Getting in the Game // The Problem with Church Is..., Part 4

Despite what some people think, church is NOT a spectator sport. If you belong to a church, you’re meant to be one of the players. And what I’ve observed over the years, is that there are too many – way too many people – who just want to sit on the sidelines, and pick faults with the players.

Eternal Results

Today on the program we’re continuing in our series called, “The problem with church is …” As God calls us into His family, as we become one of His children, what we discover is, we have brothers and sisters in Christ, people who are our family, our brothers and sisters. Now being part of a family can be difficult. Being part of a family can, frankly, be a pain in the neck, some days, but it’s part of God’s plan. Part of God’s plan is that we should be together as His family. That plan we call ‘church’. For some people, that sends a shiver down their spine. But it is a part of God’s plan, and if it is God’s plan, then I truly believe that we are meant to flourish when we are planted in the House of the Lord.

One of the reasons that we don’t flourish sometimes, is that we get tied up in ‘doing’ a whole bunch of things that never actually impact people. I’m a great fan of the British comedy series – I don’t know if you have ever watched it – called, “Yes Minister” and ”Yes Prime Minister”. One of the funniest series that has ever been on television since television was invented, and a senior public servant, by the name of Sir Humphrey Appleby, says to a junior public servant, called Bernard, he says, “Remember, Bernard, politicians love activity, it’s their substitute for achievement.” That’s a fantastic line, isn’t it?

Activity is their substitute for achievement – can I maybe twist that line around a little bit and say, “Remember, Bernard, Christians love activity, it’s their substitute for achievement.”

What can happen in God’s family, in God’s church, is that we all race around doing different things, and being busy, and being involved in this and that and the other, and we think, “wow, we’ve done a good job”. But the only real measure, the only true measure of the effectiveness of a church is eternal results.

Have you ever been on a sporting team that always loses? I have! When I was in the Army, a Cadet in the Royal Military College, Duntroon, our Officer Training Academy, I was a part of the bottom rung of football, and we didn‘t win one game the whole season. It’s cold, it’s wet, it’s sleeting, it hurts, to be tackled, it’s muddy, it’s dirty, you don’t win a single game. Let me tell you, it is not a lot of fun being part of a losing team. Yet a lot of Christians are exactly that in their churches.

Are we actually involved in the business of winning, maturing and discipling souls for Jesus Christ? Are the nets of our church straining under the weight of the catch, or are we just a dysfunctional family, going nowhere? Has activity become our substitute for achievement? Has activity become my substitute for achievement? Because Jesus said to His disciples, “I am going to make you fishers of men.” If you’ve got a Bible, grab it, open it up at John, Chapter 21. The other place we’re going today is Luke Chapter 4 and 5 but we’re going to begin in John, Chapter 21. The picture here is, Jesus has been crucified, He has risen again. This is the third time that Jesus appears to His disciples. They are out fishing. They have gone from Jerusalem, about 120 kilometres north, back to Galilee, they are on the Sea of Tiberius, and they’re out fishing. They have been out fishing all night, and no catch, and a man calls out from the shore and says, ”Throw out the nets on the other side,” and all of a sudden, they recognise that. They recognise that because it reminds them of something. Let’s have a quick read of this passage in John Chapter 21:1–8.

After these things, Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples on the Sea of Tiberius, and He showed Himself in this way. Gathered together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathaniel of Canaan in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two others of His disciples. Simon Peter said to them, “I’m going fishing,” they said, “Well, we’ll come with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught absolutely nothing. Just after day break, Jesus stood on the beach but the disciples didn’t know it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, “Guys, why haven’t you got any fish? And they answered Him, “We didn’t catch any.” and He said to them,” Listen cast the net on the other side of the boat and you will find some.” So they did, and now they weren’t able to haul it in because there were so many fish. The disciple whom Jesus loved, said to Peter, “That’s the Lord,” and when Simon Peter heard that, he put on some clothes, because he was naked, and he jumped into the sea but the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net, full of fish, because they were not far from the land, only about one hundred yards. (John 21:1–8) 

So the crucifixion which was a horrible time, Jesus has risen again, He appears to His disciples, who have fled out of Jerusalem, north back to Galilee. They are out doing, what? They are doing what they always did before they met Jesus, they were fishermen. They have gone back to work, the party is over, Jesus was crucified. People were after them because they were following Jesus. That’s it, they are fishing and all of a sudden Jesus comes and they recognise Him because they’ve had this experience once before. Flick back to Luke’s Gospel, Chapter 5:1–10

Once while Jesus was standing beside the Lake of Gennesaret and the crowd was pressing in on Him to hear the Word of God. He saw two boats there at the shore of the Lake and the fishermen had gone out in them and they were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon.

