Why Seeker Sensitive and Worldly Methods Have Failed Us
If you try to encourage Kingdom Expansion (or activate individual Spiritual Pursuit) using Seeker Sensitive Practices or Worldly Methods you will produce nothing but Dead Religion. And the reason why is really quite simple.
Everything in this world is driven by a knowledge brought to us by our five senses. No human knowledge has ever been obtained (naturally speaking) from any other source other than the five senses: Sight, Hearing, Taste, Smell, and Touch. Everything taught in our universities, schools, and vocational houses were developed through research done with the five senses. Modern media is driven by focusing the delivery of data to man’s five senses in order to prompt a desired response.
The only information that has ever been received by mankind irrespective to the five senses is revelation knowledge from God Himself. You might call “revelation” a “sixth sense” to humanity — for beyond these six avenues, no information is received by or transmitted among humans.
Information received through the five senses is processed by the brain and acted upon by the body. That is the “loop” of five sense information.
Information received by revelation is received through man’s spirit, processed by the brain and acted upon by man’s spirit. That’s the “loop” of the spirit.
For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. (Romans 8:5)
It was once said, “If you want to achieve an emotional response, make your appeal to a man’s emotions. If you want to produce an intellectional response, make your appeal to a man’s intellect. But if you want to obtain a spiritual response, you will have to make your appeal to a man’s spirit.”
Paul may not have understood the modern psychology of advertising, but he definately understood that the only way to affect a man’s spirit was to use “spirit words” not “natural words of human wisdom” eloquent though they may be. Notice the emphasis on the spiritual comparison.
These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. (1 Corinthians 2:13)
This is the fundemental problem with utilizing worldly media-driven methods inside the church. Although technology itself is neither good nor evil, the content of technology and motive behind it’s use must be judged. In no way am I saying that there is something inheritantly wrong with the church using the innovative technologies of our day to achieve Kingdom initiatives (because there isn’t). However, if we find that we are using “technology” to stimulate a mere “five sense” reaction, we are no different than the world in our basic motive — neither will we achieve a spiritual objective.
The motive of worldly practices is to obtain a desired response from people based on predetermined sets of “five sensory” information presented. With the information that is received, it is assumed that such information will effectively interract with either intellect or emotion to produce the desired response. In no way has media ever targeted it’s appeal to a man’s spirit — it’s appeal is intended to generate a response from man’s external being.
Therefore when we use the world’s methodology in a spiritual environment, we are expecting a “heart action” from a process that makes it’s appeal solely to the flesh. In such cases, you cannot realistically expect a heart change. At best, if you do elicit a response, that response will be from the person’s flesh. The works of the flesh are rightly called the pursue of “self-righteousness” or today we might simply call it “religion.” (Romans 10:2-3)
In truth, you cannot appeal to the spirit through the avenue of the five senses. Five sensory “belief” produces religion, not faith.
By contrast, true “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Heb 11:1) or you might say it this way,
Faith is the foundation of the things we hope for.
Evidence — not received through the five senses.
Faith’s evidence comes [only] when
you hear God speak to you — Spirit to spirit.
(Heb 11:1; Rom 10:17)
Saving Faith is not obtainable through the marketing of the five senses. You can use modern technology to get the “world’s attention” — however, if you want to make a “spiritual conversion” (according to the Bible), the Kingdom is expanded only by the “foolishness of preaching.” Such preaching will upset culture — whether perceived as ridiculously nonsensical to the scholarly mind or a stumbling block to the self-righteous. It is, however an effective delivery method to provoke a response from the spirit of man.
Once released, spirit words penetrate and go to work on a man’s spirit. Those words will be processed by the brain and will be accepted or rejected on an individual basis.
Reaction of the Self-Righteous
“When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them. (Acts 5:33)
When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.” (Acts 7:54)
Reaction of the Philosopher
“Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoicks, encountered him. And some said, What will this babbler say? other some, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection.” (Acts 17:18)
A Heart that Turns to God
“Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37)
The resulting choice is not up to us, nor is it our responsibility. We were called to be “witnesses” not “salesmen.” This is something the church should take to heart. Our responsibility is to make the presentation. The Holy Spirit is well capable of selling salvation’s eternal benefits.
