Its the Emphasis

It’s dangerous when I get to thinking sometimes.  I have been doing some thinking about the “church” scene.  I’ve been in the “mix” of church my whole life, and sometimes think I have seen it all.  We now have put labels on our worship and church styles.  We have traditional, contemporary, and progressive churches.  We have every genre of music from hymns to hip-hop, rock, rap, pop, southern gospel and many more.  Many churches have adapted there traditional services to attract a younger audience.

There was a day, when I was too narrow minded, and didn’t want things to be different than what I thought.  Honestly, that was the same way the Pharisees thought in Christ day.  They thought he had come to tear down traditions.  Christ didn’t conform to what the “model” of a rabbi was.  John the Baptist surely didn’t, coming in camel’s hair and living in the desert.   They were accepted by people because they spoke in to the common people’s culture. 

Culture and generational changes are going to happen, and we as a church must and need to adapt.  I was raised very reserved and rejected a lot of the newer style of “church worship and music” because of my traditional, conservative upbringing.  Now, I have adjusted to thinking outside of the box.  One thing that helped me adjust was getting married and having children.  You begin to see things differently.  Stepping out of my comfort zone, I have found that I can enjoy the nonconformity of others.  It all comes down to one thing.  Where the emphasis is placed at. 

If with all the changes in our culture, we place the emphasis on “stuff” and not Christ we need to throw it all away.  Including our “old-school” way of doing things.  We must present Christ in all we do.  He has to have the emphasis.  If we do things for only the pure gimmick sense, then we need to change our emphasis. 

Many in our pentecostal churches, put the emphasis on speaking in tongues and outward manifestations of the Spirit.  Though I believe and practice these in my own walk with God, my emphasis is not on the manifestations it is on Christ.  I don’t go to church for the outward manifestations.  I attend church because of my love and devotion to the eternal, loving God.  I live a Godly life of obedience for only one reason, I love God.  My emphasis is not “church” or my own agenda it is living for and serving my God.  It is for going into all the world and telling the good news of Jesus Christ. 

Now, that I have adapted myself to a proper emphasis, I can enjoy the differences of our culture.  I am willing to support any Biblical sound ministry that has the emphasis in the right place.  It many not be my favorite style, but if it is ministering to people and the emphasis is Christ, I should have the ability to worship.  If I feel I can’t worship with something different  and the emphasis is correctly placed, then its my fault.  I am taking the emphasis off Christ and placing it on myself.  If I put the emphasis on me, then I am not in harmony with the Holy Spirit.  I then could hinder the move of the spirit and souls being ministered to.  I am limiting God.

Keep the emphasis in the right place and we can see a tremendous revival in the church.