And Now We Come To The Most Important Part Of The Service

Over the last ten years as I have rambled over the United States, I have encountered a somewhat new viewpoint among some friends of mine.

Having great respect and affection for the friends I have, I sure want to be careful in disagreeing and taking the chance of losing those good friends.

Sometimes the issue is big enough and important enough, that you just can’t sidestep the issue in the name of friendship.

This is one of those times that friendship just can’t elbow out my loyalty to the right concept. I think I would like to speak up on this.

It has generally been friends that are involved in music ministry. They have made the comment to me that they disagree with ministers saying “Now we come to the most important part of the service”.

This of course refers to the preaching. These friends usually preface their comments with how important preaching is, and other comments, but they make it clear that other parts of the service are important also.

Most of the time they express that this is indeed somewhat old fashioned, and we have now matured to the place we recognize that many parts of the service can be, and are, just as important as preaching.

Well, I sure do admit that I am not a spring chicken, but I am not yet on social security either! I like to think I am somewhat current on music.

Our church took second place last year at a music fest at the fair grounds. Our little area of four million people in the Puget Sound has quite a few churches. I ain’t bragging, but neither am I taking the tuck head as a red neck, old geezer who is living in the fifties either.

So I think I will air out my perambulating thoughts about “Is the preaching the most important part of the service?” Here goes.

We take pride in basing our doctrine, our baptism, our spiritual experience in the book of Acts. We stick our chest out and say, hey, we go back to the book of Acts!

So let me challenge my music friends and dare them to show me just one example, just one incident in the entire New Testament where music was the factor or even a factor in New Testament conversion.

Now I love music, and we sing it loud and long at FPC. But fair is fair. Is it in the book of Acts or not? Hate to inform you but it is not there.
Acts 2, Acts 8, Acts 10, Acts 19, are all passages of conversion. The day of Pentecost, the Samaritans, the Gentiles, and the disciples of John the Baptist were all converted without music and with preaching.

My point being many were converted to full christianity with preaching and none were converted with music. No one has ever been converted without preaching!

Can I safely say that preaching is essential? Would I do better to say “We now come to the essential part of the service?” Would that make my music friends feel less agitated?

How about this? Hindus sing. Buddists sing. Muslims sing. Are they saved?

How bout this? All christians sing. Apostolics sing, trinitarians sing, charasmatics sing, in fact we sing many of the same songs. Are we all saved?

Jesus said in that day many will say, Lord Lord have we not….and He will say depart from me ye that work iniquity!

Is the difference between truth and error preaching or singing?

It is the preaching that sets true believers apart from false believers.

True believers and false believers sing many of the same songs, but they do not and never will preach the same doctrine!

It is preaching that separates the chaff from the wheat.

Another point. I can start, build, and pastor a church without music. I do not want to, and do not plan to, but it is possible. I cannot start, build, and pastor a church without preaching. So what really is the most important part of the service?

So forgive me for getting a little worked up. I am just a wee bit tired of hearing this statement. All of you are welcome and wanted at First Pentecostal Church of the Puget Sound. We would love to have you visit.

But just so you know, I will say during the service, “And now we come to the most important part of the service”. And I won’t be introducing the choir. It will be time to take the good book and preach the word of God.

Preaching is essential.

It is based in the book of Acts.

It separates the true believer from the false believer.

It is the most important part of the service.
Thanks for reading today.

– Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

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