Thinking about Choosing a Church?

Let's be honest, most people choose their church based on things that have almost nothing to do with God, His Truth, or the nurture of our spirits. My guess is that most people choose their church based on a few convenient, even carnal, principles. "I like their style of music." "The pastor is so great, he makes everything really practical." "They have a program for all of our kids." "This church is really friendly." "I grew up in this church (or a church like it)." "The service times really suit my schedule."

Over the years, when it's come to recommending churches to first year college students and young people who were looking for churches, I fear that I've been overly simplistic. I used to say things like "just find a church that teaches the Bible." Well, I don't want to overwhelm people with a 15 point checklist when looking for a church but I've tried to narrow it down to four categories that I sense will give you a window into the life of a church, identify a healthy church, and possibly ensure that you'll be able to worship with that church family for a long time.

1. Is the church focused on Expository Preaching and Teaching? I've stopped saying, "just find a church that teaches the Bible" and I've started to engage young people on the idea of Expository preaching and teaching. As you listen to your pastors next sermon, ask yourself, "Is the main point of this text, the main point of his sermon?" Next time you listen to a sermon you may want to ask something like "is he spending anytime talking about the real need of our soul; the need to be forgiven of sin?" He may be spending a lot of time talking about loneliness and the needs of the poor but never explain the greatest need of man. Thirdly, you may want to ask yourself, "is he exalting the Christ's death and resurrection within this sermon or is he just encouraging more moral behavior?" Without the Death and Resurrection of Christ we are left to save ourselves. All of these questions might help you determine whether or not you're being taught in a Expository and Christ focused manner.

2. Is the church Confessional? Trust me, I am not asking if your church has a document that is over 400 years old that governs the church. What we should be asking is, "does the church have any document that governs the life of the church, the church's leadership, and summarize important truths from the Bible?" Churches that have no detailed confessions that address doctrine and church order are under no real authority. You might counter that argument by saying, "Oh no, that's not true, our church is under the authority of the Bible!" People that say that they are, exclusively, under the Bible's authority are, actually, under one authority. They are under the authority of their own interpretation. Is that not true? The only authority in many churches is the authority of their pastor's interpretive whim. Confessions ensure that your church will not be led by one man but places each leader under statements greater than their own mind.

Points 3 and 4 will be coming next week.