This I say therefore and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind. Ephesians 4:17
One of the largest church buildings in Saint John has been sitting empty and idle for a few years. It has been abandoned by the small congregation that is no longer able to accord the upkeep on the massive old stone structure. A look about the building shows that at one time it must have been impressive and elaborate. Its furnishings, although old and drab and dusty now, bear the marks of great expense being put out to purchase or build them. The massive steeple soars high into the city’s skyline; that part of the structure alone must have been built at incredible expense and effort. It is obvious that at one time, that church had the resources to build and maintain hugely. It was in its early days packed with parishoners who supported it well. What has happened? Where the all the people and support go? The city has more people than every; why don’t they attend that church like earlier folks did? May I suggest that the empty church is a victim of a clergy inflicted with vanity of their mind.
That little expression in our text is an interesting one that we must examine. What does it mean. We know what the mind is, that rational and functional part of our brain that directs our activities and shapes our personalities. The word translated ‘vanity’ in our text is a word that indicates emptiness and lacking in substance or duration. So, vanity of the mind indicates a mind that is filled with that which has no substance and that which does not endure. Well, that seems to cover the doctrine held by most of the clergy in most of the denominations these days. They offer an empty social gospel, with no emphasis on the need for repentance from sin and necessity of the new birth. They urge parishoners to good works without offering any means to perform them. They mutter religious gobbledegook, question the authority of the Word of God, and are devoid of any backbone in standing up for the truth. No wonder those churches are dead or dying. But what about our dead or dying Assemblies?
Many of our Assemblies, especially in rural or remote areas, are peopled largely by older saints, with fewer young people remaining. Is this the result of vanity of their minds? Hardly! Much of the problem results from the young people, children of those in fellowship, growing up and moving to the cities for employment. But some of the blame must rest with the lack of effort and emphasis on the part of those in the Assembly. Every Assembly has – at least initially – some children in the Sunday School, whether children of the Christians or children from the neighbourhood. And every Assembly has neighbours of those in fellowship. If our testimony is right and if our zeal in the Gospel is fervent, some of those children and neighbours will be saved. But if they don’t see anything of substance in us, our Assemblies will die out.
If our minds are filled with Christ, His work must prosper. -Jim MacIntosh