You Can Know God

Not Moving

Okay, I thought I was going to move the blog here, but after thinking about it for a night, I'm sticking with wordpress.  Sorry for the confusion.  Keep reading if you can find me.

youcanknowgod.com

http://yckg.wordpress.com/

Oak Leaf Comments

We get some great comments on our Communication Card and from our first time guest survey, and I wanted to pass some of them on, especially to all 250+ volunteers who make Oak Leaf Church happen every week.

• My kids loved it.  You are a breath of fresh air.


• I have never been closer to God as I am now and I have my children and Oakleaf Church to thank for that.


• I make notes in the NoteMaker Bible that you gave me.  I did not have a Bible, now not only do I make notes on Sunday, but I read it before I go to bed or while I am waiting to pick up the boys from school.


• Form the time we started moving things in this morning it was there.  The comradely of the set-up team was rolling the message was on spot the band was playing from the heart and the scrolling prayer requests hit it out of the park.


• I have been to a lot of churches I and I have never heard thing put the way you put them.  I have also been listening to the services on CD in my car which is something I have never like to do when I am driving.


• In the past, it was almost like pulling teeth to get my husband to go to church.  I am just SO THANKFUL for what Oak Leaf has done for him. He is not even like the man I fell in love with, he's even better!!!

I'm proud of our church.  I'm proud of our volunteers.  I'm proud of our people.  And I'm excited to be a part of a church that is leading people from where they are to where God wants them to be.

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Welcome to Typepad

I moved this blog to Wordpress about a year ago, but now I'm back to Typepad.  I imported the old posts and comments, though a few recent ones didn't come through for some reason.  I think the feedburner links have been updated, and the youcanknowgod.com domain has been forwarded here.  Hope everything works.  New posts coming here soon.

Are the Conversions Real?

Note: My actual blog site, including comments on this post is here.  I was going to move over to typepad, but decided to stick with Wordpress.  Sorry for any confusion.

It’s not really surprising to see that the day after I posted about 39 people stepping out to follow Jesus, that one of the watchdog blogs criticized the post and called the entire day into question. I do my best to stay away from useless arguments, but I want to respond here for the benefit of all those who attend Oak Leaf, invite their friends, and work so hard to see what happened Sunday keep happening. I have no desire to argue with the blogger or debate his disciples, this post is meant for Oak Leaf Church.

The particular criticism this time centered around the fact that those decisions weren’t real and lasting. The blogger (whom I’ve never met but takes every opportunity he can find to point out what is wrong with our church and other churches like ours) says that you can’t really know if a person genuinely repented. The Bible says that only God knows…that God will judge our hearts and motives (Proverbs 16:2). I don’t really know if a person was sincere about his desire to follow Jesus, but God will sort it all out. For me, I’m going to trust people. I’m going to try and encourage people. I’m not going to always be skeptical and critical. Maybe some of those 39 people won’t “stick.” We’re going to do our best to not let that happen, but we can’t guarantee that.

Another criticism from this guy is that people can’t decide to follow Christ on their own, so he attacks our methods. The Bible teaches that it’s not possible to have always been a Christian. In fact, you’re born a sinner. You’re born separated from God. Romans says that when we call on the name of the Lord, we can be saved. Paul writes that if we confess with our mouth and believe in our hearts, then we will be saved. If you’re not a Christian from birth, then logic dictates that there must be a point in time when a person becomes a Christian. On Sunday, we gave people an opportunity to respond to the grace of God - to call on His name - and to confess Him with their mouths. 39 people did that. It was the moment in time where old things passed away, and all things become new. The prayer that Tony led people in wasn’t a magic word formula - it was just a way for people to call on the name of the Lord and confess with their mouths.

The critical blogger ends by accusing me of just using the number 39 to say “look at our church.” You know what, I’m proud of our church! I’m proud of the people that get to a building at 6 AM to spend 3 1/2 hours setting up. I’m proud of the hundreds of people that work with our children, teaching them about Jesus. I’m proud of people who invite their friends and neighbors and co-workers, not so we can have a “high attendance day” but so those people can meet Jesus! It’s much easier to just write a blog than it is to get up early, set up class rooms, write a check or invite your friends to church. These blogs can criticize away, but I’ll cast my lot with the faithful people of Oak Leaf Church who are actually doing something to advance the Kingdom. I am proud of my church, and I’ll keep bragging on them. And I’m proud of what God is doing in Cartersville, and I’ll keep bragging on Him.

I’m not going to spend my time commenting on these blogs or trying to justify what God is doing. I’m writing today to encourage all those associated with Oak Leaf Church to keep pressing on. Whenever God does something, there will be people there to criticize (read the first few chapters of Nehemiah). Sometimes, the criticism comes from other so-called Christians. Don’t be surprised about it; don’t be discouraged about it. Just keep on doing what God has called you to do.

The Problem with Buildings

I just got a Christmas card from a particular denomination that had a picture of the new denominational headquarters on the front. This is symbolic with a lot of the problem with the church in general, and part of the reason so many people have a problem with “organized religion.”

