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The story about worship that leads today's newsletter is a reminder to me that we have a long way to go in educating people about the nature and purpose of worship. As the survey demonstrates, even among regular church attenders, one out of five does not know the purpose of worship. And the younger the respondent, the less likely they are to think of worship as something directed toward God rather than toward themselves as a consumer. This
year's National Conference on Preaching will focus on the issue
of worship, and we hope hundreds of pastors will bring their music
minister and other worship team members with them for a time of
insight, planning and fellowship. (You can learn more about the
conference at www.preaching.com.)
Maybe
when we get a better understanding of authentic worship ourselves,
we'll be in a position to lead our churches to new insights as well. Michael
Duduit
People in pew think worship directed at their own needs A new study from the Barna Research Group suggests American churches are less conflicted over worship music than many people think, according to an October 23 Associated Baptist Press story. But neither do church members understand the nature of worship, Barna said. "The real issue is not music but the state of the heart." "Everything in Worshipland is not OK," Barna said in summarizing the study, commissioned for the first Hearn Symposium on Church Music at Baylor University. While much has changed on the surface of worship in recent decades, worship remains "primarily something we do for ourselves," he said. "Americans tend to see ourselves first of all as consumers," he said. As a result, Americans often view worship as a transaction for personal benefit. Barna cited earlier research in which one third of regular worshippers said they have never experienced the presence of God in worship; two thirds were unable to describe worship in a meaningful way; fewer than half cited worship as a top priority in their lives; and only a fourth described worship as something done for God's benefit. The latest study asked 727 adults -- all regular attenders of Protestant churches -- a number of questions about worship. Also included in the telephone survey were 601 Protestant pastors and 69 music ministers or worship leaders. The new study showed that most congregants have no clear expectation about what happens in worship. Asked to identify the most important personal outcome of worship, the largest group of regular attenders said they don't know (21 percent). Nineteen percent said a connection with God is the most important, while 11 percent said experiencing peace. Among the 23 answers offered, smaller percentages cited expressing feelings to God (5 percent) experiencing God's presence (4 percent), and praising God (2 percent) -- all considered God-directed activities by Barna. Barna
said only 8 percent of regular attenders cited outcomes directed
to God as most important. Outcomes that benefit the worshipper were
cited by 47 percent. Other outcomes were not directed either at
God or the worshipper. Baby boomers were most likely to cite God-directed
activities as most important (14 percent), compared to younger (6
percent) and older (4 percent) worshippers. (To read the entire
story go to: http://www.abpnews.com/abpnews/story.cfm?newsId=1923)
Good leaders don't choose people based on improper pressure In
the October 2002 issue of "The Pastor's Coach" e-mail
newsletter, Dan Reiland says, "Don't let anyone pressure or
bully you into a people decision you are not comfortable with. On
occasion, I have given into relational pressure. Each time I let
a friend take advantage of our relationship to get someone else
included on a particular team or leadership training process was
a mistake I regretted. Focus on hearing God's voice. Be tough and
courageous. Make your decisions based upon the results of your prayer
time, not other people's desires." (The Pastor's Coach available
at http://www.INJOY.com)
A wonderful new book provides a clear and helpful presentation of the contrast between a secular worldview and a Christian worldview. Armand M. Nicholi, Jr., a professor at Harvard and a committed Christian (yes, there are some there) has written The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud Debate God, Love, Sex, and the Meaning of Life (Free Press, 2002). The book is based on a seminar he offers at the university, which is so popular that it can only accept one out of every four who wish to enroll. Drawing on the writings of these two towering intellectual figures, Nicholi allows Freud to make the case for the secular mind, and C.S. Lewis to respond through a Christian worldview. Readers will find that Lewis gets the best of the argument. This is a book which will be of value to preachers and others who must regularly confront the secular philosophies so pervasive in contemporary culture. | ||
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ILLUSTRATION: Persecution of Christians in Indonesia In his October 24 "Breakpoint" column, Charles Colson observes: "For nearly three decades, Indonesia's Christians have endured one outrage after another at the hands of their Muslim neighbors. In 1975, Indonesia invaded and annexed East Timor, killing hundreds of thousands of East Timorese Christians. Twenty years later, as East Timor gained its independence, the government again did nothing as more Christians were slaughtered. "In the mid-nineties, Indonesia's Christian Chinese were made the scapegoat for the country's economic woes. Again, the government stood by as Christian businesses, homes, and churches were looted and burned. And in the last few years, an Islamic militia, the Laksar Jihad, has declared war on Christians living on the islands of Sulawesi and the Moluccas. The militia, which includes members from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Albania, and Bosnia, has attacked Christian villages and forced Christians to either convert to Islam or be beheaded. "And
Indonesia's government has been joined in its silence by Western
