Comments on: Is our worship too dependent upon technology?

By: Sean Gossett

Sean Gossett — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 12:46:12 +0000

Bill,

You are right on, my man. In my thinking, there is a new generation of young people that will tire of the excellence model of church. Instead, they will hunger for deep, meaningful, transparent relationships that help mature them in Christ.

How I long for the day that image isn’t everything!

Soli Deo Gloria.

By: Marty

Marty — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:21:44 +0000

I agree after all that is what the Acts 1:8 commission is all about. However as long as these facilities are being used to teach God’s word in then I feel it should be done with excellence which means the A/V equipment being used should be as flawless as possible.

By: Bill Lollar

Bill Lollar — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 18:29:32 +0000

I think you missed the point of my response. I’m not sure our church buildings (and their sound systems, family life centers, etc.) have anything to do with Jesus or the Christian life or sharing the Gospel with others. From my perspective, they are more of a hindrance than a help. Let’s get out among the people and tell them the good news with our own mouths, not depend upon a professional minister to do it for us.

By: Marty

Marty — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:22:05 +0000

Hey Bill, thanks for your reply. I totally agree with you about the church’s effectiveness being dependent on how much money they spend. My experience has proven time and time again that large or small churches seem to care more about the look, and when their prettiness (if you will) drives them over budget, then the first place they start pulling from is the A/V budget. I have made many church leaders mad by asking how many lost souls have been won because your building or auditorium was so pretty versus how many have been won through hearing God’s Word??? So why is that they pull the funding from the most important tool other than the Bible?? This has always puzzled me. I also agree that there is a fine line between building a facility for God’s work and building a facility for status. I think you called it a country club. While all these amenities are nice to have and if done properly can be very effective tools for God’s work, but mostly it seems to be more for status more times than not. It would appear that our bottom lines are the same and that is that God can use any body and any size church for His glory if we can just move our egos out of His way and let Him.

By: Bill Lollar

Bill Lollar — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:51:31 +0000

Marty: Thanks for your comments. I guess it would depend on which model of church one buys into: the simple sharing of the Gospel from house to house and in the marketplace (which is where the lost REALLY ARE) or the multimillion dollar campuses with fitness centers, coffee shops, and lecture halls (we call them “churches”) with cutting-edge sound, vision, and lighting. The first model is missional and the second one is attractional.

Even a modest step in the “attractional” direction requires huge expenditures and, I would agree, you’d better not skimp on the quality. You can’t build a small rural chapel for less than half a million these days! If a group of Christians decides to compete in the marketplace, they become no different (in many respects) to the country clubs, health spas, shopping malls, and other businesses vying for the public’s attention; and so they MUST have great design, killer acoustics, and comfortable seating. And yes, that costs a bundle!

But I don’t think we can automatically equate spending lots of money with being effective and faithful in our presentation of the Gospel. Heresy can also be pumped through those high-tech mixers and speaker systems; in fact, the Devil himself would surely be at the top of the heap when it comes to using the latest and greatest to spread his lies.

In contrast, Jesus did not book the popular cutting-edge venues of his day: the Greek theaters and Roman stadiums. He could have done so, but rather He chose twelve men to walk with Him among their peers. They spent time with people as they went about their daily lives: buying and selling, walking from place to place, fishing along the shores of Galilee, and enjoying the various dinner parties, weddings, and other celebrations of people they knew. Jesus also joined his friends in times of grief, heartache, and fear.

This is the primary reason I’m moving farther away from the performance-based services of modern religious institutions, advocating instead a more organic approach to our life together as believers. Truth is, I’m as wearied by the “professional” sound that would please even Simon Cowell as I am by the “ringing, clicks, pops” you’ve described as “value engineering.

By: Marty

Marty — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:21:35 +0000

First of all, I would like to say I just came across these posts and have enjoyed them. I do not disagree with any of the posts here but keep in mind that society has and is evolving. And I feel that if we want to continue to reach the lost then as Christ did we have to meet them where they are. Hollywood spends millions to tell a story. As churches how much do we spend to tell our story? The story of Christ’s gift of salvation. Now I know every church does not have a multimillion dollar budget to work from, but God deserves our best. When a lost person attends your service what do they experience? Are we meeting them where they are technologically?? But most importantly what do they hear?? Do they hear God’s word through a system that was “value engineered” and that is infested with ringing, clicks, pops?? The hearing of God’s word is the most important thing that anyone hears. Value engineering undermines not only God’s word but also the time that the pastor, as well as the other church leadership, puts into each and every service.