As Bill Easum has said, “it’s futile trying to revitalize the church, or a denomination, without first changing the system.” So what might a new paradigm or “systems story” look like for the church today that would reverse decades of its decline in the West?
As we’ve discussed, the dominant model of church today is the same that has been in use for thousands of years previous; church as event-driven place, or a Sunday morning service. But perhaps a more Biblical paradigm of the church is one of an organic, living organism rather than a static, calcified institution. Never in Scripture is the church reduced to an attractional once-a-week service; rather, it is constantly described as an organic, subversive movement.
Examples of this organic paradigm abound in Scripture. For instance, in contrast to the cold edifice of the ancient Jewish temple, the temple of Jesus is made of “living stones”, I Peter tells us (2:5). We see Jesus repeatedly using organic and agricultural imagery in describing the Kingdom of God. In Matthew 13, for instance, Jesus uses metaphors of leaven, wheat, and seed to describe His church. We’re told in this passage that “the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed” (13:31). The mustard plant was the “smallest of all seeds” that was known for its invasive nature, most akin to a wild weed or crabgrass today that spreads rapidly with very little effort. In fact, it was against Jewish law to plant mustard in one’s garden as it would quickly spread and take over the entire garden due to its invasive nature. Jesus is telling us in this passage that His church is not an attractional institution, but a wild, invasive weed; “a subtle contagion” that spreads one life at a time. The church of God, Christ teaches us, should be a subversive movement that is able to readily disassemble itself and seep into the cracks and crevices of society, as difficult to stop as a mustard plant or crabgrass invading one’s garden. This stands in stark contrast to a static institution that is unable to reproduce itself without the aid of an attractional Sunday morning service.
Similarly, in Mark 4:26-29, Christ compares the kingdom to growing seed that grows “all by itself”, irrespective of the sower’s efforts. In this parable of growing seed, we see a man who sows seed, sleeps at night, and wakes in the morning completely unaware of how the seed grows. As Neil Cole says, this parable describes a farmer who is “clueless and sleeping on the job”, yet the work grows greater than in his wildest dreams. The message is clear: the work of Christ’s church grows independent of our strategies. The kingdom of God does not grow by carefully crafted ministries, state of the art buildings, or professional Sunday morning productions, but rather it spreads as an undercover people movement that spreads subversively from one life to another. The Jesus revolution is truly a living people movement; like ordinary leaven in ordinary bread (Matt. 13:13), it spreads in an organic fashion, all by itself, one life at a time.
Building on this idea of the church of God as an organic people movement, we’ll continue to explore what a new paradigm of the church might look like in our next post.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Saturday, March 26, 2011
A Call For A New Paradigm
In our last post, we proposed the idea that the dominant Sunday morning service model of the church is neither Biblical nor unbiblical, but rather abiblical. If “church as we know it” is just one of many viable models of “doing church,” what might new, alternative models look like?
Historically, radical innovation on the existing framework of the Sunday morning church model has been largely absent. To be sure, tremendous strides have been made in the last few decades in shedding the unnecessary traditions of the past as the “seeker sensitive” revolution has taken hold. However, even these advancements have left the existing Sunday morning service paradigm of the church intact. Though the surrounding culture has undergone dramatic change over two thousand years since the current model of church was instituted, the basic framework of the church’s meetings, such as the “worship set”, the sermon, and even the order of service, has been largely unaltered since.
Even the most progressive attempts at change in the church today focus on tweaking the existing structure: more cutting edge music, more relevant messages, and more attractive outreach events, to name a few. However, nearly all these attempts leave the underlying assumptions of the nature of church intact. Namely, this main underlying assumption is that church is not an organic people movement, but an institution, consisting of a weekly attractional Sunday morning service in a specially dedicated building conducted by paid religious professionals lasting 70-90 minutes. This institutional paradigm is almost completely fixed in most churches today, even in those that would consider themselves the most progressive.
This underlying assumption that church is an attractional institution is why true, lasting change is so hard to come by in today’s church. Unless this underlying belief is exchanged for a new one, a very limited amount of change will be possible. Though initially a church may attempt to change its way of doing business, these efforts generally produce only temporary change. After the novelty of these measures wear off, however, inertia takes over and the church tends to fall back into its previous state. This is true for any organization, church or business: lasting change cannot occur if the underlying assumptions and paradigm stay the same. More than any other, this institutional paradigm in the minds of many observers is the chief reason that the vast majority of Christian institutions throughout history are nearly incapable of significant growth and change. As Bill Easum says, “it’s futile trying to revitalize the church, or a denomination, without first changing the system.”
But what might a new paradigm for the church, a new “systems story”, look like for today’s church? We’ll continue this discussion in our next post.
Historically, radical innovation on the existing framework of the Sunday morning church model has been largely absent. To be sure, tremendous strides have been made in the last few decades in shedding the unnecessary traditions of the past as the “seeker sensitive” revolution has taken hold. However, even these advancements have left the existing Sunday morning service paradigm of the church intact. Though the surrounding culture has undergone dramatic change over two thousand years since the current model of church was instituted, the basic framework of the church’s meetings, such as the “worship set”, the sermon, and even the order of service, has been largely unaltered since.
Even the most progressive attempts at change in the church today focus on tweaking the existing structure: more cutting edge music, more relevant messages, and more attractive outreach events, to name a few. However, nearly all these attempts leave the underlying assumptions of the nature of church intact. Namely, this main underlying assumption is that church is not an organic people movement, but an institution, consisting of a weekly attractional Sunday morning service in a specially dedicated building conducted by paid religious professionals lasting 70-90 minutes. This institutional paradigm is almost completely fixed in most churches today, even in those that would consider themselves the most progressive.
This underlying assumption that church is an attractional institution is why true, lasting change is so hard to come by in today’s church. Unless this underlying belief is exchanged for a new one, a very limited amount of change will be possible. Though initially a church may attempt to change its way of doing business, these efforts generally produce only temporary change. After the novelty of these measures wear off, however, inertia takes over and the church tends to fall back into its previous state. This is true for any organization, church or business: lasting change cannot occur if the underlying assumptions and paradigm stay the same. More than any other, this institutional paradigm in the minds of many observers is the chief reason that the vast majority of Christian institutions throughout history are nearly incapable of significant growth and change. As Bill Easum says, “it’s futile trying to revitalize the church, or a denomination, without first changing the system.”
But what might a new paradigm for the church, a new “systems story”, look like for today’s church? We’ll continue this discussion in our next post.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Church As We Know It
It is said that “old habits die hard.” Nowhere is this old adage more true than in that strange Sunday morning subculture known as “church”. To this day, centuries old traditions dominate our churches, and to suggest any changes to these long standing paradigms remains anathema in the minds of many. Yet it is these longstanding traditions, or “church as we know it”, that pose the greatest obstacles to the church realizing its call of “making disciples of all nations” as Christ has called it to do.
What is a church? Line up ten believers and ask them this question, and chances are, you’ll get the patent theologically correct answer: “a church is any body of believers meeting in the name of Christ.” This answer is doubtless the correct one and the Biblical one, to which almost all of us would be in agreement. However, a completely different definition of church would be closer to our actual practice today: “church is an attractional event that meets once a week in a specially dedicated building, run by paid religious professionals, lasting 70-90 minutes in duration.” Perhaps that answer would be more in harmony with the attitudes and underlying paradigms at work in the vast majority of churches today.
Clearly, all of us realize that church is much more than a service once a week. Yet suggest any other template for a new church plant, and expect some confused looks from listeners. “How can a church be a church without a building? How can it be a viable community without a paid pastor? Certainly there must be a sermon of 30-40 minutes duration.” These are the objections, if not spoken, that would be common in the minds of many. It’s exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for Christians today to conceive of church without the traditional Sunday morning service. Remove these dominant features of the Sunday morning service, take away the minister, remove the three-song worship set, and subtract the thimble and wafer known as communion, and many would cease to define the remains as church any longer.
The efforts of today’s church, in distinction to the New Testament model, revolve completely around the Sunday morning service. Think of the effort, time, and resources that is poured into a single hour service once a week. Given the tremendous importance that we place on this one weekly event, you would expect that Scripture would be chock full of references that guide us in how this event should be done. But curiously, there are none. When one looks at Scripture, one will search in vain for commands on how to pull off the important weekly event we commonly know as “church,” but hundreds on how we should live in community and honor God with our lives together. To quote William Law, a mentor of John Wesley: “it is very observable that there is not one command in all the Gospel for public worship; and perhaps it is a duty that is least insisted upon in Scripture of any other. The frequent attendance at it is never so much as mentioned in all the New Testament, whereas that religion or devotion which is to govern the ordinary actions of our life is be found in almost every verse of Scripture.” The focus of the New Testament church is not on a Sunday morning service, but in honoring God as we live in community with one another. To the early church, church was not a service meeting once a week, but an organic movement of “called out ones” demonstrating their faith in everyday, yet radical ways. The focus of the early church was on living together in community rather than Sunday morning processes.
It is clear that the Bible neither prescribes nor promotes the traditional model of the local church as we know it today. The current Sunday morning service of church so prevalent in the Western world is neither Biblical nor unbiblical, but rather abiblical. “Church as we know it” is just one interpretation that human beings have devised on how to live a godly life in community, and nowhere are we commanded that the dominant Sunday morning service paradigm is the only viable model for being the church together. As priests of the Lord, the church has freedom and latitude to use whatever means necessary, including modifying the basic blueprint of its meetings and structure if it means greater missional impact and greater growth in its members.
But would a new paradigm look like for today’s church? We will continue to explore this in our next post.
What is a church? Line up ten believers and ask them this question, and chances are, you’ll get the patent theologically correct answer: “a church is any body of believers meeting in the name of Christ.” This answer is doubtless the correct one and the Biblical one, to which almost all of us would be in agreement. However, a completely different definition of church would be closer to our actual practice today: “church is an attractional event that meets once a week in a specially dedicated building, run by paid religious professionals, lasting 70-90 minutes in duration.” Perhaps that answer would be more in harmony with the attitudes and underlying paradigms at work in the vast majority of churches today.
Clearly, all of us realize that church is much more than a service once a week. Yet suggest any other template for a new church plant, and expect some confused looks from listeners. “How can a church be a church without a building? How can it be a viable community without a paid pastor? Certainly there must be a sermon of 30-40 minutes duration.” These are the objections, if not spoken, that would be common in the minds of many. It’s exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for Christians today to conceive of church without the traditional Sunday morning service. Remove these dominant features of the Sunday morning service, take away the minister, remove the three-song worship set, and subtract the thimble and wafer known as communion, and many would cease to define the remains as church any longer.
The efforts of today’s church, in distinction to the New Testament model, revolve completely around the Sunday morning service. Think of the effort, time, and resources that is poured into a single hour service once a week. Given the tremendous importance that we place on this one weekly event, you would expect that Scripture would be chock full of references that guide us in how this event should be done. But curiously, there are none. When one looks at Scripture, one will search in vain for commands on how to pull off the important weekly event we commonly know as “church,” but hundreds on how we should live in community and honor God with our lives together. To quote William Law, a mentor of John Wesley: “it is very observable that there is not one command in all the Gospel for public worship; and perhaps it is a duty that is least insisted upon in Scripture of any other. The frequent attendance at it is never so much as mentioned in all the New Testament, whereas that religion or devotion which is to govern the ordinary actions of our life is be found in almost every verse of Scripture.” The focus of the New Testament church is not on a Sunday morning service, but in honoring God as we live in community with one another. To the early church, church was not a service meeting once a week, but an organic movement of “called out ones” demonstrating their faith in everyday, yet radical ways. The focus of the early church was on living together in community rather than Sunday morning processes.
It is clear that the Bible neither prescribes nor promotes the traditional model of the local church as we know it today. The current Sunday morning service of church so prevalent in the Western world is neither Biblical nor unbiblical, but rather abiblical. “Church as we know it” is just one interpretation that human beings have devised on how to live a godly life in community, and nowhere are we commanded that the dominant Sunday morning service paradigm is the only viable model for being the church together. As priests of the Lord, the church has freedom and latitude to use whatever means necessary, including modifying the basic blueprint of its meetings and structure if it means greater missional impact and greater growth in its members.
But would a new paradigm look like for today’s church? We will continue to explore this in our next post.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Growth vs. Mission, Part 3
We've been exploring the supposed tension between discipleship and evangelism in our last few posts. Which should the church pursue first: outreach or growth? Should evangelism or discipleship be the church's focus? As we discussed, once we understand the call of Jesus as a call to intimate relationship with Himself rather than a mere change in our eternal address, we quickly find that the pursuit of discipleship and missional outreach is in fact one and the same.
What would be some of the practical results in our lives if we truly believed that discipleship and evangelism are one and the same? First, our message would take on the radical, dramatic nature that our Leader always intended it to be. As Jesus said, "those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples" (Luke 14:33). Rather than softpedaling the gospel, proclaiming such a radical call to discipleship conveys a far more difficult message; it's far easier to say a prayer to obtain "fire insurance" than to leave everything to follow Jesus! Though this call to discipleship might be radical and difficult for many to accept, it is at the same time a message that the world around us longs to hear. To paraphrase Shane Claiborne, our problem is not that we challenge people too much, but that we don't challenge them enough! The world will not beat down our door for legal or doctrinal requirements, but they will beat down our door if we demonstrate an earnest, intimate, and personal relationship with our God! This is what prompted the disciples, after witnessing Jesus' deep connection to the Father, to ask "Lord, teach us to pray" (Lk. 11:1). If we as Christians were to be known as people of love, depth, and intimate connection to God, we can expect nothing less than was the case with our Leader.
