WEBVTT 00:00:00.840 --> 00:00:03.259 There are certain church arguments you can start 00:00:03.259 --> 00:00:06.040 in under four seconds by naming a piece of equipment. 00:00:06.719 --> 00:00:09.500 Try it sometime. Walk into a church business 00:00:09.500 --> 00:00:13.500 meeting and casually say, stage lights, or in 00:00:13.500 --> 00:00:17.079 -air monitors, or LED wall. Or if you really 00:00:17.079 --> 00:00:19.960 want to make things uncomfortably tense, just 00:00:19.960 --> 00:00:23.640 go ahead, say fog machine. Immediately, everybody 00:00:23.640 --> 00:00:26.839 knows they're assigned foxholes. One person crosses 00:00:26.839 --> 00:00:29.920 their arms and mutters, That is pure entertainment. 00:00:30.260 --> 00:00:33.719 We've sold out to Hollywood. Another snaps back, 00:00:33.939 --> 00:00:36.219 We're just pursuing excellence for the king. 00:00:36.979 --> 00:00:40.719 And somewhere, in about row 8, a guy is sitting 00:00:40.719 --> 00:00:43.159 there quietly, mourning the loss of flannel graph 00:00:43.159 --> 00:00:47.020 and overhead projectors. Here's the issue. You 00:00:47.020 --> 00:00:49.380 can turn on a fog machine and genuinely worship 00:00:49.380 --> 00:00:52.750 Jesus. You can also stand under two flickering 00:00:52.750 --> 00:00:55.210 fluorescent lights accompanied by an upright 00:00:55.210 --> 00:00:58.549 piano that has not been tuned since the first 00:00:58.549 --> 00:01:01.289 Bush administration and still turn the whole 00:01:01.289 --> 00:01:05.109 thing into a performance. You can have a multi 00:01:05.109 --> 00:01:07.730 -million dollar sound rig and be deeply faithful. 00:01:08.269 --> 00:01:10.810 You can have one guy with an acoustic guitar 00:01:10.810 --> 00:01:13.890 and a wooden stool and make the entire Sunday 00:01:13.890 --> 00:01:16.129 morning gathering revolve around a personality. 00:01:16.709 --> 00:01:19.829 The gear can't answer the theological question. 00:01:20.510 --> 00:01:23.890 Because the gear doesn't have a heart. The real 00:01:23.890 --> 00:01:26.549 question is simple, but it cuts pretty clean. 00:01:27.310 --> 00:01:30.409 What is all of this serving? Welcome to an extra 00:01:30.409 --> 00:01:32.469 shot of Grace on the Grind, where we take one 00:01:32.469 --> 00:01:34.890 of the core threads from the main episode, pour 00:01:34.890 --> 00:01:37.469 it a little stronger, and let it sit enough to 00:01:37.469 --> 00:01:39.730 actually digest it. So grab your coffee, and 00:01:39.730 --> 00:01:43.829 let's talk. In our main conversation, we established 00:01:43.829 --> 00:01:46.719 a foundational truth. When the church gathers, 00:01:46.799 --> 00:01:50.019 the room is not divided into performers and an 00:01:50.019 --> 00:01:53.700 audience. The gathering is a body, which naturally 00:01:53.700 --> 00:01:56.540 brings us to the objection. If Sunday morning 00:01:56.540 --> 00:02:00.019 isn't a show, does that mean we should stop caring 00:02:00.019 --> 00:02:02.939 about doing things well? Should we just embrace 00:02:02.939 --> 00:02:07.760 chaos and call it spiritual? No. Please no. Please 00:02:07.760 --> 00:02:10.680 study for the sermon. Please rehearse the chord 00:02:10.680 --> 00:02:13.060 transitions. Please figure out how the mixing 00:02:13.060 --> 00:02:16.979 board works before 8 a .m. on Sunday. No saint 00:02:16.979 --> 00:02:20.379 in history has ever been drawn into deep awe 00:02:20.379 --> 00:02:24.060 of God's holiness because the lead mic suddenly 00:02:24.060 --> 00:02:26.960 screamed with deafening feedback during the pastoral 00:02:26.960 --> 00:02:30.340 prayer. That's not the Holy Spirit moving. That's 00:02:30.340 --> 00:02:33.259 a feedback loop. Preparation is stewardship. 