Is Church Dangerous?
Preaching
Shaking Wolves Out Of Cherry Trees
And 149 Other Sermon Ideas
Purpose Statement: Is there anything unpleasant or inconvenient about going to church?
Cars cause twenty percent of all fatal accidents; seventeen percent of all accidents happen at home; fourteen percent of all accidents happen to pedestrians on the street; sixteen percent of all accidents happen in air, rail, or boat travel. Only .001 percent of all accidents occur in church. Yet, one could say that it is dangerous to go to church.
a. The danger of persecution. Jesus warned his followers that they would suffer and die for their faith and service to him (Matthew 10:25-30). What they had to say would so disturb those in power that the persecutions would be fierce. I doubt that the sins of today are any different: it is the same message we have to offer for the same offenses. (See messages E-4 and L-3.) The fact we don't suffer the same persecutions is probably due to the sophistication of our listeners today. Our suffering for serving Christ would come in subtler ways today; if you call losing your job, for instance, instead of being thrown in jail or beaten, subtler. At least, most of us don't worry over the suffering and death the disciples experienced happening to us. The dangers are mostly of another kind.
b. The danger of being disturbed. I have always said there are two kinds of sermons: one that comforts and inspires, and one that disturbs or challenges. Many Christians could do with a serious self-examination. We need to be shaken out of our complacency and smugness. We are sinners and need to repent and confess. At times we need to be the tax collector in the Temple who beat his breast asking God to be merciful because he was a sinner (Luke 18:13-14). Our sins should disturb us into humility and repentance.
c. The danger of being challenged. Jesus said the harvest was ripe and ready for the workers. The tasks awaiting Christians who are willing to serve are daunting and overwhelming. A rich ruler came to Jesus and Jesus asked him to sell all his possessions and give it all to the poor (Matthew 19:16-24). He did not anticipate the danger of losing everything when he came to Jesus. The challenge was too much.
If we think that church today will not cost us anything, it may already have cost us more than we think.
Cars cause twenty percent of all fatal accidents; seventeen percent of all accidents happen at home; fourteen percent of all accidents happen to pedestrians on the street; sixteen percent of all accidents happen in air, rail, or boat travel. Only .001 percent of all accidents occur in church. Yet, one could say that it is dangerous to go to church.
a. The danger of persecution. Jesus warned his followers that they would suffer and die for their faith and service to him (Matthew 10:25-30). What they had to say would so disturb those in power that the persecutions would be fierce. I doubt that the sins of today are any different: it is the same message we have to offer for the same offenses. (See messages E-4 and L-3.) The fact we don't suffer the same persecutions is probably due to the sophistication of our listeners today. Our suffering for serving Christ would come in subtler ways today; if you call losing your job, for instance, instead of being thrown in jail or beaten, subtler. At least, most of us don't worry over the suffering and death the disciples experienced happening to us. The dangers are mostly of another kind.
b. The danger of being disturbed. I have always said there are two kinds of sermons: one that comforts and inspires, and one that disturbs or challenges. Many Christians could do with a serious self-examination. We need to be shaken out of our complacency and smugness. We are sinners and need to repent and confess. At times we need to be the tax collector in the Temple who beat his breast asking God to be merciful because he was a sinner (Luke 18:13-14). Our sins should disturb us into humility and repentance.
c. The danger of being challenged. Jesus said the harvest was ripe and ready for the workers. The tasks awaiting Christians who are willing to serve are daunting and overwhelming. A rich ruler came to Jesus and Jesus asked him to sell all his possessions and give it all to the poor (Matthew 19:16-24). He did not anticipate the danger of losing everything when he came to Jesus. The challenge was too much.
If we think that church today will not cost us anything, it may already have cost us more than we think.
