A Minister Sits in the Pew⤒🔗

It does not happen often, but from time to time I receive the opportunity to sit in the pew. When I do so in my home church of Langley, the pew happens to be on the front row of the balcony and it gives me an unobstructed view of the pulpit and the minister.

Recently, however, this was not the case. I happened to be visiting another congregation. I came early and sat towards the back of the building. Slowly the church filled up as couples, singles and families filed in. It was good to see so many people coming together to worship the Lord.

All the while the pew before me was still empty. But then, just before the service was to commence, several young men sauntered in and slid into the pew. Almost immediately the service started as the minister gave the salutation, the organ came to life, the congregation raised its voice in praise, and the liturgy flowed on. Soon it was time for the sermon.

Only then a strange thing happened. The young men in front of me started to shift and move around. Their bodies sunk lower and lower. Their heads turned downward. Their eyelids came down and they went to sleep. It all happened somewhere between the reading of the text and the opening sentences of the sermon. It was as if the words, “Beloved Congregation of Our Lord…” acted as a cue or a command to go to sleep.

Yes, and sleep they did, all through the sermon. Oh, once in a while they adjusted their posteriors and on occasion an eye would half-open as if to make sure that the minister was still holding forth, but for the rest it was clearly siesta time. That is, until the minister said “Amen” and then it was as if another command had been uttered, for the eyes immediately clicked open, the bodies sat up in the pew and they were back in the world of the living.

Not a Rare Event←⤒🔗

Now I am sure that the scene which I have just described is not an unusual one for most of our readers. On almost any Sunday, and then especially in the second worship service, you can look around and see some people who are doing a lot of agreeing with the pastor as their heads bob back and forth. Should someone dare to make a comment to them about this, even a humorous one, they often become defensive and claim that they were not sleeping at all but rather listening with their eyes closed. Perhaps!

In any case, it is not my intention to pick on young men or to insist that all who close their eyes are really snoozing. Instead, I want to address this strange phenomenon that has been around in the church probably since its inception. After all, we can read in the book of Acts about a young man called Eutychus who went into a deep sleep as Paul preached on and on, fell from a third-story window sill and died (Acts 20:7-12). How some preachers are tempted to moralize about that incident and to use it as a springboard to discuss the great danger of sleeping in worship!

Unacceptable Behaviour←⤒🔗

Yet even if we resist that temptation, there is still an issue here that needs to be addressed. For no matter how you approach it, sleeping in worship is not an acceptable thing. The reasons for it are many and they are diverse, but at the end of the day, it is not something that anyone can be proud of or boast about.

Why not? In the first place, because it displays a lack of respect for the Lord. The Bible says that whenever and wherever two or three are gathered in the name of the Lord, He is present. He is present with his majesty, grace and Spirit.

If you were in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II, would you dare to go to sleep? Would you snooze as she sits there on her throne and as one of her servants speaks on her behalf? Of course not! So why is something that is deemed utterly unfitting in the presence of a human dignitary practised in the presence of the Lord of all the earth? Why, frequently it is even excused, rationalized and joked about!

In more than one place the Psalmist informs us that our God looks down from on high at the affairs of men. What must He think when He looks down at a congregation assembled for the express purpose of worshipping Him and sees a segment that are tuned out? I can hardly believe that such a sight brings joy to his fatherly heart.

In addition, the fact that this goes on while the Word is being preached makes it doubly offensive. Here you have a Word that is unlike any other: inspired, infallible, inerrant. Here you have a Word that gives light to the eyes, that makes the simple wise, that revives the soul, that deals with the great issues of sin, salvation and service, that climaxes in Jesus Christ, the living Word. How is it that so great a Word is accorded such a dismal reception?

And there is more. Does sleeping in worship not send a very disconcerting signal to all who are present and who earnestly desire to worship the Lord with their whole heart? What does it not do for the guests who come into the worship service? Here your church is convinced that outreach and evangelism are important but when visitors are present, what do they see when they look around? Members sleeping! What a disincentive to join the congregation of the Lord.

Is the Preacher to Blame?←⤒🔗

Of course, at this juncture you maybe itching to rebut. You may want to point a finger at the preacher and say that a good deal of the blame lies with him. After all, when Eutychus fell out of that window, or whatever it was, it was because Paul “talked on and on.” In the same vein there are ministers today who do not seem to know when to stop.

Now, I think that those of us who are preachers need to take this charge seriously. We have a constant duty to examine ourselves and our preaching. Are we long-winded? Moreover, are we going too deep and preaching over the heads of most in the congregation? Or are we dull and boring? Are we too divorced from life and from the issues of daily living? Are we treating the text too lightly and coming to the people of God with half-baked sermons?

As preachers we always need to be willing to look at ourselves and how we bring the Word. Does my sermon really open up and apply the text? Do I use my introduction to generate interest and relevancy? Do I have logical structure? Do I use pertinent illustrations? Is my language current or archaic? Is there something here for the people of God to work with on a daily basis?

There are so many things for the preacher to weigh. In some respects it is an almost impossible charge. Time, training, thought and prayer all go into it – lots of prayer especially. In the process it can be so humbling. Here what you thought was a masterpiece turns out to be a dud and what you considered to be a meagre meal is praised as if it were a sumptuous feast. How the Spirit humbles and surprises preachers!

In short, preachers must engage in self-examination and they must be open to constructive criticism. They must strive to give the people of God their best.

What about the Congregation?←⤒🔗

What applies to preachers applies to members and congregations too. The latter must also be willing to look in the mirror. For starters, how much conscious and spiritual preparation is there for worship in your lives? Do you understand the meaning of worship and its great importance in the life of every child of God? Do you look forward to it? Do you pray for it? How well do you prepare your hearts?

And what about your bodies? If you make it a habit to come home during the wee hours of Sunday morning, how is it even possible to keep those eyelids open and those minds sharp during worship? Such a lifestyle is a recipe for worship disaster.

Sunday morning dawns and what do you do? Is rising from slumber a chore and does it include a mad dash to the church? Do you arrive on time or just in the nick of time? Are you ready to meet the Lord? How well and with what degree of determination do you focus your mind and heart?

Worship, you see, is not an idle affair. It also requires something of you, the worshipper.

Common Ownership←⤒🔗

In the end, however, it must be said that meaningful, wide-awake worship involves a common calling and a common challenge. Pastors and members alike need to be willing to look at themselves. We need to go beyond finger pointing at one another and we need to focus much more on the Lord who is our common treasure. If our delight is really in Him and in his Word then sleep will be driven far away.

May the Lord be gracious and grant us all open mouths, open hearts and open eyes.