00:02:33.719 --> 00:02:38.259 Skill is a gift. Order is God honoring. But here 00:02:38.259 --> 00:02:41.949 is the distinction we keep missing. Excellence 00:02:41.949 --> 00:02:45.370 is an adjective. It's not the primary biblical 00:02:45.370 --> 00:02:49.729 goal of the gathering. Faithfulness is. And when 00:02:49.729 --> 00:02:52.069 Paul writes to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 00:02:52.069 --> 00:02:56.830 14, he gives us an even sharper metric. Edification. 00:02:57.710 --> 00:03:02.810 In 1 Corinthians 14 .26, Paul lays down a rule 00:03:02.810 --> 00:03:05.590 that ought to be carved into every soundboard 00:03:05.590 --> 00:03:08.870 and pulpit in the world. When you come together, 00:03:09.469 --> 00:03:12.870 Each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, 00:03:13.189 --> 00:03:16.930 a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things 00:03:16.930 --> 00:03:20.530 be done for building up. That phrase, building 00:03:20.530 --> 00:03:25.590 up, translates the Greek word oikodomo. It comes 00:03:25.590 --> 00:03:28.650 from construction language. The idea of building, 00:03:28.830 --> 00:03:32.889 strengthening, or building something up. Paul 00:03:32.889 --> 00:03:35.389 looks at what is happening when the church gathers 00:03:35.389 --> 00:03:39.789 and gives them a governing standard. Is this 00:03:39.789 --> 00:03:43.009 building up the people of God? That is a much 00:03:43.009 --> 00:03:46.210 better test than, was it excellent? Because you 00:03:46.210 --> 00:03:49.330 can execute the wrong thing with flawless precision. 00:03:50.669 --> 00:03:54.189 You can produce an exhilarating 70 -minute experience 00:03:54.189 --> 00:03:57.270 that dazzles the senses while leaving people 00:03:57.270 --> 00:03:59.990 spiritually fragile and completely unprepared 00:03:59.990 --> 00:04:03.849 for Tuesday afternoon. So the diagnostic isn't 00:04:03.849 --> 00:04:08.689 just, did we execute well? It is... Did our execution 00:04:08.689 --> 00:04:12.849 serve edification? A good microphone can serve 00:04:12.849 --> 00:04:16.149 edification because people can hear. A well -prepared 00:04:16.149 --> 00:04:18.730 sermon can serve edification because scripture 00:04:18.730 --> 00:04:22.129 is handled clearly. A disciplined worship team 00:04:22.129 --> 00:04:24.649 can serve edification because their preparation 00:04:24.649 --> 00:04:28.069 removes unnecessary friction so the congregation 00:04:28.069 --> 00:04:31.529 can sing. Organization helps. Clarity helps. 00:04:31.589 --> 00:04:34.850 Technology can help. But the tool must remain 00:04:34.850 --> 00:04:39.050 a servant. Excellence is useful when it builds 00:04:39.050 --> 00:04:42.370 up the church. It becomes dangerous when building 00:04:42.370 --> 00:04:45.269 the experience becomes more important than building 00:04:45.269 --> 00:04:49.310 the people. And that line usually gets crossed 00:04:49.310 --> 00:04:52.689 quietly. Nobody stands up in an elders meeting 00:04:52.689 --> 00:04:55.470 and says, Hey guys, let's stop making disciples 00:04:55.470 --> 00:04:58.910 and start running a theater. It happens incrementally. 00:04:59.430 --> 00:05:02.990 First, we want to do things well. Then, we want 00:05:02.990 --> 00:05:05.350 them to be impressive. Then, without realizing 00:05:05.350 --> 00:05:08.540 it. The scorecard starts changing. Instead of 00:05:08.540 --> 00:05:11.779 asking, did this help the body behold Christ? 00:05:12.199 --> 00:05:16.579 We ask, did that feel powerful? Instead of, did 00:05:16.579 --> 00:05:19.959 the congregation understand the passage? We ask, 00:05:20.139 --> 00:05:23.480 was the speaker dynamic? Instead of, did the 00:05:23.480 --> 00:05:27.300 church sing? We ask, did the band sound like 00:05:27.300 --> 00:05:31.339 the album? Those second questions are not necessarily 00:05:31.339 --> 00:05:36.629 evil, but they are different questions. And if 00:05:36.629 --> 00:05:40.370 we aren't careful, we can become very good at 00:05:40.370 --> 00:05:43.110 producing an experience while slowly training 00:05:43.110 --> 00:05:46.730 the congregation to watch. This gets difficult 00:05:46.730 --> 00:05:49.810 because genuine worship does engage the emotions. 