What's Right with the Church: A Manifesto of Hope

Endnotes

INTRODUCTION

WHAT’S RIGHT WITH THE CHURCH

From the beginning, the followers of Jesus Christ knew they were not just members of an organization, nor did they think they were an extension of Old Testament Judaism. They knew they were followers of the living Lord Jesus Christ. They had seen His resurrected body, had touched Him, eaten with Him and talked to Him. They knew they were members of a new thing—the church—His body, and that the church could transform the world.

The church is the most powerful transforming force in history. Yet outsiders love to make fun of the American church. They use glaring statistics to embarrass us, such as 35 percent of Christians get divorced, only 21 percent of Christians attend worship each week, and only five percent of Christian adults tithe.¹ And doesn’t the media just love to juice up a story when a noted Christian falls into sin? When a leading evangelical leader was accused of a homosexual liaison, you would think the press was congregating over roadkill. And who hasn’t heard about the problem of Roman Catholic clergy abusing young boys? Many people seem to enjoy a sneering laugh over church problems.

When a church is portrayed in a movie or on television, viewers get the impression that churches are either filled with wrinkled, white-headed old people, or hypocrites. And then there are those who like to attack the church’s influence, accusing Christians of being mean-spirited or legalistic. Those on the outside don’t understand the church and seem to always point out what’s wrong with the church.

The fact that so many people misunderstand the church is reflective of the fact that the church is diverse in appearance. Observers are not sure if it is Republican, Democratic, members of a peace rally, an insurgent terrorist cell or a women’s tea party!

We also get off-track in the area of bigger and better. We live in an age in which surveys tell us who’s leading in a political campaign and how many approve the President’s job. And just about everything we purchase is driven by a statistical survey: 8 of 10 adults take this brand of sleeping pill at night; 65 percent of Americans eat this type of breakfast; more Americans drive such-and-such kind of car. So do not think it strange that we have surveys, median scores and case studies to determine the way churches should do ministry.

We’re prone to take our cue from the 10 largest Sunday Schools or the 50 most influential churches. Christian record companies sign up Christian artists based on a Dove Award. And don’t Christian bookstores give the most space on their shelves to the bestsellers and to the books that have been surveyed highest in sales? Christians listen to an author who has sold more Purpose Driven books than any other, and they read novels so they won’t be Left Behind; that’s because a Christian writer has sold more books in a series than any other author; or they flock to hear a noted Christian speaker because he’s on the bestselling list for the Wall Street Journal, USA Today and the New York Times.

All kinds of measuring devices influence Christianity. But when we measure the church, let’s remember that’s exactly what we are doing—we are measuring external things. Experts like to measure attendance, baptisms or how much money a church takes in, then use these statistics as an example of ministry to all other churches.

But beyond all the measuring and statistics, we must get back to the fact that the church is the Body of Jesus Christ (see Eph. 1:23-24). The church is Jesus on earth. What do we know about a body? It has life. The church is a living organism—a fact that elevates it above business and social organizations of our day. When we measure the outward things of the church, that’s all we are doing. Externality is not the strength of Christianity. What’s Right with the Church will look at the inward strength of the church. That’s where you see what God is doing in the world.

I have traveled to all kinds of churches, studied them from all angles, and I can truly say that I love the church. I’ve given my life to serve the Lord through the church, even when I know she’s not perfect. The church is like our children. We love our children when they get into mischief, because we have dreams for them; we know the wonderful things about them, and they have our blood running in their veins. But most of all, we love them because the Bible commands us to love them.

When you criticize the local church—the human organization—remember that its individual members can get bogged down in committees, do stupid things and be driven by their pride, prejudices and, yes, their sins. And when you praise the local church, remember that Christ works through its members who sacrifice their time, treasures and talents to serve other people. They experience the power of Christ who helps them overcome bad habits and selfish inclinations to live lives that exalt God.