So this is three and a half years before the instance in John Chapter 21, we talked about. This is the first time Simon Peter meets Jesus.

So they go out in Simon Peter’s boat, and Jesus sits down in the boat and from the water, teaches the crowds and when that’s done, He says to Simon, “Listen, let’s push out into the deep water and let down the nets,” and Simon answers, “Master, we’ve worked all night long but we haven’t caught a thing, well, if you say so, I’ll let down the nets.” When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were about to break, so they signalled to their partners in the other boats to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at Jesus' knees and said, “Go away from me Lord, because I am a sinful man.” For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid, from now on you’ll be catching people.” When they’d brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed Jesus.”

I love this story because it begins with Jesus having to go out in the boat, there was so many people, He can’t talk to them on the land. He goes out on the boat and it says, the crowd was pressing in on Him to hear the Word of God. Let me ask you, in your family, in your church, where you go, is the crowd pressing the doors down to hear the Word of God? Tell, you what, there are a lot of churches where that’s not happening. There are a lot of churches where people are walking in with bored faces, they’re singing songs with bored faces and they are walking out of there with bored faces. I love this, the crowds had seen the wonderful things Jesus had done, and they were pressing in on Him to hear the Word of God, because He talked with authority, He healed people, His reputation had spread, He had rock–star status. Wow, what if people came to our churches and were healed like that? What if people came to our fellowship and wanted to hear more? What if they were astounded? What if they said, “WOW, this stuff really rings true? Powerful authoritative proclamation of the truth, healing and deliverance. That’s the stuff that makes God’s love real in people’s lives; it’s the stuff that makes people hungry for God’s Word. Is it happening in your fellowship? Are you flourishing in the House of the Lord? Or is this some kind of boring thing that happens and you go every Sunday, you don’t know exactly why you do, but you do out of habit?

Simon Peter and the team had been fishing all night, they came back, they were tired, they were unhappy, they were labouring, it’s hard work. There was no machinery, they might have had some ropes and pullies, but that’s about it. They worked all night and they caught nothing. Tired, unhappy, then a carpenter comes along! A carpenter, not a fisherman, a carpenter, and says, “Let’s push out, let’s take our nets out.” Now these nets aren’t like the nets that you and I might understand, they’re more like thick cheesecloth. They were for night fishing, they weren’t for day fishing. Now if you or I had been like Simon Peter, tired, exhausted, dejected, would we have pushed out? I think when this carpenter gets on our boat, there are three possibilities. Three reactions we can have. The first one is, “You stupid carpenter, what do you know, you’re not a fisherman, and we say, “No we're not going out, we’re just going to go out again tomorrow night the way we always do and catch fish.” The second response would be so dejected, to say, “No, look, I’m tired, I’m giving up, I’m not doing this anymore. Every night we go out there, we don’t catch any fish. I’m sick of fishing; I’m going to hire someone else to do this.” The third option is to do exactly what Jesus asks.

Saying Yes to Jesus

If you’ve spent any time listening to these programs over the years, you’ll know that I believe in calling a spade a spade, when it comes to some of the failings of the wider church in society today. But here’s the thing – we can examine it. we can criticise it, we can genuinely try to come up with a better approach, or to address some of the endemic weaknesses.

But at some point – at some point – are we going to do something about it? Are we going to sit on the sideline and criticise it, or are we going to get into the game, and become part of the solution to the problems we see? It’s one thing to be honest and direct about problems in our churches. That’s good. That’s healthy. But it’s another thing entirely to spend a lifetime whinging and complaining about this thing called church as though it’s our role somehow to be judge, jury and executioner when it comes to the church.

