Bad Church

I know in the end times things will get pretty bad, even  churches. If you listen to some folks, we must be in the end times because, according to them, lots of churches are bad. My problem is that much that is considered bad, to me, just isn’t.

Mega – One of the signs of a bad church seems to be lots of people. So called “mega” churches are considered bad. All I know is the first church we hear of in the Book of Acts had several thousand members the first day and daily the Lord added to their number. So what’s the problem with “mega?” I think it might be jealousy. Some think if a church is that big they must be cheating. They probably aren’t telling the whole truth because after all the gospel doesn’t work. Did I just say that? It seems to be what they are saying. I think it might be a control issue. More people are harder to control and control freaks seem to do the most “bad church” talking. The other problem is when you have a lot of new people, you are bound to get people different from yourselves. That can’t be good.

Seeker – Some churches are considered “bad” because they are seeker sensitive or friendly. My reading of the gospels is that Jesus was very seeker sensitive and friendly. What are churches suppose to be? Insensitive and unfriendly? I think the real complaint here is that if you aim at the unchurched in your Sunday services, then you won’t be deep enough for the old guys. I just haven’t seen that. I have heard sermon after sermon that touches the hearts of the unsaved and builds up and motivates the saved. Besides, I think those who keep clamoring for something deeper, just want to know more and do less. They love to be fed, but never seem to get around to feeding. But that’s just me.

Modern – Some churches are considered ” bad” because they do things that haven’t been done before. These churches tend to also be labelled “mega” because they have lots of folks going and “seeker” because they add weekly to their number. So what’s wrong with “modern” if it loves and tell the truth? Is modern necessarily unloving and untruthful?

Less than all the truth – Some say a church is bad because it doesn’t tell all the truth. It’s pretty hard to tell all the truth every Sunday. I suspect what bothers these complainers is that the church isn’t focusing on their personal favorite truths. Some people grab part of the bible and really run with it, like “the law”. Again, that’s just me.

So what should you do if you think you’re in a bad church? Leave. Quietly and respectfully. Don’t try to start a revolt or a coup. You might just be wrong or even the reason the church is bad. It would be really embarrassing if it got a lot better after you left.

So what if other churches are bad? Leave them alone. It’s none of your business. If it isn’t your church you probably really don’t know it well enough to be a fair judge. It’s doing fine without you.

I wonder. Do we really have a lot of bad churches or just a lot of bad Christians? Just wondering.