Second, our definition of what constitutes “the church” would undergo a radical shift. Traditionally, evangelism has been defined as the attempt to bring people across the line of faith in Jesus, or as coarse as it may sound, to “bring people into the club” of the church. Once they cross the line of faith, the next goal in the sequence becomes spiritual growth and discipleship in the ways of Jesus. Obviously, such thinking assumes a fenced or “bounded set” view of the church, where a clear line or fence exists between those inside the church and outside the church. Though this fenced definition of the church has validity to some extent (one is not truly part of the “Body of Christ” unless they actually have crossed that line of faith, for instance), it is only of value if we are concerned with the bare minimum requirements for salvation. And as we have discussed, Jesus calls human beings to loving relationship with Himself, an offer and challenge that transcends the bare minimum requirements of law.
However, once we understand the call of Jesus as the same call to radical discipleship for both those inside and outside the church, we will naturally exchange our traditional bounded set view of the church for one of a centered set, or movement towards the “well” of Jesus. In this centered set view of the church, a church community ceases to be defined as a people who have crossed a mere doctrinal boundary, but as a radical discipleship movement towards this center “well” of Jesus Himself. Under this model, all are welcome in the church who are moving towards the well of Jesus, irrespective of their distance from Him. Conversely, those who are moving away from the well (even if right next to the well originally!) can expect to be challenged and corrected in such a community. Most importantly, the centered set model removes the too-prevalent “us vs. them” mentality and allows the church to incarnate Jesus to a watching world while losing none of the Body of Christ’s identity in the process.
Thirdly, if we really believed discipleship and outreach were one and the same, we as Christians would quickly be liberated from the "pressure to evangelize." When “sharing our faith” is reduced to a persuasive sales pitch to “make a decision” for Jesus, such efforts naturally take the form of pressure to both ourselves and our listeners. Most of us know that feeling of anxiety rising in the pit of our stomach when spiritual topics arise in conversation in the workplace, for instance; in the traditional evangelism paradigm, a clever turn of the conversation towards the person of Jesus becomes the very essence of outreach! “All of the effort I have put into this relationship now comes down to this moment!”, we reason. When “putting in a word for Jesus” in hopes of a conversion becomes our focus in this way, we naturally will feel immense pressure and anxiety in that moment.
However, when we recognize Jesus calls mankind to discipleship rather than a mere decision, outreach and mission takes an entirely different, pressure-free form. Since Jesus calls us to make disciples rather than converts, I am now free to simply share the work of God in my own life, and can do so in a free, non-anxious, non-coercive manner. I can now share this work no less freely than I do with my believing friends or family, as I recognize the call of Jesus upon our lives as the same call He extends to those far from Him! As I see the work of God in every person around me, calling them to devotion to Himself, I can now affirm that wooing of the Spirit wherever it is encountered, helping those around me recognize the call of Jesus on that level of their deepest desires. When we exchange the evangelism paradigm for one of discipleship, sharing the legal requirements of salvation in every situation is no longer mandatory, and I am now free to exhibit with my life as well what devotion to Jesus looks like. Needless to say, such a pressure free approach naturally would produce a response to the gospel that coercive sales pitches cannot.
By His grace, may His church truly understand and accept His call to discipleship in this way, and seek to make disciples of all nations as our Leader has commanded!
What would be some of the practical results in our lives if we truly believed that discipleship and evangelism are one and the same? First, our message would take on the radical, dramatic nature that our Leader always intended it to be. As Jesus said, "those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples" (Luke 14:33). Rather than softpedaling the gospel, proclaiming such a radical call to discipleship conveys a far more difficult message; it's far easier to say a prayer to obtain "fire insurance" than to leave everything to follow Jesus! Though this call to discipleship might be radical and difficult for many to accept, it is at the same time a message that the world around us longs to hear. To paraphrase Shane Claiborne, our problem is not that we challenge people too much, but that we don't challenge them enough! The world will not beat down our door for legal or doctrinal requirements, but they will beat down our door if we demonstrate an earnest, intimate, and personal relationship with our God! This is what prompted the disciples, after witnessing Jesus' deep connection to the Father, to ask "Lord, teach us to pray" (Lk. 11:1). If we as Christians were to be known as people of love, depth, and intimate connection to God, we can expect nothing less than was the case with our Leader.
Second, our definition of what constitutes “the church” would undergo a radical shift. Traditionally, evangelism has been defined as the attempt to bring people across the line of faith in Jesus, or as coarse as it may sound, to “bring people into the club” of the church. Once they cross the line of faith, the next goal in the sequence becomes spiritual growth and discipleship in the ways of Jesus. Obviously, such thinking assumes a fenced or “bounded set” view of the church, where a clear line or fence exists between those inside the church and outside the church. Though this fenced definition of the church has validity to some extent (one is not truly part of the “Body of Christ” unless they actually have crossed that line of faith, for instance), it is only of value if we are concerned with the bare minimum requirements for salvation. And as we have discussed, Jesus calls human beings to loving relationship with Himself, an offer and challenge that transcends the bare minimum requirements of law.
However, once we understand the call of Jesus as the same call to radical discipleship for both those inside and outside the church, we will naturally exchange our traditional bounded set view of the church for one of a centered set, or movement towards the “well” of Jesus. In this centered set view of the church, a church community ceases to be defined as a people who have crossed a mere doctrinal boundary, but as a radical discipleship movement towards this center “well” of Jesus Himself. Under this model, all are welcome in the church who are moving towards the well of Jesus, irrespective of their distance from Him. Conversely, those who are moving away from the well (even if right next to the well originally!) can expect to be challenged and corrected in such a community. Most importantly, the centered set model removes the too-prevalent “us vs. them” mentality and allows the church to incarnate Jesus to a watching world while losing none of the Body of Christ’s identity in the process.
Thirdly, if we really believed discipleship and outreach were one and the same, we as Christians would quickly be liberated from the "pressure to evangelize." When “sharing our faith” is reduced to a persuasive sales pitch to “make a decision” for Jesus, such efforts naturally take the form of pressure to both ourselves and our listeners. Most of us know that feeling of anxiety rising in the pit of our stomach when spiritual topics arise in conversation in the workplace, for instance; in the traditional evangelism paradigm, a clever turn of the conversation towards the person of Jesus becomes the very essence of outreach! “All of the effort I have put into this relationship now comes down to this moment!”, we reason. When “putting in a word for Jesus” in hopes of a conversion becomes our focus in this way, we naturally will feel immense pressure and anxiety in that moment.
However, when we recognize Jesus calls mankind to discipleship rather than a mere decision, outreach and mission takes an entirely different, pressure-free form. Since Jesus calls us to make disciples rather than converts, I am now free to simply share the work of God in my own life, and can do so in a free, non-anxious, non-coercive manner. I can now share this work no less freely than I do with my believing friends or family, as I recognize the call of Jesus upon our lives as the same call He extends to those far from Him! As I see the work of God in every person around me, calling them to devotion to Himself, I can now affirm that wooing of the Spirit wherever it is encountered, helping those around me recognize the call of Jesus on that level of their deepest desires. When we exchange the evangelism paradigm for one of discipleship, sharing the legal requirements of salvation in every situation is no longer mandatory, and I am now free to exhibit with my life as well what devotion to Jesus looks like. Needless to say, such a pressure free approach naturally would produce a response to the gospel that coercive sales pitches cannot.
By His grace, may His church truly understand and accept His call to discipleship in this way, and seek to make disciples of all nations as our Leader has commanded!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Growth vs. Mission- Part 2
So as we began to discuss in our last post: which should be the primary focus of the church: growth or evangelism? Is discipleship at odds with outreach...or should they in fact be one and the same? As Ed Waken says, "Discipleship is the new evangelism." Is this in fact correct?
I was in a discussion with a friend of mine recently that gave me a new insight into this question. Our discussion revolved around the age-old question, "who really is a Christian?" As we sought to answer this question, we came to Matthew 7, where Jesus says some of the most sobering words in all of Scripture: "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!" (Matt. 7:21,22). In this passage, Jesus' point is evident: Jesus cares little for religious and outward acts of obedience, but will have only one interest on the day of judgment: did we truly know Him? Obviously, such knowing is not a mere intellectual understanding or belief of things about Him; as James says, "the devils also believe [in such a sense], and tremble" (Jas. 2:19). Just because I know where my wife was born, her date of birth, and so on does not mean I truly know her; to know her on a personal level is a level of intimacy that far surpasses mere intellectual understanding. Thus, it's clear that Jesus' point is that He will care little on that day about our moral achievements, but will only be interested in the depth of our relationship with Him; did we know Him, and live in intimate, loving relationship with Him? As many have rightly said, Jesus came to offer us not religion, but relationship; an intimate relationship with the King of the Universe. Just as Paul counted his previous religious accomplishments as "rubbish... compared to "the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord" (Phil. 3:7), there is only one thing that matters to our Lord: that we learn to walk in a loving relationship with our Him our Friend and King. This love relationship is the ultimate goal and purpose of the redemption Christ purchased for us at the Cross.
After we discussed these ideas, we then asked the obvious next question: what does it look like to know and be in relationship with Jesus in this way? If those who are truly "in Christ" are only those who are truly in relationship with Him, how can we know if that is indeed us? Where is the dividing line between the "saved" and "unsaved"? Perhaps you have wrestled with this very question. If the only thing Jesus cares about is if we are in relationship with Him...then where do you draw the line between real believers and just pretenders? To religious and analytical minds like you and me, face it: we naturally want a dividing line less nebulous and ill-defined. At the end of the day, we really want to know who's in and who's out, don't we?
However, behind all these questions lies our real question: what is the bare, irreducible minimum for salvation? What is the least I must do to make it to Heaven when I die? If our only aim is to discover the minimum requirements for "knowing Jesus," then to quote Paul in a different context "we are of all men most miserable" (1 Cor. 15:19). In fact, one wonders if we can truly know Jesus personally at all while asking such questions, for pursuit of the bare minimum stands diametrically opposed to the concept of love itself. If I were to ask my wife, "what is the bare minimum I have to do to love you?", clearly that proves I do not understand love to begin with, does it not? Rather, if I truly love my wife, I will not need a checklist of requirements to relate to her properly. Similarly, instead of seeking to understand the bare minimum requirements for salvation, should we not rather be asking how a passionate, radical, and loving relationship with Jesus is truly pursued...as this is all Jesus desires for us anyway?
Sadly, the vast majority of what the church has traditionally called "evangelism" over the last few decades has revolved around this same preoccupation with these bare minimum legal requirements. Over the last few decades, we have reduced "believing in Jesus" to merely accepting doctrinal requirements rather than the passionate pursuit of a reckless Lover. In our obsession over winning "converts" to Jesus and seeing them resultingly cross over from death to life (at least in the sense of their eternal destiny, but when limited to this is a diminished understanding of eternal life!), we have come to implicitly view salvation as a end to itself, rather than the mere beginning of God's ultimate goal of a loving relationship with Him. Is it any wonder that with this "minimum requirement" view of salvation, being largely content to just get people over the "official" line of faith, that we've so longed proclaimed we find discipleship and outreach at odds?
So which should the church pursue first: outreach or growth? Evangelism or discipleship? If, as already discussed, mankind living in loving relationship with Himself is God's ultimate desire, should we not stress the call of Jesus to discipleship and loving devotion to Himself...rather than the calcified bare minimum requirements for salvation? Is getting people to confess Christ and say a prayer all it's cracked up to be? God has a far more glorious call to us than this "fire insurance" mentality! Maybe this is why Jesus said "go into all the world and make disciples" rather than "go into all the world and preach salvation," for His call to follow Himself is issued equally to both believer and unbeliever. Indeed, our salvation is found in our discipleship! When we understand salvation as this overarching call to discipleship, the supposed tension between discipleship and evangelism quickly vanish. In the light of Christ's call to relationship with Himself, we find that the pursuit of spiritual growth and missional outreach is in fact one and the same.
So with such theological conclusions in hand, how should they affect our walk with Jesus and our missional impact in the world? What implications does it have? We will discuss this further in our next post.
I was in a discussion with a friend of mine recently that gave me a new insight into this question. Our discussion revolved around the age-old question, "who really is a Christian?" As we sought to answer this question, we came to Matthew 7, where Jesus says some of the most sobering words in all of Scripture: "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!" (Matt. 7:21,22). In this passage, Jesus' point is evident: Jesus cares little for religious and outward acts of obedience, but will have only one interest on the day of judgment: did we truly know Him? Obviously, such knowing is not a mere intellectual understanding or belief of things about Him; as James says, "the devils also believe [in such a sense], and tremble" (Jas. 2:19). Just because I know where my wife was born, her date of birth, and so on does not mean I truly know her; to know her on a personal level is a level of intimacy that far surpasses mere intellectual understanding. Thus, it's clear that Jesus' point is that He will care little on that day about our moral achievements, but will only be interested in the depth of our relationship with Him; did we know Him, and live in intimate, loving relationship with Him? As many have rightly said, Jesus came to offer us not religion, but relationship; an intimate relationship with the King of the Universe. Just as Paul counted his previous religious accomplishments as "rubbish... compared to "the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord" (Phil. 3:7), there is only one thing that matters to our Lord: that we learn to walk in a loving relationship with our Him our Friend and King. This love relationship is the ultimate goal and purpose of the redemption Christ purchased for us at the Cross.
After we discussed these ideas, we then asked the obvious next question: what does it look like to know and be in relationship with Jesus in this way? If those who are truly "in Christ" are only those who are truly in relationship with Him, how can we know if that is indeed us? Where is the dividing line between the "saved" and "unsaved"? Perhaps you have wrestled with this very question. If the only thing Jesus cares about is if we are in relationship with Him...then where do you draw the line between real believers and just pretenders? To religious and analytical minds like you and me, face it: we naturally want a dividing line less nebulous and ill-defined. At the end of the day, we really want to know who's in and who's out, don't we?