00:05:50.230 --> 00:05:54.209 Of course it does. We are proclaiming that sin 00:05:54.209 --> 00:05:57.069 has been forgiven, death has been defeated, Christ 00:05:57.069 --> 00:06:01.250 is risen, grace is free, and eternity is secure. 00:06:01.730 --> 00:06:05.519 That ought to move us. But emotion is not proof 00:06:05.519 --> 00:06:09.100 that biblical worship has occurred. Music affects 00:06:09.100 --> 00:06:13.699 emotion. Lighting affects the mood. Silence affects 00:06:13.699 --> 00:06:16.759 us. A skilled communicator can build tension 00:06:16.759 --> 00:06:20.600 and release it. None of that is automatically 00:06:20.600 --> 00:06:23.660 manipulation. But there is a difference between 00:06:23.660 --> 00:06:26.139 helping people respond appropriately to truth 00:06:26.139 --> 00:06:29.160 and manufacturing a feeling so people assume 00:06:29.160 --> 00:06:33.319 something spiritual happened. Goosebumps. are 00:06:33.319 --> 00:06:37.199 not listed among the fruit of the Spirit. Tears 00:06:37.199 --> 00:06:40.120 are not an infallible proof that God was present. 00:06:40.819 --> 00:06:44.240 An absence of tears is not proof that he was 00:06:44.240 --> 00:06:47.920 distant. Sometimes the deepest work God does 00:06:47.920 --> 00:06:50.660 in a gathering looks unimpressive from the outside. 00:06:51.800 --> 00:06:55.839 A conviction someone carries home. A grudge surrendered. 00:06:56.300 --> 00:07:00.360 A weary believer deciding to keep going. That 00:07:00.360 --> 00:07:04.639 may not... make a great recap video. But it looks 00:07:04.639 --> 00:07:11.579 a lot like Oikidomo. The congregation is not 00:07:11.579 --> 00:07:15.360 the audience. Look at how this applies to music. 00:07:15.879 --> 00:07:20.759 In Colossians 3 .16, Paul says, Believers are 00:07:20.759 --> 00:07:23.680 to teach and admonish one another through psalms, 00:07:23.680 --> 00:07:27.699 hymns, and spiritual songs. That means congregational 00:07:27.699 --> 00:07:30.800 singing is not a professional concert with background 00:07:30.800 --> 00:07:34.259 vocalists in the pews. The congregation is part 00:07:34.259 --> 00:07:37.300 of the worship. Which means the guy three rows 00:07:37.300 --> 00:07:39.839 ahead of you singing at full volume with absolute 00:07:39.839 --> 00:07:42.759 conviction in a key that has not yet been discovered 00:07:42.759 --> 00:07:45.779 by modern music theory is not ruining the worship. 00:07:46.459 --> 00:07:51.199 God bless him. He is engaging in the work. Musical 00:07:51.199 --> 00:07:54.220 excellence should help the people sing. Clear 00:07:54.220 --> 00:07:58.620 keys help. Thoughtful arrangements help. A balanced 00:07:58.620 --> 00:08:02.660 mix helps. But the music becomes so loud, complicated, 00:08:02.860 --> 00:08:05.139 or performance -centered that the congregation 00:08:05.139 --> 00:08:08.720 mostly stands and watches? We should at least 00:08:08.720 --> 00:08:11.120 ask whether the tool is still serving the purpose. 00:08:11.980 --> 00:08:15.720 This is not organ vs. electric guitar. It's not 00:08:15.720 --> 00:08:19.100 ancient hymn vs. modern chorus. The style is 00:08:19.100 --> 00:08:25.970 not the test. Is the body being built up? Let's 00:08:25.970 --> 00:08:28.230 make sure we don't swing into the opposite ditch. 00:08:28.629 --> 00:08:31.389 Because someone hears all of this and thinks, 00:08:31.509 --> 00:08:34.970 Amen! That's why our worship team doesn't practice. 00:08:35.210 --> 00:08:40.769 No! Lack of preparation is not evidence of reliance 00:08:40.769 --> 00:08:43.850 on the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it's simply poor 00:08:43.850 --> 00:08:48.649 preparation. Love prepares. If you teach, please 00:08:48.649 --> 00:08:53.570 study. If you lead music, learn the songs. If 00:08:53.570 --> 00:08:56.129 you run the soundboard, Learn the soundboard. 