Note:
As you read this paper please be aware that I am not attributing my viewpoint to all Churches and congregations. What I’ve written are opinions coming from a few congregations that I have attended (viewed on TV) and personally feel are in opposition to the true heart of the message of Jesus Christ. My words may seem harsh but are written to draw your attention to a powerful evil or good that can come from the Pulpit. All attention must be on the Cross of Jesus Christ and not on church buildings, money or pet church projects. The people, we, are the Church and the sheep of Jesus Christ. Pastors, shepherds and the like are the true Shepherds, who must walk a narrow path with eyes on the Cross alone.
Introduction:
Although I have preached some, taught from the Pulpit (a little) and taught at universities (again a little); I don’t have a lot of experience in that arena. I have never considered myself a “Teacher”. Except, however, I have been called “Teacher” as one of the “Ministry Gifts” found in Ephesians 4:11
“And he gave some to be apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists and some, pastors and teachers.”
However:
As a student of Psychology and Sociology I became aware of how difficult it is to predict and/or control an individual’s behavior. It is different, however, with large groups of people. Crowd control is much easier than individual control. Sometimes terrifyingly so. Adolf Hitler was an excellent example of someone who know how to use crowd control. Whether consciously or subconscious, Preachers use these techniques all the time. Especially when collecting money (see blog on the Tithe). How many times have you heard “…say amen everybody”, or, “everybody stand up”, “clap your hands if you agree”, “everybody Praise the Lord”, etc.. They are controlling you. You will inevitably do what the “Pulpit” says even if you don’t necessarily agree or want to. Many Pastors and Speakers are masters of these techniques. They will “…squeeze blood out of a stone if they can”.
Once, when I was teaching on this topic, I asked everyone to stand up. Then I asked them to sit down. I did this three times and they always did what I said. When I told them what I was doing, I did it again. This time explaining that I intended to show them a principle and I needed their cooperation. Guess what? They stood up again! Wow! What power! That’s why when I am going to preach or teach, I always prefer a large group of people. The larger the number of people the better. That way I felt more secure thinking that the chances of at least someone in the crowd agreeing with me, would increase. I think you get the point.
The Power the Pulpit exudes is tremendous.
At one point I told my audience that I was going to lie to them during the message and wanted to see if they could catch lie. As a result they listened to the message very intently. When finished they asked, “What was the lie?” I told them I didn’t lie but I wanted them to listen very closely to what I was saying. Of course I also told them that my saying I would lie was the lie. It didn’t go over very well. There was a lot of murmuring afterwards. I don’t suggest you do this.
Think
I often think of all the misinformation about the Bible and Biblical teachings that has been passed on as truth (and still is) from the Pulpit. Because it’s from the Pulpit, we believe. For hundreds of years the Church, predominately the Catholic denomination, made you believe that Salvation was by “Works”. Then Martin Luther came along and said “No, it is by Grace we are Saved”.
“…for by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, that no man should glory.” (Ephesians 2:8)
It took the Church a long time to realize that truth.
Today
Now we are hearing messages about what some call “Cheap Grace”.
The term “cheap grace” can be traced back to a book written by German theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, called The Cost of Discipleship, published in 1937. In that book, Bonhoeffer defined “cheap grace” as “the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline. Communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ.” Notice what is emphasized in Bonhoeffer’s definition of cheap grace and what is de-emphasized. The emphasis is on the benefits of Christianity without the costs involved; hence, the adjective cheap to describe it.
Also there are so-called Prophets who are spouting all kinds of nonsense. These “Prophets” are deceived. They believe in themselves and are all looking for personal gain (Okay, maybe unconsciously). And, we ourselves, are living a cheap Christianity expecting all our ministers to do the work of the Gospel and all we have to do is go to Church on Sundays and listen.
Of course many churches teach “…and don’t forget the assembly”. Why do they say this? Maybe this is a terrible thing to say. It certainly is not true of all Churches but of some Churches I am certain it is true. It is this; they want you at Church so that they can control you and get your tithe. Also, it is an achievement for them if they have a large congregation. They will get much acclaim and notoriety. I have become very leery of large Churches. I am very much in favor of small “Home Group” type churches. I remember visiting a moderately sized church of 200 people. I spoke with the Pastor and found out that he worked full time and would not take a salary from the congregation. I left with my head spinning. Wow! Bless him Lord. He was actually feeding his sheep and not trying to fleece (control) them.
I am not saying all preachers and pastors should work likewise. I am saying that I admire this Pastor for keeping his focus and love on his congregation. All Pastors and the like must follow their own personal call from Jesus Christ.
Remember what the Bereans did?
“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)
Why can’t we do that???
We are lazy and need to wake up.
Conclusion
I have actually gotten emotionally “high” while teaching large groups of people. It became very additive because I was very aware how I could control them and I loved the acclaim. For this I repent and ask for forgiveness. I do not want to control, I want to feed and motivate the Lords people to learn more from the Bible and from hearing the Word. Understanding has now become my passion. There is no useful knowledge without Wisdom and there is no Wisdom if your are empty and have no understanding.
An Interesting Afterthought
The Ancient Greek bema (βῆμα) means both ‘platform’ and ‘step’, and was used for a variety of secular raised speaking platforms in ancient Greece and Rome, and from those times to today for the central raised platform in Jewish synagogues. Modern synagogue bimahs are often similar in form to centrally placed pulpits in Evangelical churches. (Wikipedia)
Bottom line – not all pulpits are in churches.
Enough Said
Thy Words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy Word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by Thy name, O LORD God of hosts. (Jeremiah 15:16)
