Is It OK To Draw Kids To Church With Entertainment?

Now, Contending for the Faith.In this regular feature, Dave and Tom respond to questions from listeners and readers of The Berean Call.Here’s this week’s question:Dear Dave and TA:I know you guys are more about apologetic than you are about evangelizing, but I was wondering if you could share some of your wisdom about the various methods being used by Christians today in attempting to reach the lost.I’m particularly concerned about how the church seems to be using the world’s methods, particularly entertainment.Is entertainment a worth while vehicle for introducing the gospel?

Tom:

Dave, I remember reading about street meetings and so on, where they would have, maybe play some hymns, or they would have music there, and that would draw a crowd, and then they would preach. But that’s taken a big turn today.For example, just because some people are standing on a corner singing some hymns, and if they were hymns and people were attracted to their music, they were at least attracted to something that was consistent with regard to what they were going to hear.But today, the use of entertainment, not in every case, but in most cases, it almost a bait and switch.You bring people, draw a crowd through things that attract their flesh, and then you give them the gospel, or try to, or preach to them.I mean, isn’t that dishonest?

Dave:

Tom, I remember when I was in the business world, and we lived in a very large house, not by choice but the Lord made us live there, forced us to—

Tom:

You had better explain that!

Dave:

Yeah, He just caused us to live there, made it so clear that we couldn’t back out.He made it so clear that He wanted us to be there.

Tom:

All right.

Dave:

We had more meetings in that house than most churches have, and I won’t name all the meetings we had, you know, every week.But there were other groups that wanted to use parts of the house sometimes.One of those groups—Well now, I had better be careful—I believe it was Youth for Christ.It could have been Young Life, I don’t remember which, but I am not condemning these because of what went on in our house.But I can tell you, it was a high school group, and it was nothing but hilarity.It was just fun and frolic and games, and pretty loud.Well, a great group to come to, look at all the fun you can have!I think, in the last couple of minutes they sneaked in a little bit about Jesus.Now, I would say that would be an example.If Jesus is worth believing in, if He really died for our sins, and He’s my Savior, shouldn’t He get a little more time than just a little commercial at the end?And how are you going to really explain who Jesus is, and how are you going to bring people really to love and know Him?Now, Jesus—the point I’m trying to make is, instead of entertainment attracting people, Jesus ought to be the main attraction, He ought to be the main event!Now if you want to have somebody sing a solo, or whatever, a little music or something, but to get people to come by entertainment!And then, are you going to talk about Jesus in an entertaining way?Is Jesus going to be the ultimate entertainer?It’s kind of a let down.We’ve been having a lot of fun, and now they are talking about this Jesus.Now Tom, I think it’s going about it in the wrong way, it certainly is not a biblical way.This is not the way Paul did it and he turned the world upside down!

Tom:

Well Dave, today, if you want to attract a crowd, I mean, there are a lot of things that you can do, and most of them will be in he realm of entertainment.But one thing that—was in the entertainment business, being part of films for almost 20 years of my life, so I know how that—

Dave:

Before you became a believer?

Tom:

Actually, yes, but I know how that works, I know how it’s supposed to work, and one of the things that I have learned, and is very obvious, and that is, once you entertain a person, you’ve got to keep upping the ante, as it were.They get a little bored with this, so now you have to bring in other kinds of things that are more stimulating, more entertaining, and so forth.That’snot what the church is about.I have a youth pastor friend, his axiom is, What brings them in keeps them in, and he knows that if you bring them in with games and all kinds of frolicking stuff, and so on, you have to keep upping the ante.On the other hand, if you can attract them to the Word of God, which is exciting, Dave, it’s not something dull and boring.It really is exciting because it’s truth, and it’s life, and so forth.If you bring them in with that, then you keep feeding them that, and they get more excited as it goes along.

Dave:

Tom, let’s make some comparisons.Probably the largest movement in the world, in history, was communism.They did not entertain people.They gave people ideals—it would be the ideal society, it would be worth living for and dying for, they were willing to die for it.It was a huge movement, huge crowds, they took over Russia and China and so forth.So, there is a proven fact that you don’t need entertainment, you need something worth living for and dying for, and in the tragedy that Jesus Christ, He’s the One who died for us, we ought to be in love with Him.We ought to have a passion to tell others about Him, to rescue them as we have been rescued, and that instead we’ve got to turn to fun and games, and comic book Bibles, and this kind of stuff.Well, because our young people, you know, this is what they want.Tom, we didn’t need that when I was a boy! We studied the Bible and we were thrilled with it.It just is the wrong way to go.Islam?Growing everywhere, taking over the world!They don’t do it with fun and entertainment, they’ve got something that they are willing to die for, it’s a lie, it’s tragic.Now, we have the truth, why don’t we give them Jesus?Take the world but give me Jesus, all it’s joys are but a nameless nothing.

Tom:

Dave, we just have a few seconds, I have a question for you.You started studying the Bible as a young child, okay.You’re 80 years old today, I mean, this isn’t your birthday, but you’re now 80 years old.Honestly, be honest here, are you more excited about the Bible and about the Lord than when you started?

Dave:

Of course, because the more you learn about it—

Tom:

There you go.

Dave:

—the more you realize, Man, this is God’s Word, this is fantastic!God put this down, He’s talking to me!Tom, you couldn’t have anything better than that except your relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, and with His Father.