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Do You Like Jesus, But Not the Church?

I always have a stack of books to read on my bookshelf. Right now, it numbers a dozen deep, but just yesterday one book came in from Amazon and I picked it up immediately. It jumped right over the waiting list.

It’s called “They Like Jesus But Not the Church” by Dan Kimball.

The first chapter starts off with a story of when he went to a local gym. He was assigned an instrutor to help show him around. During the course of their conversation she asked him what he did for a living. He’s the pastor of a church. To which she responded, “No ##$&& way you’re a pastor. I don’t believe you.”

It took him several minutes to convince her that he really was a pastor. He wasn’t anything like her impression of what a Christian was…and she felt all pastors were creepy. When asked if she knew any other pastors, she responded she didn’t. Her knowledge was simply from the stories she read, what’s on TV, and street preachers.

All throughout the book are stories of people Dan spoke with about Jesus and the church. The basic principle he found was that people will tell you they like Jesus…but they don’t like the church. The love Jesus shows is attractive, but Christians and the church are seen as negative and judgemental.

The church has become irrelevant in the minds of many 20 and 30 year olds. When I personally visit many churches, you can see the average age of the attendees continually going up. You just don’t see any new younger members who weren’t raised in the church.

What I liked best about Dan’s book is that he doesn’t just cover the problem and the opinions people shared with him. He always shares possible solutions of how to bridge the gap of Christianity and the world today…AND he does it without wimping out on the Bible and the truth.

It’s available on Amazon.com…

You can also find Dan Kimball’s blog posting about this new book over at http://www.dankimball.com/vintage_faith/2007/02/they_like_jesus.html

Written by Terry · Filed Under Faith 

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Comments

9 Responses to “Do You Like Jesus, But Not the Church?”

  1. Steve Blanchard on May 19th, 2008 2:40 pm

    Terry, it’s great to see that you are a Christian. I read through blogs and yours caught my eye. I have been blogging about youth ministry for about a year and a half and have just been learning a little about monetizing it.

    It would be great to do and write about what I love and to make some money with it too. I would appreciate your feedback and what I should do to make it a great site and make some money off of it.

    Thanks.

  2. Iyabo on August 16th, 2008 5:29 pm

    Thanks for the referral for this book. The name says it all. I am a Christian and I am passionate about my faith; however, I find very few Christians that express their faith and live their lives in a way that is attractive.

    The title of the book says it all.

    Thanks

    Iyabo
    http://www.AuthenticChangeAgent.com

  3. Joe Schuler on September 1st, 2008 3:28 pm

    Good words Terry
    John chapter 3, speaks volumes to me. I found it a love story and a marriage proposal. (I accepted)
    Joe

  4. Peter Rubel on March 2nd, 2009 4:47 pm

    One of my aphorisms is “Nothing in life is simple.” Of course it is overly general, but I find it applies in so many circumstances.

    Here, accusation is leveled against the church for failing to represent Christ in a way that more people will find attractive. Few honest persons would dispute that this is true and true often. Yet logically and theologically, more must also be true.

    On the one hand, the church is made up of sinners. Their (our) sin is one thing that drives us to be in and identify with the church. On the other, those outside the church are sinners, which is why they fail to acknowledge that the church is entrusted with the truth about God and salvation, the gospel.

    Of course, this introduces more complexity. Some churches bear the name of Christ, but are not comprised of those who believe the truth about God and salvation. The gospel is not believed. Other churches believe the gospel, but are plagued by scandals of unfaithful members.

    “The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction”–i.e., rather than God’s–(and) my people love to have it so.” This was written (Jeremiah 5:30) more than five centuries before Christ came.

    And in a western culture (that is, those outside the church), the postmodern dogma is common to the effect, “There is no truth but the absolute truth that there is no truth.” By such, offense is taken at the very claim to know truth.

    To add further to the complexity, misinformation is passed as news, so that those removed from the church become naively misinformed about what the church is (or what pastors are like).

    But at root, we humans love darkness rather than light because our deeds are evil, as John wrote. Or as Paul wrote, we suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Sins blinds us to God and to our true nature.

