KFC – Kentucky Fried Church

Rolf Thielen 2019-02-19 in Uncategorized - 8 Minutes

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Kentucky Fried Church is a tongue in the cheek term for the American Charismatic ecclesiology that the charismatic churches in South Africa have largely adopted.

Not everything said here is 100 % true about each local church infected by KFC but you will recognise many features, nonetheless.

Ecclesiology

Is the study of what is the Church.

How should the Church be structured?
How should the Church be governed?
Who are the members of the Church?
What happens to those who are not members of the Church?
How do you become a member of the Church?
How are the decisions of the Church right?
How does the discipline of the Church work?
Can you be excommunicated from the Church?

What you believe has a big influence in what you do and how you grow. Jesus said that new wine requires a new wineskin. The new wine is the gospel and the wine skin is the ecclesiology.

¹⁵And Jesus said to them, “Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast. ¹⁶No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse. ¹⁷Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

” (Matthew 9:15–17, NKJV)

The purpose of this Podcast

Convince exhort and rebuke with all longsuffering and teaching.

I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: ²Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. ³For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; ⁴and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. ⁵But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. ” (2 Timothy 4:1–5, NKJV)

Most churches in SA, especially the charismatic churches have been infected and weakened by KFC ideology.

This message is aimed at repentance. It is part of the ongoing repentance unto revival.

This is not conflicted criticism of a wounded or hurt or confused baby Christian, but as a prophet I am prophesying. These things are clearly wrong and we thus know what repentance is required.

Proper Church Life (orthodox liturgy) is critical for Christian growth and KFC contributes hugely to degrading the church and retarded the growth of its members.

A basic spiritual maturity questionnaire will bear me out on this. (Any pastortutes nightmare).

KFC typically calls itself “Local Church”

Local Church is good, KFC is not.

KFC has the following Features

Building
Stage
Pulpit
Pastortute
Sermons
Service/Show
Band
Lots of sweet little Christians
Programs
Kiddies Church
Youth
Bible school
Missions
Bank Account
Impressed with Itself
Board of conflict avoiding “Elders” whose job it is to endorse the pastortute.

Many Christians were born into KFC and think it is a correct and biblical version of church. The lightweight Christology, Soteriology and Ecclesiology they are exposed to from their first years inoculates and stunts them, in most cases permanently.

They become thorny ground Christians.

Typical Theology of KFC

Attendance
- It doesn’t measure spiritual growth or power.
- It doesn’t test theology, in fact it doesn’t really teach much theology
Tithing
Submitting to the pastortute
Listen to the same sermons year after year
Alter calls
Missions
Programs
A sense of community
Superstition and fear of leaving
Shallow sentimental theology that doesn’t require any real growth
Theory of priesthood of all believers but not practiced in any real depth
- Very few Christians function effectively in their gift
Scant desire to read and study the bible after year 3

What KFC does not do:

Preach Christ.
Preach and Teach Textually.
Practice plural elder rule.
Produce and appoint Titus Elders.
Study the Seven Letters of Christ and face the fact that Local Church is seriously flawed and needs repentance.
- The overwhelming assumption is that KFC is immutable.
  - Books like under cover and mantras like “ youre offended” and “you must serve” keep the baby Christians, old and young in stasis.
Look like the New Testament church.

KFC has an annual Vision

Every year there is a “prophetic word” and every year it’s the same as the last 10 years.

Revival!
Harvest Time!
Breakthrough Year!

Some hype and hope of revival keeps everybody attending, tithing, and chugging along.

Some Questions that we need to consider re KFC

Is KFC a real version of Church?
Can you get regenerated (born again) at KFC?
Can one grow on fast-food?
Can you grow by eating only GMO chicken burgers?
Are GMO chicken burgers good baby food?
Is KFC a good place to grow in Christ, long term?
Is KFC earthly, sensual, and Adamic or spiritual in the true sense?
Are their hearts pure? If so, does it help much?
Are they all saved?
Are some saved?
Is this responsible?
Is KFC better than nothing?
Must we judge KFC?
Must we preach against KFC?
Compete with KFC?
Get people away from KFC?
Bless KFC?
Cooperate with KFC?
Just leave it to carry on?

Hybrids

As I mentioned before not everything I say here is 100% true of each KFC infected Local Church

I’m writing this because the church needs to be reformed again, or actually reformed on an ongoing basis.

Ecclesia Sempere Reformanda Est. The Church Must Ever Be Reformed.

Many pastors know that one-man leadership and pyramid structures are not the Biblical Model. However, just like Catholicism before Luther was hegemonic and monolithic the modern commercial churches appear legitimate and are “too big to fail”.

Some, like Ignatius of Loyola, counter-reformation try and adapt “repent topics” into KFC to continue propping up the legacy system.

KFC is a Creche

KFC is shallow and humanistic but it is real for some. Some KFCs are quite good creches. Many however fall into shallow ground and thorny ground and the general doctrine and nutrition are not conducive to renewing the spirit of the mind and abandoning the flesh.

Pastors are typically not prophets and most of the “innovation” is small and safe. Major systemic changes are not welcome for primary school teachers.

KFC largely styles itself Synagogues.

Synagogues

The history of synagogues is that they were invented during the Babylonian captivity. For the Old Testament Jews, the Temple was Christ. The temple was where they accessed God. The temple was where they experienced the presence of God and also the sacrifice and forgiveness.

The Future

Acknowledge the problem of pastortution.

Mothering – nurture and control as opposed to Fathering which is equip and release
Develop a father’s heart – equip and release
- This means loss of control and income
Encourage apostles and prophets
- Preach Christ
- Heavy Christology and Soteriology
- This will cause powerful engaged males who cannot be controlled or subjugated
Face the problem of the clergy system openly without expecting immediate change
- Khadaffi and Saddam Hussein

The Church in Thyatira

¹⁸“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write,

‘These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass: ¹⁹“I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and as for your works, the last are more than the first. ²⁰Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. ²¹And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality, and she did not repent. ²²Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. ²³I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.

²⁴“Now to you I say, and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this doctrine, who have not known the depths of Satan, as they say, I will put on you no other burden. ²⁵But hold fast what you have till I come. ²⁶And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations—

²⁷ ‘He shall rule them with a rod of iron;

They shall be dashed to pieces like the potter’s vessels’—

as I also have received from My Father; ²⁸and I will give him the morning star.

²⁹“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’

” (Revelation 2:18–29, NKJV)