"Risk Exposure" and the Church, Part 2

In our last post, we discussed the concept of “risk exposure” as it relates to today’s church. Just as for any other living body, the church cannot truly thrive unless it is regularly exposed to risk, inconvenience, and danger. A simple look at either the natural world or the church itself will readily attest to the truth of this concept.

Without exception, as one scans the globe searching for the most vibrant and living examples of the Spirit of God at work, those churches that “live on the edge of chaos” will always be the greatest examples of the Body of Christ in action. It’s a natural fact of life that when human beings are placed in situations of challenge and danger, they bond together in ways that cannot occur under normal circumstances. The greatest examples of true community, then, will not be found in American churches, but will be found in the persecuted church, for it is only when the church is forced to step out of its comfort zone that real community will develop. In a personal sense, challenge in our lives is just as vital; our greatest spiritual growth occurs when we are stretched and placed in situations that build our faith. As the old adage goes, “What does not kill you makes you stronger.”

This concept of the importance of “risk exposure” is a basic concept that all reasonable readers can accept. However, it is ironic that our suburban churches are built on the exact opposite line of thinking. To a large extent, our churches are closed systems, peculiar cultures with little to no interaction with the outside world. These cloistered systems are maintained by cloistered individuals themselves (the clergy), who seek for stability, cleanliness, and convenience in all of the church’s ministries. When challenge comes to their people, however, they often have trouble adapting to these threats and seem to wither away under the pressure. For those who doubt this premise, look no further than the failing of our cloistered children and youth ministries in this country. Study after study shows that of children who are raised in a youth program their entire lives, 88% of them leave the church after their graduation from high school and do not return.

Yet the thinking persists in our suburban Christian culture that if we can protect our children in the safety of children’s church and youth group, they will grow up to be the spiritually sensitive adults we long for them to be. If we can find a high quality, comfortable, clean, and convenient spiritual home that meets our needs and our family’s needs, we think, we and our children will experience the deeper life with God He has created us for. Nothing, however, could be further from the truth.

Just as church history shows, it’s only when we experience church life on the fringes, when we relinquish our own desires and needs in a desperate attempt to bring God’s kingdom to earth that we as the church truly encounter God. It is only when we band together with other believers on a dangerous journey to a unknown place that we will experience true community. It’s only when we and our families are willing to risk all we have that we will become all God has intended us to be. As Hirsch says, “we cannot consume our way into discipleship.” For as Jesus said, it is only when we lose our life that we will truly find it.

With the words of Jesus as a backdrop, we will explore a more Biblical view of the church in our next post.