9/25/2007
<br>Author: Devin Pickard
<br>Title: September 25, 2007
<br><br>I bet you used a buzzword today.  You know…..familiar words to a particular generation or time frame.  According to Wikipedia, some current buzzwords are pod casting, globalization, offline, bandwidth, and mind-share.  As you can see, many of the words used in our day to day language reflect the “age of technology” that we currently live in.  I looked and looked, but apparently Wikipedia is not familiar with the Church of Christ.  If they were, surely the buzzword (or catch phrase) “change agent” would be included in their list.  Ask any die hard member of the Church of Christ about the phrase and they would probably tell you that they had heard a minister or teacher use it, or perhaps have read it in some brotherhood publication. <br><br> The general use of the term “change agent” by most within our fellowship is intended to describe a particular person whose intention is to move the Lord’s Church away from its New Testament roots into a more “radical or liberal” view of the Church, its hermeneutic, its worship style, and so on.  There is no doubt in my mind that there are some who are steering the Body of Christ into uncharted, dangerous waters.  Anytime we begin toying with God’s plan of salvation, his purpose for His people, and the true mission of the Church, just to suit our purposes of convenience, ease, and acceptance, we enter the business of leading people away from heaven.  I don’t think Jesus called those people “change agents”, but he did call them “stumbling blocks”.  He said that if you are one, it would be better for you to be at the bottom of the Duck River with a cement block around your neck than to go on living and leading people astray.  The mere suggestion of becoming fish food should be enough to turn anyone around.<br><br>As I ponder on this phrase that’s being thrown around by the self- imposed members of our “brotherhood police”, I can’t but help think of some true “change agents” of the Lord’s Church.  I don’t mean people who meant to do the Church or its members spiritual harm.  I mean those who sought to restore the blood-bought institution to its original God-intended purpose.  In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Campbell boys, Barton Stone, and others like them, decided they would go back to simply speaking where the Bible spoke, and remaining silent where it was silent.  And what about Jesus….he was the greatest “change agent” of them all!  If you don’t believe me, just ask a first century Jew who was made aware by Christ that the 613 regulations he was trying to keep wasn’t salvation material anymore.  All of a sudden the blood of bulls and goats and yearly pilgrimages to Jerusalem were yesterday’s news.  Hundreds of years of toil and tradition were being tossed down the drain by this lunatic who claimed to be God’s Son.  Pardon my southern accent, but if that ain’t change, I don’t know what is.<br><br>Many of you can remember the time when the Lord’s Supper table was covered by a cloth of some sort.  That table cloth served a good purpose in an era when many churches kept the windows up and the doors open.   I certainly would not have wanted a fly in my serving of grape juice either.  I can guarantee you that most Churches had to keep a good supply of smelling salts around when they began removing the “sacred” cloth from the Lord’s Supper.  Because it had been a part of the Church for so long, many had come to believe that it was scriptual, and that the removal of it went against the Will of God.  Most finally came to the realization that it had no Biblical significance, it was merely tradition.  There have been other changes of the same magnitude throughout our history as a Church that have nothing to do with salvation or Son-ship.  I bet the fella who first took the table cloth away was called a “change agent”.  I bet many in the church shouted “radical!” when the first person said, “Hey, I don’t want to partake of the fruit of the vine from the same cup that everyone else has.....let’s use individual cups”.  As far as I am concerned, I’m glad those folks stuck to their guns of rationale and reason.  Besides, I don’t want to drink after ole’ Bubba anyway.  <br><br>Autonomy in the Church is a wonderful thing.  Per God through his inspired writers, each body of believers is to be lead by an eldership and governed by God’s Word.  Unlike many other faiths, we have no earthly headquarters, legislative bodies, or ruling organizations.  Each Church is responsible for itself, no more and no less.  No doubt, I need to be concerned about my sister congregations spiritual welfare.  But, my main responsibility and focus should be centered on the Church where I worship on a regular basis.  How can a local body of believers benefit and grow in a productive, spiritual manner, when the only message they ever hear from their pulpit is one that continually points out the perceived problems in another Church that is just down the road or half-way across the world?  I can’t think of anything in such a message that would encourage someone to want to become a Christian......and isn’t that what we are supposed to be doing? <br><br>I figure that if I start being more concerned with the needs of another family, rather than the ones of my own, that I will turn around about twice and my family will have taken up residence somewhere else.  The Lord’s Church is no different.  Remember, blowing someone else’s candle out doesn’t make yours burn any brighter.<br><br><br>Go the extra mile - Devin<br><br>