The Euthanising of the Church: Committing Spiritual Suicide
Introduction
This dramatic title flows from a week of speaking into immature conduct between senior Church leaders and attending a breakfast put on by the Barnabas Fund; an international ministry dedicated to bringing hope and aid to the persecuted Church. The speaker was its long term controversial International Director Patrick Sookhdeo (PS). From 1991 PS has been predicting a coming “Islamic storm” and in his latest book, The Death of Western Christianity, forecasts the demise of the Western Church. In 2015 PS was found guilty by a UK court of sexual assault; evidence of the very corruption of Christianity of which he speaks or testimony to the intensifying persecution of believers in the West of which he warns. In either case this is a man to whom we should listen, with discernment. Having read PS’s book, this is an attempt to discern what the Spirit is saying to our churches (Rev 2:7).
Too Much of a Good Thing
PS stunned me by mentioning that the CEO of Samaritan’s Purse (Franklin Graham) receives $1.2 m ++ per year and proceeded to talk about Porsche driving UK megachurch pastors earning £150,000 ++. “What does a pastor need that sort of money for?” Former World Vision Australia CEO Tim Costello claimed to be “busting a myth” when he said (2014), “I earn $255,80…In line with other charity CEOs I do earn a salary that reflects my responsibilities…” This implicit confession of worldliness confesses to setting standards according to cultural expectations rather than by Christ’s kingdom. There is no cross here! If Christian leaders understood themselves to be missionaries to their own nation they would immediately see such salaries are unjustifiable. By what apostolic (gospel) criterion do senior pastors receive more income than their staff? The world is watching. When Brian Houston came out with a “No” for same-sex marriage an immediate response from some members of the LGBT community was to compare the poverty of Jesus to the wealth of Hillsong. A decade ago I heard a young man, who went on to become a missionary in Yemen, prophetically pray, “Our prosperity is killing us.” (Warwick Smith). “What could be greedier than a man for whom God is not enough?” (Augustine). It is obvious to any honest observer that all who desire to live prosperous-and-peaceful lives are committing spiritual suicide. Compare this with biblically authorised desire; “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim 3:12). Times have certainly changed.
Unholy
A friend was shocked when he heard one of his Christian customers cursing and swearing. His son, also present, began to instruct his dad to move on from old-fashioned ways, using the example of the foul language of pastors. Apparently these brothers haven’t read, “Let no filthy talk be heard from your mouths, but only what is good for building up people and meeting the need of the moment. This way you will administer grace to those who hear you.” (Eph 4:29). The day after my friend reported the above conversation a zealous young pastor told me that he was criticised by another minister for wanting to talk about the Bible instead of being a “normal person”. We are ashamed to be thought unworldly. In the PS meeting well-known WA politician Peter Abetz stood up exasperated by how many Christian leaders won’t publicly say “No” to same-sex marriage. Our generation has witnessed the death of visible holiness in the public profile of the Western Church. Think about the exposure of child sexual abuse in religious institutions in Australia, or the current prosecution of Cardinal George Pell in Victoria, fair or unfair. We have lost our Christian identity; at root this is a crisis over the place of Christ.
Identity Shift
Let me illustrate our foundational problem using the example of Pentecostalism. When I became a Christian (1972) Pentecostal identity was wrapped up in experiencing and expressing Christ’s spiritual gifts. Today the most influential Pentecostal church is Hillsong. The centre of identity has shifted from knowing the power of Jesus to the stimulation of a good feeling about oneself. Any church that can release this emotional condition for significant numbers of people is defined as successful and relevant. But we must not confuse symptom with cause. Western Christianity’s lack of sound theology, excessive individualism and general ungodliness stem from the marginalising of Jesus. Personal happiness, church growth, vision, leadership, prosperity etc. have been sourced in Jesus as a means to an end. It’s all back to front. We have comfortably forgotten the Father is interested only in abiding in a Church that is interested in his Son (2 Pet 1:9). We are being progressively converted by secular culture (Rom 12:1-2) but the tiny harassed Early Church possessed an unbreakable common identity because it was centred on Christ (Eph 2:6-7; Col 3:1-4). From this centre it eventually converted pagan culture, something which seems practically impossible for any style of church today.
On Trial
The Lord promised his little church in Philadelphia, “Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.” (Rev 3:10). Since the world’s trial is being deceived about spiritual truth (Rev 12:9; 13:14; 18:23) it is quite clear that much of Western Christianity has not been “kept from” the satanic deception. This is a divine judgement. The time is coming soon when political and legal powers, plus public opinion, will be so indoctrinated with a humanistic world view that society will be unable to see orthodox Christians as anything other than bigots peddling hate speech. Under the weight of divine judgement, not least against a compromised Church, “held captive by Satan to do his will” (2 Tim 2:26), society will have lost all reasonableness. Under such tribulation (Acts 14:22; Rev 1:9) however the identity of the Church in Christ crucified will be confirmed (Gal 2:20), its captivity to culture will be broken and the long process of reconverting the West can begin.
Conclusion
Is PS’s The Death of Western Christianity a prophetic word? Without urgent repentance in the Body of Christ it mostly is. “Think carefully about what is right, and stop sinning. For to your shame I say that some of you don’t know God at all.” (1 Cor 15:34). The Western church should feel shame, not just for its sex abuse scandals, general immorality and love for money, but ashamed for being trounced by the gay lobby and Islam both of whom possess a strength of identity that exposes the spiritual bankruptcy of our divisions. Our broken state is all because we have marginalised Jesus. As there is currently plenty of prayer and energy across Australia in the face of impending euthanasia (lit: “good death”) legislation in Victoria, we must call upon the Lord to deliver us from the spiritual suicide to which we seem destined. I however see few signs of such repentant prayer about our own spiritual condition. If we are killing ourselves how can we so complacent? Simple, we have become experts in killing Christianity in the least painful way. We are dying but the contemporary therapeutic forms of spirituality have made it all so pleasant; not at all like the cross! “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Rev 2:7).