Every year, I struggle with disappointment because very few Christians I know observe this day in any way, not even taking just a few minutes to pray. Now, I understand that God has created us all different, with different interests and gifts and talents to use to build His kingdom, so I understand that not everyone is going to have as strong a desire to support the persecuted, as others will have. However, this number is just a guess, but when only 1% or less of Christians take time one day of the year to pray and support Christians in persecution, that is an issue, especially given the fact that though Christian persecution might not be "your heart", all Christians are commanded to love and support one another.
This is where my frustration with the American institutional church comes in, because I think it is at fault because of the way it disciples its congregation. It sounds as if I'm being critical of the church and divisive towards other Christians. In a way I probably am, but I can assure you that it's not me simply being judgmental, but it's one of several real issues within the American system of Christianity.
To be clear, I know that there are good institutional churches and good Christians and that this does not necessarily apply to them. These are insights taken from my own observations of Pop American Christianity compared to the little knowledge I have of Christianity in other countries.
First, let me clarify what I mean by "the American institutional church". The American institutional church is the model of church and Christianity within America. It is divided into denominations so that people can choose which church to attend based on which doctrines and theological beliefs they have. Some churches have strong theological teachings, while others have hardly any. Some that hold stronger theological views do not allow Christians who hold other views to become members or sometimes even attend their churches.
These denominational churches typically have a building and a staff, with a structural order beginning with a pastor at the top, who teaches the congregation his doctrine and also acts as the church executive director, handling things such as the hiring and firing of staff, building maintenance, finances, church programs, volunteers, worship, etc. Typically, within the American institutional church, the pastor is required to hold a degree from a Christian college that holds to the church's denominational doctrines and beliefs.
The American institutional church may also have an elder board and deacons who are assigned certain responsibilities depending on the church. Biblically, several elders are to lead the church, but typically the elders in the American institutional church answer to the pastor who leads the church.
Finally there are other staff members including youth pastors and secretaries. Depending on the size of the church, there might be staff members who are paid for organizing events and volunteers, marketing and strategy, counseling, outreach and missions, etc. The staff can tend to be pretty large, and have a pretty large in-house budget to go along with it. Needless to say, they need a lot of income to cover their expenses.
It's becoming more common for American institutional churches to generate income by having worship bands produce and sell albums, and for pastors to write books for sale.
It doesn't occur in every case, but is pretty typical for American Christians to only support those who are within their own congregation, and those missionaries and para-church ministries in which their church supports. If their church and oftentimes pastor does not support a missionary or ministry, then they won't either. Partnering with one another for the sake of the gospel seldom takes place.
Much of today's teaching from the American institutional church is rooted in what God has done for "me" and the eternal blessings and promises that God has for "me". This message is preached from pulpits and sang in most popular Christian "worship" songs of today. The Bible is taught primarily as application in order to have a better life, rather than what the writers meant when they wrote it. I'm not saying that application is wrong, but teaching both the Bible and its application to our lives is best.
In the American institutional church, Jesus is often "sold" like a Hoover salesman sells a vacuum cleaner. The congregation is told that if they accept Jesus into their heart, they will be blessed with eternal blessings and the gift of eternal life. They are often promised a better life and sometimes even promised healing of diseases or physical handicaps.
The American institutional church typically does not warn a person to count the cost prior to following Jesus as He commands in the Bible. It does not warn them that persecution and suffering are in store for them if they truly decide to follow Jesus. On the contrary, it typically teaches them that Jesus is going to save them from tribulations by removing them from the situation, and taking them to live in safety with God.
Popular teachings of the American institutional church typically revolve around family, finances, how to be a better person and how to receive God's blessings. Parenting and marriage radio programs and podcasts that teach how to raise good kids and be a good parent and how to be a better spouse flood the airwaves of Christian programming, and lots of books and Bible studies are written and focus on these subjects. The same goes for programs containing teaching on how to manage our money, and tithing. Most teach how we will be blessed if we tithe at least 10% of our income to our church, and if we have a little extra, send it their way, because they need financial support to stay on the air.
These kinds of programs discipled me as a new believer many years ago. They are good. But it was not the central focus of Jesus and His church, yet it has become the central focus of today's American institutional churches.
Worship within the American institutional church is typically strategically geared to stir emotions for the personal satisfaction of the congregation, as well as the benefits to the church which might include having people return to the services and maybe get involved in volunteering or serving the church in some other capacity. Maybe larger amounts of money will be given because the people like the songs because they stir their emotions, and the church needs the money to pay for its expenses. The emotionally charged songs that are performed by the worship band are usually the songs that are about what God has done for "me" and how God can benefit "my life".