However, behind all these questions lies our real question: what is the bare, irreducible minimum for salvation? What is the least I must do to make it to Heaven when I die? If our only aim is to discover the minimum requirements for "knowing Jesus," then to quote Paul in a different context "we are of all men most miserable" (1 Cor. 15:19). In fact, one wonders if we can truly know Jesus personally at all while asking such questions, for pursuit of the bare minimum stands diametrically opposed to the concept of love itself. If I were to ask my wife, "what is the bare minimum I have to do to love you?", clearly that proves I do not understand love to begin with, does it not? Rather, if I truly love my wife, I will not need a checklist of requirements to relate to her properly. Similarly, instead of seeking to understand the bare minimum requirements for salvation, should we not rather be asking how a passionate, radical, and loving relationship with Jesus is truly pursued...as this is all Jesus desires for us anyway?
Sadly, the vast majority of what the church has traditionally called "evangelism" over the last few decades has revolved around this same preoccupation with these bare minimum legal requirements. Over the last few decades, we have reduced "believing in Jesus" to merely accepting doctrinal requirements rather than the passionate pursuit of a reckless Lover. In our obsession over winning "converts" to Jesus and seeing them resultingly cross over from death to life (at least in the sense of their eternal destiny, but when limited to this is a diminished understanding of eternal life!), we have come to implicitly view salvation as a end to itself, rather than the mere beginning of God's ultimate goal of a loving relationship with Him. Is it any wonder that with this "minimum requirement" view of salvation, being largely content to just get people over the "official" line of faith, that we've so longed proclaimed we find discipleship and outreach at odds?
So which should the church pursue first: outreach or growth? Evangelism or discipleship? If, as already discussed, mankind living in loving relationship with Himself is God's ultimate desire, should we not stress the call of Jesus to discipleship and loving devotion to Himself...rather than the calcified bare minimum requirements for salvation? Is getting people to confess Christ and say a prayer all it's cracked up to be? God has a far more glorious call to us than this "fire insurance" mentality! Maybe this is why Jesus said "go into all the world and make disciples" rather than "go into all the world and preach salvation," for His call to follow Himself is issued equally to both believer and unbeliever. Indeed, our salvation is found in our discipleship! When we understand salvation as this overarching call to discipleship, the supposed tension between discipleship and evangelism quickly vanish. In the light of Christ's call to relationship with Himself, we find that the pursuit of spiritual growth and missional outreach is in fact one and the same.
So with such theological conclusions in hand, how should they affect our walk with Jesus and our missional impact in the world? What implications does it have? We will discuss this further in our next post.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Growth vs. Mission: Which Is It?
For years, many in the church have struggled to reconcile the apparent tension between discipleship and evangelism, or between growth and outreach. What is the primary mission of the church? Is it to reach those outside, or is it to build up those inside? Is church primarily for the unbeliever, or for the believer? Should mission flow out of community, or should community flow out of mission? Should it be growth, discipleship, or community taking center stage in our church, or should we strive first for evangelism, outreach, or mission?
The answers to such questions are not irrelevant theological points: rather, they are of critical and far-reaching importance, as the DNA and basic structure of nearly every church community flows out of their answers to these questions. In an attempt to resolve this tension, some churches make their primary aim to reach those outside the church. As those far from God are now brought into relationship with Him, they reason, community will naturally emerge in the pursuit of that common goal. Still others lean towards equipping and building up the believer in their meetings, assuming that if that goal is achieved, mission will naturally flow out of their lives during the week. Nearly all churches fall into one of these two camps to some degree, and they can often adhere to their position on this issue passionately; witness the deep objections many believers have over the "seeker service" pioneered by Willow Creek, for example. Even many church splits over seemingly trivial issues, such as updating to a "contemporary worship service" for example, are at their core splits over this same fundamental question: who is this church really for? Is it for those outside or inside? Should we alter our structure for the sake of those outside our community, or should we focus on keeping the insiders happy? Deep down, most Christians can't believe you can do both, and they tend to pick one side or the other. It is this supposed contradiction between discipleship/growth and evangelism/outreach that fuels much of the divisions in today's church.
So which should take precedence, you ask? Evangelism or discipleship? Though both approaches have their validity and solid Biblical footing, picking either side in this debate betrays a fundamentally flawed logic: that community, discipleship, and spiritual growth is naturally at odds with outreach, mission, and evangelism, and that one cannot be pursued simultaneously along with the other. But is it possible that discipleship and evangelism can not only be done together, but in fact should be and are one and the same?
We will explore this idea further in our next post.
The answers to such questions are not irrelevant theological points: rather, they are of critical and far-reaching importance, as the DNA and basic structure of nearly every church community flows out of their answers to these questions. In an attempt to resolve this tension, some churches make their primary aim to reach those outside the church. As those far from God are now brought into relationship with Him, they reason, community will naturally emerge in the pursuit of that common goal. Still others lean towards equipping and building up the believer in their meetings, assuming that if that goal is achieved, mission will naturally flow out of their lives during the week. Nearly all churches fall into one of these two camps to some degree, and they can often adhere to their position on this issue passionately; witness the deep objections many believers have over the "seeker service" pioneered by Willow Creek, for example. Even many church splits over seemingly trivial issues, such as updating to a "contemporary worship service" for example, are at their core splits over this same fundamental question: who is this church really for? Is it for those outside or inside? Should we alter our structure for the sake of those outside our community, or should we focus on keeping the insiders happy? Deep down, most Christians can't believe you can do both, and they tend to pick one side or the other. It is this supposed contradiction between discipleship/growth and evangelism/outreach that fuels much of the divisions in today's church.
So which should take precedence, you ask? Evangelism or discipleship? Though both approaches have their validity and solid Biblical footing, picking either side in this debate betrays a fundamentally flawed logic: that community, discipleship, and spiritual growth is naturally at odds with outreach, mission, and evangelism, and that one cannot be pursued simultaneously along with the other. But is it possible that discipleship and evangelism can not only be done together, but in fact should be and are one and the same?
We will explore this idea further in our next post.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Spiritual Schizophrenia...And Its Cure
All Christians have experienced what we can call "spiritual schizophrenia" on a regular basis. We find in ourselves two voices, two natures; one the old, selfish way of living that the Bible calls "old nature" or "the flesh," and the other that longs to please God and live in a manner that pleases Him, what the Bible calls the "new nature." These two natures fight and war with one another on a daily basis, and we struggle and strive to live by this new nature rather than the old. And this struggle never seems to end, does it? We long more than anything else to "get it right," learning to finally live by this new nature and live a life pleasing to Him after all He's done for us. And if we can't do this...well, He won't be pleased with us, and our relationship with Him will suffer, we're told. And after years of this struggle and pressure to please God...well, I just get tired. Don't you? I can't seem to even remember all the things God asks me to do, much less do them. Once I feel I am getting a handle on my materialism, for instance, my pride seems to be a problem. I try really, really hard to be more humble (can you really try to be humble? Seems like an oxymoron, but I digress...), but as soon as I improve there, I realize I need to be more patient with my kids. So I work on that...only to find I am not sharing my faith like I should. And on and on it goes. If you are a follower of Jesus, I'm sure you can relate. In fact, the apostle Paul did so himself; this very struggle is the topic of Romans 7. As Paul writes in a parallel passage in Galatians 5, "For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want" (Gal. 5:17). Over the centuries, this frustration and struggle produced by these two warring natures has been experienced by all followers of Jesus.
But as Paul says in the very next verse in Galatians, "if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law." Could it be that in Christ, God makes no demands on His children whatsoever, and we are hence "free from law"? Could it be that all of our striving and struggling, in light of this new "law of the Spirit of life" ushered in by Christ's work, is all in vain? Paul goes on in this passge to describe for us the "fruit of the Spirit" that can only be produced by "walking in the spirit": love, joy, peace, self control, to name but a few. These attributes and fruits of a "holy life" are exactly that: attributes and fruits, none of which can be produced by our efforts, struggle, or striving. Just as a tree cannot "try" to produce fruit, neither can we.
Further, these attributes become meaningless and vain if they are sought in themselves as ethical ideals or to meet an obligation to God; any righteousness produced by our striving (and there indeed can be some!) is in fact "righteousness by law" rather than "the righteousness of Christ by faith" (Phil. 3:9) that God really desires for His children. Hence, these true fruits of the Spirit can only be descriptions of what real life looks like, and by definition are not prescriptions for how we get life. In fact...might the entire New Testament , and all the ethical "commands" of Jesus and Paul be descriptive of life in God rather than prescriptive commands? Come to think of it, maybe His grace really is all we need! And as long as we continue to misunderstand His grace and fail to recognize that we are already righteous in Christ, mistakingly thinking that God still has demands and expectations of us...we'll continue our ceaseless efforts to “earn” God’s favor and gain points on our scorecard with a God who's no longer keeping score. As Paul writes, "it is [only] God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" (Phil 2:13)." At the moment we try to get on that treadmill of "getting it right", it becomes a self-righteous effort to accomplish what Christ already accomplished for us at the Cross; at best, this results in a righteousness far from the righteousness that Christ has in mind for us.
So what, then, does such effortless, yet fruitful Christian living look like? How is achieved? Simply asking the question demonstrates our ingrained religious thinking, as we again seek a five point sermon, flowchart, or “cookie-cutter” formula that will release us to Spirit-led living. Just as our forefathers under the law, we would much rather run to a formula, prescription, method, or a human mediator instead of seeking God for ourselves. No man can teach another how to personally know and experience God under the New Covenant (Heb. 8:12), but we are promised that He will freely reveal Himself to anyone who is willing to truly seek Him (Jn 7:17, Heb. 11:6) And as we experience and learn to live in this unconditional, agenda-less Love of the Father, we will increasingly find that through no effort of our own, the fruit of a holy life begins to be produced. This transformation cannot be found through religion, rule keeping, or principles, but only through a personal encounter with Love in the depths of our being. Truly, such a glimpse of His glory with the eyes of faith will make us like Him (1 John 3:2) in a way that religion cannot. Oh, that we would learn to enter that rest that is found in God Himself, and find Him transforming us in the innermost parts through that encounter! May God guide us in this quest, and tangibly demonstrate to us that His grace is truly enough!
But as Paul says in the very next verse in Galatians, "if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law." Could it be that in Christ, God makes no demands on His children whatsoever, and we are hence "free from law"? Could it be that all of our striving and struggling, in light of this new "law of the Spirit of life" ushered in by Christ's work, is all in vain? Paul goes on in this passge to describe for us the "fruit of the Spirit" that can only be produced by "walking in the spirit": love, joy, peace, self control, to name but a few. These attributes and fruits of a "holy life" are exactly that: attributes and fruits, none of which can be produced by our efforts, struggle, or striving. Just as a tree cannot "try" to produce fruit, neither can we.
Further, these attributes become meaningless and vain if they are sought in themselves as ethical ideals or to meet an obligation to God; any righteousness produced by our striving (and there indeed can be some!) is in fact "righteousness by law" rather than "the righteousness of Christ by faith" (Phil. 3:9) that God really desires for His children. Hence, these true fruits of the Spirit can only be descriptions of what real life looks like, and by definition are not prescriptions for how we get life. In fact...might the entire New Testament , and all the ethical "commands" of Jesus and Paul be descriptive of life in God rather than prescriptive commands? Come to think of it, maybe His grace really is all we need! And as long as we continue to misunderstand His grace and fail to recognize that we are already righteous in Christ, mistakingly thinking that God still has demands and expectations of us...we'll continue our ceaseless efforts to “earn” God’s favor and gain points on our scorecard with a God who's no longer keeping score. As Paul writes, "it is [only] God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" (Phil 2:13)." At the moment we try to get on that treadmill of "getting it right", it becomes a self-righteous effort to accomplish what Christ already accomplished for us at the Cross; at best, this results in a righteousness far from the righteousness that Christ has in mind for us.
So what, then, does such effortless, yet fruitful Christian living look like? How is achieved? Simply asking the question demonstrates our ingrained religious thinking, as we again seek a five point sermon, flowchart, or “cookie-cutter” formula that will release us to Spirit-led living. Just as our forefathers under the law, we would much rather run to a formula, prescription, method, or a human mediator instead of seeking God for ourselves. No man can teach another how to personally know and experience God under the New Covenant (Heb. 8:12), but we are promised that He will freely reveal Himself to anyone who is willing to truly seek Him (Jn 7:17, Heb. 11:6) And as we experience and learn to live in this unconditional, agenda-less Love of the Father, we will increasingly find that through no effort of our own, the fruit of a holy life begins to be produced. This transformation cannot be found through religion, rule keeping, or principles, but only through a personal encounter with Love in the depths of our being. Truly, such a glimpse of His glory with the eyes of faith will make us like Him (1 John 3:2) in a way that religion cannot. Oh, that we would learn to enter that rest that is found in God Himself, and find Him transforming us in the innermost parts through that encounter! May God guide us in this quest, and tangibly demonstrate to us that His grace is truly enough!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
The Value of Discipleship
Proverbs 20:5 reads, “the purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out.” Truly, the depths of the human soul are staggering and beyond our grasp. Though unlike our Maker we are finite beings, Scripture is clear that we are indeed made in the image of this infinite, invisible God. As such, the human heart possesses a vastness, richness, and depth that we can never fully probe or understand. As 1 Corinthians 2 asks, “who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them?” Yet I must confess that as the years pass, I increasingly find I have been unaware of many of my own motives, fears, and hopes hidden deeply inside the recesses of my soul. I find I can scarcely understand the hidden stirrings of my own heart at times, much less those of another. Can anyone really say with honesty, even in the most intimate of marriages, that they fully understand their spouse and connect with them fully in the deepest reaches of their being? So it is to be made in the image of God, an infinite being Who it will take all eternity to fully appreciate and understand. How deep, eternal, and vast the human soul is in that reflection, with eternity set inside its unfathomable depths (Ecc. 3:11)! Truly, as the Psalmist says, we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Ps. 139:14) in the vastness and richness God has placed in our souls.
