Sunday Class @ 9am; Worship @ 10am & 5pm
Articles
Times Have Changed
(The following article first appeared in this bulletin in 1994. Its message needs repeating today.)
When I first moved to Hendersonville in March 1931, it was a small, rural unincorporated town with a population of 250 people. The church met in a one-room rectangular shaped brick building with two coal-burning stoves located up near the front on each side of the pulpit. In the summer the occupants were cooled by opening the windows and providing everyone with “funeral home” fans. The children’s classes were held in the “amen corners” on each side of the pulpit while the adult classes met further back in the auditorium. In the Spring, when we had a “Gospel Meeting,” there was no competition from such things as television, sporting events, etc., so the building would be packed; and latecomers would sit on their cars outside the windows to listen. When the sermon was completed and the invitation songs were sung (we kept singing additional songs as long as there were responses), it was not unusual for there to be many responses. Following these we would go down to Drake’s Creek for the baptisms. Once there, we sang additional invitation songs for the benefit of those who were “almost persuaded” at the building. The night I was baptized, eight “responded to the invitation” at the building, and others did at the creek in spite of the cold.
In 1931, we were struggling through the early stages of the great economic depression which would continue for another decade, especially here in the hard-hit south. The church (Matt. 16:18; Acts 2:47) made up of “the saints in Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1:7; 1 Cor. 1:2; Eph. 1:1; Phil. 1:1; Col. 1:2) at that time consisted of a relatively small remnant who had stood firm against the doctrines of men (Matt. 15:9; Col. 2:22; Heb. 13:9). These departures had recently (1860-1910) brought about an apostasy that led to the formation of another denomination – the Christian Church.
When we visited my grandparents in Valley Junction, Iowa (now West Des Moines), the “church of Christ” we met with there used the organ in their worship, supported the missionary society, had its ladies-aid-society, etc. This group later changed its name to the Vine Street Christian Church.
Here in Hendersonville, the saints met in their one-room building, described above, to worship God as directed in His word. They read and taught the Scriptures (Matt. 28:20; 1 Tim. 4:13; 2 Tim. 2:2; 3:15), prayed together (Col. 4:3-4; 2 Thes. 3:1; James 5:16), sang praises to Him and taught one another in song (Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16; Heb. 2:12), ate the bread and drank the cup to proclaim the Lord’s death (1 Cor. 11:26) on the first day of each week (Acts 20:7), as well as contributing of their means (2 Cor. 8,-9) on the first day of the week (1 Cor. 16:2). Once or twice a month a preacher would meet with us and preach.
By the time the U.S. entered World War II in December, 1941, a number of things were changing. The economy had improved some; and the town, as well as the local church, was growing. To accommodate this growth, we had dug a small basement under the auditorium and installed a furnace. Classrooms and a baptistery were added to the back of the building, and we had a “full-time” preacher. As the church continued to grow, a larger auditorium was built and the old one converted into additional classrooms.
During the decade of the 40’s, the church was growing rapidly throughout much of the U.S., and with this growth came the cry for change. Many of the denominations had begun providing various forms of entertainment and providing many types of social activities. Like Israel of old who wanted to be like the nations around them (1 Sam. 8:5, 20), many in the church wanted to do whatever was necessary to be like the denominations around them to “keep our young people,” in spite of the fact there was no scriptural authority for such. Just as God had told Samuel, “they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me” (1 Sam. 8:7), and then warned them of the consequences (:9-18), He tells us not to add to, take away from, or go beyond His word and warns us of the consequences of such (2 John 9-11; Rev. 22:18-19). God has always forbidden man to add to, take from, or alter His word (Deut. 4:2; 12:32; Josh. 1:7; Prov. 30:6).
Jesus indicated that there are only two sources of authority – “from heaven or from men” (Matt. 21:25), and warned that our worship is in vain if we follow the doctrines of men (Matt. 15:9). In spite of this warning, God’s people in every age have been inclined to leave the teachings of God and follow men. Paul wrote the churches of Galatia and said he marveled that they had so soon left the teachings of Christ for a perverted gospel as taught by men (Gal. 1:6-9). He then went on to ask who they were trying to please – men or God (:10). We ask the same today of those who attract large crowds with their “fun, food, and frolic” instead of relying on the gospel of Christ, which is the power of God to salvation (Rom. 1:16).
The Gospel Advocate Annual Lesson Commentary on Bible School Lessons was used by the church here in Hendersonville in the 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s. These “uniform Bible lessons for the churches of Christ” were used by virtually every congregation where I attended during the time I was in the Navy from 1943-1946. These lessons consisted of seven year series which covered both the Old and New Testaments. The quotes are from the 1945-1951 series and is a lesson on “The Christian and Recreation” for Sunday, September 23, 1951. In the introduction (pp. 225-226) the editor wrote:
The church has an interest in the recreation of young people, but it is the same interest it should have in the welfare of a home, or the success of a business owned and operated by any member of the church. It is not the duty of the church to provide entertainment for young or old. It is not a part of the program of the church to provide playgrounds, programs of entertainment, or supervisors of such programs. The church should have an interest in the type of entertainment provided for the young people just like it should be interested in the type of business carried on by any member of the church. If a man cheats and defrauds in his business, the church should do something about it. If young people engage in recreation of doubtful morals, or things definitely lascivious, the church should do something to correct the situation to bring the young people to walk in right paths. But it definitely is no more the duty of the church to provide recreation for the young people than it is the duty of the church to provide a business for every member of the church to conduct. The church has all it can do to carry on the work the Lord gave it, that is, preaching the gospel to the lost, edifying the saved, and caring for the needy.
Then on p. 229, under topics for discussion, he wrote the following:
1. Be sure to get a clear conception of the duties of the home as contrasted with the duties of the church in the matter of recreation. To confuse the two realms of activity will involve us in absurdities.
2. Mutual sympathy and confidence between parents and children, leaders of the church, and the young people will go a long way toward solving any difficulty which may arise.
3. Building recreation rooms and providing and supervising recreational activities at the expense of the church is a departure from the simple gospel plan as revealed in the New Testament. The church might as well relieve the parents of feeding and disciplining all of the young people at church expense as to take over the job of entertaining and supervising their recreation at church expense.
This was the lesson material being used by the church in Hendersonville at the time it was written. Note his statement: “To confuse the two realms of activity (the home and the church) will involve us in absurdities.”
Confusing these “realms of activity” over the past 40-50 years have involved the church in absurdities, as shown in many newspaper articles through those years. Where is the scriptural authority for the church to be engaged in such? As Paul asked, “Who are we trying to please, God or man?”
