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Church Math

As kids, I bet most of us reading this post probably hated math—all the subtracting, borrowing, and dividing. These are all words that make pastors nervous. No wonder teachers called them "problems."

But as we aged and began ministry, something miraculous happened and we suddenly fell in love with numbers. In fact, we learned the whole new subject called "church math," like baptisms, budgets, and Sunday service attendance. The number of things to count became almost endless and almost fun—that is, as long as the numbers were up. But if the numbers went down, especially the Sunday attendance number, our spirits would often go down with them. And that is a problem indeed.

Our Relationship With Attendance

I am not against counting things when it comes to church. The old adage which says, "We count people because people count" may be trite, but it is true. We should count the things that we keep track of. But all of us will readily admit that there is something suspicious going on with our relationship with the attendance figure. I believe it is because, at times, we look to it to justify ourselves and our ministries.

The equations on the chalkboard of our heart usually go something like this:

Lots of people = Visible success in ministry = I am happy

Fewer people = Failure in ministry = I am depressed

Anybody else think that math is a little fuzzy?

Here are a few tips to help us clear things up.

1. Define yourself by what Jesus did on the cross, not what you do on Sunday.

Though we all know this is true, we often struggle to believe it when it counts. To see change happen, we must do what it takes to write this gospel truth on our hearts, so that it is ready when we need it most. As we grow in our ability to use the gospel in daily life, we will be better equipped to fight the enemy's lies.

2. Be careful with counting.

As I said before, I'm not telling you not to keep track of things. I’m simply saying that we recognize attendance records can be like handguns—helpful in some situations and dangerous in others. Ask yourself questions like, “Why am I watching the attendance so closely? For Jesus or for me?” Remember, our worth as followers of Jesus and as pastors is not wrapped up in how many people attend our services, but in the gospel.

3. Be careful with how you define success.

Though our “bigger is better” mentality may tempt us to think otherwise, a big crowd doesn’t necessarily signify a faithful ministry. In fact, as we study the Scriptures we see a number of “successful” preachers who weren’t always surrounded by huge crowds—Isaiah, Jeremiah, and at times, even Jesus. While we can take heart in this fact, we must also guard ourselves from going too far in the other direction as well. Pastoring a small church doesn’t necessarily make us more faithful, just as pastoring a large church doesn’t make us unfaithful.

4. Be part of the solution instead of part of the problem.

Nearly every pastor I know struggles with this issue. Will you join me in serving your fellow strugglers and not let “So what are you guys running these days?” be the first question you ask your pastor friends the next time you talk to them? Ask about their soul, their family, or how they are engaging their community. As we do, I think we will do the kingdom a great service.

Our justification is in the gospel, not how many people attend our services. What are you looking to for your justification today?

Missional Ecclesiology

Re:Train professor Gregg Allison explains the missional church in his blog series on Missional Ecclesiology.

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Our enemy has many weapons in his arsenal.

In ancient times, Satan deceived God's people to prize their knowledge of the Scriptures more than the One behind them. Today, he lures God's people to fall more in love with their theological system than their Savior—a particular danger for our tribe.

To be clear, I am for careful study, theological reflection, and sound doctrinal teaching throughout the church. But let me also caution us in defining ourselves by what we believe—not in a historically "confessional" sense, but in an I'm better than you because I'm Reformed and you're not sense.

How we know this is happening:

• If there is a disagreement, we defend Calvinism before we seek unity in the Gospel.
• When asked to describe our theology, we define ourselves as a Calvinist more quickly than as a Christian.
• And perhaps the worst of all...when our hearts are more captivated by the points of TULIP than with the person and work of Jesus.

We know this is wrong and damaging, so why do we do it?

One word: Pride.

I believe this manifests itself in two ways:

All of us want to be known for something.

Serial killers for their killing, athletes for their athletics, and theologians for their theology. When we perceive ourselves as anything of any degree, we feel that we have a right to be known to that degree. When we aren't, we fight to make sure we are not overlooked.

