NOTE: Based on a lesson by Larry Ray Hafley.  In listening to this lesson recently (on MP3) I could not help but say AMEN!  This is my presentation of this lesson.

Presented, Sunday, November 06, 2005 pm

DANGERS FACING THE CHURCH

It has been awhile since this subject has been addressed here, so today I want to take some time to notice some dangers that are facing the church.  We face many dangers as the church now.  Sometimes dangers come from without and at other times they come from within.  But regardless of the source, we need to be on guard against them and do what we can to avoid them.  In my lesson tonight, I want to address some dangers we face from within the church.

We all understand the importance of the church.  It is the body of Christ (Ephesians 1:23) and described as those who are saved (Acts 2:47).

The fact that we will face dangers is nothing new.  In the first century there were numerous warnings about what was ahead for the church.  Paul warned Timothy that “the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine…” (2 Timothy 2:3). 

I.                     Ignorance and Indifference –

a.        A major danger the church faces is members who do not the church as important as it is.  They see it only as some compartmental aspect of their lives, rather than a part of that which is driving them.  As a result they don’t study as much as they ought to (so that they can ensure it is all that it ought to be, cf. Ephesians 4:11-16).  They also approach its health and growth with an attitude of indifference – that is, they are not opposed to it prospering, but they are not will to put forth much or any effort at all to see it thrive the way it ought to.

b.       God has always been concerned about knowledge
Isaiah 5:13 notes that Judah was in captivity because “they have no knowledge”
Hosea 4:6, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge”
Throughout the New Testament there are warnings about false teachers, “whose mouths must be stopped”
Titus 1:11 (One of the responsibilities of elders are to expose them).
Acts 20:28-30 issues a similar warning.
2 Peter 2:1-2 – warnings about false teachers – many will follow their destructive ways

c.        Indifference is equally warned against
Revelation 3:15-17 speaks of Laodicea, a lukewarm church.
Matthew 12:30 warns that he who is not with Him, is against Him and scattering abroad.

d.       One of the quickest way for a church to die spiritually, and eventually physically as well, is to fill it with members who are willfully ignorant and don’t really care.

II.                   Confusing the roles of leaders

a.        The denominational world has confused the roles of church leaders.  Their concept of a “pastor” is the preacher who basically runs the church.  While in some churches, he is accountable to the members at large (not all) – he still makes all of the important decisions.  Elders and deacons are often more of a “board of directors” with specific tasks.  The term “minister” is often a specialized term describing the person in charge of a specific aspect of the church’s work (e.g. music, youth, singles, elderly, sick, etc.).

b.       While we have a better understanding of God’s word on the roles of those within a congregation (provided we have knowledge), what often happens is that we give our leaders appropriate titles, but in practice we act differently.  We still turn to the preacher for our guidance and we expect him to do the work of the elders OR our work.  Elders are in many places are relegated to nothing more than “qualified examples” that we need to follow. 

c.        God’s word is specific concerning the roles of leaders
Elders ARE the shepherds – Acts 20:28, 1 Peter 5:1-4, WITH authority. 
Deacons are qualified servants appointed specific tasks under the direction of elders – 1 Timothy 3:9-13.
Preachers are to preach the word of God, (2 Timothy 2:2) UNDER the direction of the elders.  They educate the congregation and work to further its borders.

d.       When we change these roles, we are changing the organization of the Lord’s church (Philippians 1:1) and put the church in danger of being rejected by God and becoming something different that what God intended for her to be.

III.                 Whitewashing Morality –

a.        We all have some sort of moral standard.  Sadly, for some it is not a very high one.  The standard of the world is certainly not as high as it ought to be, especially in certain areas.  I am convinced that declining morals will be one of the factors that will bring down this great nation – just like the Roman Empire.

b.       It is a concern among brethren as well.  Often giving in to society, churches begin to take a weaker stand on moral issues.  This will set up a congregation to fail spiritually and allow immorality into its midst.  There are many in this audience who have seen churches no longer condemn immorality the way they used to.    They have whitewashed it to appease the members.  What is whitewash?  One preacher described it as “cheap paint.”  I sometimes refer to this as “respectable worldliness.”

c.        While drunkenness is condemned, social drinking is not.
Modesty might be preached condemning “short shorts” but not bikinis.
Casino gambling is exposed as evil, but the lottery or casual gambling is not that bad.
Club dancing condemned because of the environment, but school dances are acceptable because, “they are chaperoned.”
Often the standards set to determine what movies we go to or what we watch on television at home are lowered as well.

d.       Christians live by a standard that is NOT set by the world.
We must guard against letting the “cares of this world” choke out the word of God (Mark 4:18,19)
We must never forget that we are not to be conformed to this world, but transformed – Romans 12:1-2.  We ought to “Abstain from every form of evil”.
We are sanctified to God which means “set apart.” – 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.

e.        In time, allowing weakened morality will weaken the church as well.