Jesus said “I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it”. It’s His idea – and I for one, don’t think it’s such a good idea to rail against His plan and His idea and His purposes – do you? As we saw before the break, there are so many well–meaning people in the boat, trying to catch fish, labouring hard, toiling until they’re exhausted, but for all intents and purposes having no real impact in the lives of people.

That’s the problem with many a church. Truly! Well, we are on the boat, and it seems to me that we have three options when this Carpenter from Nazareth comes and says, “Throw your nets in on the other side.”

We can call him a crazy carpenter – what would He know, He’s a carpenter, not a fisherman, we know how to do church here in our suburb or town! That’s the first option.

Or – we can give up in despair and hire experts to do the work for us. After all, this is hard work this being a fisher of men. No, let’s hire a pastor and an associate pastor – and pay them. It’s their job, not ours!

And then – then there’s the third option. The third option is the one I’d like to look at now. These disciples, if we flick back to John Chapter 21, had been to hell and back. They had seen Jesus crucified, they had seen Him die. They had lost all their hopes, their dreams, their own lives were threatened, they fled back up here to Galilee. They went back to work as fishermen, they’re on the boat, they didn’t catch any fish last night. Talk about a bunch of losers! These people were condemned, they were failures. They kind of knew that Jesus was resurrected, He was alive again but they still weren’t sure. They still didn’t get it and Jesus comes along and gives them a catch and they recognise Him. They race back to shore. What happens next?

Have a look in John, Chapter 21 verse 9.

“When they came back to shore, they saw a charcoal fire there with fish on it and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you’ve caught.” So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish. A hundred and fifty–three of them and although there were so many the net wasn’t torn, and Jesus said to them, “come and have breakfast.” Now, none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you,” because they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus had appeared to His disciples.”

They are tired, they are hungry, they’re dejected and there’s nothing like getting off the boat and sitting down having a barbecue with Jesus, and letting Jesus feed you. Imagine how that felt for them. Imagine the sense of wonder and awe, and joy, at sitting down on the beach, eating with Jesus. Let’s be candid and honest here. The nets of many churches simply are not bursting with the catch. Some of the things we’ve talked about here may apply to you, they may apply to your church and probably some of us are feeling kind of condemned and hopeless. We know we should be catching fish, we know we should be making real differences in peoples lives but I’m not flourishing, we are not flourishing, something is wrong. I feel so condemned and Jesus comes along and you are feeling condemned and says, “Hang on a minute, have a rest, come and have breakfast. Let Me feed you. Have some fish, have some bread. Sit down with Me and have a yarn.”

There is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Just when you are feeling down, just when you are feeling condemned, Jesus helps you. Jesus invites you to a barbecue. Jesus feeds you, then He picks the least faithful one, Peter, who denied Him three times, who said. “I don’t know Jesus,” when Jesus needed him the most, and three times He now asks Peter to do something. When they’d finish breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” and Simon Peter said, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you,” and Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” Second time He said to him, “Simon, son of John, do you love me,” and Simon said, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you,” and Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him a third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” and Peter felt so hurt, because He said for the third time, “Do you love me?” and Simon Peter said, “Of course you know, you know everything, you know that I love you,” and Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.”

Three times Peter denied Jesus, three times Jesus gave him an opportunity, an act of friendship. He said, “Go and feed my sheep.” I don’t know about you – but what I hear Jesus saying to me right now through this story, is this” “Church, do you love me? Feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep, do my work. Not the works of your hand, not the programs that you’ve got planned, not the things that you think. Do my work, follow me, flourish with me, be prepared to lay down every last little bit and do it my way.” How will you react when the carpenter gets in the boat with you? Stupid carpenter, give up completely, hire experts, or is your heart saying, “Yes”, is there a spark of love and friendship in your heart that says, “Lord I will lay aside all that I hold sacred at your feet. I’ll do it your way, so that your catch will be huge.” God has a plan. God’s plan is that you and I will flourish in the House of the Lord. He never promises it would be perfect. Or that it would be easy. Just that it would work.

Which Church is for Me?

