Jump Start # 2255

Revelation 3:2 “Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.”

When we read the N.T. there are some powerful congregations that were doing well. Jerusalem, where it started, was growing fast. Antioch, was the shinning light for all to follow. But there were other congregations that were not doing so well. Corinth was plagued with all kinds of moral and doctrinal problems. It would have been an elder’s nightmare. Ephesus became loveless. And, Sardis, where our verse is connected with, was dead.

Have you ever noticed that dead things do not need much attention. You don’t have to mow a yard that has dead grass. Dead plants do not need to be watered. Dead pets do not need to be fed nor walked. A dead tree never grows any taller. And a lifeless, dead church doesn’t add any value to one’s spiritual life. It’s easy to kill things. Just ignore them. Don’t water your plants and in time they will die. Don’t feed your pets and eventually they will die. And, with a congregation, doing nothing positive, encouraging or Biblical will lead to death.

Our verse is written to the members of Sardis. It’s the plea for them to do something. It begins by waking up. They were asleep at the wheel of life. They had no idea where they were, nor, where they were going. It’s time to water the plant. It’s about to die. There was still a bit of hope. God says, “strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die.” If you do nothing, everything will be dead. A ghost town. An abandoned work. There was still hope, but they had to get at it.

We have been looking at a mini series connected to the start of the year. This is the time of resolutions, goals, plans and dreams. We’ve looked at: “What can I do to help myself.” Yesterday, our thoughts focused upon, “What can I do to help my family.” Finally, today, we look at “What can I do to help my congregation?”

First, understand, that those in leadership roles, the shepherds and the preachers, are often the stopping blocks of all ideas. Too often they are content with nothing and nothing is what they always get. Attempts to do things can be perceived by some as a power shift and you being a Martin Luther, the reformer, who is attempting to nail your complaints to the church door. Things didn’t work out too well for Luther. And, often, it may not work out well for you.

Being open and putting all the cards on the table is the honest thing to do. It takes away what may be perceived as a threat to their position. Let them know what you would like to do and why. Be transparent and not evasive. Your ideas may be shot down. If so, don’t give up. That’s not the only thing you can do. Some are jealous of other places and fear all change leads to becoming progressive and walking away from the Bible. Because of that, some would as soon stay in the 1970’s and steer clear of all technology and modern ways to promote God’s word. Fear, jealousy and a touch of laziness is all that is necessary to make up a whole batch of nothingness. And, nothingness leads to death.

Second, all of us can practice hospitality. Now that doesn’t have to cost a zillion nor does it mean putting yourself out for weeks. Clean the house up a bit. Buy some food. Invite a couple of families over. Have fun. Play some games. Sing some songs. Get to know each other. Some rarely get invited. Some believe that no one would come, even before they do the inviting. Give it a try. Togetherness outside the church building connects hearts, builds friendships and is something everyone enjoys. Now, there are some dos and don’ts when you have folks over. Don’t gossip. Don’t turn the conversation negative. Don’t talk about how dead the church is or how out of touch the elders are. Those things may be true, but your intentions are to strengthen what remains. Encourage. Make it a good night. If you can’t cook, order pizza. You don’t have to repaint the house before you can do this.

Third, have a Bible study in your home. Invite a few families and study something exciting and special. There are some great videos that can be used as a background to get your study going. Strength comes from our faith. Faith building is something that you can do.

I’ve had folks complain about how pitiful the Bible classes are in the congregations that they attend. Cry about it. Complain about it. Or, do something about it. Have your own class in your home. Make it challenging. There are many good books that you could use as a book club.

Fourth, so, the church building looks like a bomb went off. Dirty. Cluttered. Dusty. You can complain. You can point those things out. Or, you can get over there on a Saturday with your cleaning supplies and give the place a real spit shine. Toss papers. Clean the place top to bottom. In Spring, get over there and pull weeds. We have a couple of different folks that do that to our place. Nothing is ever said. They come, pull weeds, plant flowers, and leave. I notice. It makes us look nice. And, that’s the way you must do it. Don’t be giving the treasurer a bill for your time and your supplies. Don’t toot your horn about how nice the place looks now. It may be that no one even notices, but you will, and so will the Lord.

