I See Changes Coming

The COVID-19 pandemic seems to be on its downward swing, depending on who you ask. Some states are lifting their stay-at-home orders, while others are continuing to enforce various measures. Debates are being had, with some having more qualified participants than others. Both Chris and I have written about and discussed various issues relating to the pandemic, but one question that we touched on comes back to mind periodically: “What’s next?” After the curve has been sufficiently flattened and we’re past any second or third waves, even when a vaccine becomes available, what’s going to happen next?

I think about various churches and religious groups and how they’ve adapted to the pandemic. I think about how some have simply had their preachers send out a message every week and some have had a song leader sing a few lines, a Scripture reading, and a prayer or two to boot. I think about how one congregation, in their Facebook announcement specifically said to dress up even when worshipping online (though I’m willing to believe the leaders there wouldn’t actually insist on a suit and tie when worshipping together over the internet). I think about the tech issues that preachers have encountered and tried to fix, both their own and those of the people they serve. I think about all of that, and I wonder: what’s going to happen next? Broadly, I think the most important thing can be stated very simply. The rest, I think, flow out of the main one.

People are Going to Realize they Have “Options”

Perhaps the most important change is going to be that people are going to start realize that they have choices, some better than others. For better or worse, more people are starting to notice that plenty of churches put their content out for any and all to see. That’s not a new thing. Many churches, both within Christendom broadly speaking and among the churches of Christ, put their sermons out via podcasting and some even have their worship services streamed every Sunday, singing and all. All of this material (unless I’ve missed some egregious exception) is free to access if you just happen to have a stable internet connection, and honestly that’s a great thing. Being able to look up a sermon or watch a precious worship service, even when one discounts any other utility it has, presents newcomers and the uninitiated an opportunity to get an idea of what a church believes and teaches, and can even give some idea of what to expect should they choose to show up next Sunday, all without having to do anything but use their eyes and ears for about an hour in total.

This ease also has a less than ideal application. When this whole ordeal really kicked off, I saw some express concerns about how suspending services would encourage weaker or newer Christians to not bother with showing up when things got back to normal. The normal response was something like, “Then you need to encourage and educate the weaker and newer Christians you know,” and in and of itself, sure, fair enough. There is, however, a different category of believer that I think is going to be a much bigger problem. Specifically, I think a specific class of nominal Christians will present a unique obstacle.

A “Quick” Definition

For ease of reference and discussion, here’s what I mean when I say “nominal Christian:” Nominal Christians are persons who profess the faith but in key areas are usually quite shallow. That is to say, they call themselves Christians, probably regularly attend worship, have a fluent grasp of Christianese and can usually answer standard Bible trivia with a fair degree of accuracy. However, they also don’t mind letting the mundane get in the way of the spiritual in their lives. Sports, work, vacationing, all of these things can disrupt their participation in worship and fellowship with other Christians as well as the work of the church outside a building.. Briefly stated, a nominal Christian is characterized by convenience and non-invasiveness being the guiding principles of their spiritual lives. The preacher is wonderful, until he takes a position that hits close to home. It’s only worth singing along if I know and like the songs. You get the idea and, if you’re worried about being a nominal Christian, genuine concern about being a nominal Christian is a good sign that either you’re on the way out or that you’ve already left it in the rear view mirror. Nominal Christians present an obstacle not because I suspect they’ll leave churches in droves, but for a few reasons that we can get into.

Convenience is King

People tend to forget this in the era of Spotify and similar services, but once upon a time, iTunes significantly reduced music piracy. A variety of reasons can be presented, but the major one is convenience. Instead of risking your computer’s well being for what you hoped was your favorite band‘s new album, you could easily buy it for a relatively fair price. You could even, if you felt so inclined, just buy that one song you liked, usually. As a result, many people who previously pirated out of convenience started buying again. A 1:1 comparison isn’t apt, but the convenience principle applies. All other things being equal, people tend toward doing what’s easiest to do. For nominal ChristIans and people who find that they really just want the spiritual pick me up of a sermon, going to church will quickly become a question of whether it’s worth the effort or if it’s better to just watch the sermon at their leisure and listen to a few of their favorite songs.

