Rev. Timothy W. Teall
Readiness for spring in many local churches means that you have stocked ribbons for Mother’s Day, flags for Memorial Day, and pens for Father’s Day. Many evangelical churches in America are calendar and event driven. What’s next on the calendar determines what’s next in public worship and gathering. Many local Baptist churches have become program predictable. We all seem to do the same things. Our special days are not therein very special. We honor police, the veteran, the hunter, and the athlete. There’s a day for “ma”, “pa,” and “me’maw.” There’s a day for laborers and lovers. There’s even a day when the sheep are supposed to express their great and undying devotion to their under-shepherd. Scripture does say “give honor where honor is due”, but honoring people around the calendar year is no particular help in honoring God.
Listen to what our Baptist buddy, Spurgeon, had to say about this. “The kind of religion that makes itself to order by the almanac and turns out its emotions like bricks from a machine, weeping on Good Friday and rejoicing two days afterward, measuring it motions by the moon, is too artificial to be worthy of my participation.” Our Lord has not left us a yearly cycle of holy days. There is no indication in Scripture that the Apostles led the flock to gear up for “Roman Soldier Appreciation Day” just has soon as the dust settled from the Easter Cantata. We are not seeking to condemn prayerful attempts to host special days or events that connect us to the community and provide some evangelistic opportunity. But there is a subtle danger in answering the question, “What’s next?” with only the calendar in hand or the latest great idea form the conference you attended. There is a definite danger in the local church associated with leading people to live from one event to the next. There is the danger of unholy competition among churches. It is easy to fall into the “always bigger and better” trap.
Many of us have been convicted of the Spirit when reading of the priority placed upon prayer and preaching in the lives of the Apostles (Acts 6:3,4). The pastor/ teacher laboring in an established work is primarily focused upon feeding and care of the flock (1 Peter 5:1-4). The pastor/ teacher is to exercise effort in evangelism (2 Timothy 4:5). The pastor/ teacher role requires leaving the study and placing oneself in the now of people’s lives for the sake of the gospel. The pastor/ teacher is so much more by God’s design that an event coordinator or love boat activity director.
Five proven principles will help you maintain a better perspective in planning the church year and communicating the heartbeat of our Lord to the local flock:
The Enjoyment Principle: The enjoyment experienced in the local church is to center on the person and work of Jesus Christ. He is the “head of the body, the church.” Bible word attached to Him is “preeminence.” The scope of that preeminence is “all things” (Colossians 1:18). Paul specifically stated that his “brand” of worship was that which rejoiced in Jesus Christ. (Philippians 3:3).
The Enablement Principle: The Holy Spirit enables us to do everything God desires to be done. Walking with the Lord and diligently spending time in prayer will eliminate many things from both your personal and church calendar. The things that remain will be fueled by food the world “knows not of” (Acts 1:8)
The Enthusiasm Principle: Genuine enthusiasm for God and His Word influences others. Your own love, trust, and hope in God should govern your personal calendar. The fellowship of love, trust, and hope in God should govern the church calendar (1 Thessalonians 1:8-10).
The Evangelism Principle: Outreach is not optional, we cannot fail to extend the gift of God to others. But the fact remains that most people are “won” to Christ by means of the ongoing influence of godly family members or friends. Remember that old saying, “Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime?” The real heart of evangelistic endeavor lies in sound doctrine and discipleship, not in special program days (1 Peter 3:15)
The Effectiveness Principle: The quality of our effort is enhanced when we are not dependent on any particular program or activity. Our dependence is on the Lord. Like all the rest of society the local church is subjected to fad. We are always at our best when we rally around the timeless truth rather than temporary trends. (Acts 11:21)
