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I spent a number of years in a Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation whose liturgy could be considered "high middle," that is, pastors in robes with color changes according to seasons, repetitive prayers with pastor and congregational responses, repetition of the patristic creeds, Advent candles, Holy Week services, old hymns, etc. I have also attended Catholic masses, and Episcopalian and Methodist services with plenty of ritual and ceremony. In none of these churches did I hear the clear exposition of the Gospel. Other than the canned Scripture passage called for in the liturgical calendar or the church's "play book," there was little exposure to the teachings of the Bible. The sermons or homilies were vapid and often consisted of 15 minutes of "Jesus loves you." In the case of the PCUSA church I attended, the pastor was a flaming political liberal and the congregation supported charities that aided Marxist radicals in Central America.

Since we live in an era where "feeeeeelings" are paramount, mine were quite negative. I did not feel any closer to God after 50 to 70 minutes of mainline, liturgical Protestant or Catholic worship. I saw little other than a way to kill an hour or two of time on Sundays.

It is by God's grace alone that I became a Christian believer. At a crucial point in my life, I was exposed to the radio ministry of Vernon McGee and to James Dobson's "Focus on the Family." These radio ministries helped me on my journey far more than the liturgical rigmarole and vain repititions of the mainline Protestant and Catholic churches. For over a decade, I have been blessed by hearing the Gospel preached in Bible-believing churches (PCA, Southern and independent Baptist, and independent Bible) where worship was neither ritualistic nor seeker-sensitive, but reverent and centered on God's Word. Because I live in the Bible Belt (near Dallas, Texas), there are many Christian radio stations where the expository preaching and teaching of men like Chuck Swindoll, John MacArthur, and R.C. Sproul are readily available.

Mark 12:30 tells us that we must love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul, and all our mind. It is only through the mind that we may understand the Word, which John 1:1 states is God. Neither the tired liturgies of the mainline Protestant and Catholic churches nor the vapid stage shows of the "seeker sensitive" churches engage the mind. Evangelical churches based on Scripture alone can and do engage heart, soul, and mind.

Good grief! I can understand your frustration. No, the kind of churches you talk of, with mechanical worship, politics, deserve no defense.

A hearty "Amen".

Good grief! I can understand your frustration. No, the kind of churches you talk of, with mechanical worship, politics, deserve no defense, insofar as they add to and subtract from the Word and let the flock go hungry.

A hearty "Amen".

My experience was much the same, I attended a Presbyterian church that had lots of robes and official liturgy, but Jesus took a back seat to Che Guevara, Angela Davis and others of that ilk.

I was not being fed until I joined a Southern Baptist church and found Jesus. Boy.....I wish I had found the Bible based fundamentalism earlier in my life.