Philippians 1:15-18

15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill.16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel.17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.
Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,

11 Innovations in the Local Church, a book by Elmer Towns, Ed Stetzer, and Warren Bird, uses these verses to illustrate that the use of innovation in the local church should not be discouraged, even when we don’t agree with the methods. Paul is clear here that the intent behind the proclamation of the Gospel is not important, as long as the message is preached. Therefore, we can conclude, if we wish, that the intention of the most disagreeable method used for proclaiming the Gospel is done so with an improper intention. Yet, we must conclude that it is good, as long as the message is being proclaimed.

The ramifications this has to the church world could be vast, if only the church were willing to hear it. Paul here is telling us that we should not worry about the methods being used to transmit the message, as long as the message is clear. Many churches are dying because they are unwilling to embrace new methods of reaching culture. They believe that changing methods would somehow be unBiblical, yet Paul’s message says otherwise.

A prime example of this is the controversy that raged for many years, and still rages in some areas, over Christian Rock & Roll. Many churches rejected the idea that music they deemed as demonic could somehow be used in a God-glorifying way. Granted, throughout time what has become acceptable as “Christian” music is rarely different lyrically from what is found on the secular top 40, but the principle remains. According to Paul, we should not be bothered by Christian Rock & Roll, even if we disagree with Rock & Roll. What is important, says Paul, is that Christ is proclaimed.

Where care needs to be taken is when there is conflict in the method of transmission itself, and the message of the Bible. For example, getting drunk for Jesus would not be an effective ministry tool as drunkenness is contrary to scripture. When we compromise one aspect of Scripture to fulfill another, we are still in the wrong. When we encourage hatred, even with the best of intentions, we are still not living as we ought.

Therefore, our churches should be encouraged to embrace new methods for reaching the lost. If preaching the Gospel is good, regardless of our motives, when we have good motives and are preaching the Gospel without compromising on other issues, our methods can’t be bad. If the church wants to return to a season of growth, it must be willing to step outside of its comfort zone and embrace methods of communicating the Gospel that it may not be comfortable with. Change is uncomfortable but as believers we were never promised comfort. But if we are taking the command to reach the lost seriously, we must become uncomfortable and speak the language of the people. Lost souls could depend on it.