With this eternal glory of the human heart in view, CS Lewis wrote these well-known words: “ It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare… There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.” If this is indeed true, there is no greater calling given to human beings than to accompany another in a journey of the heart towards God. This quest is not one towards mere intellectual acceptance of theological concepts or moral principles, but a transforming encounter of one’s soul with its infinite and divine Creator. To walk with another on such a soul journey, experiencing together the healing touch of the resurrected Jesus in the deepest reaches of their soul, is a calling that truly transcends time and space, and one to which all the other pursuits of life seem vain in comparison.
Yet how ironic that we persist in measuring ministry success in terms of buildings, bodies, and programs, all the while overlooking this far more noble and eternal calling of discipleship and spiritual companionship that God has given His people. How sad that Christ’s workers often live in a spirit of defeat, feeling they are a failure if their church plant does not grow in exponential fashion. Would laboring in obscurity be so difficult for us if we simply realized the enormous depth and value of just one human heart? Truly, a lifetime of struggle for the sake of His kingdom is but "a momentary and light affliction" (2 Cor. 4:17) compared to this glorious work. Cathedrals will crumble, ministries will fail, and the applause of others will fade; but the privilege of accompanying another on a journey towards their inner transformation will last and bear fruit through all of eternity.
Truly, there are no mere mortals among us. May this highest of callings Christ has given us to “go into all the world and make disciples” be our only passion in light of the unsurpassing riches hidden in just one human heart. It is the only eternal work that is worth devoting ourselves to.
With this eternal glory of the human heart in view, CS Lewis wrote these well-known words: “ It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare… There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.” If this is indeed true, there is no greater calling given to human beings than to accompany another in a journey of the heart towards God. This quest is not one towards mere intellectual acceptance of theological concepts or moral principles, but a transforming encounter of one’s soul with its infinite and divine Creator. To walk with another on such a soul journey, experiencing together the healing touch of the resurrected Jesus in the deepest reaches of their soul, is a calling that truly transcends time and space, and one to which all the other pursuits of life seem vain in comparison.
Yet how ironic that we persist in measuring ministry success in terms of buildings, bodies, and programs, all the while overlooking this far more noble and eternal calling of discipleship and spiritual companionship that God has given His people. How sad that Christ’s workers often live in a spirit of defeat, feeling they are a failure if their church plant does not grow in exponential fashion. Would laboring in obscurity be so difficult for us if we simply realized the enormous depth and value of just one human heart? Truly, a lifetime of struggle for the sake of His kingdom is but "a momentary and light affliction" (2 Cor. 4:17) compared to this glorious work. Cathedrals will crumble, ministries will fail, and the applause of others will fade; but the privilege of accompanying another on a journey towards their inner transformation will last and bear fruit through all of eternity.
Truly, there are no mere mortals among us. May this highest of callings Christ has given us to “go into all the world and make disciples” be our only passion in light of the unsurpassing riches hidden in just one human heart. It is the only eternal work that is worth devoting ourselves to.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Kids’ Ministry: A New Scorecard for Success
As we’ve discussed in our last few posts, though traditional churches may make every effort to reach our children, a consumer-based paradigm of children’s ministry has serious flaws. As one calls it, pep-rally, just add water Christianity has been tried and found wanting.
As we seek a church home for our children, we must ask ourselves what our highest goal really is. For indeed, if our only goal for our children is to keep them in the church, off the streets, and off of drugs, our current mode of youth ministry will do just fine. But if our goal is a higher one, that our children might passionately love Jesus, youth ministry as we know it needs a radical overhaul. Survey after survey underscores the indisputable nature of this truth.
Suppose your child spends his entire life in the church, and passes through children’s church, junior high church, and youth group unscathed. Suppose he or she is one of the 10-20% of kids that not only graduates from youth group, but stays in the church. If everything goes according to plan, and even if he bucks the odds and stays in the church after all is said and done, is he really any better off? Kids’ church and youth group as it is presently constructed will produce children just like us; interested in Jesus, but not fully dedicated; loving Jesus, yet loving themselves; having a heart for the lost, but having little impact; wanting adventure for God, but shackled by the American dream. I don’t know about you, but my hopes for my children are so much more than this. If my children aspire to being just like their old man, that is a sad state of affairs indeed. For if I remain the highest example of the successful Christian life to my children, unoffensive, meek, and mild, I have failed in my mentorship of them. My hope and prayer for my children is that they might transcend the meager example that I have set, and truly “turn the world upside down” as the early church did. I truly believe that this will only be possible if they know a different church world than I have, where radical service, countercultural living, and the contagious spread of the gospel is the rule rather than the exception.
As we seek a church home for our children, we must ask ourselves what our highest goal really is. For indeed, if our only goal for our children is to keep them in the church, off the streets, and off of drugs, our current mode of youth ministry will do just fine. But if our goal is a higher one, that our children might passionately love Jesus, youth ministry as we know it needs a radical overhaul. Survey after survey underscores the indisputable nature of this truth.
Suppose your child spends his entire life in the church, and passes through children’s church, junior high church, and youth group unscathed. Suppose he or she is one of the 10-20% of kids that not only graduates from youth group, but stays in the church. If everything goes according to plan, and even if he bucks the odds and stays in the church after all is said and done, is he really any better off? Kids’ church and youth group as it is presently constructed will produce children just like us; interested in Jesus, but not fully dedicated; loving Jesus, yet loving themselves; having a heart for the lost, but having little impact; wanting adventure for God, but shackled by the American dream. I don’t know about you, but my hopes for my children are so much more than this. If my children aspire to being just like their old man, that is a sad state of affairs indeed. For if I remain the highest example of the successful Christian life to my children, unoffensive, meek, and mild, I have failed in my mentorship of them. My hope and prayer for my children is that they might transcend the meager example that I have set, and truly “turn the world upside down” as the early church did. I truly believe that this will only be possible if they know a different church world than I have, where radical service, countercultural living, and the contagious spread of the gospel is the rule rather than the exception.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
A New Paradigm of Family Ministry
In our most recent posts, we’ve been exploring the failures of traditional children’s and youth ministry and discussing what a more Biblical pattern might look like. If we are to truly embrace a more bold and effective template for youth ministry, we must first recognize that parents, not youth ministers, should be the primary spiritual mentors for their children. The church must also realize that its ministries should be divided among family lines rather than age demographics. Further, a truly successful youth ministry must involve the equipping of parents to fulfill the mentorship role for their children.
As previously discussed, it’s clear that “just add water” youth events and whimsical play areas do little to impact our children’s long term spiritual growth. Rather, the spiritual growth of our children always begins in the home. With this in mind, former youth pastor Ray Baumann once made a startling statement: “Youth ministries would be unnecessary if the believers took their mandate to parent seriously.” He goes on to say, “the last place I want my kids to hear about Jesus is on Sunday.” The most important life lessons that children need to learn are impressed upon children by their parents “along the road”, imparted to them in the context of daily living and through a loving mentoring relationship (Deut. 6:7). This is consistent even with the teachings of Jesus, who conducted some of his most meaningful discussions with his disciples between events, “along the road” to their destinations. Research among adolescents confirms these ideas: studies show that the more often families eat together, the better their moral, spiritual, and academic outcomes. How ironic that family meal time together, a far better indicator of our children’s spiritual outcomes, can often be pushed aside by social events at the church! Rather than busying our children with a myriad of church programs, sports, or other extracurricular activities, perhaps our children’s long term spiritual vitality would improve if we as parents simply spent more time with our children and took seriously our mandate to instruct them in God’s ways.
It is beyond dispute that no one can raise our children “in the nuture and admonition of the Lord” to the same extent that parents are able, youth pastors included. Yet, as any Christian parent will attest, this mandate is not an easy task. Our natural inclination, when feeling overwhelmed by such a responsibility, is to defer to the “faith specialists” in this area. It is certainly easier to let a faceless program disciple our children than to do it ourselves, even if that program does have a high failure rate. Too many parents feel they have neither authority or wisdom to offer their teenage children. Consequently, many Christian parents have come to believe that raising up their children to love Jesus simply means dropping them off at the various youth events the church offers, with hopes that these efforts alone will foster their spiritual growth.
But what does it look like to really disciple our kids, then? If age segregation and outsourcing to specialists isn’t the answer, what would a better option look like? I believe it starts with the church’s efforts to build into the family as a whole rather than the child as an individual. Its efforts to reach the younger generation must primarily be aimed at bringing the family together in a manner that bridges the generational gaps between its members. Above all, it attempts to make the family the highest priority within the church without the use of age segregation.
For instance, instead of a weekly service that is designed solely for adults, a more organic meeting is a great first step. Rather than avoiding our children in hopes they don’t distract us, children are free to contribute in an organic meeting, as families are able to share in the experience together. In all church endeavors, both Sunday morning meetings and beyond, this church would seek to provide shared experiences for all members of the family collectively.
Second, a new template for family ministry involves a family oriented approach to serving. This new paradigm attempts to divide church ministry into teams of families rather than teams of age demographics. Instead of separating serving projects according to age segments, the church’s serving events are separated into teams of families. This allows parents and children to share in the experience together, and allows parents to demonstrate to their children first-hand what the gospel looks like in action. Families are encouraged to pioneer their own methods of serving the community, in schools, in their neighborhoods, in parks, and on the streets. Youth ministry is not pre-programmed by religious specialists, but is engineered by families and children rising up to meet the challenge. This family oriented model of serving would foster the building of authentic gospel values within the family unit to a much greater extent than traditional models.
Thirdly, this view of family ministry would seek above all to protect and proclaim the value of family time together. The American family has so little time together today; why disrupt family time for the sake of church events? Rather than robbing families of their precious time together by replacing it with church programs, this new paradigm of family ministry recognizes the sanctity of family time. A truly family-based ministry approach must make family time a primary value of the church. This stands in stark contrast with a culture that values busyness over depth and honors production over intimacy.
This list is by no means exhaustive. Part of this new approach to family ministry recognizes the limitless possibilities in this pursuit, and empowers both parents and children to rise up and bridge the gap so prevalent in families today. Ultimately, the answers to these needs of our families will not be answered by youth ministry experts but by teams of father and daughter, mother and son. As relationships are built between parents and their children, and between the church and its children, our children’s long term spiritual growth will be positively affected. I believe that such a grass-roots, participatory approach to “bridging the spiritual gap” within families will produce fruit in our children’s lives as no age-segregated model is able to do.
In agreement with these concepts, Tracy Waal said this after 14 years of youth ministry: “Personal experience in youth ministry shows me that the #1 indicator of a teen’s spiritual longevity and commitment is the degree to which parents are involved in their kid’s spiritual development. The #2 indicator is the degree in which a teen connects with an older spiritual mentor outside the youth group.” A successful new paradigm for youth ministry must serve to make both of these relationships a reality.
As previously discussed, it’s clear that “just add water” youth events and whimsical play areas do little to impact our children’s long term spiritual growth. Rather, the spiritual growth of our children always begins in the home. With this in mind, former youth pastor Ray Baumann once made a startling statement: “Youth ministries would be unnecessary if the believers took their mandate to parent seriously.” He goes on to say, “the last place I want my kids to hear about Jesus is on Sunday.” The most important life lessons that children need to learn are impressed upon children by their parents “along the road”, imparted to them in the context of daily living and through a loving mentoring relationship (Deut. 6:7). This is consistent even with the teachings of Jesus, who conducted some of his most meaningful discussions with his disciples between events, “along the road” to their destinations. Research among adolescents confirms these ideas: studies show that the more often families eat together, the better their moral, spiritual, and academic outcomes. How ironic that family meal time together, a far better indicator of our children’s spiritual outcomes, can often be pushed aside by social events at the church! Rather than busying our children with a myriad of church programs, sports, or other extracurricular activities, perhaps our children’s long term spiritual vitality would improve if we as parents simply spent more time with our children and took seriously our mandate to instruct them in God’s ways.
It is beyond dispute that no one can raise our children “in the nuture and admonition of the Lord” to the same extent that parents are able, youth pastors included. Yet, as any Christian parent will attest, this mandate is not an easy task. Our natural inclination, when feeling overwhelmed by such a responsibility, is to defer to the “faith specialists” in this area. It is certainly easier to let a faceless program disciple our children than to do it ourselves, even if that program does have a high failure rate. Too many parents feel they have neither authority or wisdom to offer their teenage children. Consequently, many Christian parents have come to believe that raising up their children to love Jesus simply means dropping them off at the various youth events the church offers, with hopes that these efforts alone will foster their spiritual growth.
But what does it look like to really disciple our kids, then? If age segregation and outsourcing to specialists isn’t the answer, what would a better option look like? I believe it starts with the church’s efforts to build into the family as a whole rather than the child as an individual. Its efforts to reach the younger generation must primarily be aimed at bringing the family together in a manner that bridges the generational gaps between its members. Above all, it attempts to make the family the highest priority within the church without the use of age segregation.
For instance, instead of a weekly service that is designed solely for adults, a more organic meeting is a great first step. Rather than avoiding our children in hopes they don’t distract us, children are free to contribute in an organic meeting, as families are able to share in the experience together. In all church endeavors, both Sunday morning meetings and beyond, this church would seek to provide shared experiences for all members of the family collectively.