One of the biggest questions for any Christian to answer for themselves is – which church should I belong to? These days there are so many choices. And on the surface, some appear incredibly contemporary and attractive. But choosing a church is more than evaluating the options and picking the best one. There’s something else …

The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God. (Psalm 92:12–13)

Beautiful Psalm is Psalm 92. Worth reading. But those two verses in particular really touch me. They speak of God taking His people – the righteous – and seeing them flourish. Flourish is a word of abundance, isn’t it? You don’t see a plant only just flourishing. A plant that’s only just hanging in there isn’t one that’s said to be flourishing. No – it’s the strong, healthy, green, growing plant – the one that’s thriving, the one that’s being all that it can be, bearing stunning, rich fruit in season – that’s the one that’s said to be flourishing.

And that’s the picture that God’s giving us of what He wants for us when we’re planted in His house. The House of the Lord. The thing we these days call … church. And whilst I think that all of the things we’ve talked about these past few weeks – things that we should be looking for in a church – whilst all of those are incredibly important … the danger is that if we focus on just those things … the danger is that we approach church like a bunch of consumers.

All that matters is what’s in it for me. What can I get out of this church, as compared to that one? Do you understand what I’m saying? You and I – we can’t approach God’s community with a selfish, what’s in it for me attitude alone, because if we do, we’ll never be satisfied.

This church here is a bit dead. There isn’t much of a sense of community. There aren’t many loving relationships. Man – that guy who gets up and preaches each Sunday – he just bores your socks off. Can’t possibly flourish in this place. But – what if God wants to bring you into that church or me into that church, because He’s up to something new. What if He wants to bring us into that church to be part of the solution to the problems that He sees going on in that place?

What if God has a plan in that place that no man or no woman yet knows about, to do a new work, to reach some different people, to heal some hurts, to confront some evil, to do whatever it is that He plans to do there … and He’s calling us to walk into that battle with Him and for Him? Then what?

Just after I became a Christian, I became part of a wonderful little church and I joined a home fellowship group. Now this group of people were studying the book of Hosea at the time I joined them – one of the minor Prophets in the Old Testament. And here’s the thing about Hosea. God calls him to marry a prostitute who has children by other men. And then, when she’s unfaithful to him, God calls him to take her back.

I can’t imagine the pain that God’s call placed into Hosea’s life. Can’t begin to imagine. And you know something, I have to wonder … what was God thinking? I’m sure that went through Hosea’s mind on more than one occasion. But this relationship, this marriage, was a symbol of Israel’s unfaithfulness to God, and God used it in the Prophet’s life to help him to speak with conviction to Israel about their unfaithfulness to God.

God had a plan and a purpose for His glory and for His people that went way beyond Hosea’s comfort and needs. He called this man Hosea to suffer real and terrible pain, the excruciating pain of an unfaithful wife – for God’s glory.

In other words – it’s not always about you and me. It’s not always about our comfort and our needs being met. Sometimes God will call us into a place that just doesn’t make sense.

Now – I’ve persevered in churches – some where perhaps I should have left earlier. There was one church that I was part of where attitudes towards sexual immorality amongst the church leadership were wrong. There were people in key ministry positions who were living with members of the opposite sex without being married.

You might call me old fashioned. But that’s one of the things – one of the very few things actually – that God says – don’t do! And you know something, whilst that was going on in the ministry team, whilst that was being tolerated by the leadership – there’s no way that God is going to bless that church. There’s no way that it’s going to honour and glorify God and go forward in a powerful way.

Eventually – even though my heart was to stay in that church and make a difference, I left. And there have been times in my life where I’ve been in church wilderness, not knowing precisely where God wants me.

I truly believe that God does want our needs met. That’s one part of flourishing in the house of the Lord. But the flip side of that coin, the side that’s about taking up our cross and following Jesus – that involves sacrifice. And the one thing I’ve discovered in my Christian walk is that in order for me to flourish, I need pruning. We can’t flourish without sacrifice either. So – whilst all those things we’ve talked about are incredibly important in evaluating what’s going on in a church, the number one reason for me to belong to one particular church rather than all the others I have to choose from, is this:

I want to be where God wants me to be, no matter what the cost. The tree doesn’t plant itself, it is planted. And the one who plants is God. And if He plants you over in that corner of His house and me over in another corner – let that be His sovereign choice, that we honour, because we love Him.

It won’t always make sense. It may never make sense. But once He tells us where – once we know deep in our hearts where He wants us, you know something? That’s where we belong!