Jump Start # 1910

Revelation 3:1 “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven spirits of God, and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, and you are dead.’”

Sardis thought everything was fine. It wasn’t. God declared that congregation was dead. How is it that a church can be dead and not know it? Why wasn’t something done to prevent spiritual death?

When we look at the seven churches that are listed in these introductory chapters of Revelation, there are many things we do not know. Which of the seven was the largest? Which of the seven had elders? Which of the seven had baptized the most in the past year? Today, we’d want to know about the size and age of the church building. We’d want to know how spacious the auditorium was. Is there plenty of parking space out front? How much money is in the bank account? Who’s preaching for them? Who’s coming for meetings? Those are the typical things that are asked about a congregation. Positive answers could be given to all of those questions and yet there would remain the one major issue, is the church alive?

How does a church die and why doesn’t anyone seem to notice that? Here are a few thoughts:

First, there isn’t much spiritual interest among the members. That’s a cold fact, but it speaks the truth. A congregation dies because no one noticed and no one really cared. Certainly, folks will walk through what is expected. They will gather for Sunday worship, sing a few songs, often the same songs and often without very much heart. They will eat the Lord’s Supper, with just passing reference to what that death meant. Someone will preach a lesson that is safe and not challenging nor leading to applications. Week after week. Month after month. Year after year. The church drifts. Little plans. No goals. No expectations. No accountability. Folks drift in and out and no one knows where they are. A member or two will die each year and the numbers continue to shrink.

Second, no one is willing to change course. The church drifts and no one steps up. No one suggests a new idea. No one offers to generate life among them. They stare at each other as year by year they shrink in size, enthusiasm and hope. They hope someone will come in and turn them. It won’t happen. They are waiting for someone to save them from death, but it won’t happen. Instead of rising up and taking charge to do what needs to be done, they sit and stare and wait. I have literally sat with families and watched their loved ones die. It’s a slow and pitiful process. Nothing more can be done. So the family sits and waits. Such is the state of some congregations today.

Third, they are afraid of doing something different. They haven’t learned the difference between methods and Biblical patterns. So, in a world that is moving at blazing speed in technology, this dying church wants nothing to do with “those modern things.” No lessons are recorded. No website is posted. Definitely, no Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Those are all viewed as a waste of money and “evil.” So, the dying church sits there, and other than having a church building, no one in the community even knows that they are there. Fear of anything different has kept this dying church locked in the dark ages. They feel safe. They feel secure. But they are dying and they do not know that. Nothing is done to reach out to the community. Smaller and smaller the church becomes. They never change the way they do things. They feel that all change is wrong. They don’t want to be wrong, so they are stuck decades in the past, but they feel safe. They do not understand that a congregation can be Biblically accurate and use modern methods of connecting, reaching and sharing the gospel.

Fourth, they remain isolated from other brethren. They do not get around and visit other places. They don’t connect with brethren in neighboring congregations. Ideas are not shared. They don’t learn from others. Isolation makes them feel safe. The doors are shut and nothing can bother them. All around within driving distance are congregations that are thriving. They could get ideas. They could get help. But no one thinks this way. No one is willing to do anything. They just sit and stare and wait for the next member to pass away.

Fifth, they haven’t given any thought about the future. A quick look around the typical dead church and you find a few senior citizens. What happens in ten years? What happens when these senior saints are no longer on this side of things? Who takes their place? No one thinks about this. No one seems concerned about this. Even the prayers do not reflect the need for help.

They are dead and they do not realize it. Such was Sardis. Such are some congregations today. Life in a congregation isn’t based upon size, location or whether or not they have a church building. The difference between death and life is activity, interest, passion and love for the Lord. Just as a couple in a marriage can take each other for granted and the marriage becomes stale and lifeless, so can our spiritual life.

Sardis was dead as a church because the members were dead spiritually. Their interests in spiritual things was not there. No life. No activity. No zeal. No hospitality. No outside visiting. No deep prayers. No challenging Bible studies. No seeking the lost. Nothing out of the ordinary.

I see these same signs of coming death in congregations today. People do not seem very concerned. Nothing is being done to prevent the coming death. The young among them move away or drop out. Very few new faces show up. The place seems stale. The building has a stale feel to it. The worship seems stale. The preaching seems stale. The atmosphere seems stale. Everyone seems tired. Everyone seems lifeless. The only excitement is when folks talk about their favorite sports team or the weather.

A while back, I went to lunch with Jason, my preacher. There was a place I have been wanting to try. I had in my mind what I thought was going to be on the menu. It wasn’t there. They offered goat, which I passed on. The food was good, but the entire time we were there, no one else came in. The place was empty and this was at peak lunch time. That was a bit creepy. I kept thinking, why are we the only ones in here? Why isn’t anyone else here? Something just didn’t seem right. You can sense that in some congregations. You can feel the tension. You can feel trouble. You can feel that things aren’t right.

A church doesn’t have to die. Repent is what God told Sardis. Change. What you are doing isn’t working. Folks are dying in the pew. Get some help. Ask others for advice. Generate ideas. But all of this is built around the concept of caring. Don’t you care what is going on? Don’t you care that this church may not exist in a decade? Don’t you care that folks are dying in sin all around you and nothing is being done? Don’t you care that your love for the Lord is so vain and empty that it is doing nothing for your life? Don’t you care?

A congregation needs to do what we do in life. When we are drowning in financial debt, we don’t go to a broke cousin for advice. We seek out someone who has done well financially. We ask. We listen. We learn. If you want to play golf, you don’t talk to someone who hates the game and has never played. You seek out that guy who plays once a week. You ask. You listen. You learn. You need to fix something in the house. You don’t seek out the guy who can’t change a light bulb. You find that person who is Mr. Handyman. You ask. You listen. You learn.

Should we not do this spiritually? Individually, maybe we are not praying so well. Maybe we are in a rut. Who do you talk to? The co-worker who never worships God or the person who seems to be a spiritual giant. You seek out the giant. You ask. You listen. You learn. Shouldn’t a stale congregation do the same? Seek out a congregation that seems to be hitting on all cylinders. Get ideas. Ask. Listen. Learn.

Sardis was dead and they didn’t even know it. How about you? Are you alive spiritually? Are you seeking out someone who can help you? Maybe it’s time.

Roger