Churches across the country hold a variety of individuals. There are those who “play church” with the goal of being entertained, some who “do church” like checking off a to-do list, and others who avoid church all together. The modern church faces the same lax of character the church of Corinth encountered in the first century. In his first letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul urged Christians to step up and “be the church.”

The church of Corinth was corrupt, divided and faced overwhelming immoral obstacles. The Apostle Paul addressed these issues and challenged the Corinthians to have more of an affect within their community rather than being affected by worldly desires.

Dr. Mark Hearn draws from Paul’s profound letter in Being Church 101 where he tackles such themes as church divisions, deterioration of the family unit, disorderly worship services, immorality, and doctrinal differences. Dr. Hearn’s accessible style and knowledge of scripture sheds light on how Christians can live extraordinary and enriched lives while making an even greater impact within our communities.

Known for his poignant teaching and heart for ministry, Dr. Mark Hearn has served as senior pastor within Southern Baptist churches across the country for 28 years. Currently he is the pastor of Northside Baptist Church, which is the largest Southern Baptist church in Indianapolis.

Dr. Hearn has served in the past as adjunct professor of Evangelism and Discipleship at both Crossroads Bible College in Indianapolis and Oklahoma Baptist University. He is also the former president of the State Convention of Baptists in Indiana and past first vice president of the Georgia Baptist Convention. He is a graduate of Carson-Newman Collage (BA), Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (M. Div.) and Luther Rice Seminary (D. Min.).

He and his wife, Glenda, have four grown daughters and three grandsons.

The title of this book is Being Church 101. That may sound a little unusual, but it is rooted in Paul’s advice to the Church at Corinth and his instructions to the people to be the church. “Being church” is not a phrase we usually hear. Some people merely play church. Remember in your childhood days how you played school or house. Maybe you even played church where someone sat in a pew and someone got to be the song leader and someone was the preacher. For some it is still a game. They ask, “How fast can I get there and how fast can I get home?” I remember a comment from one chairman of the ushers in a church I once attended. “Pastor, can we open up the doors during the closing prayer? People are going to hurt themselves trying to get out of here,” he said.

For some people, church life is all about the game. Since the 1930s, Gallup has asked Americans in its annual poll, “Do you attend church regularly?” The consistent result has shown that about 40 percent of Americans attend church regularly. Now attendance goes up a little bit at times and down a little bit at times, but remarkably, it has remained at this level for more than seven decades. But the survey also has found that today only about 20 percent of Americans actually attend church even though 40 percent say that they attend regularly. So Gallup’s researchers decided that they would come up with some follow-up questions, including, “What do you consider to be regular church attendance?” People offered some interesting answers to that one. “Well, I usually go,” or “Weddings and funerals I’m there.” Some even some counted church picnics and carnivals on the church parking lot.¹ You might say that these people are just playing church. For them, attending church is just about having a good time.

Other people avoid church. Did you realize that 60 percent of regular church attendees become church dropouts during their years between high school and twenty-one years of age? It is interesting that among these young American adults, 80 percent says religious faith is “very important.”² So 80 percent says religious faith is very important, but six in ten of them have dropped out of the church. What does that say for the church?