I believe that young people who reject the contemporary American church would like its founder—Jesus Christ. He was as anti-bureaucratic as they come. He condemned the religious sham of His age, as today’s young people condemn the religious sham of today’s churches. Jesus was anti-bureaucratic in both His teachings and actions. In every sense of the word, Jesus was revolutionary.

The problem is, the revolution that Jesus began against the dead religion of His day has ultimately become—in many cases—a sham religion in our day. In many cases, the church is dead. The church of Jesus Christ should be as anti-institutional as Jesus was. That means that the church should be anti-establishment and revolutionary. The church as God’s institution should challenge the sinful ways of man. The church should be the cutting edge of society. The church should be advocating a revolutionary religious way of life that transforms society, because that’s what Jesus did. The church should lead in the fight against bureaucracy of all kinds and religious greed of every expression. But sometimes the church is an institution embroiled in bureaucracy and blinded by its wealth.

The fact that our young people misunderstand the church is reflective of the church’s problem today. Like it or not, the outward church is a misunderstood institution. It is hypocritical in appearance, conflicting in focus and often ineffective in its ministry. As an institution it has organized itself by job descriptions and only moves forward on committee approval. That’s why we don’t know when we see a church on the street corner whether that church is fighting sin or is bogged down in its own infrastructure.

The church, however, was meant to do more than any other human organization, because Jesus told His followers to be mountain movers of barriers that block their way: Say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move (Matt. 17:20, NIV). The church of Jesus Christ should be anti-institutional, anti-establishment and revolutionary. That’s because the church is God’s institution to challenge the sinful ways of man. As such, the church should be those Christians who form a more righteous way of life and transform the world.

Having said all that, this book is not about all the problems or sins of the church. Let someone else write that book.² This book will point out what’s right with the church. This book is a manifesto of hope, for the church is the localized presence of Jesus Christ on earth. When Christians join together in the church, they can make a great impact on society. Each Christian, like each snowflake that falls from the sky, doesn’t have much power in itself. But when enough snowflakes join together, they can cause your tires to spin or your car to skid on a snow-packed road, just as many Christians in a local church can turn around a crime-ridden community.

If you get enough snowflakes together, they can decree no school, or no work, just as in the early 1900s when Christians banded together across America and voted no manufacture or sale of alcoholic beverages anywhere in the United States.

Instead of criticizing the church, let’s be strong individually and then band together with our fellow believers to make our churches strong to change our nation for God.

In Christ,

Elmer Towns

Written from my home at the foot of

the Blue Ridge Mountains

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WHEN THE CHURCH IS RIGHT ON JESUS

God’s plan is to make known his secret to his people, this rich and glorious secret which he has for all peoples. And the secret is that Christ is in you, which means that you will share in the glory of God.

COLOSSIANS 1:27, TEV

Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and myself founded empires; but what foundation did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded an empire upon love; and at this hour millions of men would die for Him.

NAPOLEON BONAPARTE

The name Christianity derives its name from Christ who is the foundation, focus and content of its existence. There is no Christianity if there is no supernatural Christ who died for the sins of the world and rose again to give His believers new life. When the church gets right on Jesus Christ, it is the most unique, transforming power in the world and the church that preaches Him becomes a revolutionary institution.

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No other individual has impacted the history of civilization, in general, and Western civilization, in particular, than Jesus of Nazareth.

The name Jesus is among the most recognizable names in the world, whether He is worshiped by His followers or used as a curse word by those who deny Him or hate His convicting influence. But Jesus did not get His fame from a well-known family, nor did He become famous because of His birthplace. Jesus was born in an obscure village of Bethlehem in southern Palestine, in 4 B.C., to parents who were unknown outside that village.

Jesus was not a part of the religious ruling party of the state. The Pharisees rejected His message and continually sought to trip Him up and, in the end, they pressured Pilate to have Him crucified. Also, Jesus was a Jew—a hated ethnic minority that most of the other nations of the Roman Empire detested and persecuted. So what does this mean? Jesus was born to a persecuted people, and then, within that ethnic group, He was persecuted by the most rabid, rightwing sect among the Jews.

