WHAT HEALTHY CULTURE ACHIEVES
The other week I saw a YouTube video of a Western tourist in Japan who showed a video of passengers on a Tokyo train. The passengers sat in an orderly fashion and were seated in silence. The tourist wondered if there was a Japanese law requiring the passengers to sit silently on the train. He found out that there was not. The reason the Japanese passengers sat on the train in silence was due to their culture. They didn’t need to be told to sit quietly – they just knew that it was the proper thing to do. This kind of positive culture is something any local church can achieve, if it works on the following two principles.
When I Kim and speak at a church for an extended weekend it is our mission to serve that church community and to help them to be even more effective in their mission to reach their community. This involves sharing on a Friday night with their youth or young adults about relationships; then sharing on a Saturday morning with Kim speaking to the ladies and myself speaking to the men; then a mid-morning leadership seminar with Board members/elders/team leaders; a Saturday night dinner with the pastor/s elder/s; and on Sunday sharing in the morning service/s followed by an open (for anyone attend) Q&A luncheon. In the church leaders’ seminar we look at what makes for a healthy church. It is in this interactive seminar that we discuss the elements of what makes for a positive culture in a church. In essence, from my study, and the feedback we have received from these seminars, I can reduce what is needed are these two factors: firstly, the leader, and secondly, the attitude of the church.
1. THE INDISPENSABLE RÔLE OF THE LEADER
The leader of a local church may be identified as the elder, pastor, senior pastor, senior minister, rector, or even the leader. Their title is not necessarily a critical issue. What is indispensable though is that they lead. It simply can not be overstated just how important their role is. The leader carries the weight of responsibility for the tone of a local church’s culture. It is not only the leader’s preaching which contributes to their culture-setting. It is their example –
- How they treat people, how they deal with interruptions,
- How they speak to their spouse and child/ren,
- How they interact with their staff and/or volunteers,
- How they manage their time,
- How they admit their mistakes,
- How they take correction,
- How they deliver correction,
- How they respond to tragedy,
- How they they open their home to show hospitality,
- How how they use those who are better than them,
- What they laugh at – or – what they get angry at, and,
- How they strive to improve their strengths and weaknesses.
2. THE ATTITUDE OF THE CHURCH
While the leader is ultimately responsible for teaching sound doctrine and to exposit the Scriptures, as critically essential as this, it is not enough to ensure a positive and healthy church culture. It must be supplemented with a demonstrated explication of sound doctrine and the Scriptures. That is, a preacher can be a brilliantly powerful preacher who is an amazing teacher of God’s Word – but this is almost irrelevant if this preaching and teaching is not reflected in their godly attitude. When a leader consistently models a godly attitude it has an incalculably positive effect on their church’s attitude. Therefore, the senior leader must preach, teach, and model the biblical description of a godly attitude. This description is found in Colossians 3:12-17.
(12) ¶ Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,
(13) bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
(14) And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
(15) And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
(16) Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
(17) And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
COLOSSIANS 3:12-17
If I was to list these attitude qualities, and then ask you, “How would you feel if your church was described by others as:
+ Compassionate
+ Kind
+ Humble
+ Meek
+ Patient
+ Forebearing
+ Forgiving
+ Loving
+ Harmonious
+ Peaceful
+ Thankful
+ Biblically literate
+ Wise
+ Prayerful and Pious (worshipful)
+ Sincere and holy?
Conclusion: The Gospel informs us that a culture can change. People can change. But what is needed are champions of cultural change who embrace the Church’s God ordained charge to be counter-cultural. When there is a champion of change – and better still – a champion team of change – building a healthy culture within a church is absolutely possible. And as this culture continue to be pursued I suspect that there will be many people who will be attracted to this church’s Christ-fragrance. Please pray that it does!
Amen.
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