Read: Ephesians 4:7-16
An evil is in the professed
camp of the Lord, so gross in its impudence, that the most shortsighted can
hardly fail to notice it during the past few years. It has developed at an
abnormal rate, even for evil. It has worked like leaven until the whole lump
ferments. The devil has seldom done a cleverer thing than hinting to the church
that part of their mission is to provide entertainment for the people, with a
view to winning them.
From speaking out as the
Puritans did, the church has gradually toned down her testimony, then winked at
and excused the frivolities of the day. Then she tolerated them in her borders.
Now she has adopted them under the plea
of reaching the masses.
My first contention is that
providing amusement for the people is nowhere spoken of in the Scriptures as a
function of the church. If it is a Christian work, why did not Christ
speak of it? He didn’t but nevertheless gave us the Great Commission –
in
Mark 16:15 "Go
ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature."
That is clear enough. So
it would have been if He had added, "and provide amusement for those
who do not relish the gospel." No such words, however, are to be found. It
did not seem to occur to him.
Then again, in our focal
verses first of all Ephesians 4:11-12 we see: "And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and
some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers ... for the work of the
ministry”. Where does entertainer
come in? The Holy Spirit is silent concerning them. Were the prophets
persecuted because they amused the people or because they refused? The concert
has no martyr roll.
Again, providing amusement
is in direct antagonism to the teaching and life of Christ and all his
apostles. Don’t you think? What was the attitude of the church to the world? Ye are the salt" (Matt. 5:13),
not the sugar candy---something the world will spit out not
swallow. He was in awful earnestness.
Listen: Had Christ
introduced more of the bright and pleasant elements into his mission, he would
have been more popular when they went back, because of the searching nature of
His teaching. But I do not hear Him say, "Run after these people, Peter,
and tell them we will have a different style of service tomorrow, something
short and attractive with little preaching. We will have a pleasant evening for
the people. Tell them they will be sure to enjoy it. Be quick Peter, we must
get the people somehow." Jesus
pitied sinners, sighed and wept
over them, but never sought to
amuse them.
In vain will the Epistles
be searched to find any trace of this gospel of amusement! Their message is,
"Come out, keep out...!" Anything approaching fooling is
conspicuous by its absence. They had boundless confidence in the gospel and
employed no other weapon.
After Peter and John were locked up for preaching, the
church had a prayer meeting but they did not pray, "Lord grant unto
thy servants that by a wise and discriminating use of innocent recreation we
may show these people how happy we are."
If they ceased not from
preaching Christ, they had not time for arranging entertainments. Scattered by
persecution, they went everywhere preaching the gospel. They turned the world upside
down
Acts 17:6 “And when they found them not,
they drew Jason and certain Brethren unto the Rulers of the city, crying, These
who have turned the world upside down are come hither also”. That is the only difference! Lord, clear the church of all the rot and
rubbish the devil has imposed on her, and bring us back to the Word of
God. Lastly, the mission of amusement fails to affect the end desired. It works havoc among young converts. Let the careless and scoffers, who thank God because the church met them halfway, speak and testify. Let the heavy laden who found peace through the concert not keep silent! Let the drunkard to whom the dramatic entertainment has been God's link in the chain of the conversion, stand up! There are none to answer. The mission of amusement produces no converts. The need of the hour for today's ministry is believing scholarship joined with earnest spirituality, the one springing from the other as fruit from the root. The need is biblical doctrine (The Gospel), so understood and felt that it sets men on fire.