We like thinking we have God and the Bible figured out and captured in a tidy little system.

It makes us feel strong and in control. But there isn't a single person writing or reading this post who is right about everything we believe. It is impossible to capture everything about God in any theological system.

We would be well-served to know and live these truths in humility. You see it. You feel it. You, like me, want to change. What do we do?

1. Repent of our theological idolatry.

While theology is a great thing, it is not an ultimate thing. It is a means to an end to know God and make him known. In what ways have you made it an ultimate thing? Confess them to God. Claim gospel promises. Ask God to help you not make a means an end.

2. Believe the gospel is enough.

We are justified in our theology, not by our theology. Pray, study, be faithful; but at the end of the day, rest in the fact that it is Jesus' blood that covers our sins, not how doctrinally savvy we are. Occasionally, take a break from the "big ideas" and go back to the simple gospel truths of Scripture to encourage your heart in who Jesus is, what he has done for us, and who we are in him.

3. Be on guard in the future.

1 Cor. 8:1 tells us that knowledge puffs up but love builds up. Those of us who are more theologically minded need to keep this verse close at hand, especially when we study. We need to consistently engage the humility of Christ seen in Philippians 2 to keep us balanced. If we don't, we may be in danger of becoming just another angry theologian with a big brain and a small heart.

How are you justifying yourself by your theology?

Gospel-Centered Discipleship

In this book, Jonathan Dodson calls us to fight the good fight of faith in the strength of the gospel. Read a free chapter and get the book here.

Social Media

John Calvin wrote that the human heart is an idol factory. He was right.

Throughout history, we have bowed down to golden cattle, celestial beings, stone animals, and even human body parts. The passage of time has only increased the number of ways we exchange the worship of the One True God for lesser, false gods. Today, we can sadly add yet another idol to the list—social media.

Social media (blogging, Facebook, Twitter, etc.), as technology, is neutral and harmless. Social media can and should be used for the glory of God and the advancement of the gospel in every possible way. But natural-born idolaters like you and me are no more than a few clicks away from making this good thing a god thing.

Tainted Meals

Social media carries a unique set of temptations. Much like the adulterous temptress described in Proverbs, social media offers us the invitation to come into her house and enjoy the choicest foods, only to find the meal poisoned.

The most dangerous of these tainted meals is pride. Few other creations in history have allowed us to see how "important" we and our thoughts are with such tantalizing immediacy as our blog and tweet stats. There are times we check our stats because we are more concerned with the applause of man than the affirmation of Jesus, and we forsake the true justification of who we are in the gospel for the false justification of who we are in the eyes of our followers. We do the opposite of what we set out to do in the first place; we serve ourselves instead of God and his people.

Check Your Hearts

Pride creeps in through tweets and status updates. Though there is nothing inherently wrong with mentioning where we are having lunch or who we are with, we would be well served by checking our hearts before we do. Are we sharing this information to give people a helpful window into our lives as we seek to live out the gospel, or are we unwittingly (or even quite wittingly) enticing our friends toward coveting the life we are living? Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth tweets.

So what's the answer?

1. Think before you post.

It sounds simple, but stopping to think about why we are about to do what we are about to do is an amazing sin-killing weapon. Use it and use it often. It has been a great help to me.

2. Consider "fasting" from social media for a season.

While this may seem extreme, in light of Jesus' counsel about tearing out our eye if it makes us sin (Matthew 5:29), fasting seems like the least we could do to expose the true condition of our hearts. If we are flatly unwilling to consider it, that tells us something.

3. Believe the gospel.

Make your solid theology soundly practical in daily life. If, when we are tempted to go to the fleeting approval of man to shore up our insecurities, we instead go to the approval of God that is ours in Christ, the approval unaffected by the abundance or absence of re-tweets, we, our followers, and the kingdom are better for it.

Calvin was right. The heart is an idol factory.

But at this intersection of technology and idolatry, pull the plug on the bad and keep the good.