If you haven't noticed, the theme of the American institutional church is all about "me". What God has done for me and what God can do for me. American Christianity is a system that uses a business model to generate income so that churches can remain open and stay in business. They compete with one another for the business of their patrons, and their marketing strategy is to sell Jesus to people by telling them how He can improve their lives. The gospel or good news they share is that Jesus died for me so that my life can be better and so that I can go to heaven when I die.
Can you see the problem with this and how it has affected the way American Christians think? If American Christians are taught in the church that the reason Jesus died was only for their benefit, then why should they care about their persecuted family members, the poor, the widows, members of the global church?
I make a distinction between the American institutional church and the church within other countries because the church within other countries, especially where they are persecuted, see the church as being the body of Christ, and the need for caring for, supporting and loving one another. They are not as self centered as the American institutional church and they have more of a Biblical mindset of God's purpose and plan for the church. To put it plainly, the American institutional church is disobedient to Jesus's command to make disciples and is way more interested in building its own kingdom than God's kingdom. I can only imagine the all about "me" doctrines taught under the guise of Jesus grieves and displeases God.
There are certainly genuine Christians within the American institutional church and there are church leaders who may not know any better, and are therefore innocent. But church leaders who intentionally make it their goal to build their business and lead the people they have been given to shepherd away from God and to worship "self" will face God's judgment at some point.
I also make a distinction between "the American institutional church " and "the church" because "the church" is not the model that is described above with buildings, executives and budgets (a business model), but it is the global body of Christ. People of any race, ethnicity, culture, nation, denomination, gender (male and female), who believe in and therefore follow the Jesus of the Bible as His servants because He is their master. Though there are people who fit this description within the American institutional church, not everyone within the American institutional church is a genuine Christian and are therefore not of the church.
A "church" within the American institutional church does not even always mean that it is a part of the church. There are many so called "churches" that deceive its congregation with false teachings and ideologies that agrees with cultural views, rather than what the Bible teaches. They do so by faulty Biblical interpretation or by simply refusing to accept what the Bible says. These places call themselves a church, but are not part of the true church. However, it is possible to have members of the true church even within these buildings. Just because one's doctrine may be faulty or the person may be immature in their faith and therefore do not know any different, does not mean they are not genuine believers in Jesus. It may just mean they need to further develop into what it means to believe in Jesus. This is where true discipleship by a member of the true church is needed.
The American institutional church does not do a good job of developing believers in that way. I've already described what it teaches, and it does not teach the commands of Jesus or that a Christian is to obey those commands. It does not teach that Christians are commanded by Jesus to go and make disciples and that they are commanded by Jesus to teach them to obey everything that Jesus commands. It does not teach them that they are commanded by Jesus to baptize their disciples.
Instead, the American institutional church teaches their congregation to invite their friends to church so they can hear the gospel (or what Jesus will do for them if they become a believer) from their pastor, and hopefully they will be drawn to Jesus by the emotionally charged music performance and the message. After that, they will be baptized by the pastor after they join the church, because only an ordained pastor can baptize, and only after the person becomes a member of the church.
Few people within the American institutional church are taught about evangelism or that God's wants all people to know Him. They are not taught that the over arching theme of the Bible is that God created people in order for them to be His people, and He to be their God. I don't know the statistic off hand and I don't want to look it up right now, but the number of congregants within the American institutional church who have even heard of the great commission is very low. Many of those who are aware of it, will oftentimes use the excuse that the great commission aka missions, is to be done by the pastor and missionaries. Some use the excuse that they are not evangelists, and therefore they don't have to share the gospel. Most who use this excuse have never even tried and therefore would not know if they possess the gift or not.
In a system which is primarily comprised of this mentality, which the American institutional church is a part of, the people depend on the pastors and missionaries to do all of the "gospel work", while their only responsibility is to show up to church on Sunday to be entertained and emotionally encouraged.
In the American institutional church model, in lieu of partaking in the gift of the kingdom in which Jesus established when He was here two thousand years ago, and working together as a team, each using his or her spiritual gifts as partners in the gospel, the work is left to be done for the "elect" few who have devoted their life by way of vocation, to serving the Lord. But even so, the Great Commission and reaching the lost is not the central focus of the leadership of the American institutional church, so it is not taught or emphasized on Sunday morning, or any other time.
Other problematic teachings within the American institutional church include American patriotism and conservatism, which are both equated as being the same thing as Christianity by many American Christians. American holidays meant to observe the nation's freedoms and honor war veterans and active military personnel, are highly regarded by the American institutional church and American Christians. Most American institutional churches and American Christians will observe these days, acknowledging and honoring the men and women who fought and died for their freedoms, but they refuse to acknowledge and honor the men and women of their spiritual family, who suffered and died for the kingdom of God. It is a worldly, rather than a kingdom mindset, where their own personal freedoms (comforts) and nation are placed above the kingdom of God.
