Serving Christ or Club?

Jesus indicted men for their love of human glory:

 “They loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God” (Jn. 12:43).

Such glory and approval can take on many forms—one being our own reputation and curb appeal. A man can look real busy without ever serving Christ. Think of Sardis: "I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead" (Rev. 3:1).

Externally, one can be impressive—show up every Sunday, write generous checks, organize Gospel Meetings, lobby for new projects and activities—yet never bear any real fruit for Christ. Why? Because it’s not Christ he truly loves and serves. It’s the club.

Here’s what I mean: while the congregation’s numbers are up, his enthusiasm is strong; but when problems arise, or his favorite preacher moves on, he’s suddenly sapped of motivation. He’s truckin’ right along until some of his brethren “don’t pull their weight,” or someone criticizes him; then his enthusiasm wanes. Since his motivation is rooted in club loyalty, identity, or social belonging, whenever these factors falter, so does his “zeal.” He may not even be aware his shallow devotion rests on people and programs (i.e. an “active” group, a likable preacher, or others who support his every idea).

The Pharisees mistook ritual for righteousness. Many today make the same mistake, thinking polished services or clever plans are the measure of faithfulness.

This misplaced devotion shows up most clearly in how we elevate tools into essentials.

Mistaking the Scaffolding for the Building

Bulletins, pews, songbooks, training in the mechanics of public worship, meal and shut-in lists, duty sign-up sheets—all of these may serve a purpose. But none of them are the essence of following Christ. They are scaffolding at best—expedients and tools—to help carry out the work God has assigned (Matt. 28:18-20). I fear too many mistake the scaffolding for the building itself.

When that happens, we grow restless, even frantic when the handouts/tracts change format, the song leading isn’t polished or technically sound, visitors aren’t greeted immediately, or there isn’t a regimented campaign for shut-ins or “community outreach.”

I think it fair to say Christians agree that somebody ought to “reach out” to our unbelieving neighbors or regularly check in with ill brethren and see to their needs.

But here’s the crucial question: must every act of service be funneled through a formal plan? Compare these approaches...

To accomplish this we could call a meeting, meet, brainstorm a new initiative, set dates and times, and put this new machinery into motion until tracts and banners rain down from the sky on our neighborhood and a hired caravan of meds and food makes daily rounds to the afflicted;

OR

As a Christian, you could cross the street to your neighbor, take a direct, personal approach with the Gospel, then head over to an ailing brother’s house with your wife’s beans and cornbread.

There’s no substitute for personal obedience. In our haste to organize “new efforts” we often forget our individual responsibility. Someone once asked me, “So what’s your plan to grow this church?” Frankly, I don’t have one. Thankfully, God has already provided one. You can read about it in the New Testament. Instead of looking for the next big initiative, we should look back to God’s design. Paul describes it plainly...

Here’s an excerpt:

He gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love (Eph. 4:11-16).

One obedient heart can do more work than a whole team of organizers ever could. Programs and meetings make a big noise, but only a heart anchored in Christ can bring a soul to Him and cause the growth of His body. I’m reminded of a quote from Petronius Arbiter:

We trained hard, but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams, we would be reorganized. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing; and a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization.

His satire of bureaucracy mirrors exactly what happens when churches place their faith in endless reorganizing rather than in Christ.

Sadly, we can make the same mistake. Yes, organized efforts are needed in some cases (Acts 6:1-7). I’m not here to poo-poo reasonable, biblical approaches to congregational needs. The point is that no amount of organization will work FOR you or me.

Also, we can’t assume that nothing is being done if the work isn’t wrapped in a formal, agreed-upon plan or printed weekly for all to see. Perhaps we could “see” more work if we got busy ourselves. In reality, Christians are faithfully checking on shut-ins, visiting the sick, encouraging the weak, praying for and teaching their neighbors unbeknownst to the rest of us. The same would be mortified at the thought of their efforts being broadcast in a newsletter.

Just because these works aren’t showcased on a weekly basis doesn’t mean the work of Christ is not happening. If we operate from these misaligned values and assumptions, our devotion will ebb and flow with perceived externals. When the scaffolding isn’t structured the way we want it or gets moved around, our whole sense of purpose and productivity collapses.

“For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3:11).

Christ Himself must be the foundation on which we build. When your work is tested on the last day, no amount of gloss or notoriety will hold it together. The real mechanism for growth is every member clinging to Christ in love, and serving one another. Don't mistake church-loyalty for Christ-loyalty. It’s possible to be immersed in “religious activity” every day of the week and yet fail to serve Christ.

This isn’t a new problem. God’s people have been stumbling over the same misplaced trust for centuries.

The Root Problem: Institutional Mindset

The prophets rebuked Israel for this very mindset. They had the temple, the sacrifices, the festivals. But they had forgotten the God behind it all:

“Bring your worthless offerings no longer… I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly” (Is. 1:13).

