This post is so true. It is a strategy that even the growth experts endorse. I’ve also seen it happen before my eyes. A church about 30 minutes from me launched a sex series in a small town and it raised controversy. Out of that, the pastor was all over CNN, Fox, and local news. His church has boosted attendance like crazy from it.

Whatever it takes to reach the lost I say!

Brandon:

“Whatever it takes to reach the lost I say! “

That’s called, “pragmatism,” and that’s wrong.  The way that churches should be grown, in a biblical model, is going out and preaching the Gospel so that people get saved and then want to come into churches.

Because, if we use your mentality, we could do silly things like giving away cars, iPods, vacations, and money.  That would certainly draw people in as well.

--
CS

making church relevant is what many are talking about today… this is one of the biggest hereies and mistakes any preacher of the Gospel could make… our job is to preach the Gospel not entertainment…

Brandon… who are you preaching for? the people or God? The Gospel preached in purity is our relevance to any generation… not giving away cars, ipods, etc… many are trying to turn the faith into a business with promotional give aways…

Brandon,
I agree that this topic should be addressed in our congregations… but what I don’t agree with is the “relevant cop-out” that many are running too today…

I also agree that every preacher has their own preaching style… and we’re called to wait on and cultivate our gifts…

However, there’s too much showmanship and less Godliness within many of congregations… It’s the Holy Spirit that does the drawing… therefore we could take the pressure off ourselves and rely on the Holy Spirit… even in our best attempt we fall short…

“it is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? the important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.”

Philippians 2:15-18
I’m not real worried about the motives behind why someone is preaching Christ. The fact is Jesus talked about it, and the Word talks about it. I think that if more faith families were open to bringing God back into the conversation from the pulpit on issues such as sex; maybe more people would be running from a sin, and running to Him.  Relevance isn’t a cop out, it’s simply an attempt to bring the life Changing message of the Gospel to a world with as much clarity as possible.

I disagree that they only preach sex. And I would submit that maybe your just seeing the title of the sermons and jumping to conclusions. I have seen and witnessed testimonies of Life change due to a message that preaches what God said about Sex, and presenting people an opportunity to repent, and run to Christ. It’s hard for me to understand why it’s such a big deal that churches preach on culturally relevant topics, many repent, and follow Christ, as a result. Show me where scripture says not to preach on Sex with in the confines of marriage, and show me where it says not to condemn sinful lifestyles.... Then I would be glad to agree that it’s out of place. I’m sure that if you were to inspect, every church talking about “Sex”, clearly presents the Gospel.

CS writes [I have yet to hear of a person who has said something like, “Because I received a flier in the mail from a local church that was telling me how I can have my Best Sex Life Now (TM), I repented of my sins and put my faith in Christ.”]

Doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened. I could definitely see somebody attending a church for a specific sermon series to see what they can “get out of it” and in the process, beginning a new life in Jesus.  Even one on sex.

That said, I sometimes feel like it’s too much, and we haven’t done one like this here. Not saying we won’t… But we do try to come up with provocative sermon titles like “Don’t Go To Church Anymore” (I think it was something like that.)

I don’t mind intriguing unbelieving or “de-churched” people to get them in my door, because I know what they will find here.

If you preach the saving grace of Jesus without showing the need for the saving grace of Jesus, you wind up with people who get disillusioned. If you use creature comforts of peace, joy and guilt-free sex as a drawing card, people will eventually find out that the feel-good gospel is shallow and the circumstances of life can easily rob you of those comforts. And that once-held belief in Jesus turns into resentment because “all the Jesus stuff didn’t work for me!” syndrome.

But, if you tell them we all fall short and break God’s law and heaven is unreachable without the blood of Jesus, then salvation means something to them. They are grateful and they won’t be quick to discard their peace and joy because it is a true fruit generated by the Spirit on the inside, not an external enticement getting blown about by the storms of life that inevitably comes to every person.

Steven:

“it really is amazing to me how we look at and judge the success of others...the only way to not be Pharisee"ish" is to only speak of things we’ve witnessed and understand....have we visited these ministries to know what they speak?  And again I ask, can we not applaud the lives that are being transformed? “

It’s just as important to ensure that the way in which people are being transformed is biblical and proper as it is to those who have life change.  Otherwise, we run the risk of being almost Machiavellian in saying that the ends justify the means.

And, in the case of the sex sermons, those churches I have seen in the national spotlight that present these things are lacking in theology and doctrine.  Ed Young Jr. comes straight to the top of my mind after watching his antics on The Colbert Report and listening to how he comes up with his sermons (he spends a few hours on a Saturday after working out to think of something--his own words).

--
CS

CS:

Sorry to bring you to such judgement of others...i’m not sure we are the one’s to judge the doctrine and theology of others...especially ministries that we are not personally involved in...it’s hard to conceptualize the heart and motives of others and how God has blessed them (with concepts outside of yours and/or tradition) to reach the lost...many people did not understand Jesus meeting with the tax collectors and those in the “business of sex”....but He was Jesus anyway....reaching and being relevant to people right where they are...and teaching them to live a life that pleases God...so, whatever our opinions...we can rest assured that God knows ...and whether or not our first attended sermon series is listed beside our name on “that day” well, we’ll see....and to Ed Young Jr. and others .....thanks 4 being who God has called you to be...whether we understand it or not!

Rev. K. writes [here’s no arguement as to the lack of Biblical doctrine and theology in most congregations today.] Sure there is! You can’t really make that statement without making either a lot of assumptions or having a mountain if data that if you actually did have, you should be sharing more publicly.

With all due respect, that statement is pure opinion. You do not know what “most” congregations today believe.

And… I am getting tired of doctrine and theology being the only measuring stick for orthodoxy. It’s not even how Jesus said we would know who his followers are. (I’m not saying doctrine is not important, but in your statement you said nothing about what people DO, how they ACT, as if there is no importance to it, as if proper doctrine alone belongs on this litmus test of proper Christ-following lives.)

How true, unfortunately, is this scenario below… (And don’t ask yourself if it’s true of you. Many of you I KNOW this is not true of… ask yourselves how OTHERS see us, and why.)

Jesus: “They will know you are my followers by your great love for one another.”

21st century western evangelical: “They will we know we are His followers by our list of doctrinal distinctives and our stand on abortion and marriage and the family...”

It’s no wonder that people who’ve grown up in a post-Christian, post-modern society are rejecting the church. Some of their reasons are good… Let’s start giving them better reasons to stay.

Peter Hamm,
Out of all do respect...many congregations don’t know what they believe...(Many are flowing with the wind of the world...wherever the world blows they follow)

this is the point I’m getting at… anybody could say they’re a Christian but doesn’t have the fruit to prove it… Orthodoxy is our measuring stick and has been for centuries… and our doctrinal beliefs makes up our orthordoxy… without doctrine and theology you don’t have a church… our doctrine and theology establishes who we are and what we hold to… James encouraged us to contend for the faith and guard against heresy… if we don’t have doctrine and theology how could we guard against heresy?

Correct orthordox teaches us how to live and love one another… Doctrine and theology produces the fruit… how can one love if one doesn’t know how to love? they need theology to teach them how to love…

Peter, how often we take the Scripture out of context… “They will know you are my followers by your great love for one another.” (Who is Jesus talking to?) (Who is Jesus telling them to love?)

Peter, how do you deal with the Scripture “ know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?”

Many are laying down Theology and doctrines and presenting the world with a one sided Jesus (loving, loving, loving).

I agree Peter,
we must present both sides of the coin… we must teach Theology and doctrines as well as the fruit of the spirit and love for one another…