Understanding the Flock

Greg Thornbury asks the following question in the context of ministering to the postmodern, "How does a pastor minister to people whose lives pivot on the trivial and the profound - all within the space of a minute?" [A Theology for the Church, (B&H Publishing Group: Nashville, TN, 2007) 66]. The question itself is profound and not trivial (I guess I am in a good minute!). His question defines our culture, our congregations, our households, our vocation, our education, etc. In other words, our entire worldview today teeters back and forth between that which is trivial and that which is profound.

In biblical language, this might be translated as pivoting on the things of this earth and the things above, teetering between the temporal and the spiritual, walking by sight and not by faith. On any given Sunday we have people from all walks of life enter into the doors searching for something. Some are certain, some assume, some presume, and some are not at all sure what it is they are seeking. But all of them, from the sure to the unsure, from the illumined to the desperate, are at church because it is the one place on earth that should be spiritual, that should be profound and not trivial in worship toward God.

Thronbury then makes the following assessment, "The current question before church leaders revolves around how to best preach the truth of the gospel to a generation that seems simultaneously confused by, and yet oddly drawn to, spiritual things" [66]. In our postmodern age, this certainly does define the pastor's task. The pastor must not only prepare sermons that speak to different ages, both physical and spiritual, but also that address those that are puzzled yet curious about the Christian faith. This is a tall order in and of itself. This is the profundity of the pastorate in 2007.

But I would like to take Thornbury's assessment to the next level. The task of church leaders today also revolves around how to best preach the truth of the gospel to a church generation that seems confused by, and yet oddly drawn to, earthly things. While individuals are responsible for their own actions, the church today is partially to blame here because the power of the gospel and the truth of God's Word have been so trivialized on Sunday. Worship as defined by God in His Word has been replaced by entertainment and called worship. Worship for Him and about Him has been replaced by worship for me and about me. Yes, culture has influenced our worship as well. And this speaks only to Sunday. The pastor must recognize that for the other six days of the week (and half of the seventh day) congregants are bombarded with the things of this world. Our challenge is to help our people recognize that they cannot live daily in the profundity of God if they only give themselves to be saturated in the truth on Sunday. They cannot walk with the Lord while being shaped and molded by the trivial six days and hope to be conformed to the image of His Son on one only. How is it that our churches today are strangely drawn to earthly things?