FEEDING SHEEP OR AMUSING GOATS?
An evil is in the professed camp of the Lord, so gross in its
impudence that even the most short-sighted can hardly fail to notice it. During the past few years it has developed at
an abnormal rate, even for evil. It has
worked like leaven until the whole lump ferments. The devil has seldom done a cleverer thing
than hinting to the Church that part of their mission is to provide
entertainment for the people, with the view to winning them. From speaking out as the Puritans did, the
Church has gradually toned down her testimony, then winked at and excused the
frivolities of the day. Then she
tolerated them in her borders; and now she has adopted them under the plea of
reaching the masses.
My first contention is that providing amusement for the people is nowhere
spoken of in the Scriptures as a function of the Church. If it is a Christian work, why did not Christ
speak of it? "Go ye into all the
world and preach the gospel to every creature". That is clear enough! So it would have been if He had added "...and
provide amusement for those who do not relish the gospel." No such words, however, are to be found. It did not occur to Him? Then again "He gave some apostles, some
prophets, some pastors and teachers, for the work of the ministry." Where do the entertainers come in? The Holy Spirit is silent concerning
them. Were the prophets persecuted
because they amused the people, or because they refused? The 'concert' has no
martyr roll.
Again, providing amusement is in direct antagonism to the teaching and
life of Christ and all His apostles.
What was the attitude of the Church to the world? "Ye are the
salt"...not sugar candy, something the world will spit out, not swallow. Short and sharp was the utterance "Let
the dead bury their dead" ...He was in awful earnestness!
Had Christ introduced more of the bright and pleasant elements into
His mission, would He have been more popular when they went back, because of
the searching nature of His teaching? I
do not hear Him say "Run after these people, Peter, and tell them we will
have a different style of service tomorrow, something short and attractive with
little preaching. We will have a
pleasant evening for the people. Tell them
they will be sure to enjoy it...Be quick, Peter, we must get the people somehow!"
Jesus pitied sinners, sighed and wept over them, but never sought to
amuse them. In vain will the Epistles be
searched to find any trace of the gospel amusement. Their message is "Come out, keep out,
keep clean out!" Anything
approaching fooling is conspicuous by its absence.
They had boundless confidence in the gospel and employed no other
weapon. After Peter and John were locked
up for preaching, the Church had a prayer meeting, but they did not pray
..."Lord, grant unto Thy servants that by a wise and discriminating use of
innocent recreation we may show these people how happy we are". If they ceased not for preaching Christ, they
had not time for arranging entertainments.
Scattered by persecution, they went everywhere preaching the gospel. They "turned the world upside
down." That is the only
difference! Lord, clear the Church of
all the rot and rubbish the devil has imposed upon her and brinig us back to
apostolic methods.
Lastly, the mission of amusement fails to effect the end desired. It works havoc among young converts. Let the careless and scoffers, who thank God
because the Church met them halfway, speak and testify. Let the heavy laden, who found peace through
the 'concert', not keep silent! Let the
drunkard, to whom the dramatic entertainment had been God's link in the chain
of their conversion, stand up! There are
none to answer.
The mission of amusement produces no converts. The need of the hour for today's ministry is
believing scholarship joined with earnest spirituality, the one springing from
the other, a fruit from the root. The
need is biblical doctrine, so understood and felt that it sets men on fire.
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