Avoiding Heresy in the next big movement.

Ever hear some religious teacher say, “God is doing a new thing”? They talk about the new revelation that they just received that will change the church forever and make everything better. Well, most of the time these kinds of new ideas, especially when expressed by popular leaders, get all kinds of press, books are written and conferences are held to promote them, then they fade away into obscurity. Sounds familiar? These movements will garner support by many other well know leaders and then thousands will begin to follow them, then they begin to fall apart…one misinterpretation after the other…one over emphasis after the other…one subtle heretical idea after the other. People are left reeling with confusion and lose their faith in leadership and many drop out altogether. How do we avoid falling headlong into these traps? Read on.

1. Stay in the Word! The Bible is the source of truth and the soul authority in matters of doctrine and church matters. The Word will never let you down, lead you astray or confuse the issues. The problem is when people have a “private or personal” interpretation of scripture things go awry and heresy triumphs. Be careful of these interpretations that are extra-scriptural (can’t be found there) or lead to one extreme or the other.

2. Stay connected to the “Body of Christ.” Most movements that embrace a heretical private revelation also move away from the established church. Granted, the established church in many cases has moved away from scripture and biblical authority…BUT MOST HAVE NOT. So we can’t discount the whole church for the wanderings and failure of some. Heresy gets rooted and grounded in smaller groups that become fanatical and obsessed with the “heavy revvy” of it all. Stay connected to the established church. It is absolutely necessary to HEAR OTHER VOICES besides the one with a new interpretation or revelation.

3. Stay close to Jesus. If we stay intimately yoked with Christ, He can speak into our lives. The Holy Spirit still speaks to the hearts of men and women to help us discern the words we hear whether they are truth or lies. If you sense that what you are hearing, no matter how intriguing, is a “little off,” it probably is. Go to Jesus and ask Him…ask the Holy Spirit to reveal it to you in scripture and in your heart. Can’t go wrong here.

4. Stay humble. When you think that you are to sole possessor of “this new truth” and close your heart to learn or be corrected by others, you will fall into the trap of heresy. Lone rangers with so called “new and great revelations” that are extra-biblical are sure to hurt themselves and all that follow. IT HAPPENS ALL THE TIME. Humble yourself and let older wiser leaders speak into your heart….and listen.

There’s probably more to say about this….so chime in…give me your thoughts and wisdom on this.

People Wise

On a flight to Tulsa, Oklahoma in September, 2008 I met a distinguished looking man that had an interesting perspective of what the church should be. He was dressed up in a suit, 79 years old and looked to be highly educated…he was. He had spent over 40 years of his life in a Christian University first as a teacher then as an administrator. As we began to talk I found out what church he was a part of. He insisted that they were not a denomination, had no headquarters, and that each church, over 8000 of them nationwide, were totally independent of any organization. This interested me.

I shared that I was also in the “church” business and that our group, I avoided using the “O” (organization) word, planted churches around the USA. I also mentioned that one of our churches was listed as the fastest growing church in the USA. Immediately he said, “We are not charismatic!” He went on to explain that charismatic style churches were very fast growing with their style but that they, his group of churches, were fine with the smaller congregations that made up the many independent churches that he associated with.

Then he made a statement to me that sums up the kind of church that most people today have quit going to. He said, “We are not charismatic, we do not entertain people, and we don’t do community service. We just teach the Bible and that’s all we do.”

Let me interpret that for you. From further discussion I understood these four distinctions about his church.

1. They did not believe that spiritual gifts were for today.

2. They did not have a live band that provided music.

3. They did not try to grow their churches by reaching out to the needs of the people in the community.

4. They only preached the Bible…that’s it.

This would be the antithesis of people-wise. This is not understanding a modern culture that thrives on entertainment, desires that someone understand their felt needs and wants an encounter with a real God and His spirit. This culture wants a church that “lives” the Bible.

Relevant?

We often use the words “relevant” and “authentic” to describe our approach to ministry. They are good words…howbeit a little overused. What I think we are trying to say is, we are “people-wise.” People-wise in the sense that we understand that people have had a problem relating to the old school church. The church of pews and hymnals, religion and tradition and same ole same ole just isn’t drawing new people or holding members anymore. Church just doesn’t seem to fit into the cultural needs of modern people so they just stop coming. They stop coming by the millions.

On Sunday mornings over 13 million Christians who use to attend services are now absent. They are saying “yes” to Jesus but “no” to church.

How does this fare with Great Commission? The local church, with its Sunday services, has been the great evangelistic arm of the church for centuries. Small groups are also a great part of that effort. But most successful small group ministries are a result of the harvest on Sunday mornings. If Christians quit church, who will bring the lost to hear the Gospel? A bigger question is, “How can we make the church more people-wise so that Christians will come back?”