Before Christians became gladiators, they were the victims of gladiatorial contests. Mostly, this was done in \u201cthe arena\u201d to begin the days\u2019 events. Send a few traitors and criminals in to be torn up by wild animals to get the crowds really going.
\nMy own county hosts a \u201cChristian boxing club.\u201d And most churches, including my own, use Super Bowl Sunday to raise money for a local food bank. We say, \u201cthe Lord moves in mysterious ways>\u201d I also understand about silver-linings and clouds. But, should not we consider the incongruity involved here?
\nFirst, let me say, I watch football, track and field events, soccer, and love baseball. Shows, like professional wrestling, are not worth my time. I do not understand the attraction with mixed martial arts. I think it is still about the show. And therein lies the problem for the church. What gets us excited to be Christians?
\nPassion is not meant to be distraction. Divine glory is supposed to be the primary focus for Christians. Whatever we say or do is meant to bring glory to God even if our words or actions fail to provide more secular or \u201cpractical\u201d results.
\nMy own denomination, The United Methodist Church, has a mission statement that says the primary task of the church is \u201cto make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.\u201d It is not a bad statement by itself. The down-side has been too many of our pastors burn out when the congregations do not grow in membership. We forget that membership is not discipleship, success is not victory, and salvation is to bring about transformation. Hence, the temptation to provide a spectacle as worship.
\nThis temptation is not a new development. Old time revivals were often just as bad as anything done today. When a person could testify that he or she has only now been saved after making the same testimony at\u00a0 three previous revivals, something is wrong. When the teaching or preaching of the church is not meant to help transform people for the glory of God, the church is failing.
\nAmerican Christians and their denominations must stop the last two hundred years of choosing spectacle. We are losing too many young people who see their \u201cchristian journey\u201d as a phase or a fad. Let\u2019s worship God and let the Spirit direct how the Spirit wants to work.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Before Christians became gladiators, they were the victims of gladiatorial contests. Mostly, this was done in \u201cthe arena\u201d to begin the days\u2019 events. Send a few traitors and criminals in to be torn up by wild animals to get the crowds really going. My own county hosts a \u201cChristian boxing club.\u201d And most churches, including […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4332,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-211","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n