They were convinced their flurry of activity was the point. God said otherwise. He always has (Ps. 51:16-17). The danger isn’t in having buildings or classes or organized efforts. The danger is in thinking those things are what make us Christians.

Jesus warned: “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men” (Matt. 15:8–9). Substitute “buildings, projects, and routines” for “lips” and the warning still stings. When our devotion is to appearances, we worship in vain.

William Blake once observed:

“He who would do good to another must do it in minute particulars: general good is the plea of the scoundrel, hypocrite and flatterer.”

That cuts through the fog, doesn’t it? God isn't glorified by ideas of grand, global gestures, but by concrete acts of obedience and love:

“If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward” (Matt. 10:42).

Is our devotion institution-centered or Christ-centered?

The Real Work of the Church

What is the church’s purpose? Hear the Scripture:

• To glorify God (Eph. 3:21).

• To build up the body in love (Eph. 4:15–16).

• To proclaim the Gospel of Christ (1 Thess. 1:8).

• To bear one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2).

Not one of these requires a whiteboard. Not one requires pews. Not one depends on a technically flawless song service or shiny, new hymnals. The church grew, spread, and conquered the Roman world without any of the buildings, furnishings, seminars, or productions so many now think essential.

The first Christians had no “outreach programs”—they simply opened their mouths and shared Christ wherever they went (Acts 8:4). They had no training classes for serving the Lord’s Supper—men simply did what the Lord commanded with whatever means in whatever venue they could muster (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 11:23–26). They had no workshops on how to lead prayers—they simply prayed by following the pattern Jesus gave them (Acts 2:42). The contrast couldn’t be sharper: while many today clamor for structure, the first Christians showed us how simple obedience builds the kingdom. I suspect their prayers and efforts at teaching sounded as clumsy as ours from time to time. No doubt there were those among them as there are among us who gleefully pick nits when protocol is “violated.” We can prevail the same as they did, knowing the efficacy of worship lies not in polish but in faith.

A Better Way Forward

So how do we redirect our hearts away from institutional obsession and toward Christ Himself?

Anchor everything in Christ.

“Apart from Me you can do nothing” (Jn. 15:5).

Ask yourself: If we could no longer afford a building, if the pews broke, if the songbooks disappeared—would I believe the church is failing? If so, my service isn’t to Christ.

Measure success by faithfulness, not polish or results.

God has never cared about slick appearances. He cares about hearts. “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7).

Invest in people, not appearances.

A pressed suit and perfectly coiffed hair can’t comfort the grieving. A new pew can’t restore the fallen. A glossy, high-tech slide show can’t build up your faith. A “properly led” song won’t rescue a soul from sin.

People need Christ—and they need us to teach them: “For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2).

Pursue love above formality.

“If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Cor. 13:1).

Excellence without love is noise. Love without varnish is still meaningful and will glorify God.

Return to simple obedience.

Instead of fretting over how slick our routines look, let’s resolve to do things decently and orderly (1 Cor. 14:40). Even if unvarnished, let's get back to the simplicity and purity obeying Jesus: "I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ" (2 Cor. 11:3).

Let’s be honest: much of our frustration with “how things are done” is pride in disguise. We want the church to look like we think it should look. We want services to run like we think they should run. Efforts need to be organized the way we think they should be organized. Woe to anyone who doth stand in the way! If my frustration grows every time my preferences aren’t met, it’s not Christ I’m serving. It’s me.

“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves” (Phil. 2:3).

If I truly love Christ, I won’t quit because a brother "didn't stand in the right place" for the Lord's Supper or because he stumbled through a prayer. I’ll thank God that prayers are being offered, that Christ’s death is remembered, and that souls are still striving to walk in the Way.

If we truly love Christ, we won’t lose heart if there’s no official “community ministry,” or “visitation ministry,” or “ministry of ministering for ministers.” Rather, we’ll thank God that His plan—the Gospel—is still taught, that burdens are borne by His outreach program—saints quietly serving in love. We’ll do so even if it never gets posted in a bulletin or online.

This is exactly what Jesus meant when He spoke of building on the rock rather than sand.

Build on the Rock

Jesus told us plainly:

“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock… The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock” (Matt. 7:24–25).

If your faith rises and falls with pews, schemes, foyer arrangements, or flashy performances, your house is on sand. Brethren may come and go. Congregations may grow or shrink numerically. Church buildings may crumble into dust. But Christ never changes. His Word never fades. His promises never fail.

That’s where your love and service must lie. Not to trappings, mechanics, or cosmetic religion—but to the risen Lord who died for your sins and rose to intercede for you.

In the end, the question is the same as it was in Jesus’ day: Do we love the approval of men, or the approval of God? One fades with the scaffolding; the other endures with Christ, our foundation.

The church doesn’t need more sheen. After all, no amount of polish or scaffolding can add one ounce of glory to the bride Christ has already made radiant (Eph. 5:27). It simply needs more devotion to Him. The sooner we realize that, the sooner our frustrations over externals will melt away—replaced by joy, stability, and unshakable hope in the One who said:

“Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).