Second, a new template for family ministry involves a family oriented approach to serving. This new paradigm attempts to divide church ministry into teams of families rather than teams of age demographics. Instead of separating serving projects according to age segments, the church’s serving events are separated into teams of families. This allows parents and children to share in the experience together, and allows parents to demonstrate to their children first-hand what the gospel looks like in action. Families are encouraged to pioneer their own methods of serving the community, in schools, in their neighborhoods, in parks, and on the streets. Youth ministry is not pre-programmed by religious specialists, but is engineered by families and children rising up to meet the challenge. This family oriented model of serving would foster the building of authentic gospel values within the family unit to a much greater extent than traditional models.
Thirdly, this view of family ministry would seek above all to protect and proclaim the value of family time together. The American family has so little time together today; why disrupt family time for the sake of church events? Rather than robbing families of their precious time together by replacing it with church programs, this new paradigm of family ministry recognizes the sanctity of family time. A truly family-based ministry approach must make family time a primary value of the church. This stands in stark contrast with a culture that values busyness over depth and honors production over intimacy.
This list is by no means exhaustive. Part of this new approach to family ministry recognizes the limitless possibilities in this pursuit, and empowers both parents and children to rise up and bridge the gap so prevalent in families today. Ultimately, the answers to these needs of our families will not be answered by youth ministry experts but by teams of father and daughter, mother and son. As relationships are built between parents and their children, and between the church and its children, our children’s long term spiritual growth will be positively affected. I believe that such a grass-roots, participatory approach to “bridging the spiritual gap” within families will produce fruit in our children’s lives as no age-segregated model is able to do.
In agreement with these concepts, Tracy Waal said this after 14 years of youth ministry: “Personal experience in youth ministry shows me that the #1 indicator of a teen’s spiritual longevity and commitment is the degree to which parents are involved in their kid’s spiritual development. The #2 indicator is the degree in which a teen connects with an older spiritual mentor outside the youth group.” A successful new paradigm for youth ministry must serve to make both of these relationships a reality.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
The Failure of Age Segregation
In previous posts, we’ve discussed the failure of traditional paradigms of youth ministry. The reasons for its shortcomings are myriad , but none of them is larger than the age segregation that these ministries employ . Today, instead of the church becoming a church for families, the church has increasingly sought to appeal to each family member as individuals rather than collectively. There is church for children, church for high schoolers, and church for adults. On the surface, this separation according to age seems innocent, even necessary, but think of the division it causes within a church. Unintentionally, too often these ministries have become “churches within a church,” each having its own niche in the market but seldom, if ever, crossing paths with one another.
These divisions, unfortunately, create unique problems within the church, none larger than the trouble our youth eventually have in assimilating into the church at large. Our kids feel comfortable and at home in youth group, but the longer they’re in youth group, the more “adult church” seems like a foreign land. Though they feel to be part of the youth group, they don’t feel like part of the church at large. Our churches end up thus being a microcosm of our society at large, where teenagers have become a strange subculture of which adults are desperately afraid. As Tracy Waal says, “We have invented a foreign species called Teenager. They live in ghettos called Schools. A few of them visit Christian ghettos called Youth Groups on weekends. We are afraid of what is becoming of this species, but all our answers seem to revolve around throwing more resources at the development of the ghettos.”
This division where both parties seem distant from one another, if not afraid, is the natural conclusion of age segregated ministry. If neither group rubs shoulders with one another, how can we expect any other outcome? Further, when such a gulf exists between “youth church” and “adult church,” why should we be surprised when our kids leave youth group and never come back to church? After spending years tucked away in the nursery and youth group, they largely see “adult church” as being alien and irrelevant to their lives once they graduate from their age-segregated cloister known as “youth group.” Sadly, our kids never end up seeing the church at large as theirs to begin with.
Many youth leaders have made these observations of the deleterious effects of “age segregation” so prevalent in the church today. Youth today are in desperate need of mature Christian influences, but kids church and youth group is structured in such a way that this mature influence is difficult, if not impossible, to come by. As a result of this isolation and segregation in their younger years, many believers who were raised in these traditional programs report that their knowledge of the mature Christian life remains incomplete even into adulthood.
As Dennis Muse, leader of The Crowded House reminds us, Jesus never said “'let the little children be packed away in the nursery” but rather He said, ‘let the little children come to me.’” Try to imagine, if you can, the children being led to Children's Church during the Sermon on the Mount. Such an idea is ridiculous! As integral parts of the body of Christ, should our children be segregated from us, or should they be part of our gatherings, free to worship Christ in the same manner we are? Is not children combining with their parents to worship Jesus far closer to God’s heart than our age-segregated inventions?
Are children really a deterrent to our own spiritual development as adults? Perhaps our children can instruct us about God as readily as we can instruct them. Jesus said that “unless you are like a little child, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” Maybe Jesus really meant what he said, and our children have so much more to offer us spiritually than we as sophisticated adults might realize.
Further, the church as a whole needs to take seriously its mandate to provide spiritual leadership for the next generation to follow Jesus. This can’t be done by a faceless program, but must be done by every member of the church. Every member of the church must recognize that it is not only the job of those “called to youth ministry” to raise our children, but is the responsibility of each and every member of the Body of Christ. Both children and adults both need each other if they are to grow spiritually; adults need children to edify them and draw them closer to God, and children need adults to provide the mature leadership they so desperately need.
It would seem, then, that such an attitude of ministry to our children would preclude “age segregation” that is so prevalent in today’s churches. Imagine, if you will, a church where adults, children, and teens are integrated together as one as part of Christ’s body. Imagine a church where children are exposed to the real needs of the community at large, are encouraged to pray for them, and rejoice when God intervenes on their behalf. Imagine a church where children serve the poor alongside their parents and truly make a difference in the world outside the church’s walls. Imagine a church where our kids are surrounded on Sunday mornings by an extended family of spiritual aunts, uncles, and cousins. Imagine being a part of a church that truly is a church for people instead of a church for segregated market segments. Perhaps this would be the beginning of a revolution in youth ministry in our midst that is long overdue.
These divisions, unfortunately, create unique problems within the church, none larger than the trouble our youth eventually have in assimilating into the church at large. Our kids feel comfortable and at home in youth group, but the longer they’re in youth group, the more “adult church” seems like a foreign land. Though they feel to be part of the youth group, they don’t feel like part of the church at large. Our churches end up thus being a microcosm of our society at large, where teenagers have become a strange subculture of which adults are desperately afraid. As Tracy Waal says, “We have invented a foreign species called Teenager. They live in ghettos called Schools. A few of them visit Christian ghettos called Youth Groups on weekends. We are afraid of what is becoming of this species, but all our answers seem to revolve around throwing more resources at the development of the ghettos.”
This division where both parties seem distant from one another, if not afraid, is the natural conclusion of age segregated ministry. If neither group rubs shoulders with one another, how can we expect any other outcome? Further, when such a gulf exists between “youth church” and “adult church,” why should we be surprised when our kids leave youth group and never come back to church? After spending years tucked away in the nursery and youth group, they largely see “adult church” as being alien and irrelevant to their lives once they graduate from their age-segregated cloister known as “youth group.” Sadly, our kids never end up seeing the church at large as theirs to begin with.
Many youth leaders have made these observations of the deleterious effects of “age segregation” so prevalent in the church today. Youth today are in desperate need of mature Christian influences, but kids church and youth group is structured in such a way that this mature influence is difficult, if not impossible, to come by. As a result of this isolation and segregation in their younger years, many believers who were raised in these traditional programs report that their knowledge of the mature Christian life remains incomplete even into adulthood.
As Dennis Muse, leader of The Crowded House reminds us, Jesus never said “'let the little children be packed away in the nursery” but rather He said, ‘let the little children come to me.’” Try to imagine, if you can, the children being led to Children's Church during the Sermon on the Mount. Such an idea is ridiculous! As integral parts of the body of Christ, should our children be segregated from us, or should they be part of our gatherings, free to worship Christ in the same manner we are? Is not children combining with their parents to worship Jesus far closer to God’s heart than our age-segregated inventions?
Are children really a deterrent to our own spiritual development as adults? Perhaps our children can instruct us about God as readily as we can instruct them. Jesus said that “unless you are like a little child, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” Maybe Jesus really meant what he said, and our children have so much more to offer us spiritually than we as sophisticated adults might realize.
Further, the church as a whole needs to take seriously its mandate to provide spiritual leadership for the next generation to follow Jesus. This can’t be done by a faceless program, but must be done by every member of the church. Every member of the church must recognize that it is not only the job of those “called to youth ministry” to raise our children, but is the responsibility of each and every member of the Body of Christ. Both children and adults both need each other if they are to grow spiritually; adults need children to edify them and draw them closer to God, and children need adults to provide the mature leadership they so desperately need.
It would seem, then, that such an attitude of ministry to our children would preclude “age segregation” that is so prevalent in today’s churches. Imagine, if you will, a church where adults, children, and teens are integrated together as one as part of Christ’s body. Imagine a church where children are exposed to the real needs of the community at large, are encouraged to pray for them, and rejoice when God intervenes on their behalf. Imagine a church where children serve the poor alongside their parents and truly make a difference in the world outside the church’s walls. Imagine a church where our kids are surrounded on Sunday mornings by an extended family of spiritual aunts, uncles, and cousins. Imagine being a part of a church that truly is a church for people instead of a church for segregated market segments. Perhaps this would be the beginning of a revolution in youth ministry in our midst that is long overdue.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Youth Ministry and Consumerism
In our previous posts, we’ve discussed the failure of traditional children’s and youth programs in the church. As recent studies and our own experience has shown, perhaps programmed, Hollywood quality kids’ ministry isn’t quite the answer for our kids that we’ve hoped for, and an entirely new paradigm is needed if they are to grow up and love Jesus passionately. But what might such a new paradigm look like?
First, a new approach to kid’s ministry must first begin with the rejection of consumerism. Churches are in constant competition with the church down the street to “wow” the kids and woo suburban families who are on a mission to find a church home that’s “best for their kids.” Many youth pastors will admit that much of today’s “youth ministry” is simply elaborate attempts to keep the kids entertained, keeping them in the church, and furthering their position as consumers and “takers”. Though very well intentioned, much of the emphasis of kids’ ministry today is on “fun”: fun kid spaces, fun games, fun songs, and fun pizza parties. It’s not the church’s fault this is the case, nor is it the students’; it’s the inevitable reality produced by today’s consumer church climate. Everyone knows that if the kids don’t have fun at your church, they’ll have it at the church down the street, and you’ll lose the opportunity to minister to those kids.
I am not at all saying that kids and youth ministry can’t or shouldn’t be fun. No kid wants to go to church and be bored to tears. Bands and lock ins, social events and games have their place in youth ministry; but it’s important to recognize that their effectiveness is limited. If our only goals for our kids are to keep them off the streets, off drugs and in church on Sundays, these things are of tremendous value. If mere sin avoidance is the goal, simple entertainment might hold the answer for our youth. However, if our goal for our kids is transcendence of American consumerism, full devotion to Christ, passionate evangelism, and countercultural living in adolescence and beyond, a radically different model is needed.
Your child might enjoy going to traditional kids’ church on Sunday morning, and that’s great. The highlight of his week might be Sunday morning, and that’s a good thing. He might even learn a few Bible verses, and that’s fantastic. But on a deeper level, is that experience changing him for the better? Does that ministry help him better exhibit the fruits of the Spirit? As a result of his Sunday morning experience, does he love better? Does he have more self control? It is these outcomes that should be the benchmark for a youth ministry’s success. To quote the Barna Group’s David Kinneman: “A new standard for viable youth ministry should be- not the number of attenders, the sophistication of the events, or the ‘cool’ factor of the youth group - but whether teens have the commitment, passion and resources to pursue Christ intentionally and wholeheartedly after they leave the youth ministry nest." I wonder if we define success in youth ministry in far different terms than we should.
Perhaps our best efforts at youth ministries have failed because they don’t offer our children enough. Perhaps many of today’s youth ministries offer mere fleeting diversion to our children when they should be offering them a call to radical living instead. Shane Claiborne suggests that if our youth leave the church, it isn’t because we don’t entertain them enough, but because we don’t dare them enough. Perhaps they reject the gospel not because we make it too difficult, but because we make it too easy. As another has said, we significantly cheat our children when we imply by our actions that vital discipleship can exist without a life of evangelism and compassionate service. It is only when our children see the radical alternative Christ offers to consumer living that they will truly embrace His call to live for Him.
For this reason, a radical church should offer its youth a call to something more. Imagine a youth ministry where our kids are encouraged to not settle for mere entertainment, but seek to make a difference in the world at large. Imagine a church where our children and teenagers see their parents knee deep in the needs of a world desperate for Christ instead of mired in the quicksand of consumerism. Imagine a church where our youth witness the mighty and miraculous hand of God in their midst on a regular basis. Imagine a church that is built on the premise that true believers give rather than receive. This is the kind of church that has the potential to change the world, one generation at a time.
First, a new approach to kid’s ministry must first begin with the rejection of consumerism. Churches are in constant competition with the church down the street to “wow” the kids and woo suburban families who are on a mission to find a church home that’s “best for their kids.” Many youth pastors will admit that much of today’s “youth ministry” is simply elaborate attempts to keep the kids entertained, keeping them in the church, and furthering their position as consumers and “takers”. Though very well intentioned, much of the emphasis of kids’ ministry today is on “fun”: fun kid spaces, fun games, fun songs, and fun pizza parties. It’s not the church’s fault this is the case, nor is it the students’; it’s the inevitable reality produced by today’s consumer church climate. Everyone knows that if the kids don’t have fun at your church, they’ll have it at the church down the street, and you’ll lose the opportunity to minister to those kids.