Also, rather than promoting peace-making that Jesus teaches, many American Christians and the American institutional church do not hesitate to support war and violence against opposing nations, even at the expense of their own spiritual brethren. Furthermore, the persecution of Christians typically occurs by way of government military and law enforcement, yet American Christians and the American institutional church find it necessary to highly support both of these entities. It's one thing to support them, but it's another to exalt them. It's very much like in Star Wars when the clone storm troopers who were fighting for the Jedi and the rebel forces, quickly turned and began gunning the Jedi and rebels down because they were given the order to do so after the empire had assumed control. Right now, American Christians don't have it that bad, and the government is not opposing them too much, so the police and military are not really doing anything to them. But, if an evil empire assumes government control and wants to exterminate the Christians, it will be the police and military who carry out the assignment. This is the reality in other countries. So back the blue and the military if you wish, but be aware that they may turn on you at some point.
This really shows how disconnected the American institutional church and American Christians are to the realities that are taking place against the church in the rest of the world. They are so disconnected, that they ignore their persecuted brethren and exalt their persecutors. If the American institutional church and American Christians ever face severe persecution themselves, most of them will not make it and will probably end up falling away by rejecting Christ and giving into their persecutors. This is my concern and is at the root of my frustration with the American institutional church.
Politics have become highly emphasized and normalized within the American institutional church and by American Christians. Abortion, same sex marriage and transgenderism are the hot topics that are Biblical, but have become political. By politicians promising to support these issues is their way of removing God and His laws and statutes from our nation. It shows that Satan is indeed the present ruler of the earth, and that he is on the attack.
Standing against these issues is how the American institutional church and American Christians identify Christianity and also how the world identifies it. Oftentimes, love for those who are held captive by sin's bondage is usually excluded when they stand in support of these issues. In the heat of battle, the only thing that matters is winning the debate. To many, the sinner's fate is God's judgment and everlasting torment in hell. Don't get me wrong, we need to fight for God's justice and righteousness because it is our responsibility as stewards of what He has given us, but standing on the right side of these "issues" do not define us as being Christian, following Jesus does.
Unfortunately, our disconnection with our persecuted brethren who reside in other parts of the world, comes from living in a relatively safe country with all the freedom that we could hope for. When we begin to feel the pressure of our freedom being taken away from us, we feel threatened because it is affecting us personally. Again, it goes back to "me". If "my" freedom wasn't threatened, then "my" life would not be affected, and all would be well, regardless of what's going on in the world around me. It is rooted in that selfish mentality which the American institutional church is built upon that I discussed earlier. To many American Christians, they are unconcerned that others may be going through hell, as long as they safe, healthy and comfortable.
The Christian who resides in Iran or China where freedom is not existent and where persecution thrives, sees things more clearly. They realize that persecution exists and they do not look to be removed from their circumstances. Because of their circumstances, they better understand the need for a Savior and share Him with others with great gratitude, and the kingdom grows. The idea that Christians are to live safe lives and not face trials, tribulations or persecution, and that Jesus is going to come and save us all in order to escape those things, is a largely American institutional church teaching that has been extremely damaging to the beliefs of American Christians, for the past 200 years. The Bible teaches that Christians will have trouble and will face persecution if we follow Jesus.
I know this all sounds very negative towards the American institutional church, but it's true and the ramifications are going to be devastating. Ignoring our persecuted brethren and looking at Christianity as a way to personally benefit from God and escape trials, tribulations and persecution, does not change the fact that persecution does exist and that everyone who lives a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. Jesus said that no servant is greater than his master and if He suffered, then so will we. Some will die for their Master as Jesus died for His. The fact of the matter is, most American Christians are not ready or prepared to face severe persecution, and for most, it is not even on their radar because they either ignore that it's happening because it's not affecting them, or they are not taught about it by their pastors, whom they have been conditioned to depend on to teach them. This is why the American institutional church is at fault and why I am so deeply concerned and get so frustrated during this time of year.
Our spiritual family needs our support. We the church, all need one another. Jesus said that the world will know you are My disciples if you have love one for another. If we do not have love for our brethren, both persecuted and otherwise, or if we do not understand that following Jesus and worshipping God is not at all about me, or if we do not understand that we are a part of a bigger plan than ourselves and that we are a part of a people made up of other members of Christ's body from all over the world, then we do not have a full understanding of who Jesus is and why He came.
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