THE CHURCH AT SARDIS (5 OF 7)
by Zach Terry
Scripture: Revelation 3:1-6
This content is part of a series.
The Church at Sardis (5 of 7)
Series: Churches of Revelation
Zach Terry
Revelation 3:1-6
OPENING ILLUSTRATION: Jeremy Bentham was a very wealthy man that died in 1832. He died with the agreement that he would give his entire fortune to the University College Hospital in London if they would embalm him and allow him to sit at their board meetings as long as the hospital existed. Apparently the hospital needed the money because his request was carried out.
To this day - At the anniversary meetings of the board, the body is brought out and the chairman of the board says, ‘‘Jeremy Bentham present but not voting.’’
Jeremy Bentham will never raise his hand, he will never make a motion. If he does it will be the last board meeting that hospital ever has. Dead people can’t do anything.
He’s present but no longer engaged... He’s at the meeting, but he is dead. Reminds me of a lot of churches.
It is possible for a once vibrant church to become absolutely void of any spiritual impact - or in the words of Jesus in this passage, ‘‘dead’’.
In our nation, every single category of church is in decline - The 7 mainline denominations have experienced a significant drop as they abandon orthodoxy in favor of liberalism, in at attempt to appear more relevant, they have lost their relevancy. Southern Baptist Church have lost TWO MILLION members since 2006. Lifeway conducted a study of 34 Protestant Denominations and discovered that 4,500 church are closing annually, which just under 3,000 new churches are planted annually.
At one time, Christianity in America was a Zero sum game. In other words, while some churches were declining others were experiencing growth and the overall numbers of church involvement were relatively steady. That is no longer the case.
In surveys where people are asked to identify their religious affiliation the fastest growing group in America is the NONE category.
1930’s-1940’s - 5% marked None - in 1990 that number had risen to only ...
Series: Churches of Revelation
Zach Terry
Revelation 3:1-6
OPENING ILLUSTRATION: Jeremy Bentham was a very wealthy man that died in 1832. He died with the agreement that he would give his entire fortune to the University College Hospital in London if they would embalm him and allow him to sit at their board meetings as long as the hospital existed. Apparently the hospital needed the money because his request was carried out.
To this day - At the anniversary meetings of the board, the body is brought out and the chairman of the board says, ‘‘Jeremy Bentham present but not voting.’’
Jeremy Bentham will never raise his hand, he will never make a motion. If he does it will be the last board meeting that hospital ever has. Dead people can’t do anything.
He’s present but no longer engaged... He’s at the meeting, but he is dead. Reminds me of a lot of churches.
It is possible for a once vibrant church to become absolutely void of any spiritual impact - or in the words of Jesus in this passage, ‘‘dead’’.
In our nation, every single category of church is in decline - The 7 mainline denominations have experienced a significant drop as they abandon orthodoxy in favor of liberalism, in at attempt to appear more relevant, they have lost their relevancy. Southern Baptist Church have lost TWO MILLION members since 2006. Lifeway conducted a study of 34 Protestant Denominations and discovered that 4,500 church are closing annually, which just under 3,000 new churches are planted annually.
At one time, Christianity in America was a Zero sum game. In other words, while some churches were declining others were experiencing growth and the overall numbers of church involvement were relatively steady. That is no longer the case.
In surveys where people are asked to identify their religious affiliation the fastest growing group in America is the NONE category.
1930’s-1940’s - 5% marked None - in 1990 that number had risen to only ...
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