Fifth, when you hear of good ideas, share them with the preacher and elders. Now, they may do nothing. They may feel jealous and threatened. But, the manner you present these may be the beginning of some needed life. Rather than saying, “Here’s what you need to be doing,” include yourself. “Can we do this, and I help you?” I love ideas from other people and places. None of us have the complete market on all ideas. Share the Jump Starts with others.

Six, always pray. Pray for the congregation. Pray for the preacher and shepherds. Pray for the teachers. Pray for growth. Pray for strength and faith. Pray for yourself and your attitude.

Sardis was dead. Any hope of changing the place had to come from within, from among themselves. No one else was going to be their savior. Too busy. Too tired. Too indifferent. That’s all it takes to turn off the lights and close shop for good. Strengthen what remains.

Some of our readers are blessed to worship in large congregations that are very busy and active. Do not coast because of that. Don’t just enjoy the ride. Be a part of what they are. Other readers are in small struggling congregations. For some, the outlook is bleak. I hope these words touch your hearts and instead of waiting for the preacher or someone to rise up and change things, you can see that you can be doing things now.

Strengthen what remains…

Roger

Jump Start # 2251

Revelation 3:2 “Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.”

Our verse today comes from the Lord’s assessment of the church in Sardis. Things were not going well, at least from God’s perspective. He described the congregation as being dead. It was time to do something. It was time to change things. It was time to get on the ball or else the entire place will be dead. Wake up, is what the Lord demanded. Strengthen what remains! This was a church on life support. Now, what we are not told about Sardis is the size of the Sunday morning crowd, or, whether or not they had any leadership or even if they had their own preacher. With or without those things, the church was in a grave condition. Worse, it seems that they were clueless and oblivious to their true condition. Had the Lord not said what He did, they would have carried on until there was no life in them at all.

Throughout my area, and actually, all over this country, there are many small congregations that need to take a serious, serious look at where they are and what they are doing. Congregations that are less than thirty in number struggle. They struggle financially. They are very limited because of their resources. With every funeral, things look bleak. There are quite a few congregations that would love to see thirty people on a Sunday morning. They number under twenty. They have just enough contribution to pay the elect bill to keep the doors open. Few children are found in these places, and what they have are all brought together in one or two classes that cover large age differences. These small places lack the resources and the know-how to use social media to reach the community. They cannot afford to invite a visiting preacher in. So, year after year, they keep the doors open and no one publicly says what everyone is thinking, “How much longer will we keep this up.” And, on top of that, too often the quality of teaching and the input of fresh ideas doesn’t exist. These places drift, holding on to the memory of days gone by when they were much larger. But those days are gone for them. And, without leadership, no one knows what to do other than just do what we are currently doing.

Within driving distances of these places are larger congregations. There are options there if they would put down their pride and seek some help. First, they could get ideas from what larger congregations are doing. Second, they could ask for some help from some of the brethren in larger congregations. Thirdly, they could discuss selling their church building and merging with a larger congregation. But, most times this never happens. NEVER.

Many have already made up their minds that they do not like a large congregation. So, they sit in a group of about twelve, faith dwindling, never growing, and just keeping house. They have made up their mind that large congregations are “too large” and that you can never know everyone in a large congregation. Yet, within just a few miles of them, is a place that has functioning leadership, multiple classes for all ages, all kinds of tools, helps and new faces showing up all the time. Here is a congregation that is growing. They are doing things and the members are extremely active. But, stubborn as some are, they would rather dwindle down to three people than to pull the plug and be part of an active and thriving congregation.

Most preachers that I know would gladly help out a group that is wanting to try, but that often is the problem. Some congregations like being small. They don’t want new faces and new people. They are content with just what they have. Evangelism doesn’t really exist in these places. The bulk of what they do is simply maintain what they have. Many books of the Bible, from Revelation, Ezekiel, Leviticus, Daniel are never studied because there is no one there capable of teaching those books. Classes never vary. Verse by verse, over and over and nothing challenging, and nothing moving the people into more activity. Hospitality is extremely rare in small congregations because everyone already knows each other, so why have them in your home?

