For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths. 2 Timothy 4:3–4 (CSB)
How do people choose where to go to church? For a few, brand loyalty is the main criteria. They grew up or were converted in a particular church, so when they move, or become disenchanted, the denomination is the most important factor. However, this kind of loyalty is on the decline.
Increasingly, people have a consumer mentality when it comes to choosing a new church. Programs, friendliness, style of worship, and the size of the congregation are among the top choices that people use when they switch from one church to another.
Paul told Timothy that the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine. We might ask if people know what sound doctrine is, and if they do, does it matter? According to the Barna Group, only about 4% of American adults have a biblical worldview today.[1] How much does sound doctrine matter when such a small percentage of Americans adhere to and embrace biblical truth?
What Paul foresaw is clearly seen in contemporary church selection. People gather teachers “to suit their own desires,” packing pulpits with preachers who tell them only what they desire to hear. When churchgoers prioritize personality, musical style, or emotional comfort over doctrinal substance, they exemplify precisely what Paul warned against.
As pastors and leaders, how do we respond to this present reality?
What Do People Want, or What Do They Need?
Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and teaching. 2 Timothy 4:2 (CSB)
Historically, a primary consideration when selecting a church centered on doctrinal content, specifically does a pastor preach the true gospel of Jesus Christ through biblical teaching.
Beyond the core message of salvation there are a number of issues including the belief that the gifts and the power of the Holy Spirit, the working of miracles and healing are still for today. What we believe matters more than most people realize today. We will be held accountable as watchmen, if we do not sound the alarm and warn people of the dangers that lie ahead. Ezekiel 33 should serve as a warning to tell people what they need to hear, and not only what they want to hear.
Increasingly church attendance is viewed as a leisure activity rather than a duty and motivation centers on other things. People are more likely to look at the programs and activities that the church offers, than their statement of faith. They ask about children’s programs, and other activities. Doctrinal belief is secondary to community, friendship, and other considerations.
“Preach the word,” even when it’s not convenient, or received. We must resist the temptation to tell people what they want to hear. We can take consolation in knowing that we do not stand alone. So then, have I become your enemy because I told you the truth? Galatians 4:16 (CSB). There is no substitute for the truth: You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32 (CSB)
Everything Changes, Except…
And he replied: Go! Say to these people: Keep listening, but do not understand; keep looking, but do not perceive. Isaiah 6:9 (CSB)
It was a revelation to see the reaction to change in the early 2000’s. We were serving at a Pentecostal church. The church transitioned from traditional to contemporary worship. Historically, the church and had a choir, but it faded away in favor of a worship team.
A significant number of people left the church, not for a church with similar doctrinal beliefs, but instead for a church that denied that these things were for today because they had a choir.
It was alarming to see that the distinctive doctrines of our faith were not as important to them as other things. We might ask what they actually believed, doctrinally and theologically. Do they even know what they believe? It was disturbing to see people go from a church that believed in speaking in tongues, and the other gifts of the Holy Spirit, to a church that believed that those things were not for today and probably of the devil.
Styles of music and worship will continually change, but that should always be secondary to the mission, or should I say, commission that Christ gave to his church. The call to preach the gospel and make disciples will never go out of style. Paul figured it out. I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. 1 Corinthians 10:33 (NLT).
Remember: Jesus is the Savior, Jesus is the Healer, Jesus is the Baptizer in the Holy Spirit, and Jesus is the Soon Coming King.
Stay Faithful to the Call
But as for you, exercise self-control in everything, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. 2 Timothy 4:5 (CSB)
Paul had just finished warning Timothy that the time was coming when people would not listen to sound doctrine. Paul went on to tell him that that should not affect his call for his ministry.
When Paul wrote this letter, he was under d him him him him him him him uress. He had first-hand experience with abandonment. Everyone had left him, some for good reasons, but he was alone, nevertheless. Yet he was not alone: But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that I might fully preach the word and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. 2 Timothy 4:17 (CSB)
Even when on trial for his life, Paul was still focused on his ministry, and not on his convenience or comfort. The truth matters, but if the quality of the coffee and donuts is more important than sound doctrine, we have a problem.
Steve Ekeroth
[1] Explaining America’s 40-Year Drop in Biblical Worldview – And How to Reverse that Decline – George Barna
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