I’m a word guy. I once served as a substitute teacher in juvenile lockup to a group of young ladies. During our hour together I taught them the meaning of the word “salubrious.” Later in the day, as the same group walked in silent single file led by a guard, one of them whispered the new word loud enough for me to hear. We exchanged smiles. Words are powerful.
One thing I know about words is we must carefully define them. When long standing definitions of words begin to change, everything starts to change. The older I get the more I realize the ramification of changing the meaning of words.
If you can change the definition of a word you can change the direction of a debate. And if you can change the direction of the debate you can win the debate.
If you’ve been wondering why the Church is losing ground and attendance is shrinking it is because the Church is being systematically destroyed by the subtle change in the meaning of key words.
Those who are angry against the church and want to disarm it can succeed by redefining key words. And when you change word meanings you can change the theology of an entire denomination.
Here’s a prime example. I dare you to use this phrase on Facebook: “but that’s a sin.” If you have any friends outside of your little church circle be prepared for your Facebook page to light up. Brace yourself. Why? Because the meaning of the word “sin” has undergone a redefinition. In our culture today it means “I’m-better-than-you-and-you-are-going-to-hell-and-I’m-not.” How dare you use the word sin?
Do you see the problem? When we cannot talk about sin it’s difficult to talk about the need for a Savior. And if the church cannot talk about the need for a Savior we may as well close the doors. We are out of business. And that’s what’s happening. Our culture has taught us we cannot say people are lost in their sin. And so we’ve backed down. We’ve lost our nerve. We’ve lost our voice. We are losing our way.
Sin is real. There, I said it. And sin, in my definition, is anything which displeases God. For the sake of clarity, when I talk about sin please be assured I am NOT just:
- pointing a finger at the gay population.
- pointing a finger at the alcoholic.
- pointing a finger at the drug addict.
- pointing a finger at the prostitute.
- pointing a finger at any political party.
- pointing a finger at other denominations.
- pointing a finger at my brother or sister or neighbor.
When I talk about sin I am pointing a finger first and foremost at MYSELF. I have judged myself and found myself falling short of what God wants. I am a sinner. And that means I need a Savior.
The challenge for the Church is to reach a culture which has redefined key words. We must find a way to help them understand there is a God who loves them.
So how does the Church reach out to people in our culture with the eroded definition of key words?
If you are part of a church what do think?
If you are not part of a church what can I do to reach out to you? Please. Tell me.
Please leave a comment below OR go to the discussion on my Facebook page by clicking HERE.
You are very correct Randy, most ppl are aware of the part of the verse “do not judge” but do not know because they do not read to the END, Matthew 7 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, AND THEN YOU WILL SEE CLEARLY to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
But I do have ONE criticism…you used the word ‘business’ with church and you are correct, most often the church has become a business, but THE CHURCH is not the building or the business but it does have a mission and most churches and most ppl who might attend see the church as a business to make money or a club to pay dues to. The majority of churches are apostate and do not know what it’s mission is.
Thanks for adding to the conversation.
The changing of the meaning of words is going on in every industry, especially the church. I remember when the word gay meant happy and elated, not sexual immorality. The loss of the simplicity in our lives is gone and everything has double meanings. We recently had a new computer system installed where I work. The activities of my job did not change, only the words that describe what I do. It makes no sense. We are blessed that our God never changes; He is the same yesterday, today and forever! Thanks, Randy!
Brilliant observation, Randy! I too am a word guy. I really try to analyze too much, actually! How about these: “We’ve “been together” for 5 years. Translation: We’ve been living together for 5 years as a husband and wife without being married. (Fornication) / He had an “affair” (adultery) / “sexting” (lust). I agree, the word accusing someone of a “sin” is definitely not the way to win friends and influence people!
Your observation that, in today’s culture, redefinition of words is clearly happening. But, I disagree with the characterization that this happening is “systematically destroying the church”. According to the scriptures, the church, as the body of Christ, will never be destroyed, not even by Hell itself.
There must be a more careful characterization of, and warning about, the impact of definitional shifts in the meaning of words. At the very least it should be a warning to pastors and Sunday School teachers to be mindful when choosing words while preaching and teaching, so the thoughts they are conveying are precisely understood.
Lastly, to attribute definitional shifts of words as the sole reason for diminishing church attendance is a bit overboard. Could there be other reasons? Since when is the number of people attending church an indication of its health?
Hi Larry. Thanks for your thoughtful contribution. I agree there are other reasons. There is more to the decline than redefining words. But I think it does play a role.