Seven Deadly Words
I came to church last Sunday and was confronted with a phrase that I have heard many times. This phrase was not used specifically, but the context of the phrase was heard loud and clear. The phrase is, “We’ve never done it that way before.” There is another statement that goes along with this, and it says, “If it ain’t broke…don’t fix it!” The problem with this statement is that it is subjective. Who is the judge of whether it is broken or not? Is it you or me? Obliviously in all walks of life, things seem to be changing at a fast pace all around us. The way we have done things in the past is not working as well today. They were good for a season, but it seems that the seasons are changing. “We’ve never had a Christmas Musical on Sunday morning.” While that may be true, we have to also realize that Sunday night attendance is not what it used to be. Our culture has changed so that most people recognize Sunday morning as the best time for worship. For the most part, Sunday night has become a night set-aside for the family. “We’ve never had elders before, why do we need them now?” Simply said, it’s biblical. We have changed so much and reached a stage in the life of our church that biblical elders may be a great change in the way we handle the affairs of the church. “We’ve always done it this way; why do we need to change?” We hear that a lot. People are ok with change that happens in their personal lives, but when it comes to the church, they are less likely to accept change. Along with change, comes a tendency to try and find blame. Is it the President’s fault, is it the church’s fault, or even is it the staff’s fault? What does the Word say about these conflicts? Is it really right to have conflict in the church because of change?
As I was reading in my daily Bible reading, I read once again what Paul said concerning change and divisions in the church. In I Corinthians 3, Paul speaks directly about conflict in the church at Corinth where there was a conflict concerning the person they were going to follow. You see, the Corinthians had the same problems we have. They were basically saying, “We’ve never done it this way before, and if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.” Paul had been the one to get the church started, followed by Apollos who worked in the established church teaching and encouraging the converts Paul had won. The people in the church were unsure of the change and unsure who they would follow. I believe with all my heart that God puts those He wants into positions of leadership. So why sometimes do we question the different ways of our leadership or why do we question the biblical decisions of our leadership? If we truly believe that God’s ways are higher than our own, then why do we sometimes seek to find fault in our church leadership? Right now in the life of any church, is not the time to go hyper-critical on the ways we are looking at adjusting things at FBC. Instead, it should be the time when we support our staff and the ministries of the church like never before. We don’t want it to be said of us that “I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarrelling among you, are you not wordly?” Let’s leave that kind of behavior to the world, not the church.
We may have never done it that way before, but it’s ok to try if it doesn’t conflict with the ways of God!
Aaron Hodges
