: “Dare to be a Daniel. Dare to stand alone. Dare to have a purpose firm. Dare to make it known.” Daniel was the hero that I could admire. I could also be like him. Daniel 1:1-17
1 In the third year of the
reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of
Some
people hear this story and they get motivated to write a book about
juicing. I don’t recall for sure but I
suspect my mother probably used it to get me to eat my vegetables. For parents, this is the type of Bible story
that can be used to build character and right values.
You
never know what a person will do until they are faced with the situation. When the time comes, we prove what we are
made of. All the elements were right for
failure. He was a long ways from
home. Everybody else was going along
with the program. Kids that he grew up
with, who shared his faith, were going the other way. There was a new king; a foreign king. Maybe it was time to try new ways.
But
Daniel was able to stand alone. Where
did that capacity come from? How could
he stand when so many others failed? The
answer is in a later crisis, but in the habits that characterized his life. Daniel 6:10 “Now when Daniel learned that
the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the
windows opened toward
Church
In
church we do a couple of things. We
bring God to people’s needs and concerns.
We start with the person. We all
have issues and concerns. We think about
health, family, kids, job, success and God has something to say about all of
them. We also bring people to God. God has concerns as well. He has certain priorities. We need to be drawn to those as well as to
the normal stuff of life.
For
example, worship is not a normal person’s concern unless you want to please
God. When we learn that God deserves
worship, then we choose to enter into worship.
I
have been thinking and praying about our worship services. I have come to the conclusion that I need to
engage in discipleship as one part of our services. Many people only attend services. Others are so new to church and the things of
God that I need to help train them in the ways of God.
We
are placing more emphasis on building at the center. Many people appreciate all the things that we
do. We do a lot. There are schools, counseling centers, branch
churches, mechanics ministry, funeral home, thrift store, school of the arts,
and camps of various kinds. These things
happen because of success at the center.
If you appreciate what we do then help me build the center to keep it
all strong and viable.
Some
might ask if all the things we do actually make a difference. I think the work itself is
justification. On another level, we are
laying the groundwork for salvation at a later date. Some years ago I preached in
[1]Campbell, Donna M. "Forms of Puritan
Rhetoric: The Jeremiad and the Conversion Narrative." Literary
Movements. Last modified 6/18/05, accessed 11/5/05.
<http://www.gonzaga.edu/faculty/campbell/enl310/jeremiad.htm>.