Luke Sermon Series

The current Mars Hill sermon series traces the life of Jesus through the Gospel of Luke. Watch the preview.

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A Confession

Let's start with a confession: I love Affliction T-shirts.

The fleur de lis reminds me of my city. The skulls remind me of my depravity. They are comfortable and hand crafted. I love 'em. But because of their cost, I own only one of them that I bought on clearance at Macy's. Oddly enough, at the risk of sounding girly, I actually think about that one shirt a lot (although the bones do help my case). And it's not primarily for the comfort or the craftsmanship, though it may indeed have something to do with my depravity.

As the thought turns in my mind, the question that haunts me is, "Why did I really want that shirt in the first place?" Is it for the reasons I mentioned above, which seem harmless enough? Or is it for some less harmless reason like, "All the cool kids wear them and I want to fit in?" Hmmm... The plot thickens.

We have just stepped from the dark closet where my shirt hangs into the much darker corners of the soul.

The Lie

All of us have "false justifiers" that we use to try to justify ourselves before God and others, and there are ways we seek false justification that are as nuanced as our own personalities and ministry contexts. For many, what we wear, or at least our appearance, is high on the list. And each time we allow how we appear before others to become more important than how we appear before God, it is stark evidence of our belief in the great Lie that Jesus and the good news that he has spoken over us is not enough.

The Truth

As with any lie, the only way to effectively counter it is with the Truth. When we seek to "clothe ourselves" in the righteousness that the "right kind" of clothing can provide, we must remind ourselves that we are already clothed in the righteousness of Christ (Isa. 61:10). When we seek to find our value in the fact that we can buy something of significant value on earth, we must remind ourselves that we are of great value to God and have been bought at a great price (1 Cor. 6:20) already. We have to counter the Lie with the Truth.

So is it wrong to wear an Affliction T-shirt? No.

Is it wrong to define yourself by what you wear? Yes.

So tomorrow when you reach in the closet for what to wear, stop and ask yourself, "Why am I about to wear what I am about to wear? To honor God or to seek to impress others?" If you find the Lie at work, kill it with the Truth. "I am not justified by what I wear, but by the righteousness that I am now clothed with in Christ." And with the name of Christ written on your soul, it doesn't matter what name is written on your shirt.

To be continued.

Learn more about how to spot the Truth and the Lie working in all areas of life at the Exchange Conference in San Diego, June 17-18.

Doctrine Book

Doctrine: What Christians Should Believe is available now. Read a free chapter and find out more.

Justification by X: Click | View Series

We Know the Truth

Most of us reading this post have a deep and abiding love for the gospel—the good news that Paul heralds in Romans 1:16-17: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith."

And most of us would also be quick to proclaim and defend the searing indictment of Romans 1:22-25: "Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen."

But We Still Succumb To the Lie

While this text is speaking specifically about the practice and consequences of those who do not know Christ, I fear that those of us who do know him are often guilty of falling prey to the same deception that is seen in verse 25—exchanging the truth about God for a lie and worshiping and serving the creature rather than the Creator. This may not be in regard to our eternal salvation, but in what we look to to "save us" in the difficult moments of everyday life and ministry. And while our souls might not be in eternal danger, the intimacy of our relationship with God and our effectiveness in ministry and mission certainly are.

We look to Jesus to justify us before God in eternity; but we often look to lesser, functional saviors to "justify" us in the moment. These can be things like:

• Material possessions.
• Ministry results.
• Misplaced identity.
• Social media.

The ruins of our false justifiers litter the landscape of our lives.

In the following series, we will take several of these "false justifiers," seek to deconstruct them, and disarm them by the power of the gospel. My hope is that by the time we finish, we will be able to exchange these lies for the truth.

To be continued.

Exchange Conference

Mark Driscoll, Peter Jones, Francis Chan, Kevin DeYoung, and others will teach you how to distinguish the Truth from the Lie in all of life at the Exchange Conference.