The Amazing Message of TV (and other) Preachers

The Amazing Message of TV (and other) Preachers

            As I sat down for my morning coffee the other day I was flipping through the channels on TV.  I came across a local preacher of one of the mega-churches in Nashville.  He was expounding on the unity of the church.  He pointed out that on the day of Pentecost the believers were of one mind and one spirit.  Then he pointed out that St. Paul taught we are to maintain the unity of the faith.  (For some reason he didn’t dwell on the concept of  THE FAITH.)

         I should have expected the next words that came out of his mouth as I have observed when preachers quote Bible verses that don’t exactly say what they want them to say, they then proceed to explain them away and reinterpret them according to their private interpretations.

         So the preacher continued, supposedly expounding on what the Bible says about unity.  “Listen people”, he said, “We don’t’ have to believe everything alike or agree on everything.  We don’t have to be like little robots all saying the same thing.”  (The little robot analogy is a common tactic to belittle the unity of one true faith as taught in the Scriptures.)  Then he said, “But there ARE some things we Have to agree on.”  

         “Really?” I said out loud to myself.  “And who is going to decide what those essentials are?”  But I already knew the answer.  HE was going to decide.  But why does he get to decide and I don’t?  What if he comes up with five essentials we all have to agree on and I come up with six?  How are we going to work that out?  And what if we let the Church of Christ preacher decide?  That list won’t match his.  And what if we can’t all agree on what this preacher decides is essential?  Does that mean we aren’t Christians?  And why aren’t we like little robots if we all have to agree on his essentials?  Why not leave it all open?  After all, there is no Bible verse that says we have to agree on certain essentials and certainly not one that gives us a definitive list. 

         Then I flipped to another preacher (no, I didn’t say I flipped the preacher).  This preacher was on a rant.  At the top of his voice he is screaming, “I'M SICK AND TIRED OF HEARING EVERYBODY GIVE THEIR OPINION ON THIS AND THAT.  I FOLLOW ONLY ONE OPINION (now he is waving the Bible in the air and prancing/strutting across the stage) AND THAT IS WHAT THIS BIBLE SAYS, THIS BLOOD BOUGHT BIBLE!"  But isn’t what he says the Bible says just one more opinion?

         I don’t know, but it just seems to me that if the robots sitting in the average pew on Sunday morning would ever really listen and pay attention to what is being said from the pulpit and really think it through the pews might soon be deserted.