IV.                Hypocritical Homes –

a.        It cannot be stated strongly enough: The church of tomorrow is being shaped by the homes of today.  What children see and do in their homes will do more to shape the direction of their lives than any other influence. 

b.       God’s word is clear about the importance of the home in rearing children.
Proverbs 22:6 summarizes it well, “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
Why was Timothy such a faithful student of Paul?  Consider 2 Timothy 3:15 and 1:5 – his faith first dwelt in his mother and grandmother.
Ephesians 6:4 commands fathers to not provoke their children, but bring them up in the “training and admonition of the Lord.”

c.        There are many children who fall away from serving the Lord almost immediately after leaving home, not because of what they were taught “at church” but because of what they SAW at home. 
Parents stressed going “to church” and when they were there they acted righteous and praise teaching and preaching that is strong and moral.  But when they get home, they let down their guard and do not live a life demonstrating that Christ is first.
The Bible is not studied, prayers are not offered together.
Parents continually criticize everyone and everything associated with the church. 
They may lie in certain circumstances.  They may gossip about others. 
Their lives become wrapped up in material possessions.
They tolerate immoral entertainment.
Children notice these things and they see through the hypocrisy.   They see parents who say one thing and do something different.  What it tells them is that serving God all the time is NOT really that important.  And many churches are dying or have died because of it.

d.       Honestly ask yourself – “How is my home life?”  “Am I living the life I profess to live before my brethren the same way before my children?”  If not, we need to repent and resolve to do better.  IF you find that you are guilty, repent and pray to God for forgiveness.

V.                  Weak Preaching

a.        There are many churches that have either watered down the gospel or simply choose to avoid certain parts of it.  Such will weaken a godly church over time.  It will lead to corruption and compromise as her members are not trained to address every form of evil.

b.       Unbalanced preaching.  There are churches today that avoid specific subjects (such as M-D-R, some of the moral issues mentioned above, scriptural fellowship, discipline, etc.) Others become obsessed with a specific subject or goal to the exclusion of other things that are equally needed, sometimes more needed. 
I have heard of congregations that would hire a preacher upon the condition he would NOT speak on a specific subject.  In such cases I will almost always GUARANTEE that what he is not to preach about is what is needed the most!
We need to preach the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27).
2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us that “all scripture” is profitable to make the man complete.  Anything less than “all” is not enough.

c.        Indirect preaching.  Some churches present lessons on “controversial topics” with no real conviction.   Or they identify some sin, but fail to make the application that is most needed.  (For example – While dealing with gambling they say it is wrong, but neglect to specifically identify the lottery or “casual gambling” as a type of gambling.  People are left with a false or incomplete understanding of the topic).
While there is a time for generalizations, there is also a time to get VERY specific.   While it might not pleasant, at times we need to name the specific sin and deal with it.
Consider Nathan confronting David in 2 Samuel 12:7 and said, “You are the man”
There is a time to name names.  Both Jesus and Paul exposed false teachers specifically at times naming the trouble makers – Hymanaeus and Philetus (2 Tim. 2:18), Demas (2 Tim. 4:10), Alexander the Coppersmith (2 Tim. 4:14).  Jesus referred to Pharisees at times with antagonistic names (Matthew 23)
Acts 2:36 – Peter preached that THEY had crucified Jesus.
IF a preacher does not do this, he is not doing his job. Galatians 4:16, “Have I become your enemy

d.       The “Positive preaching” movement.  Some want to “Accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative”.  What that means is don’t say anything that might make someone feel bad or be offended.  Some pulpits today never identify false doctrines and spend all their time dealing with how to make you “feel good about yourself”.  While preaching about a positive attitude IS needed, we cannot avoid addressing the sinful behaviors that are often the cause of the negative attitudes
Jeremiah 1:10 - he was commanded as a prophet to preach what was needed.  He was told to “root out and pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant”
2 Timothy 4:2 – Timothy was told to preach the word, “Reprove, rebuke & exhort.”
What good is feeling good about yourself if it is based on a lie will could damn your soul to hell?

e.        In all these things there is the danger of abuse.  There are some who use the pulpit to bully the members, advance their own agendas, make false or ignorant accusations and constantly criticize without building back up.  Such preaching is just as wrong as the other things we have just mentioned.  But that does not change the fact that strong, sound doctrine needs to be preached.  And to neglect such poses a serious danger to the Lord’s church.

Thus we can see some dangers facing churches in our land today.  Let us resolve in all that we do to be the church of Christ we read about in the Bible in ALL things we say and do.  A church that will grow first closer to God and then in every other way.  Think about it.