BURNET—The church in the United States is not reaching the younger generation in the same numbers as previous generations because churches are busy chasing the idols of extravagant buildings and political power, speakers warned at the annual convocation of the Hispanic Baptist Laity at Camp Buckner.
Rick McClatchy, coordinator for Cooperative Baptist Fellowship in Texas, urged Christians to follow the admonition of the Hebrew prophet Samuel to abandon idols and give complete loyalty and service to God.
“Samuel knows that God didn’t deliver the Hebrews from Egyptian slavery so they could be wealthy and powerful. He delivered them to be his light unto the Gentiles,” McClatchy said.
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Participants at the Convocation of Hispanic Baptist Laity respond to a call to rededicate their lives to Jesus Christ. (PHOTO/Orville Scott)
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“Too many American churches are obsessed with their congregations using their wealth to construct buildings. … Jesus never commissioned us to make buildings. He commissioned us to make disciples.
“I know that some of you here today might be meeting as a church in someone’s home or store or a school, and you may think: ‘I wish we had a big fancy building like First Baptist. If we just had a building then everything would be great.’ That is an illusion. I was a pastor for 15 years, and I know the time that’s spent taking care of buildings and meeting the budget. It soon becomes the driving priority of the church.”
In a world where close to one-fourth of the population lives on less than $4 a day, and most of them are women and children, McClatchy said, “We must give them priority over nice buildings.”
“Jesus said he dwells with the hungry, the thirsty, the alien, the naked, sick and the oppressed,” he continued.
“If you are meeting in homes or small, simple buildings and using your money to help others, then you are more in line with the New Testament.”
Because of Hispanic population growth in Texas, Hispanic Texas Baptists are the future global mission leaders in the state, he said.
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“You must become better stewards of God’s resources than the Anglo churches have been,” he urged. “Live a simple lifestyle and practice that simplicity in your congregation so that you have the resources to minister to the hurting and hungry in this world.”
Churches also are being led astray by the idol of political power, McClatchy said.
“Jesus wanted the church to serve others and in so doing gain the authority to be heard,” he said. “The right to be heard comes from sacrificial service to others. The church must bleed like Jesus did.”
Keynote speaker Rolando Lopez, Hispanic consultant in San Antonio Baptist Association, said the spiritual walls of the church today are in shambles as in Nehemiah’s day.
“Nehemiah mourned and prayed, magnifying the name of the Lord. Then he confessed the sins of the people,” Lopez said.
“What is holding us back? We must confess our sins of envy, indifference and hypocrisy.”
Winner of the convocation’s musical contest was Lalo Munoz, director of music for the Baptist Men of First Mexican Baptist Church of Dallas.
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