In his book, “Real-life Discipleship,” author Jim Putnam tells about his high school wrestling coach. His name was John Owen. When it came to coaching wrestling, Coach Owen was a multiple-time coach of the year whose program had produced several multiple-time state champions. According to Putnam, the secret to Coach Owen’s success was that at the beginning of each new wrestling season, even though he had returning state champions, he always began at the beginning and required every wrestler, even the returning state champions, to begin at the beginning, and once again master the fundamentals of wrestling.
I heard a story about the legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers football team, Vince Lombardi, who did something very similar as Coach Owen. According to the story, the Packers were a losing team when Lombardi became their coach. His mission was to change that. Supposedly, he held a team meeting and told the members of the team that if they didn’t want to play winning football that there was a train that left town every evening and he suggested they be on it. Then he looked at the team and told them the only way they could ever be a winning team was to master the fundamentals of football. Then, holding a football up before them, he said, “Gentlemen, this is a football.” He began at the beginning!
I am afraid that in the church world today, we have sacrificed “the fundamentals of our faith” on the altar of experiencing a “worship service.” The pendulum of doing church, as we understand and flesh it out, has swung to the far extreme and has made the worship service the most important aspect of church. This transcends all styles of worship. It is just as prevalent in churches that use the old Red Back Church Hymnal as it is in churches that have the words on the wall and use lights and smoke in their worship service. Now hear me, I’m certainly not against a good worship service. What I am against is – a worship service ONLY! The thesis of this column today is – when the Sunday morning worship service, or, if you will, the Sunday morning show, is the driving, all-important factor in a church, then “the fundamentals of the faith” are sacrificed upon the altar of worship. And I do not believe God is pleased with this!
In Deuteronomy 6:6-9(KJV), Moses commanded the Children of Israel saying, “And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” Moses realized that the “fundamentals of the faith” were the most important thing the Children of Israel could learn. He made teaching the doctrine of their faith the most important job a parent had and learning and living that doctrine the most important thing anybody could do.
It is time that we as Christians and as churches get back to the fundamentals of our faith. It’s time somebody rises up in our churches and says, “Ladies and gentlemen, this is a Bible!” And we once again begin at the beginning. Consequently, for the next several weeks it shall be my intention to take what I’ve written today as a theme for these columns – getting back to the fundamentals of our faith. Stay tuned!
Brother Aaron
To schedule Brother Aaron to preach a Sunday service at your church, a revival meeting, or a special event, you may contact him at: 1-800-511-9536, 706-302.9162, or e-mail: freshfire@mindspring.com