I am not at all saying that kids and youth ministry can’t or shouldn’t be fun. No kid wants to go to church and be bored to tears. Bands and lock ins, social events and games have their place in youth ministry; but it’s important to recognize that their effectiveness is limited. If our only goals for our kids are to keep them off the streets, off drugs and in church on Sundays, these things are of tremendous value. If mere sin avoidance is the goal, simple entertainment might hold the answer for our youth. However, if our goal for our kids is transcendence of American consumerism, full devotion to Christ, passionate evangelism, and countercultural living in adolescence and beyond, a radically different model is needed.
Your child might enjoy going to traditional kids’ church on Sunday morning, and that’s great. The highlight of his week might be Sunday morning, and that’s a good thing. He might even learn a few Bible verses, and that’s fantastic. But on a deeper level, is that experience changing him for the better? Does that ministry help him better exhibit the fruits of the Spirit? As a result of his Sunday morning experience, does he love better? Does he have more self control? It is these outcomes that should be the benchmark for a youth ministry’s success. To quote the Barna Group’s David Kinneman: “A new standard for viable youth ministry should be- not the number of attenders, the sophistication of the events, or the ‘cool’ factor of the youth group - but whether teens have the commitment, passion and resources to pursue Christ intentionally and wholeheartedly after they leave the youth ministry nest." I wonder if we define success in youth ministry in far different terms than we should.
Perhaps our best efforts at youth ministries have failed because they don’t offer our children enough. Perhaps many of today’s youth ministries offer mere fleeting diversion to our children when they should be offering them a call to radical living instead. Shane Claiborne suggests that if our youth leave the church, it isn’t because we don’t entertain them enough, but because we don’t dare them enough. Perhaps they reject the gospel not because we make it too difficult, but because we make it too easy. As another has said, we significantly cheat our children when we imply by our actions that vital discipleship can exist without a life of evangelism and compassionate service. It is only when our children see the radical alternative Christ offers to consumer living that they will truly embrace His call to live for Him.
For this reason, a radical church should offer its youth a call to something more. Imagine a youth ministry where our kids are encouraged to not settle for mere entertainment, but seek to make a difference in the world at large. Imagine a church where our children and teenagers see their parents knee deep in the needs of a world desperate for Christ instead of mired in the quicksand of consumerism. Imagine a church where our youth witness the mighty and miraculous hand of God in their midst on a regular basis. Imagine a church that is built on the premise that true believers give rather than receive. This is the kind of church that has the potential to change the world, one generation at a time.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
The Failure of Traditional Youth Ministry
In our last post, we posed this simple question: do traditional children’s and youth ministries really produce children who love Jesus? One would think that the more time, effort, and money is spent in a church’s youth ministry, the better their kids’ long-term outcomes will be. But is this assumption really correct?
A few years ago, a major church denomination did an exhaustive study of their young people’s experience in church. The children studied were those “born under the altar;” they were in attendance at the church's youth programs since birth virtually every time the church doors were open. This denomination sought to know what percentage of these kids stayed in the church once they were free to make their own decisions regarding attendance. They found that at the conclusion of high school, 95% of these students left the church and never returned.
The findings of this study may sound shocking, but they are well in line with what other studies have revealed. The Southern Baptist Convention’s Council on Family Life reports that some 88 percent of children from evangelical homes leave the church shortly after graduation. To lay the blame at the feet of the “godless university” is unfounded; no statistical difference exists between those who attend college and those who do not. Similar research in New Zealand showed that 80% of students raised in youth group will abandon their faith in the first year after their graduation. George Barna’s recent research among twentysomethings revealed that only 20% of those in their early 20s who were raised in a youth group describe themselves as maintaining the same level of spirituality they had in high school.
In response to this data, the Barna Group’s David Kinnaman offered several insights. To quote Kinneman: "Much of the ministry to teenagers in America needs an overhaul - not because churches fail to attract significant numbers of young people, but because so much of those efforts are not creating a sustainable faith beyond high school. There are certainly effective youth ministries across the country, but the levels of disengagement among twentysomethings suggest that youth ministry fails too often at discipleship and faith formation.”
In contrast to these discouraging findings, however, a major missionary organization did a similar study, wanting to know how many of their kids (MKs),, raised in missionary homes in the missionary lifestyle, returned to the mission as adults. Bear in mind that these individuals had to not only return to a foreign land on their own, but raise their own support to do so as well. Much to the mission agency’s surprise, about 95% of their MKs came back to the mission as adults.
These findings are staggering. If children’s and youth ministries are really worthy of the importance we place upon them, one would expect a clear, almost linear relationship between church attendance as an adult and their experience in the church as children. Further, for those raised outside of the church, without the benefit of these programs, we would expect that their adherence to Christ would fade as a result if they are indeed as effective as claimed. Yet we find the exact opposite to be the case! How can children who are raised without the benefit of special youth ministries end up better off in the end?
It’s also no secret that surveys show no appreciable difference between the moral and sexual behavior of Christian vs. non-Christian youth. Research done by Campus Crusade for Christ shows similar findings. Based on their research, Campus Crusade’s Josh McDowell and Ron Luce have issued a joint statement: "Incredible as it may seem, ‘accepting Christ' and making a profession of faith makes little to no difference in a young person's attitudes and behaviors. The majority of our churched young people are adopting ‘a Christianity' but it is not true Christianity.” They found the findings of their study so compelling that they concluded: "We are at a crossroads where a fundamental change is required within youth ministry. We need more than a retooling—nothing short of a 21st century God-sent spiritual revolution will save this generation." Incredibly, 98% of youth pastors polled agree with McDowell and Luce's assessment.
For all the emphasis we place on kids and youth ministry today, we would expect different results than these. Perhaps programmed, Hollywood quality kids’ ministry isn’t quite the answer we’ve hoped for, and an entirely new paradigm is needed. But if kids and youth ministry in this country needs an overhaul, what should it look like? We will discuss this further in our next post.
A few years ago, a major church denomination did an exhaustive study of their young people’s experience in church. The children studied were those “born under the altar;” they were in attendance at the church's youth programs since birth virtually every time the church doors were open. This denomination sought to know what percentage of these kids stayed in the church once they were free to make their own decisions regarding attendance. They found that at the conclusion of high school, 95% of these students left the church and never returned.
The findings of this study may sound shocking, but they are well in line with what other studies have revealed. The Southern Baptist Convention’s Council on Family Life reports that some 88 percent of children from evangelical homes leave the church shortly after graduation. To lay the blame at the feet of the “godless university” is unfounded; no statistical difference exists between those who attend college and those who do not. Similar research in New Zealand showed that 80% of students raised in youth group will abandon their faith in the first year after their graduation. George Barna’s recent research among twentysomethings revealed that only 20% of those in their early 20s who were raised in a youth group describe themselves as maintaining the same level of spirituality they had in high school.
In response to this data, the Barna Group’s David Kinnaman offered several insights. To quote Kinneman: "Much of the ministry to teenagers in America needs an overhaul - not because churches fail to attract significant numbers of young people, but because so much of those efforts are not creating a sustainable faith beyond high school. There are certainly effective youth ministries across the country, but the levels of disengagement among twentysomethings suggest that youth ministry fails too often at discipleship and faith formation.”
In contrast to these discouraging findings, however, a major missionary organization did a similar study, wanting to know how many of their kids (MKs),, raised in missionary homes in the missionary lifestyle, returned to the mission as adults. Bear in mind that these individuals had to not only return to a foreign land on their own, but raise their own support to do so as well. Much to the mission agency’s surprise, about 95% of their MKs came back to the mission as adults.
These findings are staggering. If children’s and youth ministries are really worthy of the importance we place upon them, one would expect a clear, almost linear relationship between church attendance as an adult and their experience in the church as children. Further, for those raised outside of the church, without the benefit of these programs, we would expect that their adherence to Christ would fade as a result if they are indeed as effective as claimed. Yet we find the exact opposite to be the case! How can children who are raised without the benefit of special youth ministries end up better off in the end?
It’s also no secret that surveys show no appreciable difference between the moral and sexual behavior of Christian vs. non-Christian youth. Research done by Campus Crusade for Christ shows similar findings. Based on their research, Campus Crusade’s Josh McDowell and Ron Luce have issued a joint statement: "Incredible as it may seem, ‘accepting Christ' and making a profession of faith makes little to no difference in a young person's attitudes and behaviors. The majority of our churched young people are adopting ‘a Christianity' but it is not true Christianity.” They found the findings of their study so compelling that they concluded: "We are at a crossroads where a fundamental change is required within youth ministry. We need more than a retooling—nothing short of a 21st century God-sent spiritual revolution will save this generation." Incredibly, 98% of youth pastors polled agree with McDowell and Luce's assessment.
For all the emphasis we place on kids and youth ministry today, we would expect different results than these. Perhaps programmed, Hollywood quality kids’ ministry isn’t quite the answer we’ve hoped for, and an entirely new paradigm is needed. But if kids and youth ministry in this country needs an overhaul, what should it look like? We will discuss this further in our next post.
Friday, September 3, 2010
“What About The Children?”
As Helen Lovejoy so famously uttered in “The Simpsons”, “What about the children! Won't anyone think of the children?" In any discussion about a new paradigm of church, it is this very question that looms large: What about the children? What role should they play in a radical church?” We must answer these questions if we are to clear the fog on what a new, radical kind of church might look like.
Prevailing assumptions about kids and youth ministry make it difficult for an alternative vision of church to become a reality in the middle class suburbs that so many of us call home. The greatest desire for many a Christian suburbanite is to find a church home that will meet their family’s needs, especially their children. Traditional thinking says that this should be done by finding the church that offers the highest quality “youth programs.” To this end, traditional churches trip over themselves trying to provide the highest quality experience they can for the kids. Between fountains, mascots, songs, skits, and interactive lessons, there is always something in most church’s kids ministry that will hold their attention. And as a general rule, the larger the church, the greater the children’s experience will be on Sunday mornings.
This traditional view of children’s ministry is undergirded by several main assumptions. First, churches reason that if children enjoy coming to church, their parents will be much more willing to come themselves. Second, it is assumed that the impartation of Biblical knowledge that occurs along the way will result in a change in our children’s behavior; right knowledge, it is reasoned, naturally will result in right behavior. This is the underlying presupposition of Western models of learning. It is also assumed that a positive experience in children’s church as a youngster will translate into greater adherence to Christ and His principles as one grows older. As the book of Proverbs says, “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6). As Christian parents, all of us share this desire, and as we seek to raise our children in the “nuture and admonition of the Lord,” we long to see our children continue in Christ as the years pass, which causes us to seek the best church possible for our kids.
As the traditional view of children’s ministry unfolds, our attention turns to youth group as they grow up. Above all else, we desire our children to spend their teen years in love with Jesus, on fire for His name and living the adventure that Christ has created them to live. In a world where drugs, alcohol, premarital sex, and the pressures of the world abound, our fears that they will abandon the faith of their youth loom large. Above all else, teens value relationships with and the approval of their peers, and without that Christian peer influence in their lives, how will they escape the lure of the world and live their lives with single devotion to Christ?
Certainly the answer must be found in youth group, we would think. If our son or daughter, in the formative teen years, is highly involved in a church youth group, it would seem, our fears will prove unfounded. With a solid mentor relationship with a highly trained youth leader, a peer group free from the influences of a godless society, and an entertaining, drug-free environment to attend each week, perhaps youth group will prove to be the antidote to the lure of the world that sidetracks so many in their younger years.
The emphasis we place on the importance of children’s and youth group cannot be overstated. The experience that a church offers one’s children is probably the number one factor that influences where a family will make their church home. But the emphasis we place on these youth ministries is only reasonable if our basic assumptions are correct: that today’s youth ministries are powerful and effective in producing kids who love God.
But are today’s youth ministries as effective as we might think? We’ll explore this question in our next post.
Prevailing assumptions about kids and youth ministry make it difficult for an alternative vision of church to become a reality in the middle class suburbs that so many of us call home. The greatest desire for many a Christian suburbanite is to find a church home that will meet their family’s needs, especially their children. Traditional thinking says that this should be done by finding the church that offers the highest quality “youth programs.” To this end, traditional churches trip over themselves trying to provide the highest quality experience they can for the kids. Between fountains, mascots, songs, skits, and interactive lessons, there is always something in most church’s kids ministry that will hold their attention. And as a general rule, the larger the church, the greater the children’s experience will be on Sunday mornings.
This traditional view of children’s ministry is undergirded by several main assumptions. First, churches reason that if children enjoy coming to church, their parents will be much more willing to come themselves. Second, it is assumed that the impartation of Biblical knowledge that occurs along the way will result in a change in our children’s behavior; right knowledge, it is reasoned, naturally will result in right behavior. This is the underlying presupposition of Western models of learning. It is also assumed that a positive experience in children’s church as a youngster will translate into greater adherence to Christ and His principles as one grows older. As the book of Proverbs says, “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6). As Christian parents, all of us share this desire, and as we seek to raise our children in the “nuture and admonition of the Lord,” we long to see our children continue in Christ as the years pass, which causes us to seek the best church possible for our kids.
As the traditional view of children’s ministry unfolds, our attention turns to youth group as they grow up. Above all else, we desire our children to spend their teen years in love with Jesus, on fire for His name and living the adventure that Christ has created them to live. In a world where drugs, alcohol, premarital sex, and the pressures of the world abound, our fears that they will abandon the faith of their youth loom large. Above all else, teens value relationships with and the approval of their peers, and without that Christian peer influence in their lives, how will they escape the lure of the world and live their lives with single devotion to Christ?