governments -- until, that is, the victims were Western tourists." ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Evangelistic invitations require added clarity In a recent interview, Greg Laurie points out the need to clarify the evangelistic invitation. He says: "People are certainly more biblically illiterate today. Consequently, I explain terms and stories more than I would have 20 years ago. For example, 'you need to repent and come to Christ tonight. By that, I mean you must turn from your sin and put your faith and trust in Jesus as your Savior and Lord. The word means that you cling to him and rely on him.' I define my terminology as I go, often explaining it two or three ways so the congregation knows what I mean. "Then, I make sure it's clear. I repeat the invitation. Then I repeat it again. Often I initiate the invitation at the beginning of the message by offering some introductory remarks: 'Tonight I'm going to give you an opportunity to come to Christ. I'm going to invite you to get up out of your seat, walk down this aisle and make a stand to put your faith in him. So think about what you're going to do.' Halfway into the message I may say, 'And that's why I'm going to ask you to get up out of your seat in a few moments and make a decision concerning Jesus Christ.' That way, when I get to the actual invitation they know its been coming." (from PreachingToday Sermons newsletter, 10/23/02) ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo First-Century link to James, Jesus discovered An October 22 Associated Press story reports that a burial box recently discovered in Israel and dating to the first century could be the oldest archaeological link to Jesus Christ, according to a French scholar whose findings were published. An inscription in the Aramaic language - "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus" - appears on an empty ossuary, a limestone burial box for bones. Andre Lemaire said it's "very probable" the writing refers to Jesus of Nazareth. He dates the ossuary to A.D. 63, just three decades after the crucifixion. Lemaire, a specialist in ancient inscriptions at France's Practical School of Higher Studies, published his findings in the November/December issue of Biblical Archaeology Review. Lemaire writes that the distinct writing style, and the fact that Jews practiced ossuary burials only between 20 B.C. and A.D. 70, puts the inscription squarely in the time of Jesus and James, who led the early church in Jerusalem. All three names were commonplace, but Lemaire estimates only 20 Jameses in Jerusalem during that era would have had a father named Joseph and a brother named Jesus. Moreover, naming the brother as well as the father on an ossuary was "very unusual," Lemaire wrote. There's only one other known example in Aramaic. Thus, this particular Jesus must have had some unusual role or fame -- and Jesus of Nazareth certainly qualified, Lemaire concluded. The
first century Jewish historian Josephus recorded that "the
brother of Jesus the so-called Christ, James by name," was
stoned to death as a Jewish heretic in A.D. 62. If his bones were
placed in an ossuary the inscription would have occurred the following
year, around A.D. 63. (You can read the full story at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60769-2002Oct21.html) ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo One of the most interesting features at the National Conference on Preaching, May 6-8, 2003, will be two fully-recreated Sunday worship services, featuring blended and contemporary worship experiences. The theme of this year's conference is "Fill the Land With His Glory: Worship and the Church." The conference will be held at the Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama. Special discounts are available for early registration and for multiple attendees from a single church. Plan to bring your entire worship team for a time of new insights, refreshing worship and spiritual renewal. For more information visit our web site at http://www.preaching.com. ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Illustration: Unintended consequences Willis was working for the Buffalo Forge Co., and he needed a device that would remove moisture from the air in printing shops and food production factories. However, because of an unexpected side benefit, other factories and even department stores started ordering the device. So popular was Willis' creation that in 1915 he started his own company, and by 1928 he was selling a consumer model. Willis' last name was Carrier, and the device he originally created -- to remove moisture to protect printed paper -- became known as the air conditioner. (FSB magazine, Oct. 2002, p. 115) ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo How long do you usually preach? What
is the length of your typical Sunday morning sermon? Take this quick
survey, and we'll report the results in a future issue of Preaching
Now: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=6808141429
AND FINALLY . . . When Gun-Britt Marklund checked her bank account to see whether her monthly child allowance check had arrived from the Swedish government, she knew that what she saw was too good to be true. Her account showed a balance of more than 93 billion kronor (US $10 billion) on Sunday. "I thought this money doesn't belong to me. Something must be wrong," said the 40-year-old teacher and mother of three children, ages 10, 13 and 15. She was correct. On Monday, she informed her bank of the inflated child allowance payment -- twice the size of Sweden's defense budget -- and the bank acted swiftly, according to an October 23 Associated Press article. An employee had punched in a few too many zeros when funneling payments from the social insurance office into Marklund's account, a bank spokesman said. The transaction was canceled and gone were the 93 billion kronor along with 15 million kronor (US$1.6 million) of interest accrued over the three days before the error was detected. Her child allowance is normally 3,000 kronor (US$322) a month. The bank sent Marklund a bouquet of flowers along with apologies. "We hope she'll be happy with that," the bank spokesman said. Flowers
are nice, but I think she'd have preferred the interest. ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Not a current subscriber to Preaching magazine? Wouldn't you like to share PreachingNow with a friend? |
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PreachingNow is a publication of Preaching magazine
and preaching.com. Editor: Dr. Michael Duduit. |