The Latest New Thing?

Chasing

Modern day Pentecostals and charismatics have developed a rather alarming trait. The real problem with this trait is that it is NOT OK even though it is quite Biblical. 2 Timothy 4:3 says “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.” If current trends in Pentecostal and charismatic circles are anything to go by, then we are in the middle of a burgeoning trend today.

There is, and has for some time, been a trend towards what can only be called “the latest thing”. This is when normally good sound Christians continually chase the latest thrill, the latest speaker, the latest gimmick, or the latest anything. It is a fad which I can only really describe as being akin to rock and roll groupies of the 60’s and 70’s. They chase or follow the latest “in” speaker or Christian TV ‘star’ almost anywhere. Yet they do nothing with their experiences except hoard them. Rather like trophies, they parade the tickets, fliers, and programs as their prizes just to show that they have not only kept up with the Joneses, but they have been one step ahead of them.

It is behaviour that is verging on the pathetic. It is an insult to our Lord that they chase the manifestation rather than the cause – the gifts rather than the giver.

I must be a hard man to impress. I view these meetings as ‘just another meeting’. Am I being judgemental or harsh or arrogant or what? To me, the whole point of these meetings, many of them actually quite wonderful, is to convince the sceptic, to demonstrate the power of the Holy Spirit to unbelievers, to encourage the ‘believing’ doubters. Yet if you asked any audience, more than three quarters of them will have been three or more times, will have never taken a guest – never even considered doing so – and never done anything with that which they may have learned. They will simply have hoarded it all and kept it to themselves. Like illicit contraband, whatever they got from such meetings is hidden away only to be brought out for gloating over in secret or when boasting to lesser folk who couldn’t get there.

What a waste of time, effort, and money. These meetings are not cheap, they are usually quite a distance away, and they are difficult to get into – usually because big churches take bus loads of people on a jamboree outing for the saved, instead of inviting and paying for busloads of unsaved people to come and enjoy the evening out.

Am I alone in this? I don’t need to pay a weeks wages in order to go see and hear someone I can easily see on TV; to see ‘miracles’ that our church sees regularly; or to hear a really good evangelist or preacher bring a message I have heard before. I don’t need to hear an ear-tickler bring a watered down gospel message with no word of repentance or of turning away or of stopping your sin. Now and again we all need to return to basics and hear a really good Gospel presentation by a truly anointed evangelist.

I am sorry to say I am singularly unimpressed by talk of having seen the latest trendy speaker or the latest new TV star. I have actually met a few and most are very normal ordinary folk but with a special gift of communication. Most would be saddened by the number who come just to hear them but do nothing with whatever they hear. Most would be saddened beyond measure to know that in most of their meetings they are actually preaching to the choir. Yet all would be happy to see even one genuine new salvation commitment each meeting rather than the hundreds of ‘recommitments-just-for-the-buzz’ that I suspect they get.

No, I don’t think I am being cynical – just real. The days of trendy speaker following and ear-tickling preaching are upon us, just as Paul prophesied to Timothy 2000 years ago.