Sullivan church of Christ – Sullivan, MO
Date: February 12, 2006
CHURCH BULLETINS
Roger D. Campbell
Many congregations of God's people publish a weekly bulletin. Some may wonder
why a local church even bothers with such an item. After all, it does require time
and work to prepare a bulletin. Bulletins do not produce themselves, so it takes
effort on someone's part to get them done. And, the paper and ink used to print
them are not cheap. Besides, if you have ever noticed, some of them just get
thrown down on the floor. Maybe you have even seen that in some cases, kids
turn bulletins into drawing paper or a coloring book. Oh yes, we are aware of all
of these truths. Still, we are convinced that church bulletins have the potential
to be a great aid in the Lord's work.
Church bulletins come in different sizes, colors, and formats, but basically they
all have one thing in common: church bulletins are used as a means of
communication. First, they are a tool by which a local church teaches the Bible.
The teaching of the Bible via bulletins is one way of carrying out the Lord's
charge to preach the gospel to every person (Mark 16:15). At the same time, the
teaching done in bulletin articles and other Bible-based materials is a means of
edifying or building up the church (Romans 14:19).
A second major function of bulletins is to provide information to the
congregation. If we are to see to the needs of the sick or those with special
material or physical needs (Matthew 25:35,36), then we need to be aware of
those needs and opportunities. Providing such information in bulletins is helpful
in getting the word out to all the members of a congregation. Announcements
relative to upcoming events of a local church are often printed in bulletins. This
helps the members arrange their plans in order to be able to support the
activities of the church. We know that we are to rejoice with those that rejoice
and weep with those that weep (Romans 12:15), showing support for both those
members of the body that suffer as well as those that are honored (1 Corinthians
12:26). Again, printing information about these matters in a bulletin helps keep a
congregation better informed and prepared to serve others in the body.
From "the Great Commission" and other New Testament passages, we conclude
that a local church is authorized to prepare, produce, print, and pass out a
church bulletin. The leaders of a local church give consideration to what type of
bulletin arrangement is most expedient for a local flock of God's people. Those
leaders then determine the size, format, and frequency of producing a bulletin for
the needs of a local congregation. Bulletins really can be edifying, encouraging,
and useful in a number of senses.
Church bulletins can also be quite revealing. What do church bulletins reveal?
For one thing, many church bulletins reveal attendance tendencies. I am
appalled at some of the attendance statistics that I see in the bulletins of
congregations that have had a reputation of being sound in the faith. It is not
uncommon for some of them to have an average Sunday morning Bible class
attendance or mid¬week attendance that is barely 50% of the average Sunday
morning worship attendance. In many cases there are special health and other
issues that affect a congregation's attendance, but 50%?! We all need to take
seriously the charge to seek first the Lord's affairs (Matthew 6:33) and set our
interests on spiritual matters (Colossians 3:2). When God and His affairs have
first place in our hearts, our attendance at the services of God's church will be a
natural thing for us.
Church bulletins also reveal a local church's emphasis. What dominates the
pages of a bulletin, is it social matters or spiritual matters? What is
predominantly seen in a bulletin's "teaching section," is it quotes from the Bible,
or quotes from "religious scholars" of our day? Is it humor, or Bible? There is a
place for God's people to smile, as the Bible says, "A merry heart doeth good like a
medicine" (Proverbs 17:22). I have neither the desire nor the right to try and tell a
preacher or bulletin-preparer what percentage of his message may be humor-
oriented. But, brethren, mark it down. A strong church is not built and
maintained by humor! God's Kingdom is strengthened through strong teaching of
sound doctrine. After the apostle Paul expressed his concern for the future
affairs of the church in Ephesus, he told the overseers from that city, "And now,
brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build
you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified" (Acts 20:
32). Remember, we grow through the milk of God's word (1 Peter 2:2), not funny
stories.
Recently I mentioned to a brother in the Lord the name of a man that is
scheduled to appear on a youth program in our fair state. The brother told me
that he had heard the man speak before. His analysis was that the man in his
sermon used three or four verses and filled the rest of his time with humor and
stories. Brethren, where is the emphasis in our teaching from the pulpits, in the
classroom, and in our bulletins? Is the emphasis on the Book, or social affairs?
Is it on the Lord's word, or men's stories? God being my helper, as long as my
feeble hands have a part in producing a bulletin, it will be a teaching tool that is
Bible-oriented.
Some church bulletins reveal the flesh. I take no delight in saying such, but it is
true. Some bulletins that I have seen in the past show women with bare mid-
sections, men and women wearing swimsuits, or both sexes wearing skimpy
jogging shorts that cover only about 1/3 of the upper leg. Surely there would
never be such flesh on display in church bulletins? Sadly, it happens. "You must
be talking about denominations and not the church of Christ." No, I am talking
100% about bulletins put out by the Lord's church.
The covering of the body from shoulders to knees that God apparently provided
for Adam and Even when He clothed them in tunics (Genesis 3:21), is still a safe
practice to follow in our dress. "Modest apparel is still in fashion with the Lord
God (1 Timothy 2:9). That goes for pictures in church bulletins just as much as it
does for any other occasion. Some congregations now publish their bulletins on-
line (they have web sites on the internet). Some web sites include pictures of
activities that involve members of the congregation. Some of these on-line
photos reveal the flesh just like some printed bulletins do. Again, I take no
pleasure in pointing out the reality of what some congregations do and then
publish in picture form in their bulletins or on the internet. I am simply pointing
out the facts.
Church bulletins also reveal the fellowship tendencies of a congregation. When
we announce upcoming events, activities, and programs that involve other
congregations and special speakers, should we not take care to announce only
those that involve sound brethren? Surely some items fall into the realm of
judgment. Yet, it is a mystery to me why some congregations seem to make little
or no distinction in the things that they advertise and encourage the local saints
to support. When a bulletin announces a gospel meeting at a sound
congregation, then right alongside it there is an announcement about a drama
team from an apostate university in Nashville, TN (David Lipscomb U.) coming
somewhere to perform for the area teens, it is sending forth a mixed signal of
uncertain sounds. Either folks do not know what is going on, they do not see
error as a big deal, they just do not care, or else they are deceived into thinking
that as long as an announcement says "church of Christ" on it, "then surely it
can't be too bad." Brethren, we are not to have fellowship with the unfruitful
works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11). When we publish in our bulletins every
announcement "under the sun" that comes our way, we are sending a message
to our brethren that can potentially damage their souls. When we support the
unfaithful, we become partakers of their evil deeds. The Bible says so (2 John 9-
11).
Church bulletins can be extremely helpful to the Lord's Cause. I personally
benefit from a number of bulletins that I receive. I thank God for them. Other
bulletins that I have seen through the years have been, to say it kindly, woefully
lacking when it comes to providing any true spiritual benefit. May every
congregation of the Lord's church that produces a bulletin be committed to using
it for God's glory, for the strengthening of His church, and for the eternal
salvation of souls.