Theology School

There are so many conferences on this subject, trying to provide a methodology for evangelism. Strategies and techniques have been concocted, for this, as many people believe that the Bible needs to be repackaged because they consider its relevance to have expired. Their thinking goes something like this: “What we need are demographic surveys of our neighbourhoods, and then we need to find out what people like and need. Then we will need to construct a message that will satisfy those people and fulfil their needs.

If that does not work, then we need to design a church service that is fun for everyone who wants to have a good time. We want to keep the audience entertained, because this generation enjoys watching television and shopping. So we need to construct everything around a sort of ‘spiritual shopping centre’ where people can choose a spiritual package. We need to constantly draw people and attract them to the new best thing.”

Is this really Christianity?

Today’s Christians have become lazy – they want someone to spoon-feed them the truths of Scripture. Christians are no longer using their God-given intellect to question their Pastors’ preaching. It is as if the Pastor has become the ‘High Priest’ and the congregation is left feeling too unworthy to enter the ‘Holy of Holies.’ My Bible says that we can come boldly into the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16) and that we have a High Priest who is already making intercession for us, that is Christ, who is at the right hand of God (Romans 4:34). It is not as if the only time to hear and grow in the knowledge of God was for us to go to church on Sunday, or as if we do not have the Bible to read for ourselves.

This lack of personal development is just sheer laziness on the part of many, and as a result, the church is happy just paying someone else to look after their Christianity. We need to address the fundamental issues facing Christendom with Scripture and Scripture alone.

We have churches today spending thousands on advertising and building their ‘empire’ image, instead of investing in the harvest field. We are in an age that is interested in nobody but oneself. Hence the role of the Scriptures has taken a backseat and been replaced by Public Relations experts proclaiming their empires. 

Many would declare that the Scripture is the authoritative Word of God, but it is one thing to say this, and another to see this belief put into practice. Even preaching is shifted from bring Christ-centred to a man-centred theology. We do not hear about sin anymore, because people want to feel good, so we do not tell them about they really need. We tell them how they can think well of themselves. And what about those who are lovers of money? We hear and read about so many who call themselves ministers, yet are stealing from the church. One of the great cries of the Reformation was Sola Scriptura, which is Latin for ‘scripture alone.’

Scripture was all that was needed and it is still all we need. Nothing has changed. Paul writes that he is “not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). Therefore, the preached Gospel has to be accompanied by the power of God; else it is simply the words of men.