Romans 12:11... “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.”
I have found myself recently spending probably way too much time on analyzing and over-analyzing our Sunday morning services. I want our service to be a time where people can have a genuine encounter with the Spirit of God. We try to bring the elements of worship, prayer, and preaching into play in a way that will encourage that much needed encounter. It seems to me that church services should be both somber and joyous; there should be a time of reflection and a time of loving. But, what happens to all that preparation when we pastors forget the sense of urgency? What happens when we saunter up to the pulpit, and kill a little time with some chit-chat, casually meandering around as if there's no particular hurry in getting to the Word? I think we undercut what we believe. I think we send conflicting messages. We have no sense of urgency.
For example: A church could be well armed with a terrific pastor. The pews or chairs may be filled with sweet, genuine, loving people. Their doctrine may be on firm ground, their vision statement may be a work of literary art (though often a lie). But, services started off at varying times,…people are still filing in…stopping along their wandering way, with this-'n'-that amid general continuing buzz and conversation. And, once they have finally found their way to join in a time of 30 or forty minutes of worship, their morning is crowned by the pastor trying to find five ways to say the same thing, and then 10 minutes to close the sermon,… rowing back and forth, back and forth…like a boat unable to find the dock to tie up to. Not a bad morning,… far from it. But not urgent.
It seems to me that whether it is 60 minutes, 90 minutes, or 120 minutes,… our church services, as well as any words given in Christ's name should be urgent affairs. It was in Acts 6:15 that we saw that those listening to Stephen's blistering message of Jesus Christ…they saw in him the “face of an angel.” I don’t know exactly what that means, but I picture Stephen literally glowing with a reflection of God's glory. What we do know is that he was a perfect messenger,… who was clearly urgent in what he had to say, as if it were the last message he would ever give...which, in fact, it was.
Every confrontation we bring forward with the Word of God is a crisis point in someone‘s life. God's word is living, powerful, unimaginably sharp, and it judges. There are souls hanging in the balance, and lives that are at unknown crossroads. It could be the otherwise healthy looking man in our congregation who may be on the verge of a heart-attack. It could be a well veneered couple who is headed for divorce. It could be young person hovering at the brink of making a terrible decision. What we do on Sunday mornings is not teatime on the deck of some luxury cruiser! It ain't Oprah or Dr. Phil stuff! It's strategy-time, for soldiers under fire, in the midst of a war for the souls of lost people! There is an urgency to what we are called to do.
At the same time, that very urgency,… once it grabs a hold of us, can also work against us, to dampen our effectiveness. I have had occasion when someone said to me, "It just amazes me that you can think of things to say every week." I said, "The Bible is so rich that my problem is never thinking of things to say. My problem is knowing when to stop." That problem has been echoed on numerous occasions by well meaning (but, what do they know) critics who try to insinuate that I begin to lose people after 20 minutes. And, here all along, I thought my messages were so riveting and thought provoking, that the looks on the faces of the listeners was “Give me more” …instead of whining under their breath, ‘Another point?’”
This has always been my struggle. When I was first offered chances to teach or preach, I grabbed at such opportunities as if I'd never have another. Consequently, I would try to say everything in one sermon. Because…who knew? I just had so much to say…so much to give,…so few opportunities. I am sure there were occasion when I may have given one of those “My brain is full” sermons, but it was only due to my excess of passion and urgency. Maybe that is what led me to preaching in series more often. There is just so much to say and such urgency…It is better to give it in smaller more nourishing bites, rather than trying to stuff it all in on the buffet line. There is urgency! I don't know whether I'll ever have the opportunity to preach again. What if I left something out and there are those out there who will go to their grave, unforgiven, under-preached, and underdeveloped?
I suppose in the final analysis, that would really be God's concern, wouldn't it? He knows to a nanosecond how long we have left. He'll accomplish what He intends to accomplish through me, whether I labor over my own style, or my need to be thorough, or whatever it is that may drive me to excess urgency. All I need to maintain is the sense of urgency and a heart aflame with a zealous love for God as Paul writes in Romans 12:11... “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” Which may be easier said than done…but certainly merits both saying, and doing. What do you think?
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