Look at most church websites, and find the “about us” tab and most of the time, you’ll see a brief history of the church. It will include, and might even focus on, the various buildings. Then in 1996, we built an education building.  And in 2001, we moved into the new worship center.

And all the while, the church as a whole is spouting off about how the church isn’t a building and how they aren’t really necessary. But we don’t put our money where our mouth is.

One thing that being a 16-month-old portable church plant has taught me (and I hope I always remember it) is that it really isn’t about the building. We met in a movie theater; now we meet in a high school. We have an office, but that’s the only facility that we can call our own. This may change one day, or it may not. I don’t really care. The way I see it, every movie theater in the country could be a church building. I don’t believe we need a $8 Million “sanctuary” to reach people for Jesus.

I thought about writing into our bylaws that at the end of 30 years, the church would be required to sell all it’s buildings and split up on purpose into smaller churches and, in effect, start over. I don’t know if that’s really practical, but it would keep the focus off building shopping mall sized facilities. It would keep a movement of God from becoming a monument to a facility.

I’m not anti building…it can certainly be a tool.  I love the fact that Perry let people write all over the walls of their new building - that’s a focus on the people.  I love the fact that Francis Chan decided not to build a $30 million building, but instead, have church outside so they could do more for the Gospel around the world. Buildings can be good tools…I just don’t think we’ll put a picture of ours on the front of a Christmas card.

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Sunday Recap

Here’s some thoughts from today’s service @ Oak Leaf Church.

• 39 people decided to follow Jesus!  39 people who are now Christians!  It’s cool when you run out of counselors.
• I saw the fireman down front, the guy that we first met when our Journey Group took a goody bag to the firehouse!
• The band sounded great today.  They did some of my favorite worship tunes.
• Tony Nolan spoke in both services, and I think he was a real hit with our people. Tony is a great guy and is one of the only traveling speakers that I would trust on our stage. If you missed the service, you’re definitely going to want to watch it online.
• Attendance was about 650.  And did I mention that 39 people gave their lives to Jesus today?!
• I let people know about A Rockin’ Christmas Eve Eve concert.  I reserved my tickets on the website.
• Three girls from Berry College in Rome, who drive down every week, brought me Starbucks. Wouldn’t it be cool if we started a campus of Oak Leaf Church in Rome?
• The four-eyed possum that was supposed to be in our elementary environment actually was killed by another possum!  So, Michelle went home to get her three legged cat.  It turns out that we did actually have a 12 foot python, which was pretty cool.  Now, I’m sure there will be rumors about us being the snake handling church.
• Will is going to start providing details of the set list and service elements on his blog, you you might want to add him to your blogroll if that kind of information interests you.
• DO NOT MISS THE SERVICE NEXT WEEK. If you have vacation plans, change them. If your car is broke down, hitchhike. If you have family coming in town, bring them.

Was the Early Church Secret Sensitive?

More thoughts from my seminary class via iTunes…

I’ve been in the section dealing with persecution of the early church. It came from the Jews and it came from the Romans. It’s challenging to me personally to hear about so many people who died for their faith. We have a rich spiritual history.

The professor alludes to the fact that some of the persecution from the Romans began because they didn’t understand this new sect of Judaism. They were fearful of it because these Christians often met early in the morning or late at night. Because outsiders were not allowed to participate (or sometimes witness) The Lords Supper, Romans accused Christians of actually participating in Cannibalistic rituals. Obviously, a verse about drinking blood and eating flesh wouldn’t have the symbolic meaning to somebody that didn’t understand what Jesus was talking about. And these services would often include the holy kiss greeting, so there were those that accused these Christians of including weird sex games. They used this as ammo to persecute the early church.

Obviously, the accusations were way off base, but I cannot help but think that some of it was due to the closed-door, secret system. In some ways, churches today still have these closed systems. We create budgets behind closed doors and people don’t really know where their money goes. We have insider terminology and engage in behaviors that would be normal to those that grew up in church but would be strange to those that don’t have a religious background.

While we shouldn’t stop celebrating the Lord’s supper, I think it’s wise to be mindful that there are always outsiders watching. Let’s face it…there are parts of our faith that are just weird, and we should do our best to explain them when possible.

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Is Oak Leaf Church Seeker Sensitive?

I really don’t labeling people with terms like this because they tend to pigeon hole and categorize people too much. They are full of meaning, but much of what we think they mean comes from our impressions. So before answering the question, let me give a little background.

The Bible is pretty clear that no one is righteous in his own right and nobody really seeks God on their own. Without the Holy Spirit, we cannot find God. We cannot save ourselves. The Bible does say that Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and that we should join Him on his mission. The Great Commission tells us to go and make disciples (not decisions, but disciples). I think making disciples begins with evangelism, but it doesn’t end there. And I think one of the truest signs of repentance and conversion is when a person shares their faith.

I think Jesus was seeker sensitive.  I’ve come to seek the Lost is pretty clear.   He certainly wasn’t soft on sin, and He spoke truth. Sometimes, His truth was too hard for the listener and they turned away. Jesus didn’t chase after the man who had many posessions and decided not to follow and lower the bar.  He watched him walk!