    Only when God breaks through to us in grace do we have eyes to see. He still does so for some, though the truth is not hidden. And most of us will continue to prefer darkness to light.

    Those who see will love others who also see. Hence the church, the believing but erring church.

    Peter Rubel

  5. William Hoeth on June 4th, 2009 2:21 pm

    Terry, just started thinking about doing something online. The holy spirit put this on my heart and I wanted to share this with you.

    Why do you go to church?
    Some go to church because they think their pastor is “anointed by God”; they love to listen to him; he makes them feel good. But when he isn’t preaching they skip church or if they are there and find he’s not speaking, they leave because they don’t think they will get an “anointed” word from the speaker in the pulpit.
    Romans 10:14 (New International Version)
    14How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
    Some go to church because the praise and worship is “anointed” and they love the songs. But sometimes there are too many songs, and they go on much too long and the sound is way too loud.
    Nehemiah 8:6 (New International Version)
    6 Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.
    Some go to church to see their friends and to socialize. And they guise gossip as “Oh, we really need to pray for so and so – did you hear what’s going on with them?” They somehow think it is being “Christian” to comment on what others are doing wrong and how they don’t fit into the mold that “we Christians “ project our church to be.
    Luke 6:37 (New International Version)
    37″Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
    Some go to church to pray but please don’t ask them to go forward for prayer when there is an alter call or to pray for someone else.
    Psalm 54:2 (New International Version)
    2 Hear my prayer, O God;
    listen to the words of my mouth.
    Corinthians 1:11 (New International Version)
    11as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our[a] behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
    Some go to church to be served but always have ample excuses why they cannot serve.
    Malachi 3:18 (New International Version)
    18 And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.
    Some go to church to ask for financial help but don’t practice the biblical principle of giving.
    Malachi 3:8-10 (New International Version)
    Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me.
    “But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’
    “In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.
    So, why do you go to church?
    We need to go to church to worship and praise our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
    Think about that the next time you go to church.

  6. Vern Brown on June 13th, 2009 5:51 pm

    I appreciate the fact that you are a Christian, as am I. I am also an avid follower [newsletter subscriber] of what you’re doing with IBC. I am also an internet marketer [going on 8 years], but can’t seen to get ‘business’ to profit, and after much prayer, I still flounder.
    I’m enrolled in Dr. Glen Livingston’s online classes, to see if that will help get me focused. IF possible, I could use some ‘insight’ as to where to go [invite]…
    P.S. I’m trying to get ‘something’ started for “Christian Marketer Interaction”, any suggestions?

  7. Moses Jones on January 31st, 2011 5:44 pm

    I can say so much about that. There have been a lot of times when I have talked to people about God where out of the blue they would say something like “I tried going to Church, but I just don’t like the hypocrisy.

    It’s funny they would say that becauser Jesus didn’t like the hypocrisy too. I told the religious leaders about this of course they would say something like, “Oh they just don’t want to change.” Or some other thoughtless response.

    In my life and from reading the bible, I have learned that people are more likely to follow examples than follow the commands barked out by someone who doesn’t follow the same commands he or she is barking.

    In other words, “do as I say, not as I do” is dead.

    Notice that Jesus’s message was not “do as I say, not as I do.” In fact it was “do as I do.”

  8. Arthur on April 5th, 2011 9:02 pm

    Terry, just learned about you through a new friend of mine, Larry McIntyre. he spoke highly of you and so I thought i would “check you out.”
    Just a quite note to tell you that its refreshing to have someone share openly about a topic like this.

    bravo!

    Arthur

  9. Susanne on October 25th, 2012 8:43 pm

    Hi terry. I have kep this article for years now. I am finally getting around to this same topic on my blog! May I use your article as a Guest Post if I give you credit as the author and credit to your website!
    Your articles helped me alot when I was first starting out on Websites. I’ve pretty much giving up on the website bus. however. I made about $30.00 for 5 years work! So now I’ve gone to Blogs as a hobby but not to make money.
    Thanks for your years of faithfulness to the ‘Net community! Susanne
    PS Please get back to me on my request! :)

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