Ecclesiastical Equipment

Depending on their economic circumstances, every church, whether it's as rich as Croesus or one that struggles monthly to meet its budget, has a piece of equipment that is it’s to use for as long as God allows.

There are churches with magnificent buildings and state of the art sound systems.  There are churches with stained glass windows that would be the envy of Europe's grand cathedrals.  Some have graceful spires that point heavenward, while on the inside huge screens show the image of the preacher to the assembled who are too far away to get an up close and personal view.   Pianos, even orchestras, and a host of other instruments blend together to please ears itching for good music each Sunday.

Yet, other churches struggle to meet their monthly budgets; their equipment isn't elaborate.  Instead of power point and rear projection screens, they use blackboards and chalk in poorly lit, inadequately heated Sunday school rooms.  Sunday's assembled sit in unyielding flinty folding chairs, they're not able to nestle their bodies into plush theater seating.  Their hymnals look like beat up McGuffey Readers, no immaculate white-robed choirs sing the Doxology.  Their sound system is state of the art for the 1930's, but no microphone is there to pick up and project the rich tones of the human voice.

No matter.  Each church, rich or not so rich, all have one God-given piece of equipment for every meeting's use.  All the same and all equal.  In this case, some are not more equal than others.  And it's how we each use that equipment that makes all the difference in the world.

God gives every church a spotlight and every church is accountable to the living Christ as to where they shine it.  It's the one piece of ecclesiastical equipment whose misuse carries great penalties, while its proper use brings wonderful eternal repercussions.  Throughout history, Christ has blown many churches away because they failed to use the spotlight as He intends (Rev. 2-3).

We use the spotlight to show Christ to the assembled.  We shine it on Him.  Paul said, "We preach Christ and Him crucified."  Paul wrote, "Woe be to me if I don't preach the gospel," and, "I determined to know nothing else other than Christ and Him crucified."

It's tempting to shine the spotlight on current events.  Somehow it makes our preachments relevant and in tune with the pulse of the times, and therefore, somehow more important.  But to take the spotlight off Christ and put it on the latest Supreme Court nominee, the newest political pretty boy on the presidential horizon or the red-hot-borrowed-from-the-world-and-baptized-into-Christianity psychology is to trade an eternal banquet for Raman Noodles.

The Bible is Christocentric.  The Old Testament is the detailed account of how God moved in history to prepare for His Son's coming into the world.  The New Testament is the record of that coming (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), the explanation of that coming and its application to us (the epistles), and the prediction of His coming back (Revelation).

Every elder, deacon, pastor, Sunday school teacher, and youth worker should shine the spotlight in the direction God intended it-on Christ and Him crucified.  Every congregation should demand it.  Why?  Certainly because God said so (Matthew 17:5).  And because the living Christ is still blowing out lamps.

Dr. Mike Halsey, Pastor