Certainly the answer must be found in youth group, we would think. If our son or daughter, in the formative teen years, is highly involved in a church youth group, it would seem, our fears will prove unfounded. With a solid mentor relationship with a highly trained youth leader, a peer group free from the influences of a godless society, and an entertaining, drug-free environment to attend each week, perhaps youth group will prove to be the antidote to the lure of the world that sidetracks so many in their younger years.
The emphasis we place on the importance of children’s and youth group cannot be overstated. The experience that a church offers one’s children is probably the number one factor that influences where a family will make their church home. But the emphasis we place on these youth ministries is only reasonable if our basic assumptions are correct: that today’s youth ministries are powerful and effective in producing kids who love God.
But are today’s youth ministries as effective as we might think? We’ll explore this question in our next post.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
To All Prospective Members...
Are you really sure you want to join our church? I wonder if you know what you're in for. Wouldn't you rather join one of those "successful churches" where its sheer growth in numbers proves that it's a movement of God? If so, beware; our church isn't really growing right now. We do get plenty of pats on the back from well-wishers, and quite often see new faces on Sunday mornings, but it's rare that one of these visitors actually comes back. The description of the early church in Acts 5 is eerily similar to ours most of the time: "No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people" (Acts 5:13.) If you need a critical mass of people to prove to yourself that you're not crazy, don't expect to find that here.
C'mon, you don't want to join our church, do you? Don't you want a church with some great preaching? Where each and every service touches you in the depth of your soul? It's pretty hit or miss over here. In our church, there is no sermon; everyone just shows up and has the crazy notion that God is going to lead the meeting anyway. Some weeks, that approach works great; but sometimes, we end up just looking at each other with blank looks on our faces, desperately wanting to encourage one another but just not quite knowing how to do it. You never quite know what'll happen in our meeting from week to week: we've been interrupted by rain, poorly functioning furnaces, gale-force winds, sprinklers, head wounds, and marching bands, to name but a few. If you're looking for a stable, predictable environment for you and your family on Sundays, I can't suggest our church for you.
Are you really sure you want to start coming here? Don't you want a church comprised of deeply spiritual members? If you do, you might want to think twice before coming here; our church is a motley crew at best. The pastor talks too much and has an inferiority complex. More than once, we have smelled alcohol on the breaths of those who attend on Sunday mornings. Many of our members are financially strapped, stressed out, and desperately wish they were closer to God than they are, but find themselves continuing to get in His way.
You sure you want to come here? Don't you want a church with a quality kids' ministry? Well, we don't have a formal kids' program here; our "children's ministry" is sometimes better called "keeping our kids alive" when they end up running amok during the meeting. Now we believe that even though they may not be mastering much information on Sundays, they are witnessing the Body of Christ in action when we gather, something we know is of far more value. But if you feel that your kids need more structure than that, however, you might want to look elsewhere.
The reality of things is this: from an earthly perspective, there is no reason why anyone would want to join our church. Why would any card-carrying suburbanite want to join a shrinking collection of misfits that meet in a park on Sunday mornings if they actually were in their right mind? We have no formal programs, no building, no sermon, and don't even have a paid pastor! Truly, as Paul puts it, we're a bunch of "fools for Christ" (I Cor. 4:10).
But as you ponder what might seem to be our folly, another passage comes to mind that I must share with you too: "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him" (I Cor. 1:27-29). True, maybe there is no earthly reason that you would want to join us...but maybe in our folly, God has us right where He wants us, and He's finally free to begin some amazing work in our midst!
I hate to break this to you, but you and your family might not learn alot of 401 level theology in our church, but you'd probably learn a great amount of the theology of learning how to fail, how to lose, and how to die. You won't hear a prosperity gospel here, nor enjoy the glitz and lights of a Hollywood quality stage show here; you will, however, learn a great deal about how to set your own needs at the door as you'll have no other choice. If your primary desire is to be edified and fed by others, you might want to steer clear; if, however, you realize that you have already been far edified and educated above your level of obedience, you'd probably fit right in. Besides, as you increasingly minister to the "least of these" in our midst, you'd probably find you'd be edified far more than you ever would have imagined. I must warn you that coming to our church might exhaust you, deplete you, and might result in the death of everything you hold dear. But I suspect you'd find that through that process, you'd find life in all of its fullness. For as Jesus said, "He who would save his life will lose it; but whoever will lose his life for My sake will find it" (Mt. 16:25).
I don't know, it's your call. Feel free to join our merry band of "fools for Christ" if you'd like, but only if you feel you're really up to the challenge. Just don't say I didn't warn you.
C'mon, you don't want to join our church, do you? Don't you want a church with some great preaching? Where each and every service touches you in the depth of your soul? It's pretty hit or miss over here. In our church, there is no sermon; everyone just shows up and has the crazy notion that God is going to lead the meeting anyway. Some weeks, that approach works great; but sometimes, we end up just looking at each other with blank looks on our faces, desperately wanting to encourage one another but just not quite knowing how to do it. You never quite know what'll happen in our meeting from week to week: we've been interrupted by rain, poorly functioning furnaces, gale-force winds, sprinklers, head wounds, and marching bands, to name but a few. If you're looking for a stable, predictable environment for you and your family on Sundays, I can't suggest our church for you.
Are you really sure you want to start coming here? Don't you want a church comprised of deeply spiritual members? If you do, you might want to think twice before coming here; our church is a motley crew at best. The pastor talks too much and has an inferiority complex. More than once, we have smelled alcohol on the breaths of those who attend on Sunday mornings. Many of our members are financially strapped, stressed out, and desperately wish they were closer to God than they are, but find themselves continuing to get in His way.
You sure you want to come here? Don't you want a church with a quality kids' ministry? Well, we don't have a formal kids' program here; our "children's ministry" is sometimes better called "keeping our kids alive" when they end up running amok during the meeting. Now we believe that even though they may not be mastering much information on Sundays, they are witnessing the Body of Christ in action when we gather, something we know is of far more value. But if you feel that your kids need more structure than that, however, you might want to look elsewhere.
The reality of things is this: from an earthly perspective, there is no reason why anyone would want to join our church. Why would any card-carrying suburbanite want to join a shrinking collection of misfits that meet in a park on Sunday mornings if they actually were in their right mind? We have no formal programs, no building, no sermon, and don't even have a paid pastor! Truly, as Paul puts it, we're a bunch of "fools for Christ" (I Cor. 4:10).
But as you ponder what might seem to be our folly, another passage comes to mind that I must share with you too: "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him" (I Cor. 1:27-29). True, maybe there is no earthly reason that you would want to join us...but maybe in our folly, God has us right where He wants us, and He's finally free to begin some amazing work in our midst!
I hate to break this to you, but you and your family might not learn alot of 401 level theology in our church, but you'd probably learn a great amount of the theology of learning how to fail, how to lose, and how to die. You won't hear a prosperity gospel here, nor enjoy the glitz and lights of a Hollywood quality stage show here; you will, however, learn a great deal about how to set your own needs at the door as you'll have no other choice. If your primary desire is to be edified and fed by others, you might want to steer clear; if, however, you realize that you have already been far edified and educated above your level of obedience, you'd probably fit right in. Besides, as you increasingly minister to the "least of these" in our midst, you'd probably find you'd be edified far more than you ever would have imagined. I must warn you that coming to our church might exhaust you, deplete you, and might result in the death of everything you hold dear. But I suspect you'd find that through that process, you'd find life in all of its fullness. For as Jesus said, "He who would save his life will lose it; but whoever will lose his life for My sake will find it" (Mt. 16:25).
I don't know, it's your call. Feel free to join our merry band of "fools for Christ" if you'd like, but only if you feel you're really up to the challenge. Just don't say I didn't warn you.
Monday, July 26, 2010
"Come And Die With Us!"
When things go wrong, our life is in shambles, and God seems distant, where do we turn? Often we turn to the encouragement of others, hoping a kind, caring word might give us the added strength needed to overcome our pain. Yet too often, attempts by others to be sympathetic and caring prove vain and fruitless at best or counterproductive at worst. Think about it; when you’ve gone through a time of sorrow and struggle, what is some of the cold comfort that has been offered to you? Maybe it’s been “things could be worse,” or the vainest of all encouragements: “Keep your chin up!” Perhaps others’ attempts at comfort have had a more spiritual bent: “I’ll pray for you,” or, “God has a wonderful plan for your life, and things will turn around!” But when we’ve prayed and prayed for that new job, to be able to finally leave the homeless shelter we’re living in, or for our illness to be healed and there is still no response from heaven, such trite cliches leave us even more frustrated than before. At some point, as the promises of a better day ahead slip from the grasp of our hope, where do we turn?
God’s solution for our suffering is a simple one: it is none other than Jesus himself. He offers us not tactics and strategies to cope with the sorrows of this world, but a Person: His only begotten Son. In our pain, our God does not provide mere vain, empty words but a tangible, visible solution to these trials: the cross of Jesus. Not only is our Savior a “man of sorrows and one well acquainted with suffering” (Is. 53), but He in fact bore, felt, and experienced our very personal sufferings as He suffered on the cross. Through His bearing of not only our sin at Calvary but our misery and sorrow there as well, when we suffer, He suffers; and when we mourn, He mourns. Yet the reverse must also be true for such divine comfort to be realized; as Christ died, so we must die. It is only when we bring our trials to the foot of the cross, and let our demands for their resolution die a slow, painful death that we can truly experience the resurrection power of Jesus (Phil 4). These demands the cross make upon us leave no room for bitterness, envy, or anger over our trials, but call us to “rejoice, as we are partakers of Christ’s sufferings” ( I Peter 4:12). Yet for us to truly “count it all joy” (Jas 1:2) in this fashion when we are faced with trials, a bloody and painful struggle must ensue as we choose to embrace the cross and bear daily the sufferings of Jesus.
But when this anguish and struggle has finally brought about our own death, the resurrection power of Jesus will truly be manifested in our lives (Phil. 4). When we have chosen to forfeit our own rights and claims in the pursuit of Someone greater, Christ promises that we will find that elusive joy, peace, and comfort in the midst of our suffering and pain. It is this process of submission to the cross alone and the resultant experience of His resurrection life that promises to bring about the encouragement that so many vain words, positive thinking and empty strategies cannot. May those of us at COAH so embrace the cross of Jesus in our trials today, and by God’s grace, may we die just a little bit more before this day is through. As Christ has invited us, so we invite you: come and die with us!
God’s solution for our suffering is a simple one: it is none other than Jesus himself. He offers us not tactics and strategies to cope with the sorrows of this world, but a Person: His only begotten Son. In our pain, our God does not provide mere vain, empty words but a tangible, visible solution to these trials: the cross of Jesus. Not only is our Savior a “man of sorrows and one well acquainted with suffering” (Is. 53), but He in fact bore, felt, and experienced our very personal sufferings as He suffered on the cross. Through His bearing of not only our sin at Calvary but our misery and sorrow there as well, when we suffer, He suffers; and when we mourn, He mourns. Yet the reverse must also be true for such divine comfort to be realized; as Christ died, so we must die. It is only when we bring our trials to the foot of the cross, and let our demands for their resolution die a slow, painful death that we can truly experience the resurrection power of Jesus (Phil 4). These demands the cross make upon us leave no room for bitterness, envy, or anger over our trials, but call us to “rejoice, as we are partakers of Christ’s sufferings” ( I Peter 4:12). Yet for us to truly “count it all joy” (Jas 1:2) in this fashion when we are faced with trials, a bloody and painful struggle must ensue as we choose to embrace the cross and bear daily the sufferings of Jesus.
But when this anguish and struggle has finally brought about our own death, the resurrection power of Jesus will truly be manifested in our lives (Phil. 4). When we have chosen to forfeit our own rights and claims in the pursuit of Someone greater, Christ promises that we will find that elusive joy, peace, and comfort in the midst of our suffering and pain. It is this process of submission to the cross alone and the resultant experience of His resurrection life that promises to bring about the encouragement that so many vain words, positive thinking and empty strategies cannot. May those of us at COAH so embrace the cross of Jesus in our trials today, and by God’s grace, may we die just a little bit more before this day is through. As Christ has invited us, so we invite you: come and die with us!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Consumerism: Steps Towards A Solution
On the face of things, all of us would rightfully decry the rank consumerism so prevalent in our churches today. But what would it look like for us to truly embrace a solution? How do we move from criticism of the existing model to the founding of a new model when it comes to the church?
Imagine a church that is built on the foundation of every member participation. Far from than being a mere minion in a faceless corporation, each member of this church, by their participation, is a minister of the eternal purpose of God. By their words and actions, each member passionately proclaims that it is truly “more blessed to give than to receive.”
Rather than only ministering inside, however, these members minister outside in the streets. Imagine a church that spends many of its weekly meetings not at a feeding trough, but dirtying its hands in the soil of a lost world. Rather than storing them in barns, this church sows the mustard seeds of the kingdom on weekends, finding ways to “be Jesus” to a world in need. A radical church such as this demonstrates true religion by visiting the orphan and widow in their affliction, rather than isolating itself in a universe of its own. Rather than sitting in a service every week, this church puts the gospel in action by showing the love of Christ to those in need. During these times, they not only serve the needy, but they build regular relationships with them as well. The children in this community experience the gospel as it was meant to be lived, and through their experience, find that Yahweh is a God who welcomes all.
Most importantly, by attempting to take church “outside the box” and explore new, fresh directions together, these believers are forced to rely on the Spirit of God for daily wisdom and guidance in these endeavors. As this church then “lives on the edge” in this way, stepping outside of their comfort zones and putting their own needs aside, the presence of God in their midst becomes evident in a tangible way to all. As the Holy Spirit is revealed in and through their congregation, those newcomers who witness His glory in their midst will “be convicted by all, and will fall on their faces and say that God is truly among [them]” (1 Cor. 14:24,25).
