Why Church should be like my French Class

I recently reflected back to my high school years when I was sitting in my French class learning the basics of the language. Parlez-vous français? I took two years of that class and I can’t remember a bit of it. I will be honest and share that I had to Google “Do you speak French?” just so I could add it to the blog. I did know some French while I was in the class and could carry on some very elementary conversations within the classroom, but the minute I left that setting it dwindled and as the years have passed my ability to speak French has become extinct. I don’t blame this on my teacher, in fact, she was pretty good and pushed us to learn more. I remember the first day of class and how she never spoke one word of English until just before the bell rang for dismissal. I was completely lost at first but as the time progressed I found that I was picking up on things and I had a desire to figure out what she was saying so the next day would be easier. I began learning the greetings like “Bonjour” and “Salut.” The teacher continued to speak in French the majority of the time and I quickly advanced to full sentences. So, why exactly am I commenting on this? It got me thinking about the typical American church and how different it is from that French class.

Church today has lost its identity. No longer does it seem that the church is meant for the believers as it was in Acts. Instead we get watered-down messages that make everyone feel comfortable and “meets them where they are” instead of challenging them to conform their lives to God’s Word. Now, if my French class had been like that, my teacher would have never spoken to us in French other than teaching a couple of words every day and even with that she couldn’t have done very many because who knows if there would have been a visitor that missed the previous lesson? So, she would just stay in the same first lesson teaching the greetings of French day after day after day while the class became stale and stifled and decided that it was time to try out another teacher. So, the class moves onto a new teacher that teaches a couple of different words, but he too can’t risk losing anyone so he doesn’t pick up the pace and advance the class. He throws in a couple of fieldtrips to a French restaurant and musical, which appeals to most everyone so his class is more popular but overall there is no growth in speaking the language amongst the students. It’s just a social activity where everyone is at ease.

Just take a minute and pretend that you were paying this teacher to tutor your child? Would you be okay with this? Absolutely not! You want results! You want your child to know the French language! So, why then are we so accepting of this non-challenging attitude in our own churches where we are more afraid of offending than speaking truth? Why do we accept the hearing of the same “feel good” messages week after week? Why do we get upset if a pastor dares to speak directly from God’s Word and it convicts us? I have heard people say that pastors need to be careful with their messages because there may be unbelievers there. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with unbelievers coming to visit a church, but I certainly don’t want to see a church catering to its visitors, so that the message is weak and lacks conviction.

We are blessed to be a part of a church that preaches boldly from the Bible with no apology. If you are also in a Biblical church, take a minute and thank your pastor for preaching the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27). I assure you, there is much condemnation and pressure to conform to the worldly church for those in ministry and your words of encourage go a long way. If you find that you are sitting comfy in the pews week after week then you ought to take time to consider whether you should find a new church home because none of us have arrived at completion, so we should all be growing closer in Christ’s likeness. Au revoir!