00:08:56.649 --> 00:09:01.029 If people depend on you to serve them, care enough 00:09:01.029 --> 00:09:06.470 to do it well. The choice before us is not slick 00:09:06.470 --> 00:09:09.889 production or unrehearsed incompetence. There 00:09:09.889 --> 00:09:14.350 is another category. Faithful, humble stewardship. 00:09:15.230 --> 00:09:19.309 Do the work well, but remember why you're doing 00:09:19.309 --> 00:09:24.409 it well. So here is the filter. for pastors, 00:09:24.529 --> 00:09:27.230 worship leaders, tech crews, and everybody sitting 00:09:27.230 --> 00:09:32.830 in the room. What is this serving? Not, is this 00:09:32.830 --> 00:09:35.210 cutting edge? Is it traditional? Is it polished? 00:09:35.450 --> 00:09:39.490 Is it my style? Is it stripped down? Ask instead, 00:09:39.769 --> 00:09:43.649 does this help the word become clearer? Does 00:09:43.649 --> 00:09:46.789 it help God's people worship? Does it help the 00:09:46.789 --> 00:09:49.750 congregation participate? Does it strengthen 00:09:49.750 --> 00:09:53.700 the weak and instruct the confused? Does it point 00:09:53.700 --> 00:09:56.500 the attention towards Christ? If the answer is 00:09:56.500 --> 00:10:01.259 yes, use the tool. Use it with joy. Thank God 00:10:01.259 --> 00:10:04.779 for the skill and the technology. But if the 00:10:04.779 --> 00:10:07.600 tool starts demanding more attention than the 00:10:07.600 --> 00:10:11.980 Savior it was meant to serve, have the courage 00:10:11.980 --> 00:10:15.259 to change it, even if you're really good at it. 00:10:17.399 --> 00:10:20.500 The antidote to a performance mindset is not 00:10:20.500 --> 00:10:23.929 low standards. The antidote is faithfulness. 00:10:24.190 --> 00:10:28.149 Prepare carefully. Serve skillfully. Remove unnecessary 00:10:28.149 --> 00:10:33.470 friction. Use technology when it clarifies. Use 00:10:33.470 --> 00:10:39.350 simplicity when it serves that better. Keep every 00:10:39.350 --> 00:10:42.289 piece of gear, every talent, and every structure 00:10:42.289 --> 00:10:45.789 in its proper place as a servant of the gospel. 00:10:45.990 --> 00:10:48.889 Because human excellence is not the hero of the 00:10:48.889 --> 00:10:52.500 story. Building up the body of Christ is the 00:10:52.500 --> 00:10:56.299 mandate. If our skill helps people see Jesus 00:10:56.299 --> 00:11:00.779 more clearly, good. Use every bit of it. But 00:11:00.779 --> 00:11:02.659 if the production becomes the main attraction, 00:11:02.960 --> 00:11:06.500 if the platform becomes a pedestal, if the congregation 00:11:06.500 --> 00:11:10.299 becomes a passive audience, then something meant 00:11:10.299 --> 00:11:13.539 to serve worship has begun competing with it. 00:11:15.159 --> 00:11:18.659 Do the work with all your heart, and then get 00:11:18.659 --> 00:11:21.350 out of the way. Because the church does not belong 00:11:21.350 --> 00:11:24.129 to the person with the microphone. It does not 00:11:24.129 --> 00:11:26.870 belong to the band. It does not belong to the 00:11:26.870 --> 00:11:30.090 production crew. It belongs to Jesus. And when 00:11:30.090 --> 00:11:33.830 his people gather, let all things be done for 00:11:33.830 --> 00:11:37.769 building up. Thanks for pulling up a chair for 00:11:37.769 --> 00:11:40.649 this extra shot of Grace in the Grind. If this 00:11:40.649 --> 00:11:43.230 gave you something to wrestle with, Pass it along 00:11:43.230 --> 00:11:45.629 to a friend, pastor, or worship leader, preferably 00:11:45.629 --> 00:11:49.090 somebody you can have the conversation with without 00:11:49.090 --> 00:11:53.110 starting a liturgical war. And be sure to come 00:11:53.110 --> 00:11:55.730 back for the next full episode. Until next time, 00:11:55.789 --> 00:11:57.830 keep your coffee strong and your faith stronger.