Cyber-Discipleship

Church Steeple

This entry is probably more opinion-based than scripture-based but I felt this needed to be said. I was thinking this morning about people who say they don’t go to church because it is full of hypocrites. I’ve addressed that issue in a previous blog entry. To sum it up, it all boils down to this: if you love Jesus and you want to obey Him, you would not let hypocrites stop you from assembling with other believers who love Jesus and who want to praise Him.

The other thing that occurs to me is that people say the church is always asking for money. For some churches, this is true. Some smaller churches ask for money because they need it to meet the church’s obligations but the people are not paying the tithes God asked them to that would support the church. Because of this, some churches have to ask for money to give a love offering to guest speakers because there is no money in the church’s coffers to do this. Then there are the prosperity preachers. They are always asking for money to increase both the church’s treasury, and their own, with the promise of a return from God down the road. Yet, there is nowhere in the Bible this is mandated or promised.

So this got me thinking: what is the make-up of a “good church”? I believe there are several things a new believer (or even an established believer) needs to look for when picking a new church. So, in no particular order:

Sound biblical teaching. I believe this is a crucial thing a God-honoring, God-endorsed church needs. The teaching must be in line with other scripture and the whole counsel of God not just what the preacher believes or wants to teach. The preacher/teacher must also encourage his congregants to search the scriptures for themselves and not just take his word for it because he, too, is fallible. This is one thing that Paul applauded the Bereans for—they didn’t take the teachings of people at face value but they tested their teachings against the revealed Word of God (Acts 17:11).

Emphasis on sin, repentance, eternal life, not just temporal living. A sound church teaches the full counsel of God. This mean they teach the pleasant things and the not-so-pleasant things. Sin and repentance are not pleasant but they are essential to salvation. {I’ll talk more about this is a later entry.} A sound church wants it members to grow more in the image of Christ and to look less like this world (Galatians 5:24). A sound church has an eternal perspective not just a temporal one (Colossians 3:1-2). What good does giving money to gain wealth do if you die the next day in a car accident? What good is it to live a good life if you die and go to hell because you had no relationship with the Author of life? This world is finite but our souls are eternal. A sound church has a biblical worldview and an eternal perspective.

Jesus is exalted. Christ is the head of the Church. A sound church exalts Him and not the world. Praise songs should be about lifting up the name of Jesus. He is the One who saved us and called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. He is the Author and the Perfecter of our faith.

Worship style. This is the most subjective of all. Everyone’s worship style is different. Some like hymns while others like contemporary. Some like a blend of both. There are churches that are for those who like country music, rap, rock, Vineyard, Celtic, Ethnic, Gospel, and Southern Gospel. The point is for the believer to find a church that worships in a way that speaks to them. God wired us all differently. There are congregations out there that any believer of any taste of music can be a part of.

Desire of believers for spiritual growth. Do the members of the church desire to grow spiritually or are they satisfied with superficial teaching? Do they desire to seek out the deep things of God? Do they desire to have a deeper walk and relationship with Him? Do they want meat or just milk? If they are happy with the milk, move on. Some churches are full of hypocrites because they are full of people who are happy with the milk and shun the meat.

Feeling of belonging. This is another crucial part of a church. If there were a list of the things that turn people off from church, at the top would be the teaching and the people. Who wants to be part of a cold church where when you walk in no one speaks to you or even acknowledges you were there. (That has happened to me.) If truly the love of Jesus is in the hearts of its members, even the most introverted person will leave feeling welcomed. Then there are the cliques. Yes, even churches have cliques. These are social groups that hang together at the church (or even outside the church) that no one else can be a part of. This is not biblical. We should welcome everyone and everyone should feel comfortable talking to anyone. If there is no feeling of connection, visitors will leave and not come back. Not only that, they will tell others about their experience. So, no matter how sound of doctrine a church has, if a person doesn’t feel they belong, they will not be there to hear it.

Shepherded. This goes hand-in-hand with a sense of belonging; however, this is about feeling more connected with the leadership. For smaller churches, do you have a connection with the pastor? Does he know you or your family? Has he reached out to you? How about the deacons or ministry leaders? Do they know your name? Have you been invited to be a part of a ministry? For larger churches where the pastor cannot possibly know everyone, does it have a cell, pod, or small group leader that you can interact with? Are they aware of your personality, gifting, and needs? Have they reached out to you to be a part of ministry or fellowship? Do you feel that you are getting the spiritual nourishment and guidance you need from leadership? Whether it is a senior pastor or small group pastor, you should not feel like a castaway Christian who has to fend for himself all alone on an island of salvation. If you do, move on.

These are just a few of the things that I believe people need to consider when picking a church. Now I know there are things that I have left off that you will remind me of, like ministries and community involvement, but I felt these are the essentials. If a church has these things, there shouldn’t be too many hypocrites in it for long.