The atmosphere and appearance in most of these small congregations is old, and outdated. A new coat of paint and some intense polishing and cleaning would do wonders, but who will do that and that will cost money and there isn’t any. So, old curtains, faded and ugly hang in the windows. Papers are stuck here and there. In many places, the baptistery area is filled with mold, which is a health issue. But there is no one to take charge in cleaning the place up and no money to afford the supplies necessary to do a good job. So, year by year, the place deteriorates. The appearance, the atmosphere, the mood, the activity all seems stale, lifeless and dying.

As we end a year, and launch a new year, what plans, what goals, what future lies with some of these places? So sadly, nothing will be done until there remains only one or two couples left. Then in desperation, something will have to be done. And, in this long process of death of a congregation, there has been other costs that few realize. What young people were there, are gone and gone for good. They never had a faith that grew nor was fed. Others finally give up, so discouraged and so down spiritually, one wonders if they can ever find joy again spiritually.

Why are we so wedded to a congregation and not so wedded to Christ? Why do we hang on until a congregation dies and even with that we do not seek advice, help or ideas for anyone else? Why are we so set against the size of a congregation without even trying? Why do we allow our pride to color the reality before us?

I have preached in places like this. In one place, I had to step outside because the smell of mold was so strong that I couldn’t breathe. I got sick after preaching one time there. I can only imagine what that was doing to the people week after week. Some of these places have such a closed mentality that if any new face showed up, they’d be stared down by everyone to such a degree that they would never come back.

I suggest two things: first, let’s try a few things to put life and energy in these dying places. Second, let’s have a serious and open discussion about the future. Is it time to just close the doors? Many of our readers know people in these small, small congregations. I hope that you would share this with them. It’s time to have some discussions. Are we really being good stewards of God’s money when we simply keep the doors open on a dying congregation?

Sadly, I fear another year will pass, and nothing will change. Another funeral and yet nothing will change. Is this what the Lord would want?

It’s time for some serious looking and some serious talking.

Roger

Jump Start # 585

Revelation 3:2 “Wake up, strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.”

Our Jump Starts this week are looking at the seven churches that are listed in Revelation 2-3. Specifically, we are focusing upon what the Lord tells these churches to do in order to get back on course. Most of those congregations had spiritual problems. The Lord did not leave them to themselves to figure out what to do. His words are very specific about the proper steps to take to get back to where they need to be.

Our verse today addresses the church at Sardis. Their problem was that they lived in denial, as so many families, individuals, and churches do today. They had a name. They had a reputation of life but the reality was they were dead. That is amazing. They were so off base. They weren’t close to what was reality.

This starts with, “They had a name…” This may have been from the past. Congregations that have been around for awhile can be like that. Back in the day, things were happening. Everyone has heard of that church. But today, they are dead.

Dead churches are not attractive. Imagine trying to invite a co-worker to come to church services with you and you say, “By the way, our church is dead.” Don’t be looking for them to show up anytime soon. Years ago, my wife and I  attended a little congregation out in the country. I was new at preaching and interested in grabbing ideas. During the Bible class. the teacher said, “this church is missing one thing…” I took out a pen and thought this will be good. I need to remember this and maybe use this myself. He then went on to say that the church needed a wreath on the door because it was dead! I think my mouth dropped open. I remember telling my wife, “that poor preacher is going to be fired for saying that.” I found out later that he wasn’t even the preacher! At least, that person was honest.

Dead churches are still open for business. Worship continues on. There is preaching, praying and singing. But there is no heart beat. There is no excitement. The awe of God is missing. Little if any activity is taking place outside the building. No Bible studies going on. Very little, if any, hospitality. Folks show up for worship at the last second and leave the moment it’s over. They are there because they have to. They move like robots. No one has any spiritual ideas. Leadership is long gone. They’ll continue to meet as long as someone else opens the door. Visitors are generally ignored. These are the signs of a dead church. I’ve preached for some. Couldn’t wait to get back home. It’s hard to be passionate in preaching to an audience that is bored, and really has not desire to be there.

