Our Vbs Mindset

“OUR VBS MINDSET”

Matthew 19.13-15

Our annual Vacation Bible School begins Monday at 6:00 PM, daily until 8:30 PM, through Friday, the 14th. Like other special times in the life of a Church of Jesus Christ, it is a season during which we need all hands on deck unless Providentially hindered. It is an opportunity for every member to serve.

It is heartening each year to see the adjustment of schedules whenever possible, the investment of time, hard work, and creativity that goes into VBS preparation, and the eagerness with which children and their families are invited and encouraged to come.

Like everything else we do here, our purpose is the Great Commission of our Lord Jesus Christ to make disciples.[1] Whatever we do around here, the goal is and ought always to be to involve ourselves in and engage in the making of disciples by either committing ourselves to become better disciples of our Savior or by seeking to make disciples of others.

As a reminder, our goal is not to undermine other Gospel ministries. To that end, while we never want to be rude, we must be clear in our determination to avoid the involvement of those committed to other Gospel preaching ministries.

Thus, whether our efforts are geared to children or adults, our activities are not for those already churched somewhere else, but for members of this Church and those unsaved and/or unchurched we can influence with our efforts to make disciples of them here at our Church.

Would we ever reject our grandchildren who have a Church home elsewhere? Nieces or nephews? Of course, not. Will we misbehave toward someone unaware of the ethics of one’s proper commitment to another Church? Never. But our energies, thrust, giving, determination, and time should never be directed toward anyone but those we seek to establish here at Calvary Road Baptist Church.

Any drift away from that mission goal will detract not only from accomplishing our efforts but will also detract elsewhere from accomplishing the Great Commission that is missing the time, talent, effort, and commitment of that individual who is here rather than there. So, it is not only not best for us to invite to our outreaches those from other Gospel preaching Churches, but it is also profoundly important for us to faithfully invest in our Church’s efforts to glorify God, exalt the Savior, and reach the lost by these means.

That said, I want to speak briefly about the mindset we should strive to cultivate and preserve in the run-up and throughout next week’s efforts in our Vacation Bible School. I begin with First Corinthians 14.40, a verse that speaks directly to every aspect of public congregational worship but has unique application to our upcoming VBS:

“Let all things be done decently and in order.”

Paul was writing to a troubled and often chaotic congregation about the goal of public worship. Not that everything is just so is always achievable, but it is a bar that we try to always live up to. Imagine what it must have been like in the early centuries of the Christian faith, with no such thing as Church buildings constructed for congregational worship, with no such thing as infrastructure for safety, comfort, and convenience, and with the rise and fall of seasons of persecution.

Add to all that the most uncivilized groups of visitors and new converts in attendance from various cultural and religious backgrounds, some educated and some not, some former slaves and others still slaves, and what folks were in store for as they gathered to worship was not always predictable. Adam Clarke writes about this verse that this should not only be the goal of all worship but that “Where decency and order are not observed in every part of the worship of God, no spiritual worship can be performed.”[2]

This is what we aim for, aim at, and seek to achieve insofar as etiquette is concerned. Back of it all, of course, undergirded by prayer throughout, is pleading with God to do great work in the lives of individuals.

With that in mind, I direct your attention to Matthew 19.13-15:

13 Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them.

14 But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

15 And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.

In the foreground of this scene is the obvious desire by the parents, who brought their little children, for them to experience an intimate interaction with the Savior. We are not necessarily seeing moms and dads expecting a miracle in this situation (or Matthew would have mentioned that), but physical contact with the Savior as He made His way and prayer.

And is that not what you want for the kids whose parents bring them to VBS? We want them to like coming here, to be sure. We want them to enjoy the experience, which for some, might be their introduction to the Christian faith. But most of all, we seek interaction between children, and the Savior, through Bible truth and the Gospel.

That is the VBS mindset we should seek and be careful to cultivate. I am sure the disciples had that general mindset with the Savior as they facilitated the movements of the Savior through the countryside, villages, and towns and did what they could to bring decency and order to the chaos.

Two things to notice by way of caution as we approach Vacation Bible School:

First, THE IMPROPER REACTION OF THE DISCIPLES

“the disciples rebuked them”

“It is unclear whether the disciples’ rebuke is directed against the children or those who brought them to Jesus.”[3] The Greek verb suggests they were small children who were brought, the kind, well-intentioned people who have unmet expectations about propriety and order and become impatient with.[4]

Beloved, these were the best of men. The lesson? If the best of men can lose sight of priorities, that intimacy with the Savior is always more important than adherence to procedure and order and how we like to see things done, then we can succumb to the same slippage.

The disciples lost sight, and who knows for how long, that it wasn’t about them but the Savior. Evangelism is messy. And on this occasion, they erred in judging that their comfort level and concern for how things ought to go outweighed the sinner’s need for an audience with the Savior. And how profoundly important are the means of grace to provide access for sinners to the Savior? Methinks those who do not much study the Bible do not much grasp how crucial the means of grace are, if even the best of men, Christ’s disciples, could lose sight of that principle.

Then, THE NECESSARY CORRECTION OF THE DISCIPLES

“But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”

This must have stung our Lord’s men for Him to openly rebuke them for their rebuke of the children or their parents. But what they had said and done publicly had to be dealt with publicly to correct the error and prevent lasting harm.

The mistake of the disciples was valuing order over access. Why did they do what they did? We could speculate. The problem could have been one of ignorance. They did not know that access to the Savior was vastly more important than an orderly approach to Him by little children? But how lockstep can you be with little kids? But I am inclined to think the disciples did not have so much an ignorance problem as a pride problem. It is the natural and normal tendency of gatekeepers to display their authority by controlling access, restricting access, or imposing their wills in some fashion. TSA at the airports are classic examples. And again, these are the best of men. No truer men walked the earth than these men, yet we see what they did and their Master’s rebuke of them.

The lesson for our Lord’s servants? A lesson in humility. If you plan on serving the Lord, you must be ready for displays of pride being called out. You need to be up for correction. And if you cannot humbly receive correction (private where possible and public where necessary), then another line of service might be what the doctor orders. I was relating to a Church member this morning a stinging public rebuke I experienced early on in my Christian life, in front of my new bride and in front of most of the Church congregation where we were members. Let us be always ready as we serve the Lord, to not only intentionally be channels of blessings, but also to conscientiously avoid restricting others’ access to the means of grace.

I see no evidence in God’s Word that pride and sensitivity to correction does anyone any good, or that correction of such misconduct is ever harmful.

If you imagine, children will always exercise self-control, demonstrate courtesy and respect, always be attentive and grateful, then come to VBS to see what it is like.

And suppose you are willing to serve, learn, and invest your time, talent, and energy in the lives of boys and girls who need the Savior. In that case, we welcome you to partner with us Saturday at 6:00 PM as we go out inviting kids to VBS and Monday through Friday from 6:00 PM to 8:30 PM as we prayerfully seek to make a difference in boys’ and girls’ lives.

Evangelism is messy. It is also not about you or me, but the Savior and the children. Let us now approach VBS with a mindset reflecting prayer, commitment, and humility.

__________

[1] Matthew 28.18-20

[2] Adam Clarke, Clarke’s Commentary, Vol VI, (New York: Abingdon Press), page 279.

[3] David L. Turner, Matthew - ECNT, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2008), page 464.

[4] Rogers, Jr., Cleon L. and Rogers III, Cleon L., The New Linguistic and Exegetical Key To The Greek New Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: ZondervanPublishingHouse, 1998), page 43.

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