Before 2003, the congregation was “Oak Hills Church of Christ,” so I assume that they fit into the general Church of Christ denomination, but, like Grace Point, have downplayed the denomational aspect to broaden appeal.
My experience
The main Oak Hills campus is a massive building just off the freeway as you’re leaving northwest San Antonio, and security officers direct traffic at every parking lot entrance. I arrived a few minutes early and was greeted warmly at the door and handed a very nice weekly handout. It wasn’t really a program for the service as much as an overview of the programs offered by the church, and this full-color, heavy stock, matte paper tri-fold (with a perforated flap for a prayer request) was very professionally done—like everything else at Oak Hills (their graphics are impressive!).
The “Worship Center” was a large auditorium similar to Grace Point’s, but with the addition of three camera stations to record the service, as well as project it on three screens above the stage. One of the first things I noticed were the stacks of golden plates on tables throughout the room, and my first thought was that it was kind of a tackily conspicuous reminder to pay those offerings!
I had about 10 minutes to enjoy some absolutely beautiful choral prelude music, which was unique in that there was no accompaniment at all. They sounded great, and I am beginning to think that my favorite part of this church tour is all the different kinds of music I get to listen to.
I noticed as people moseyed in that everyone had a copy of this yellow book with “The Story” written across the front. I recognized the design as matching the church’s website, and at first I thought it was strange to have everyone bringing a book other than the Bible to church. (Full disclosure: I thought it was a sly mercenary tactic. I repented of that thought when I found out what it really was.) I asked the lady next to me about the book, and she explained that essentially it was an abridged, chronological version of the Bible that reads like a novel, complete with brown ink and ragged page edges. Interesting.We opened with prayer and then we all stood and sang several worship songs along with the choir. An elder indicated that the offering would be taken now (though there was no injunction to consider our financial priorities, etc. to accompany this announcement), and during this time a video played promoting a Christian conference coming to San Antonio this year. I was surprised to see that to collect the offering they were passing around deep, woven baskets rather than the golden plates I had seen.
We had a moment to shake hands and say hello to the people around us, and then Max Lucado (yes, the Max Lucado, of You Are Special fame) took the stage. He is not the regular Oak Hills preacher anymore, but he was filling in this week, which is why I chose to go when I did. He asked everyone to hold up either a copy of the Bible or a copy of The Story—way to go for accountability!
This week was a discussion of Chapter 19 of The Story, “The Return Home,” which encompasses Ezra 1¬–6, Haggai 1–2, and Zechariah 1 and 8. Everyone was supposed to have read it. Lucado gave what I thought was an insightful, doctrinally-based sermon on making sure that we keep God’s priorities our priorities.
After he finished, they passed around the communion, which I repentantly noticed came around in the golden plates I had seen earlier. With a humble pang I realized that after coming here once, you remember communion as you come in and see those stacks of golden plates throughout the room, not the offering as I had thought. The “bread” consisted of little wafer-crackers about the size of a Chiclet, and the “wine” was grape juice (I think) that came in tiny plastic cups.
Then it was time for silent prayer, or you could step into the aisle to pray with an elder if you chose. Lucado then came back to the stage to sum up the message: it’s never too late to set your priorities right and start putting God in the center of your life. We were dismissed after a closing prayer.
I was intrigued by The Story book, and I had every intention of visiting the church bookstore (the greeter had brought its existence to my attention) to pick up my own copy, Sabbath or not. But just as I was scribbling a few notes after the closing prayer, the woman who I had asked about the book struck up a conversation with me. She asked me what I had thought of the service, and what had brought me to Oak Hills today. I told her I enjoyed it quite a bit, and that I had heard a lot of good things about Lucado and I knew a lot of people who attended this church. She told me that the regular preacher is just as good and has a style similar to Lucado’s. I told her I liked Lucado’s Bible-based teachings, and that The Story was intriguing to me. I was just about to say, “I think I’m going to go buy a copy for myself” when, with a shaking hand, she passed me her copy and said, “Keep this. And come on back.”
I expressed my gratitude as best I could and she left. I was deeply touched by this gesture, especially because I could tell that for her, this was a nerve-wracking Gospel sharing moment. Not only did I appreciate her generosity in giving me her copy of the book, but even more I was touched by the courage it obviously took to share a Christian message and invite me to come back. She seemed to feel a sense of accomplishment at mustering up the guts to give her book away, a feeling I can relate to. I sat back on the chair and had a good little cry, that’s how moved I was. That woman may have done more for my own courage to share the Gospel than anyone else in my life so far.
What I got out of it
Like I said, Lucado was wonderful. I didn’t feel like he was performing, not for a minute. He obviously knew the Bible, but he wasn’t haughty at all. His delivery was engaging, but I felt drawn to the message rather than the speaker.
He spoke of the Jews returning to Judea from Babylon with the intent to rebuild Solomon’s temple. They started off okay, but as time went on they got caught up in their lives and the temple was neglected for 16 years. Well, it turns out that they didn’t prosper so much during that time, because when we “let God’s big things become our small things,” we end up feeling unfulfilled—that’s God’s way of reminding us that we should put him at the center of things, and then the rest of life falls into place.
I was impressed with his ability to tell this Old Testament story (which I’m sure I’d heard, but I can’t keep all that temple building and Babylon-and-back straight) while applying it to modern life. This guy is excellent at likening the scriptures to our own lives.
What was even more interesting was his discussion of the temple. Why a temple? Lucado asked. It was 1) “a teaching aid” for Israel, and 2) evidence of “God’s desire for proximity” to his people. “What do you know about the temple?” he asked. “Hmm…” I thought.
“Could just anyone go into the Holy of Holies?” he asked. No, obviously. The temple, he said again, was a teaching tool and a type for Christ and the shedding of Christ’s blood.
This is the second time in my experience with mainstream Christianity that I have been impressed by how non-LDS Bible scholars’ interpretation of the ancient temple parallels the LDS understanding of the purpose of modern temples—at least the symbolism aspect of it. The other time was in the manual for a Bible study I participated in last year. It’s… reassuring.
It was interesting, though, to hear Lucado say that “God no longer uses a temple of stone and mortar”—instead, we are the “living temple.” We ought to “build God’s temple in San Antonio,” and reach the city and “let God’s temple permeate San Antonio.” I imagine this idea comes from 1 Corinthians 3:16, but to me it seemed kind of abstract. I might have been affected by the little voice in my head that said, “But there IS a temple of stone and mortar in San Antonio!”
Other thoughts
I haven’t read any of The Story yet, but I think it’s a great idea—at least to get a big picture of the Bible narrative. Besides, who could pass up a “good story…filled with intrigue, drama, conflict, romance, and redemption”? (That’s from the back cover.)
After the service I strolled around the Oak Hills campus, which is huge. It includes indoor and outdoor play areas, coffee, a bookstore, a library, some nicely landscaped garden areas, offices, and four wings for Bible study by age group. It almost felt like a mall. But it’s an impressive and beautiful building.
If you live in San Antonio, I encourage you to visit. If you want a buddy to come along, let me know—I’d like to go again.
Broadcasts of the three most recent sermons are available online at http://www.thestorynow.net/.
