The Double Standard in Churches #1

I know that no one is perfect. The Bible tells us, "All have sinned." Why then do we expect perfection from their ministers? Why do they leave no room for mistakes? Why do so many churches if not all Churches set their minister us for failure in expecting perfection? Is it realistic? In expecting a faultless, sinless, leadership do we not set them up to fail? Do congregation have different standards in their ministers then they do themselves? Isn't that hypocritical? Could a person with the mistakes or actions of King David, Solomon, Peter, Thomas or Paul be a minister in the churches today? Would they hire them? How do we show the church that ministers are people, sinners, too? How do we stop the mass exodus from those in ministry because of the pressure and double standard?

I know many ministers who have left ministry, leaving ministry and discourage even their kids and others from entering ministry because the pressure to be perfect, the double standard and the way the Church sets ministers up for failure. It needs to be discussed.

What do you think?
Share your thoughts.

Length of Sermons

If you are a preacher or minister how long of a message do you preach? Does it matter how long a sermon or message is preached? Do you think it is easy to lose people's attention if the sermon is too long? What should be the average length of sermon? Why? If you aren't a preacher or minister how long does your minister preach? What length do you prefer? Why?

What do you think?
Share your thoughts.

Being Relevant

What does it mean to be relevant to the world as a Church or Christian? Do you think it is important to be relevant? Why or why not? How do we make church, worship and Jesus relevant to others? Do we loose people if the message and gospel we present isn't relevant? What happens when Christianity become irrelevant to those we are trying to reach? Why do so many Christians think it is a sin or wrong to be relevant? Do you believe it is wrong? Why or why not? What are you or your church doing to be relevant to the world?

What do you think?
Share your thoughts.

Being the 21st Century Church

Why do some churches look at the first century Church as an example? Should we? Was the first century Church perfect? How did they treat each other? Outsiders? What sins did the churches of the first century struggle with? Should we try to pattern our churches after the first century Church or should we try to be the Church of the twenty first century? What happens or could happen when we try to pattern modern churches after the Church of the first century? Was the second century Church trying to be the church of their time, meeting people where they were at? Can we lose relevancy if we strive to pattern churches today after the Church of the first century? Shouldn't we be the be the 21st century Church? Is being relevant unscriptural?

The Things That Really Matter

Do things that matter to us, matter to God? Do we consider some things to to be a big deal that may not be a big deal or issue to God? If so, what? Can we know the things that matter to God? How? Should the things that matter to God matter to us as well and how do we change the focus? Would the Church, Christianity and the world look different if we focused on the things that mattered to God? If so, how would they be different? What do you think?

What do you think?
Share your thoughts.