I grew up in the Roman Catholic Church, and attending church has always been an out-of-the-ordinary experience. From the congregation’s fine clothes, the rituals during mass, the choir, the Latin words, and the hymn singing, I have always felt an atmosphere of reverence and otherness when attending mass. This led me to associate church with holiness.
However, when I moved to the US for college, I discovered seeker-sensitive churches and got exposed to a novel approach to church. The services at these churches are casual, the music is modern and upbeat, and the sermons are bursting with jokes and illustrations. At first, I enjoyed attending these services because they were more fun than the dull masses of my youth. But the entertainment often went too far to my liking.
For example, my former church had a movie sermon series where the pastor dissected popular secular films for theological lessons. He even played movie clips during the sermon! This was so far removed from my traditional experience of church that I returned to the Roman Catholic Church until the movie series concluded.
I eventually left seeker-sensitive churches because of their exceeding entertainment and theological concerns. Sadly, the trend of entertainment-focused services has not only persisted with time but has worsened.
One church that stands out in this area is Transformation Church, led by Michael Todd. This church has been at the center of many controversies because of its false teachings, extravagant sermon illustrations (such as anointing a man’s face with mud and spit to illustrate John 9:6), and worldly worship experiences. Last year, the church received numerous criticisms for its viral Easter service, which was no different from a secular event. It featured secular music, women dancing provocatively, and a host of other issues.
After watching that Easter service, I couldn’t help but reflect on seeker-sensitive churches and their tendency to make church services into a spectacle. And I have identified three main reasons for this trend.
Disbelief in the sufficiency of Scripture
A prevalent issue with seeker-sensitive churches is their lack of conviction regarding the sufficiency of Scripture for salvation and holiness. They believe Scripture on its own is bland and requires some embellishments to make it relevant. For instance, at the beginning of Transformation Church’s Easter production, Todd emphasized the need for the service to go beyond a simple proclamation of “He got up.” He didn’t think the biblical narrative of Christ’s resurrection was interesting enough. It needed more extravagance. Consequently, the service featured extra-biblical content, such as a ridiculous battle between Jesus and Satan and a demon forum. Christian, the Bible is sufficient! Preaching the Word and the Word alone is enough for Christians. God’s Word does not require entertainment to enhance its relevance; it stands in its own perfection.
Low view of God
In “Knowledge of the Holy,” A. W. Tozer said the church urgently needs to recover a high view of God. Time has proven the accuracy of his words, as a concerning number of Christians seem to have a low view of God. It explains why a pastor deems it acceptable to have women dressed provocatively and dance seductively on a Lord’s Day worship service and why the congregation applauded it. They have either forgotten who God is or never grasped the weight of God’s holiness. As a result, they do not treat Him with awe and reverence, befitting His name. Yahweh is the almighty God, the Ancient of Days, the King of kings, Lord of lords, the Everlasting One, the Alpha and the Omega, and the thrice holy God. How does one enter His presence except with righteous fear and trembling? We must regain a high view of God and appreciate His majesty, holiness, and sovereignty. Only then will the church truly worship Yahweh with the awe and reverence He deserves.
Followers of the world
From the beginning, God has consistently separated and consecrated His chosen people to Himself. He separated Seth’s bloodline from Cain’s, Israel from other nations, and He set apart the church from the world. Therefore, the church is designed to be distinct from the world. However, churches like Transformation Church have gone against God’s design. Instead of being apart from the world, they pattern themselves after it. They adopt so many worldly principles that their services are virtually indistinguishable from secular events. These churches follow the world because they falsely think they can influence it through their similarity rather than distinctiveness. But God’s intended way for believers to influence the church is through a complete holy separation from the world. This way, we can stand out as a bright beacon of light to the lost and draw them to the Light of the world. This divine design encompasses our church practices as well.
The world does worldliness better than the church does. No matter how hard we try. If we want to please the world by being like the world, we lose.
Mark Dever
As we approach the Easter season, many churches will again opt for extravagant worldly services that disregard the sufficiency of Scripture and do not give God His due reverence. Please mark and avoid these churches! Although they may present an outward semblance of a genuine church, in reality, they are false churches and synagogues of Satan.
