 WHEN THE AGENTS OF CHANGE COME TO YOUR CONGREGATION
History is a great teacher. The history of the Restoration Movement teaches us that innovators will always be lurking among us, looking for an opportunity to introduce their new doctrines and practices. It also shows us that innovative movements are like leaven. In their early stages they work silently and invisibly, but all the while they are multiplying until they affect the whole body: local congregations, educational institutions and eventually the entire brotherhood. This was most visibly illustrated in brotherhood events between 1850 and 1925. Reading the history and biography of our people during that momentous period, one can see how innovators proceeded and the disaster that resulted when faithful brethren were asleep, naive, undecided and without strong leadership. By the end of that period, a new denomination was born; the Disciples of Christ/Christian Church. Its beginning membership was composed of brethren led astray from churches that once had embraced the plea to restore New Treatment Christianity. No less than 80 percent of the movement was lost at that time. The likelihood of the same kind of disaster occurring among our churches today is very high, almost predictable.
Today a vigorous and widely scattered element of preachers and college professors among us are promoting changes for our churches. Most notably, they would change they way we view and interpret the Bible; the way we view church (i.e., that it is only a denomination); the way we worship (i.e., that we should be tolerant of those who wish to use instrumental music in worship) and the role of women in the church. What should faithful disciples do when promoters of change appear within their congregation? Long before they come, wise elders and preachers will have been at work, making their members aware of the potential problems. They will fortify them with teaching that affirms the biblical basis for our faith and practice. They will make them aware of the errors being promoted and the methods used to advance them. Sermons, classes, bulletin articles, appropriate tracts and guest speakers will be used to vaccinate the congregation, making them immune to the sweet-speaking sirens of change.
In most congregations, calls for change will most often come from youth ministers and campus ministers. They tend to catch the virus while pursuing their education, or at workshops and seminars which have a long history of featuring speakers who love to "push the envelope" for change. Another avenue is from move-ins. It will generally be young adults who have imbibed this spirit elsewhere, especially while attending some of our Christian Universities or campus programs. They may try to introduce changes into your congregation. Before any moves have been made to introduce changes, watchful elders will sit down with youth workers, campus workers and those who work with young adults and make it crystal clear that such attempts will not be tolerated.
Great care must be exercised in employing preachers and other workers for the congregation. Carefully screen all applicants with the current problems in mind. Look beyond their references. Everyone has a friend or a relative who will assure you this fellow is an angel. In interviewing a potential employee, set forth in no uncertain terms, where you stand and what you expect from him. Ask pointed questions. Leave no room for vague, double entendre answers. False teachers do not readily reveal their faith or agenda. Be doubly cautious with prospects who are recent graduates from our large Christian Universities. Some of these schools are the fountain-heads for the changes surfacing among us. Any student trained there will almost certainly have been exposed to fuzzy thinking about the authority of Scripture and changes to our faith and worship. Many will have been infected with this virus.
Wise elders will be good watchmen (Acts 20:29-30), alert day and night for any efforts to inject false ideas and unscriptural practices into the life of the church. If such an attempt is made, it should be dealt with swiftly, kindly, with a proper Christian attitude of love, but with a firmness that does not yield to compromise and pleadings for tolerance. Those employees who do not heed the correction should be terminated forthwith. These are extra-ordinary times and they demand extra ordinary measure.
If you are in a congregation whose elders and preachers are unaware of the problems before us, or are hesitant to act, ask to visit with them and explain the dangers we are up against. It would be helpful to have good materials in hand to share with them. Be kind, considerate, respectful and humble. Good leaders are sometimes uninformed.
If you see corrupting practices being introduced, first try to discuss the matter with your leaders or those involved in trying to corrupt the church.
Go with knowledge of scriptures in hand. Jot down your thoughts so you won't forget or get sidetracked. Again be kind, respectful and humble but be firm. If the leadership will not respond and the changes make it impossible for you to worship and serve God as the Scriptures teach, it is time to leave. Find a congregation that is faithfully worshiping and serving the Lord. There may be others ready to leave with you. If numbers are sufficient, start a new congregation where you can worship the Lord in spirit and in truth. It is never wrong to refuse to worship in an environment of error. Nor is it wrong to plant a faithful church where an unfaithful one exists.
JHW
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