Death to a church happens because the members have died. They have no relationship with the Lord and their faith, what little they have, is left at the church building. They make no connection to what happens on Sunday to Tuesday. They don’t see the need to do anything. They are dead. Prayers are lifeless and the same. Songs are pitiful and the same. The sermons cover the same topics and in the same manner. It’s like eating Thanksgiving leftovers for three days in a roll. It gets old pretty fast!

Is there any hope? Some believe the answer is convincing some young preacher to move in and that he will be their savior to turn things around. That usually doesn’t work. The young preacher often quits preaching because of the terrible and discouraging experience. No, Jesus has another idea. Our verse expresses those ideas.

1. Wake up. I can see a parent saying that to their child on a school day. Get up. Wake up. Those words are found throughout the NT. When Jesus was praying in the garden before His death, he returned to find Peter sleeping. He asked him, “couldn’t you stay awake?” Paul said some of the Corinthians were asleep. This was in reference to the Lord’s supper. In Thessalonians Paul reminded the brethren that they were people of the day, not the night. Be alert, were his words.  Wake up. Some of us are asleep spiritually. Some fall to sleep literally in church. I see it. There are things that can be done, such as get to bed at a decent time on Saturday night. Get up in time on Sunday to get the blood and juices running through your brain. Be thinking of Jesus. The bigger problem here is those who are asleep spiritually. WAKE  UP. Get life into your spiritual life. Have some families into your home and read a page from the gospels. We did that last night with a few folks. Amazing. Exciting. Alive. Challenging. It’s not hard. Read something spiritual. Put down the sports magazines and the fashion magazines and get a really good book that will open your eyes spiritually. If you don’t know where to start, ask your preacher. If he doesn’t know, email me, I have a long list of books. Wake up. When a person falls asleep driving, a wreck will soon happen. When a student falls asleep during a test, he’ll flunk. When we fall asleep spiritually, our relationship with the Lord suffers.

2. Jesus then says to “strengthen the things which remain which were about to die.” Stop the process of death. Keep it from spreading. Where it spreads first, is to the family. Dad is asleep spiritually, then spiritual death takes over the rest of the family and a generation is lost. Kids grow up with out God and are content to live without God. Strengthen what remains. Get stronger. Put life into life. Build up what you have. Strengthening—whether you talk about hitting the gym, running, or spiritual strength—takes time, effort and energy. The lazy will talk about it, but will never get it done. It works best with a plan and a goal. It can be done, because Jesus said so.

The attention isn’t upon the dead, but upon what is alive. Maybe we spend too much time trying to get life into people who do not care. Maybe they like being dead. Instead, we ought to put our efforts in those that are alive. Some members won’t attend a church service during the week if Jesus Himself were to do the preaching. Don’t spend all your time there. Think about those who will come because they want to learn, grow, share and become. Strengthen what is still alive. That’s the thought. That’s where our attention needs to be. We hold everyone back trying to pump air into a tire that has too many holes in it. If the dead won’t wake up, they’ll miss out. They’ll never experience what could be. Let’s work on keeping alive what is alive. Let’s get those on spiritual life support off it and growing. Pouring water on a dead plant won’t make any difference. Those who are dead, simply need to wake up. If they won’t, please step aside, we’re going to Heaven and right now we’re marching to Zion. We won’t be held back nor held down by those who don’t care about their own souls. How sad. When they are ready, we will be there to help them. But until then, strengthen what remains!

These are serious words for serious times. It’s about time we took things seriously about Jesus and start to see things the way they really are. Spiritually dead people do not make a church alive. Spiritually dead won’t be carried into Heaven because they were part of a church that had a name. Doesn’t work that way. You must be alive for the Lord.

Have you put your fingers on your wrist lately to see if anything is beating spiritually?

Wake up and strengthen—that’s the answer. That’s what needs to be done.

Roger