However, be warned: such a church cannot compete with the megachurch in quality of services and programs. From a consumer perspective, this model of church may be found wanting. Truly advancing the kingdom of God in this fashion would require every member’s commitment to making this dream a reality and their rejection of their own needs and wants. Those who hope to be ministered to without first ministering themselves will find themselves sorely disappointed with this arrangement.
Bob Hyatt says this: “We are doing our best to be a church community where people can belong before they believe- a church for the unchurched and the formerly churched. But that’s hard on the lifelong Christians among us- because we don’t get to have things done exactly the way we would like them. We are trying to think more about the people we are reaching than our own wants and needs. I tell our people, ‘We are not going to meet your needs. Your needs will get met, but by the people sitting beside you, not standing in front of you. We’d like to think that when we say “community” we mean it. I have told our people over and over again- you are the ones who will drive ministry here. We meet in a pub. There’s very little space for “kids ministry.’ I keep telling them- ‘I am not going to solve this problem for you. This is your community. If you love these kids, you’ll come up with something for them. I’m your pastor, not your cruise director. My job is to open God’s Word, and tell you what I think God seems to be saying through this book to our community. Your job is to figure out what that looks like and walk along side others who are also searching.’”
Without a doubt, this radical church’s success is predicated on every member’s commitment to full participation and service of the body. Certainly there are blanks to fill in, all of which must be answered by the body of Christ rising up together to find a solution. On the flip side, however, those who embrace such a vision through self-denial and commitment to those around them will find that God will provide for their spiritual needs in abundance. Far from their needs not being met, quite the opposite will be the case. Those who embrace service, self sacrifice, and the needs of others over their own will find that “all these things will be added to them,” whether in this endeavor or any other. For truly, “he who saves his life will lose it, but he who loses his life for [His] sake will find it.”
We have all the information we’ll ever need to serve Christ whole heartedly; we are educated far above our level of obedience. The time has now come for action. The time is upon us to leave the comfort of Ur for a better country; to slay the monster of consumerism once for all to embrace a larger vision. May we seek to be part of the solution rather than further contribute to the problem. Let us move forward to a vision of church that truly transends the consumerism of our day.
Imagine a church that is built on the foundation of every member participation. Far from than being a mere minion in a faceless corporation, each member of this church, by their participation, is a minister of the eternal purpose of God. By their words and actions, each member passionately proclaims that it is truly “more blessed to give than to receive.”
Rather than only ministering inside, however, these members minister outside in the streets. Imagine a church that spends many of its weekly meetings not at a feeding trough, but dirtying its hands in the soil of a lost world. Rather than storing them in barns, this church sows the mustard seeds of the kingdom on weekends, finding ways to “be Jesus” to a world in need. A radical church such as this demonstrates true religion by visiting the orphan and widow in their affliction, rather than isolating itself in a universe of its own. Rather than sitting in a service every week, this church puts the gospel in action by showing the love of Christ to those in need. During these times, they not only serve the needy, but they build regular relationships with them as well. The children in this community experience the gospel as it was meant to be lived, and through their experience, find that Yahweh is a God who welcomes all.
Most importantly, by attempting to take church “outside the box” and explore new, fresh directions together, these believers are forced to rely on the Spirit of God for daily wisdom and guidance in these endeavors. As this church then “lives on the edge” in this way, stepping outside of their comfort zones and putting their own needs aside, the presence of God in their midst becomes evident in a tangible way to all. As the Holy Spirit is revealed in and through their congregation, those newcomers who witness His glory in their midst will “be convicted by all, and will fall on their faces and say that God is truly among [them]” (1 Cor. 14:24,25).
However, be warned: such a church cannot compete with the megachurch in quality of services and programs. From a consumer perspective, this model of church may be found wanting. Truly advancing the kingdom of God in this fashion would require every member’s commitment to making this dream a reality and their rejection of their own needs and wants. Those who hope to be ministered to without first ministering themselves will find themselves sorely disappointed with this arrangement.
Bob Hyatt says this: “We are doing our best to be a church community where people can belong before they believe- a church for the unchurched and the formerly churched. But that’s hard on the lifelong Christians among us- because we don’t get to have things done exactly the way we would like them. We are trying to think more about the people we are reaching than our own wants and needs. I tell our people, ‘We are not going to meet your needs. Your needs will get met, but by the people sitting beside you, not standing in front of you. We’d like to think that when we say “community” we mean it. I have told our people over and over again- you are the ones who will drive ministry here. We meet in a pub. There’s very little space for “kids ministry.’ I keep telling them- ‘I am not going to solve this problem for you. This is your community. If you love these kids, you’ll come up with something for them. I’m your pastor, not your cruise director. My job is to open God’s Word, and tell you what I think God seems to be saying through this book to our community. Your job is to figure out what that looks like and walk along side others who are also searching.’”
Without a doubt, this radical church’s success is predicated on every member’s commitment to full participation and service of the body. Certainly there are blanks to fill in, all of which must be answered by the body of Christ rising up together to find a solution. On the flip side, however, those who embrace such a vision through self-denial and commitment to those around them will find that God will provide for their spiritual needs in abundance. Far from their needs not being met, quite the opposite will be the case. Those who embrace service, self sacrifice, and the needs of others over their own will find that “all these things will be added to them,” whether in this endeavor or any other. For truly, “he who saves his life will lose it, but he who loses his life for [His] sake will find it.”
We have all the information we’ll ever need to serve Christ whole heartedly; we are educated far above our level of obedience. The time has now come for action. The time is upon us to leave the comfort of Ur for a better country; to slay the monster of consumerism once for all to embrace a larger vision. May we seek to be part of the solution rather than further contribute to the problem. Let us move forward to a vision of church that truly transends the consumerism of our day.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Jesus vs. Consumerism, Part 2
In our recent posts, we have explored the devastating effects of consumerism on today’s church. Applying the lessons of the shopping mall to the church flies in the face of Jesus’ teachings, who taught us that “Whoever will save his life will lose it, but whoever will lose it for my sake will find it” (Matt. 16:25). Yet the implications of this concept are more far-reaching than we might first realize.
How guilty are each one of us of neglecting Christ’s words and seeking to meet our own needs first and foremost when it comes to the church? You might renounce your own needs in theory, but would you be quick to look for another church if you felt you weren’t “being fed” at your own? If another church had better preaching, a better Sunday morning service, or could simply “do church” better than yours, would you still attend your church?
What about the needs of your family? Though you may be successful in deferring your own needs, do you attend your church with the needs of your family first in mind? Certainly we are no less of a consumer if we shop for our children than we if shop for ourselves. If advancing God’s kingdom meant putting not only your needs, but your family’s needs in second place on Sunday mornings, would you be willing to do this?
Similarly, we may be in agreement that church does not and cannot consist solely of a once a week service to be successful. Yet the fact remains that the quality of the events of Sunday morning is far and away the most compelling reason to pick a church today. If the quality of your church’s Sunday morning service dropped, would you still “patronize” that church? If you took the Sunday morning service away from your church, would you still have a compelling reason to be a part of that body of believers? Though in theory we might say otherwise, the vast majority of us choose our churches as if Sunday is the only day that exists.
How can picking a church based on what happens on its Sunday morning stage be consistent with anything but consumerism? If in fact we should be approaching church as a giver rather than a receiver, how can we decide to attend a church based on the quality of its programs and services? Rather, it seems that the teachings of Christ dictate that we must choose a church based on our ability to minister. If the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve (Mk 10:45), how can this not be the case for his followers?
The teachings of Scripture clearly show us the purpose of church is to encourage one another rather than to passively receive (Heb. 10:25). Rather than picking a church by Sunday morning quality, it would seem that making that decision based on the people within it is far more Biblically sound. That said, we must ask ourselves some difficult questions. At the church you attend, are you truly experiencing God in the context of community? By being a part of the church you’re at currently, are you helping others to experience God in their life as well? Since you began attending your church, what fruit have you borne? Have you become overwhelmingly more loving? Are you becoming thoroughly more patient? By being a part of your church, are you regularly seeing others come to Christ as you are involved in their lives? Are your children doing these things? These are the questions we need to ask as we determine where our church home should be.
In our next post, we will discuss what it might take for our churches to transcend the culture of consumerism so prevalent in our day.
How guilty are each one of us of neglecting Christ’s words and seeking to meet our own needs first and foremost when it comes to the church? You might renounce your own needs in theory, but would you be quick to look for another church if you felt you weren’t “being fed” at your own? If another church had better preaching, a better Sunday morning service, or could simply “do church” better than yours, would you still attend your church?
What about the needs of your family? Though you may be successful in deferring your own needs, do you attend your church with the needs of your family first in mind? Certainly we are no less of a consumer if we shop for our children than we if shop for ourselves. If advancing God’s kingdom meant putting not only your needs, but your family’s needs in second place on Sunday mornings, would you be willing to do this?
Similarly, we may be in agreement that church does not and cannot consist solely of a once a week service to be successful. Yet the fact remains that the quality of the events of Sunday morning is far and away the most compelling reason to pick a church today. If the quality of your church’s Sunday morning service dropped, would you still “patronize” that church? If you took the Sunday morning service away from your church, would you still have a compelling reason to be a part of that body of believers? Though in theory we might say otherwise, the vast majority of us choose our churches as if Sunday is the only day that exists.
How can picking a church based on what happens on its Sunday morning stage be consistent with anything but consumerism? If in fact we should be approaching church as a giver rather than a receiver, how can we decide to attend a church based on the quality of its programs and services? Rather, it seems that the teachings of Christ dictate that we must choose a church based on our ability to minister. If the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve (Mk 10:45), how can this not be the case for his followers?
The teachings of Scripture clearly show us the purpose of church is to encourage one another rather than to passively receive (Heb. 10:25). Rather than picking a church by Sunday morning quality, it would seem that making that decision based on the people within it is far more Biblically sound. That said, we must ask ourselves some difficult questions. At the church you attend, are you truly experiencing God in the context of community? By being a part of the church you’re at currently, are you helping others to experience God in their life as well? Since you began attending your church, what fruit have you borne? Have you become overwhelmingly more loving? Are you becoming thoroughly more patient? By being a part of your church, are you regularly seeing others come to Christ as you are involved in their lives? Are your children doing these things? These are the questions we need to ask as we determine where our church home should be.
In our next post, we will discuss what it might take for our churches to transcend the culture of consumerism so prevalent in our day.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Jesus vs. Consumerism, Part 1
If Jesus were on earth today, what would He say about the consumerism so rampant in today’s church? Let us allow our Leader to speak for Himself on this matter: “Whoever will save his life will lose it, but whoever will lose it for my sake will find it” (Matt. 16:25). This is an inexorable law of the Kingdom that is true in every aspect of human life. When a person seeks anything but the glory of God in his life, that person can be assured that he will not find what he is seeking. Safety, security, and comfort cannot be found by seeking them. A simple look at our society shows this to be true: though every attempt is made to pursue these things by the average suburbanite, fear, worry, anxiety, and a stressed out life style are at epidemic proportions today.
On the flip side, however, Christ promises His followers in the above verse that when they seek first God’s glory they will find the fulfillment of their own needs that they neglected in the process. As Jesus said, “seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). What are these things that will be added to us? They are the spiritual and physical needs that each one of us has that take a back seat to pursuing the advancement of God’s kingdom in our lives. When we pursue the coming of God’s kingdom first and foremost, rather than our own needs, Jesus promises that our Father will meet our needs in the end. When we pursue the edifying and service of others instead of concentrating on our own spiritual growth, it is then that our own spiritual growth becomes a reality. However, the person who pursues His own needs first will find neither the deeper life with God nor the fulfillment of those desires that he so desperately sought after.
With this timeless truth in mind, it is beyond argument that the attitude of the Christian should be not, “what can I get out of church?”, but rather, “what can I give to the body?” This precludes attitudes such as “church shopping” and the “feeding trough” mentality so prevalent in churches today. As Bob Hyatt says: “The church is not here for you. You are here for the church, your community, and your community; the church is here for the world. Jesus did not die to make you into a sanctified consumer. He died to bring you alive to God and to a desperately needy world.” It is clear that consumerism in the church flies in the face of the values Christ has espoused to his followers.
But do we really practice what we preach in this area? In our next post, we’ll explore the implications of Jesus’ teaching on this matter in our own lives today.
On the flip side, however, Christ promises His followers in the above verse that when they seek first God’s glory they will find the fulfillment of their own needs that they neglected in the process. As Jesus said, “seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). What are these things that will be added to us? They are the spiritual and physical needs that each one of us has that take a back seat to pursuing the advancement of God’s kingdom in our lives. When we pursue the coming of God’s kingdom first and foremost, rather than our own needs, Jesus promises that our Father will meet our needs in the end. When we pursue the edifying and service of others instead of concentrating on our own spiritual growth, it is then that our own spiritual growth becomes a reality. However, the person who pursues His own needs first will find neither the deeper life with God nor the fulfillment of those desires that he so desperately sought after.
With this timeless truth in mind, it is beyond argument that the attitude of the Christian should be not, “what can I get out of church?”, but rather, “what can I give to the body?” This precludes attitudes such as “church shopping” and the “feeding trough” mentality so prevalent in churches today. As Bob Hyatt says: “The church is not here for you. You are here for the church, your community, and your community; the church is here for the world. Jesus did not die to make you into a sanctified consumer. He died to bring you alive to God and to a desperately needy world.” It is clear that consumerism in the church flies in the face of the values Christ has espoused to his followers.
But do we really practice what we preach in this area? In our next post, we’ll explore the implications of Jesus’ teaching on this matter in our own lives today.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
"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.
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.
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