The majority of the church today has embraced a false understanding of its purpose and the future, the purpose of families related to the church, and ultimately the purpose of the Lordship of Christ on this earth. In Archibald Alexander work, The Log College, Alexander provides the following piece of historical antidote related to the false views that the church embraced in 18th century colonial America. While in New Jersey, George Whitfield dined with a number of clergyman, the below quote is from one such dinner conversation:

After dinner, in the course of an easy and pleasant conversation, Mr. Whitefield adverted to the difficulties attending the gospel ministry arising from the small success with which their labours were crowned. He greatly lamented that all their zeal-activity and fervour availed but little; said that he was weary with the burdens and fatigues of the day; declared his great consolation was that in a short time his work would be done, when he should depart and be with Christ; that the prospect of a speedy deliverance had supported his spirits, or that he should before now have sunk under his labour. He then appealed to the ministers around him, if it were not their great comfort that they should soon go to rest. They generally assented, excepting Mr. Tennent (The Rev. William Tennent, Jr.), who sat next to Mr. Whitefield in silence; and by his countenance discovered but little pleasure in the conversation. On which Mr. Whitefield, turning to him and tapping him on the knee, said, “Well! brother Tennent, you are the oldest man amongest us, do you not rejoice to think that your time is so near at hand, when you will be called home and freed from all the difficulties attending this chequered scene?” Mr. T. bluntly answered, “I have no wish about it.” Mr. W. pressed him again; and Mr. T. again answered, “Now, sir, it is no pleasure to me at all, and if you knew your duty it would be none to you, I have nothing to do with death: my business is to live as long as I can — and to serve my Lord and Master as faithfully as I can, Until He shall think proper to call me home.” Mr. W. still urged for an explicit answer to his question, in case the time of death were left to his own choice. Mr. Tennent replied, “I have no choice about it; I am God’s servant, and have engaged to do his business as long as he pleases to continue me therein. But no, brother, let me ask you a question. What do you think I would say if I was to send my man Tom into the field to plough, and if at noon I should go to the field and find him lounging under a tree, and complaining, ‘Master, the sun is very hot, and the ploughing hard and difficult; I am tired and weary of the work you have appointed me, and am overdone with the heat and burden of the day; do, master, let me return home and be discharged from this hard service.’ What would I say? Why, that he was an idle, lazy fellow; that it was his business to do the work that I have appointed him, until I, the proper judge, should think fit to call him home. Or suppose you had hired a man to serve you faithfully for a given time in a particular service, and he should, without any reason on your part, and before he had performed half his service, become weary of it, and upon every occasion be expressing a wish to be discharged or placed in other circumstances. Would you not call him a wicked and slothful servant, and unworthy of the privileges of your employ?” The mild, pleasant, and Christian-like manner in which this reproof was administered, rather increased the social harmony and edifying conversation of the company, who became satisfied that it was very possible to err, even in desiring with undue earnestness to “depart and be with Christ,” which in itself is “far better,” than to remain in this imperfect estate; and that it is the duty of the Christian in this respect to say, “All the days of my appointed time will I wait till my change come.”

Due to many false views of eschatology that the modern church has embraced, the following quote is very accurate for today. We are more desirous to leave this world than complete our duty. We have no control over our own departure from this earth, yet we insist on willing ourselves to think of escape, more than service to Christ. As a result, we have a church that focuses on winning souls, and carries the Lordship of Christ no further. We handout tracts and share a testimony of Christ, but we go no further because we have embraced the false understanding that our only hope is to get people saved and wait to escape. True Biblical thinking says that we as Christians must take dominion in all areas of life to truly be a testimony of Christ. The most affective witnessing tool that we posses as Christians is to encompass all aspects of culture in the Lordship of Christ -- family, church, government, education, diet, etc. must reflect the Lordship of Christ.

Again, if we as the body of Christ focus only on soul-winning, then we fall short of proclaiming the Lordship of Christ. For example: fathers and mothers are called to teach their children the alphabet, but we do not spend our lives learning the alphabet, we learn it in order to read and grow. The conversion of a heart to Christ is the alphabet of our faith, the foundation of truth that we must have to understand what it is to grow in faith. If the body of Christ is only teaching the alphabet then we will have a church that is stagnant and unable to ‘spiritually read.’ The sad reality is that we in many ways do have a church today that is drinking of milk and is unable to eat of the meat and substance of the word of God. Ultimately, we are called to continually grow and we must not stop short of this calling by simply focusing on soul-winning alone. We must take dominion in every area of life so that Christ may be honored not only in our personal testimony but in every aspect of our life.

Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
-- Mathew 24:46