Still, Jesus seemed to have a special place in his heart for those that did not know God. He performed miracles so people would believe He was the Son of God, so they would repent and follow.  His mercy was tied to repentance.  He hung out with sinners, which drew repeated fire from the ultra-religious wing of Judaism.

So with that being said, let me answer the question. Is Oak Leaf Church a seeker-sensitive or a seeker-driven church? Yes and no. (That should clear it all up!) We do care about lost people…a great deal. We keep guest in mind when we plan our services and decide where to put a sign. We want to be good hosts when people come to our building, and we try to explain things to people in a way that they can understand. When we do “churchy” things, like receive an offering or do baptism or do the Lord’ supper, we don’t assume that everyone know what is going on.

I think it’s just kind to consider outsiders and guests when “doing church.” But we don’t do that to the neglect of teaching the word, encouraging Christians or doing some things that many would consider “churchy.” It’s my job to teach God’s Word - even some of the tough things. I personally know of people that left our church because during a series on Issues, I called abortion and homosexuality sins (which is what God’s Word does). Those were not really seeker-friendly messages, at least in the modern understanding of that word. But my job isn’t to teach people how to grow better grass or simply get along with their third cousins…my mission is to lead people to where God wants them to be. I’m not giving a pep talk…I’m delivering a sermon.

I’m not going to be all fire and brimstone all the time. Jesus talked about money more than he talked about hell, so we’re going to try and help people get out of debt. I want people to be better fathers and mothers, I’m going to talk about grace, mercy and forgiveness, because that’s what people need. And we’re going to have some fun. We’re going to make some funny videos. I’m going to make jokes. We’re going to minister and serve out of our personality.

When I read the Bible, I see that we need to put a focus on evangelism and discipleship. We need to reach people. If we set up our church in such a way that neglects lost people, then we are failing. And we can’t just go for mass decisions at an evangelism rally - we have a responsibility to make disciples. I think evangelism and discipleship are both required. I’m going to push the limits towards both extremes. If having a church service in a bar on Sunday nights means reaching more people, then we’re going to do it. If teaching God’s Word on the subject of pornography means we offend someone, then oh well.

It’s not an issue of is the church service for Christians or is the church service for lost people. A church service is for God. Worshiping Him is the ultimate reason for our continued existence. It glorifies God when a lost person comes into the Kingdom. And it glorifies God when a Christian lives a holy life.

So, yea…I guess we’re seeker sensitive.  But more than that…I hope we always stay God sensitive.

Was the Early Church Seeker Sensitive?

I’ve been listening to a seminary class via iTunes - the History of Christianity Part 1.  In the class, the professor, Dr. Frank James III, describes what worship looked like in the second century church.  Let me summarize.

He says there were basically two parts to a worship service - Bible reading, teaching (for explanation and a challenge to live a holy life), singing, and praying (both spontaneous and prepared.)  It borrowed heavily from Jewish worship in the synagogue (which is understandable considering Christianity came from Judaism) Anybody could attend this part of the service - whether or not you had been baptized.  If you were just checking out Christianity, or not yet a true convert, you could attend this part of of the service.

But then there was a second part of the service, which only those who had been baptized could attend.  Remember, you could be killed for being a Christian, and baptism was the ultimate public display of affection for Jesus.  This second part of the service would contain the Lord’s Supper.  And I believe the offering.

I find it interesting that the early church made a distinction between these two parts of a worship service.  They apparently took into consideration that there were people on different spiritual levels in the service.  They had a part of the service that was reserved for true Christians, but still allowed others to hear the sermon and participate in singing and praying.

At Oak Leaf Church, I recognize that on every Sunday, there are people in the audience that come from a variety of spiritual backgrounds.  Some are Christians, but some are not.  It’s a challenge to prepare a service that encourages the Christian towards holy living, presents the gospel for those who do not believe, and conveys truth to all who atten - from the 16 year old student the 65 year old retired lady.

It seems to me that this early church was mindful of people that didn’t yet know Christ when planning their worship services, which leads me to believe that the “seeker-sensitive movement” (I hate the term, because on one hand the Bible says there is no one that seeks God, and on the other hand we’re all supposed to be out seeking and making disciples) isn’t a new invention.

What do you think about this?  And I wonder how the boys and girls from the Christian Research Network or Old Truth would respond to this.  I can’t believe I’m suggesting this, but if they can be nice, I’d like to invite them to respond.

The Great Goat Giveaway

There's a write-up in the local paper about $3,000 that was raised during the Great Goat Giveaway.  The school systems sold $1 raffle tickets and the top earning school got $300.  Cartersville High School raised $1,000 and the the fund raiser was dubbed  a success.

I think this was an interesting way to raise money, and it sounds like a lot of fun.  I think Dot Frazier's teacher grant program is a wonderful idea.  And I'm for giving as much money as possible to our schools.  I'd just like to point out that our church contributes nearly twice as much as this entire fund raiser in the form of rent...EVERY MONTH.  And no livestock is involved.

In and around Jacksonville, Florida (where I spent Thanksgiving), all three counties rent facilities to churches.  It's obviously a great partnership that is working well across the country.