The Fad-Driven Church

The Plumbline ^ | Todd Wilken

[Gamecock]

GRPL Ping

[Gamecock]

For them, the long list of church fads represents their personal history as a Christian: Spiritual Gift inventories, Spiritual Warfare, Promise Keepers, Weigh Down Workshop, The Prayer of Jabez, the Left Behind Series, Becoming a Contagious Christian, a long succession of evangelism and stewardship programs, and most recently, The Purpose-Driven Life and 40 Days of Purpose.

Scripture just isn't enough, today's church just has to have a gimmick.

[NRA1995]

AKA "The Church-Of-What's-Happenin'-Now"

[ItsOurTimeNow]

Bang - spot on.

This is going out to some misguided friends of mine currently mired in the PDL heresy - thank you for posting it, and Praise the Lord for allowing me to understand and comprehend the warning!

[polymuser]

Is fag a fad?

[siunevada]

Another Chesterton quote, from the beginning of the same paragraph also fits:

Christianity is always out of fashion because it is always sane; and all fashions are mild insanities.

[Kenny Bunkport]

"If just preaching the Word worked, people would be lining up at the door."

This quote is telling. I guess "people lining up at the door" is the highest goal of most contemporary pastors.

That the [evangelical] Christian church in America is "fad-driven" is true, for the most part. That the reason for this is that the general society is fad-driven is an indication of how worldly the contemporary church in America is. It's also an indication of how spiritually shallow most self-appointed Christian leaders are today that they need to rely upon the latest fad, or some "program-in-a-box" to fuel their "ministries."

The real truth is that we are living in a very dry period, spiritually, in the American church, and church leaders are trying everything to remedy this dryness....Everything, that is, except the living, dynamic reality of the presence of Jesus Christ in the life of the believer. To look at most of the contemporary evangelical church, one would have to conclude that Jesus Christ has gone into retirement.

On related themes, I recommend "On Christless Preaching," and "The Pop, the Fizz, the Purpose-Driven Biz."

[Corin Stormhands]

Scripture just isn't enough, today's church just has to have a gimmick.

Oh great, now I've got that song stuck in my head.

I would agree though. Too much trendiness. Too many fads. But I wouldn't necessarily say all of these things are bad IF, and the IF is important, they are used along side regular study of the scriptures rather than used to replace the scriptures.

I met with one of our pastors last week and was talking to her (yes her, let's leave that for another thread) about being part of a small group. I told her I was more interested in actual Bible study than in studying the newest book.

[Ol' Sox]

Your small group isn't a "G12" group is it?

[ksen]

Here's the latest:

A Life With Purpose: Reverend Rick Warren, the Most Inspiring Pastor of Our Time

[Corin Stormhands]

ummmm...no

[Ol' Sox]

G12 is a church growth methodology that utilizes small groups or "cell groups" and has been a pretty large scale fad in the past few years. Started by Cesar Castellanos in Bogota, Columbia, he used this method to grow his church to almost 500,000 members. He has exported it all over the world, almost like a franchise, and it has been widely adopted. This past January, any church that wanted to continue in the "franchise" had to enter into an accountability relationship with him, essentially creating a new denomination. This guy and his G12 "Vision" could be the subject of an entire thread.

If your small group had been a "G12" group, I'd have raised a red flag...

[Kenny Bunkport]

Rick Warren is the most inspiring pastor of our time...provided one is dean of the Harvard Business School. He's turned "church success" (as opposed to expanding devotion to Christ) into a business methodology, completely divorced from the need for the Holy Spirit's direction and anointing.

[kittymyrib]

Let us pray that the tacky "Praise Bands" will die with the 50-70 yr. olds who think they can sing this really bad music. When the last baby boomer dies, I hope he will take "Shine, Jesus, Shine" with him.

[Corin Stormhands]

Music trends will change as cultures and generations change. They always have.

But I wouldn't expect a return to just hymns.

[Calvinist_Dark_Lord]

Music trends will change as cultures and generations change. They always have.

But I wouldn't expect a return to just hymns.

Agree.

There are some good writers out there. i anxiously wait for the day when people realise that music is used to communicate, and musical styles are integral to communicating the message that the lyrics attempt to tell.

Lack of the Holy Spirit the critics tell me? i contend that the Holy Spirit is no more or less attached to modern hymns than He was to 19^th Revivalist Hymns, or Gregorian Chants, or Handel's Messiah. God operates as He will, and the musician is obligated to do all things as unto the Lord.

[Gamecock]

IF can be a mighty big word.

Now, about the "her" thing....

[Corin Stormhands]

i contend that the Holy Spirit is no more or less attached to modern hymns than He was to 19th Revivalist Hymns, or Gregorian Chants, or Handel's Messiah.

Agreed. I once silenced a "hymns in the church only" critic of contemporary music by asking them what type of "hymn" they thought was sung in the upper room...without a pipe organ.

[Gamecock]

There are good hymns and bad hymns.

There are good P&W songs and bad ones.

It drives me nuts when some folks will exclude one or the other....