It is common to hear the term “seekers” in today’s evangelicalism. Services are designed for “seekers”, strategies are birthed for reaching “seekers”, and it seems that you have done well if you have pleased and attracted “seekers”.
There are two major problems with this thinking.
1. The Bible doesn’t describe the natural man as a seeker. In fact, what should be startling to some is the Bible straightforwardly states just the opposite.
NAURomans 3:11 THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD
2. The second major problem, in my view, is if the church is to be designed for “seekers” then ”seekers” become the audience we seek to please. The seeker becomes sovereign. When we are done with our surveys (what do you want in a church?), and done with our strategizing, at the end of the day we have to ask who it is we are really seeking to please? The honest answer would have to be “the people we are seeking to attract.”
It only takes a cursory reading of the Bible to know that that is wrong. The church doesn’t exist to please men, the church exists to please God. We don’t aim our services, and especially don’t aim our preaching, at pleasing men, but rather we seek to please the one who seeks and saves the lost.
ESVGalatians 1:10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant1 of Christ.
This leads to my final thought. I really do believe that we should be seeker sensitive. I really believe that we should strive to please the seeker. The problem in our thinking, however, is that we have missed the point as to who the seeker is. There is only ONE real seeker. Every other seeker, if they are truly a seeker, has been set on their search by THIS seeker. Who is the seeker? The seeker is Christ Himself.
Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.
If we wish to focus on what matters most in the church, let us set our focus on pleasing the one who seeks and saves the lost.
By His Grace and For His Glory,
Richard
Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: Bible, christ, Christianity, Church, God, Life, Religion, Truth
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you might also want to take a look in this christian forums.
thanks.