Jesus did not get fame by being born in Rome—the most powerful military empire to that date—to rule the world. Jesus grew up in a society driven by Roman laws. He spoke their Latin language that held society together and lived under oppressive Roman laws, an unyielding force that ruled the world. As the Church began to grow, the Roman Empire became one of its chief persecutors. James the apostle was beheaded; the emperor Nero blamed the fire that gutted Rome in A.D. 66 on the Christians; then Peter was crucified upside down, and Paul was martyred.

According to Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, some have estimated that there were at least 250,000 martyrs between A.D. 100 and 300. Whether His followers were thrown to the lions, crucified, stoned or dragged onto icy lakes to slowly freeze to death, Rome was the greatest persecutor of Jesus Christ. Yet, the influence of this one individual—Jesus—spread internally through the hearts of Roman citizens, eventually conquering the Empire when Constantine made Christianity a religion of Rome in A.D. 313.

The Church Is Not Just Doctrine

Many people don’t understand Christianity, because they think it is primarily doctrinal beliefs, and to them, Christianity is nothing more than the Apostles’ Creed or some other particular denominational statement. Perhaps they’ve been to a church where they’ve heard the Nicene Creed read, or they’ve heard the emphasis of some other doctrinal statement.

To those who see Christianity in dogmatic terms, they may think that Christianity is negative doctrine, that is, they don’t believe in evolution, abortion, gay marriage or certain other dictates heard from the pulpit.

Still others believe that Christianity is a set of rules. Perhaps they have a friend who won’t drink alcohol with them, or they’ve heard that Christians don’t dance, use drugs, engage in premarital sex, nor will they use God’s name as a curse word.

Some see Christianity as only a set of rules in which Christians express their faith solely by their refusal to watch pornography on the Internet, or their refusal to gamble in the office lottery, or their refusal to do other such things. Others describe their rigid focus by saying, Christianity takes the fun out of life.

Still others wrongly interpret Christianity through only one worship practice they are familiar with, such as the Eucharist at a Roman Catholic church; or they’ve heard a wedding vow to love, honor and obey that turns them off; or they feel that Christianity is simply being quiet, meditative and behind stained-glass windows in a European cathedral. Perhaps they’ve been to a bombastic charismatic church where people shout, Hallelujah! dance in the Spirit or speak in tongues. They wrongly criticize Christianity on seeing one aspect of the church. They’ve missed the church’s foundation—which is a Person—Jesus Christ.

But perhaps some have gone to the more expressive charismatic services that use a worship band with drums, a bass guitar, brass horns and a worship team of singers. They miss the choir, organ and piano, and wonder what’s happening. They fail to scratch below the surface of what they see to find the real motive of worship, which is to honor and adore Jesus Christ.

In China today there are an estimated 120 million believers in Jesus Christ, all of this without denominational headquarters, mission boards, Sunday School literature or all of the other support organizations found in the American church. Chinese Christians meet in homes or other designated safe places for worship. They meet without the formality of traditional liturgical worship, most of the time without musical instruments and, for the most part, without trained clergy. How can a church this large and powerful not have Bible colleges and seminaries to train its ministers? The attraction is Jesus.

Yet the Chinese church sings its indigenous hymns to a different tune and beat than the American churches, and with a different schedule of worship from churches around the world. To those converted, the Chinese Christian church is simple: it’s centered around a believer relating to Jesus Christ.

Perhaps Chinese Christianity is more vital than that which is found in the West. Why? Because they attach themselves to the core of Christianity; they know Jesus Christ and follow Him. They haven’t added the barnacles that come with age—that have been attached to other churches in other nations.

In a godless communistic society, they have become obedient to Jesus. And should their godless government demand Christians to deny their faith, they would gladly become martyrs. Weekly, in the streets of the city or at work they share their faith with others because they know Christ and they feel that anyone who doesn’t know Him will be lost for eternity. They risk persecution and imprisonment to share the most important thing in their life—Jesus.

What Made Jesus Distinctive?

What we