Pick Your Favorite Sauce

The one principle of marketing that I have any confidence in my understanding of is that there’s no perfect tomato sauce, only perfect tomato sauces. Howard Moskowitz was tasked by Prego with developing the “perfect tomato sauce,” and found that, broadly, there were three main preferences: plain, chunky, and spicy (source). Two were obviously mutually exclusive, but instead of finding a way to make one sauce to satisfy three tastes, he proposed three sauces, which ended up being a vastly successful move. My point here is twofold: 1) different people have different preferences and 2) nominal Christians will prioritize their preferences when considering churches. Watching a preacher regularly deliver sermons that are “better” than what they get at church every week will be enough to convince them to move, if the option’s available. Worship that better fits their preferences, or any number of other things, will draw their attention and eventually, their attendance.

So What?

Nominal Christians are a frustrating group for most leaders and teachers. Outright atheists will have the honesty to say, “I’m not buying what you’re selling,” and a strong believer of a particular stripe, even one you find objectionable, can at least say, “Here’s what I’m looking for in a church,” and you, as a leader, or even a member, can tell them, “We love you, but you really won’t like it here.” Nominal Christians, on the other hand are a constantly moving target and why that is isn’t always consistent. Sometimes, they just don’t care enough to express what they want and settle for what’s in front of them. Other times, it can even be because, as Steve Jobs famously said, “customers” don’t know what they want. Whatever the reason may be, responses to the nominal Christian can vary, some being less helpful than others. In part, I think, the “seeker sensitive movement,” wanted to draw the nominal crowd in with the hope of getting them to stop being nominal (though they certainly had/have other goals and hopes, each of which deserved a fair shake). Others may choose to rail against nominal Christians and tell them to find another church to waste time at. I appreciate the gusto, but I think there is a better way.

What Can I Do?

I tend to think I’m not great at practicalities, but even I can think of a few things that anyone can do about nominalism. The first thing is, of course, to refuse to settle for being nominal in your own life. Dive headfirst into the life and practice of the church at your every turn. That starts at the obvious like faithfully gathering with fellow believers every Sunday, but Sunday is less than 15% of the week. Bury yourself in the Word, reading or listening to it regularly and intentionally. Pray as if your life depends on it, for the things that matter to you, and for the things that you recognize need to matter more. Teach your children, especially by example, that your faith matters, and that one of your most pressing desires is to see their faith grow and flourish. Reach out to your friends and neighbors and invite them into your life and to your church. If you root out nominalism in your own life, it’ll be easier for you to spot it elsewhere and deal with it in loving and helpful ways.

For preachers and elders especially, more direct action becomes urgent. Whatever your “style” of preaching is, preach the Word. Pop-psychology and interesting anecdotes have their place but people don’t have to get up on Sunday mornings to hear either. What people need, in part, if they want to be more than nominal in their faith is regular and challenging teaching from the Bible. They need to see people taking time to figure what the Bible actually says about things and then they need to see that actually make a difference in the lives of those around them. They need to see preachers and teachers modeling what following Jesus looks like every Sunday, starting with teaching what Jesus wants his people to be and do.

In Conclusion: Sheep Follow their Shepherd

Some nominal Christians may never be more than nominal. They may never be genuine and deep in their profession of faith. They may duck out once something new and better shows up. That shouldn’t surprise us. Jesus himself saw this happen across his own ministry. He also accounts for it. In John 10, Jesus uses the language of sheep and shepherd to make a somber point: sheep know their shepherd and follow him. Applications abound, but for now, as we close, one will suffice. If Jesus’ argument is consistently applicable, nominal Christians don’t exist. They’re sheep that have mistakenly started chasing Jesus, but will get their attention diverted and eventually follow another shepherd. I don’t say that to scare or shame anyone, but to make a final and hopefully helpful point. The main change that this pandemic will bring about for churches is that it will make a little more apparent the distinction between sheep that genuinely belong to Jesus and sheep that follow the first voice they hear.