How to Fix the Fall
Updated: Aug 15, 2023
Is There a Bigger Issue?
As we continue our study of the church this month, I want to help bring solutions to the problems that we have been listing and addressing. Previously, we discussed why Christians are leaving the Church, and we came to the conclusion that a vast majority of current believers are simply not taught that the gathering should be a priority. The church is something that we would all hope our kids prioritize one day, but we want to leave that decision up to them so that their walk with the Lord doesn’t seem fake or forced. While it would be easy to just point the finger at parenting and say ‘Do better’, I think there is an underlying cure that both parents and non-parents can participate in. That cure is found in a passage we’ve discussed earlier, Proverbs 29:15 “15 The rod and a rebuke give wisdom, But a child who gets his own way brings shame to his mother.” I know this scripture is specifically addressing parenting, but the overall idea of this passage, which is verified through all of scripture, is that love cannot be absent of discipline.
Love-Hate Relationship
We live in a day and age where accountability and discipline are thrown by the wayside and viewed as harmful tactics. Never before has someone’s career or social status been in so much danger if we happen to hurt someone’s feelings. If we discipline someone, call them out, or even just flat-out disagree, our society would tell us that we hate that person and that this particular individual should want nothing to do with us. Yet the Bible would say quite the opposite. In fact, pending your own translation, ‘discipline’ is mentioned about 60 times throughout your whole Bible and the word ‘account’, appears about 68 times. The Word of God is very much in favor of discipline and holding our brothers and sisters accountable. Categorically, not only is discipline and accountability viewed as love according to the book of Proverbs, but the absence of it is viewed as hate! Proverbs 13:24 states, “24 He who withholds his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.” If we truly love fellow Christ followers, we will not be ashamed to show them discipline and hold them accountable. It is only if we hate them that we would ignore their sin and let them live their lives as they see fit, and not according to the Bible. That is why we must fight back against cultural norms with the Word of God. Society makes it quite clear where they stand. They want you to believe if you don’t accept every thought, behavior, and mannerism about a person, then you clearly have no love for that individual in your heart.
A Prime Example
Accepting even a small dose of this ideology into your church can reap massive consequences against the gathering as a whole. Think to yourself for a second, how many pastors do you know about that have had to step down from leadership because they ultimately struggled with an issue that they never addressed? If you need help thinking of some, try turning on Netflix. You will find a list of documentaries on T.V. these days about pastors and leaders who were thriving with their church, and yet it all came crashing down due to a lack of accountability….and these are just the famous ones we hear about. Think about all of the churches that we don’t see. Pastors that show no value in having a strong elder board or wise mentors, that only show they care more about their position than they do their congregation. The lack of discipline in our culture is not just a parent issue, it’s a church issue. The less and less accountability we have for our brothers and sisters, the more and more they will continue to leave the Church. Richard Mayhue sums up the importance of church discipline beautifully when he says, “Though the word discipline carries negative connotations, the practice of church discipline ought to be motivated by a positive, loving desire both to preserve the purity of the church and to restore sinning brothers and sisters to the fellowship.” If we want to stop the fall of church attendance in our nation and put an end to all the wrong records, we must love our brothers and sisters enough to hold them accountable, and not be afraid to act in a disciplinary manner when necessary.
The Right Response
The growth that can come from a healthy, disciplined, body of believers, is absolutely worth it when we see the damage that can occur when a believer leaves their life unchecked. Hebrews 12:11 confirms this, “11 For the moment, all discipline seems not to be pleasant, but painful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” Disciplining those we love and holding those close to us accountable may not be a delightful thing that we get to do, however, when practiced biblically, we see that it can produce righteousness in that person’s life. This is why it is of utmost importance for parents to raise their kids in the faith, even if it doesn’t makes sense to them yet. As more and more young adults become parents in this culture, we can’t be afraid to show discipline to our children, because we never know when that fruit of righteousness may be produced. Even more so than that, however, we can’t be afraid as a church to hold our congregation accountable to the Word of God, because we never know when accountability may lead the lost back to righteousness. If we will stop looking down upon discipline and accountability, and instead view them as merciful gifts from God, we can indeed lead the Church how God intended it to be led. Let’s love our friends and love our family, enough to call out their ways in times of wrong, and slowly yet surely, God will lead the lost sheep back home.
Sources
[1] “Access Your Bible from Anywhere.” BibleGateway.Com: A Searchable Online Bible in over 150 Versions and 50 Languages., www.biblegateway.com/. Accessed 2023.
[2] MacArthur, John & Mayhue, Richard. A Systemic Summary of Bible Truth: Biblical Doctrine. Wheaton, Crossway, 2017
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