(See related sermon here.)

We are emotional creatures. This is how God made us. Though our emotional center (i.e., the human heart) has be tainted by sin, the fact that we experience emotional responses to our circumstances is not a bad thing. While it is impossible for our discernment and decision making to not be influenced by our feelings, humanity has long recognized the danger of allowing emotions to dominate us (Eph 4:11-16). “Emotionalism” is when you allow your feelings to overly govern your beliefs and decisions.

Many have observed that emotionalism is on the rise in our society, including in our churches. Just consider how emotionalism has fueled liberal theology for centuries, where people pick and choose which portions of God’s Word they accept as written, prioritizing what feels good over what God has clearly decreed is good. A more subtle form of emotionalism is when older churches are unwilling to strategically examine their practices in light of God’s Word and their current missional context.

As we further consider the implications of Sunday’s message from 1 Cor 8:1–11:1, and as we examine the landscape of both thriving and dying churches in our day, we realize that hinderances to effectiveness in ministry are not limited to the stumbling blocks that we needlessly erect between ourselves and unbelievers, but also those that we erect between ourselves and other believers.

Fort Worth was the fastest growing large city in the US between 2010 and 2020, and that growth continues. This means that large numbers of Christians are continuing to move into our area and to search for a church home. This makes it all the more important for established churches like RHCC to give thought to whether or not there is anything that is preventing other biblically-sound believers from joining us in gospel partnership.

Please pray for the Lord to reveal any needless obstacles we have erected. Pray that we will increasingly set aside personal preferences for the sake of the mission to which we have been called, and pray for a spirit of “strategy over sentimentality” to take hold of our hearts.

Blessings in Christ,

Pastor Evan