Episode171: Hardened Hearts-Why Delaying Discipline Damages the CRC - Dave Ten Clay (Part 2)

“Go [to Synod] with the assumption: we need to stand firm and we need to be ready to do hard things at the very beginning…I really believe there’s a form of spiritual manipulation that takes place during the week…with all the worship services [which promote] ‘We’re all in this together...and on the same team.’ Well, guess what? You’re actually not on the same team. If you’re promoting ungodly living, if you’re saying that same-sex practice is good and God-honoring, we’re not on the same team…We’re fighting what the New Testament calls wolves…That’s who we’re actually up against.” -Dave Ten Clay

Summary of this Episode

Jason is joined again this week by Rev. Dave Ten Clay, lead pastor at Bauer CRC, outside of Hudsonville, MI. The conversation returns to the topic of discipline in our churches and throughout the denomination. Jason recalls Hebrews 3:13, where we find the command to exhort one another “lest your heart be hardened in sin.” While accountability and rebuke may not be popular or well-practiced, they are part of what church leaders are called to do. He shares about asking the congregation he serves, “When was the last time just in your personal life that someone came to you and said, ‘You know, what you did was sinful, and you should repent of that?’” The reality is that is so uncommon. Yet this is what God’s Word calls for, and not to delay.  

As conversation continues into thinking about Synod 2024, they both recognize there’s a heavy task before the delegates. Jason notes one of the struggles, especially when you have such heavy matters and a thick agenda, elder and deacon delegates don’t always show up with the knowledge and awareness that pastors do of what’s happening. If they are not prepared well, they are more susceptible to being swayed in the moment—and as Dave had pointed out, they want to be nice, not mean. Dave’s encouragement for whoever is delegated is “to go in there with the assumption: we need to stand firm and we need to be ready to do hard things at the very beginning…I really believe there’s a form of spiritual manipulation that takes place during the week…with all the worship services [which promote] ‘We’re all in this together...and on the same team.’ Well, guess what? You’re actually not on the same team. If you’re promoting ungodly living, if you’re saying that same-sex practice is good and God-honoring, we’re not on the same team…We’re fighting what the New Testament calls wolves…That’s who we’re actually up against.” Jason teases that The Messy Reformation hopes to offer some preparation videos again for those heading to Synod 2024.

Having heard Dave’s pessimism last time, Jason asks what the CRC taking a different path than the RCA would look like. Dave shares that it boils down to real discipline. Churches who don’t uphold the truth of Scripture should be kicked out if unrepentant, and both agree there must be timelines for disaffiliating. He also shares that those who are in rebellion should not be allowed delegates at broader assemblies, which is one of the biggest failures to this point. He doubts that those who have been publicly affirming are going to repent as it has become a “civil rights issue” for them.

From there, the conversation zooms out to consider where the CRC fits in the landscape of denominations. While few view the current state of the CRC as truly conservative, it is seen in many places as a liberal denomination. Dave shares, “I long for the day when that changes, and I’m thankful that it’s starting to,” and he does desire to be optimistic about it. Considering the exodus of churches from the RCA and wondering if some that have gone to the Alliance of Reformed Churches (ARC) might come to the CRC, he doubts that we’ll see much of that, pointing out not just theological, but deep cultural divisions and connections especially in rural parts of the denominations. While there are some strong confessional pockets, that camp is not strongly confessional. Regarding the movement of some conservative RCAs heading to the Evangelical Free Church of America (E-Free or EFCA), Dave opines that it’s a conservative, evangelical denomination with a Reformed soteriology. Coming from a background where covenant theology has not been taught or discussed much, the biblical-but-not-confessional identity of the E-Free is a sensible fit. Jason highlights that younger pastors in the CRC as well as many ethnic minority individuals and churches are entering our denomination because of our confessions and theological identity. That is where we seek our unity.

Dave’s final words include a plug for Bauer CRC’s associate pastor opening. He also encourages those heading to Synod to read weekly from 2 Timothy 4:1-5 as a call and charge for leaders. We are called to correct, rebuke, and encourage—all three of those. Going forward, stand on the truth of God’s Word with confidence knowing that it is true, unchanging, and given by our Lord.