I know it's fun to poke at McMegaChurch and all but doesn't this ad mock in concept what Paul himself did with the Corinthians? Didn't he say, "I gave you milk to drink, not solid food" ?
The problem isn't "milk" per se. That's what you feed new believers, "infants in Christ". And a growing church is going to have those. Especially in America, whose culture seems to turn out flesh-addicted, spiritually-impoverished souls at an alarming rate.
The problem, as I see it, is how do you nurture and challenge a congregation into a deeper fulfillment in the meat of God's truth. Without putting off new believers and people outside of Christ, without sowing division, and without getting all Amish-y. I'd really like to understand better what that looks like.
On the contrary, it isn't ridiculous to teach doctrine at the level the hearers can comprehend. Right?
But perhaps I'm alone here in seeing the watered-down-doctrine-megachurch movement as more symptomatic of American culture than the American pastorate.
On the contrary, it's wrong to accommodate recalcitrant churchgoers' obstinate insistence on remaining infants. And that is what this is about, not the fine art of communication.
There seems to be an assumption in SS curriculum used in our church, and perhaps from the pulpit too, that unsaved people are also unintelligent people. Thus the tendency to reduce everything to the near-idiot level of understanding.
There is clearly a difference between catering to an adult who wants nothing but pablum and choking a baby with a beefsteak, but the reality is that the average Christian seems quite happy with pablum and most churches are quite happy to keep spooning it out. Such a diet promotes initial growth perhaps, but quickly leads to spiritual nausea. Nothing triggers my gag reflex faster than accidently listening to Joel Osteen for example, but I suppose he is doing the folks in diapers some good. It is just hard to imagine what a church full of thousands of spiritual infants would be like . . . I have to hope that, away from the television cameras perhaps, worshippers in some of these large churches are receiving some form of spiritual sustenance beyond "you're a good person and God loves you."
Well, if I can torture your metaphor a bit more, one of my big problems with Osteen is that he's actually telling lifeless plastic dolls that this whole being-a-live-baby thing is overblown, they're fine just as they are.
And smearing a mixture of strained peas and arsenic over their faces.
Okay, I think I've worked the old boy over sufficiently.
This link is off topic, but I would love to see you post a thread on this.
In an interview with ABC News GW Bush states the Bible isn't literally true. Bush said that 'God sent a son', not his 'only begotten son' but just 'a son'.
Telling you what dainty elitists won't tell you, and saying it the way they won't say it, since 2004.
You're welcome.
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16 comments:
Nice … and seemingly sold wherever single Elder models are found.
;{)
You're right. Too good to pass up!
That's an ugly baby.
Remember "Baby man"?
Except that one's so not funny.
I know it's fun to poke at McMegaChurch and all but doesn't this ad mock in concept what Paul himself did with the Corinthians? Didn't he say, "I gave you milk to drink, not solid food" ?
The problem isn't "milk" per se. That's what you feed new believers, "infants in Christ". And a growing church is going to have those. Especially in America, whose culture seems to turn out flesh-addicted, spiritually-impoverished souls at an alarming rate.
The problem, as I see it, is how do you nurture and challenge a congregation into a deeper fulfillment in the meat of God's truth. Without putting off new believers and people outside of Christ, without sowing division, and without getting all Amish-y. I'd really like to understand better what that looks like.
Actually it agrees with Paul (and the author of Hebrews) that giving baby-food to should-be grownups is ridiculous, and they should, well, grow up.
On the contrary, it isn't ridiculous to teach doctrine at the level the hearers can comprehend. Right?
But perhaps I'm alone here in seeing the watered-down-doctrine-megachurch movement as more symptomatic of American culture than the American pastorate.
On the contrary, it's wrong to accommodate recalcitrant churchgoers' obstinate insistence on remaining infants. And that is what this is about, not the fine art of communication.
There seems to be an assumption in SS curriculum used in our church, and perhaps from the pulpit too, that unsaved people are also unintelligent people. Thus the tendency to reduce everything to the near-idiot level of understanding.
There is clearly a difference between catering to an adult who wants nothing but pablum and choking a baby with a beefsteak, but the reality is that the average Christian seems quite happy with pablum and most churches are quite happy to keep spooning it out. Such a diet promotes initial growth perhaps, but quickly leads to spiritual nausea. Nothing triggers my gag reflex faster than accidently listening to Joel Osteen for example, but I suppose he is doing the folks in diapers some good. It is just hard to imagine what a church full of thousands of spiritual infants would be like . . . I have to hope that, away from the television cameras perhaps, worshippers in some of these large churches are receiving some form of spiritual sustenance beyond "you're a good person and God loves you."
Well, if I can torture your metaphor a bit more, one of my big problems with Osteen is that he's actually telling lifeless plastic dolls that this whole being-a-live-baby thing is overblown, they're fine just as they are.
And smearing a mixture of strained peas and arsenic over their faces.
Okay, I think I've worked the old boy over sufficiently.
LOL - torture away!
We make a deadly team.
Dan,
This link is off topic, but I would love to see you post a thread on this.
In an interview with ABC News GW Bush states the Bible isn't literally true. Bush said that 'God sent a son', not his 'only begotten son' but just 'a son'.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/weblogs/potus-notes/2008/Dec/09/bush-bible-probably-not-literally-true/
L.O.L.
Seriously.
Such a statement does not really surprise me, given some of what I have read of the President's spiritual background.
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