SIGNS OF A SICK CHURCH (2)

0. Introduction

a) Can the church you attend or the religion you adhere to be SICK? How can you tell if they are self-defeating and what can you do about it? There are three primary characteristics of a sick (self-defeating) group. This brief article will discuss each one of these.

1. Taking more than giving

a) The second characteristic of a sick church is that it TAKES more than it GIVES. We have witnessed people who were so pressured by religious leadership to give, give, GIVE that they gave to the point of need. Members may be harangued to 'sacrifice' for a denomination all the while the leadership leads a life of relative luxury. There have also been cases where brethren were encouraged to donate such a significant amount of their time in order to "serve" the church that it jeopardized their marriage, family, finances and even their health.

b) The purpose of a true God-focused church is to ENLARGE and ENRICH the lives of those they are blessed to serve. Jesus made it crystal clear that those who are TRUE leaders in God's eyes are those who serve the needs of others (Luke 22:24-27). One of the purposes of Jesus coming to the earth was to show humans not only how to live, but to do so more abundantly (John 10:10). One must be very wary of sick churches or groups who take far more than they give.