I often speculate about the future of the church in our local communities and broader culture. What will it look like to be the church in 10, 15, or 20 years? What will our established churches become? What new ways will the Christian faith be expressed, practiced, shared, and experienced? There are a few observations I have that inform my speculations as I think about the future. Let me be clear, these speculations are not and should not be the determining factor of "how" and "why" the church should evolve or change. The "how" and "why" for the church is always God's Spirit. But making observations and looking into the future as best we can will help us see what it is we are doing that must change and what it is that must not change.
My main observation about the effectiveness of the church is that authentic and engaged relationships are the only thing that will sustainably advance the gospel of the Kingdom of God. Put another way, if we as the church do not engage in authentic relationships with new people who are currently disengaged or alienated from the Good news of God's Kingdom, the gospel will not advance in a sustainable way. Programs, ministries, acts of benevolence, publicity, and worship services are only as effective as the relationships they produce, nurture, and strengthen.
This is why I believe our focus must be on establishing and strengthening relationships more than maintaining facilities, building staff, and producing programs. If you think about it, the "success" stories of any program or ministry is a story of relationships. If relationships are indeed the point and method of the gospel itself (which I believe they are), then the church's focus should be on relationships. If our call is to extend the gospel hope to those who do not have it, then our focus should be on building relationships of authenticity with those people.
The challenge with this relational focus in the church is that it requires commitment from members, many of which never signed up for such intensive and personal responsibility. The good news is that all of us were made for relationships - they come naturally out of us and feed us as they take place. If we can somehow create opportunities for disciples in established churches to naturally initiate relationships with those who are not disciples, we may have a future after all.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Monday, June 11, 2012
It starts small
You may have heard a line from that hymn once upon a time "let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me". For years, I thought that was kind of a cop-out. I'm all for personal peace, but we'll never have peace on earth if we only worry about ourselves! We have to get others to be peaceful too! But as I grow-up (a perpetual process for me) I'm starting to believe that if I really live out the values I care about the most in my daily life and in every circumstance, there is the power to send ripples across the globe.
It starts small. Jesus started small - on purpose. He could have preached to thousands of people every week for more than just 3 years (instead it's only recorded that he did this a handful of times). He could have built the best church ever and established worldwide programs and ministries over the course of a rich and lengthy tenure as Savior-in-residence. But he went small. Very small. His locale was no where near the center of the world at that time, his clientele were far poorer and less educated than the movers and shakers of the day, and his preferred method of transferring his ethos and kingdom on to future generations did not include vast networks of thousands - it was made of 12 people. This was small stuff. Why only 12? Why in Galilee? Why only 3 years?
If I had 3 years and was stuck in the hill country of Texas, would I spend the vast majority of my time with the same 12 people? Is that really the most effective way to begin a global, earth-shifting movement? Apparently it was the perfect way. It started small. From what we can tell the early christian movement (which exploded to include a good half of the Roman Empire in less than 300 years) never had a church with over a hundred people. Maybe they would gather in big groups sometimes, but their method of discipleship was modeled after the one they were disciples of: KEEP IT SMALL.
For Christians today, we must start even smaller than 12. We must begin to personally live out, embody, and radically display our Kingdom values in every day life. If we can do that we are exceptional among the saints. If we can then extend such Kingdom living into our immediate family we accomplished a great thing. If our family can then witness to and teach a few other families to live out the reign of Christ in the world, we will have become the epicenter for transformation in our community. And if a church can be mobilized to act according to its gospel principles and Jesus culture - it will do nothing short of change the world.
You see, spreading the gospel and bringing light into the world is not about getting more people together. Its about having people actually live out what Jesus taught in their daily lives - with their families, at their workplaces, in their financial decisions, in their social circles, and during their trips to the grocery store. Do it right - beginning with your life, see where it goes and who takes it up for their life, and who knows what kind of things will happen. It starts small.
It starts small. Jesus started small - on purpose. He could have preached to thousands of people every week for more than just 3 years (instead it's only recorded that he did this a handful of times). He could have built the best church ever and established worldwide programs and ministries over the course of a rich and lengthy tenure as Savior-in-residence. But he went small. Very small. His locale was no where near the center of the world at that time, his clientele were far poorer and less educated than the movers and shakers of the day, and his preferred method of transferring his ethos and kingdom on to future generations did not include vast networks of thousands - it was made of 12 people. This was small stuff. Why only 12? Why in Galilee? Why only 3 years?
If I had 3 years and was stuck in the hill country of Texas, would I spend the vast majority of my time with the same 12 people? Is that really the most effective way to begin a global, earth-shifting movement? Apparently it was the perfect way. It started small. From what we can tell the early christian movement (which exploded to include a good half of the Roman Empire in less than 300 years) never had a church with over a hundred people. Maybe they would gather in big groups sometimes, but their method of discipleship was modeled after the one they were disciples of: KEEP IT SMALL.
For Christians today, we must start even smaller than 12. We must begin to personally live out, embody, and radically display our Kingdom values in every day life. If we can do that we are exceptional among the saints. If we can then extend such Kingdom living into our immediate family we accomplished a great thing. If our family can then witness to and teach a few other families to live out the reign of Christ in the world, we will have become the epicenter for transformation in our community. And if a church can be mobilized to act according to its gospel principles and Jesus culture - it will do nothing short of change the world.
You see, spreading the gospel and bringing light into the world is not about getting more people together. Its about having people actually live out what Jesus taught in their daily lives - with their families, at their workplaces, in their financial decisions, in their social circles, and during their trips to the grocery store. Do it right - beginning with your life, see where it goes and who takes it up for their life, and who knows what kind of things will happen. It starts small.
Monday, June 4, 2012
Does the Church believe in Resurrection?
We don't like to die. In fact, we avoid the end of life like it could kill us. But the core of the gospel message is that death is not the end, it is the beginning. The central moment of Christ's life isn't his triumphal entry into Jerusalem or his feeding of the 5,000, but his lonely death on the cross.
Why is this moment the climax of the gospel? Because it exhibits a love that is eternal, victorious, and powerful. By laying down our lives, we will find eternal life. Jesus puts it this way in John 12: "24Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.25 Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life."
Do we believe this? Do we actually believe that if we try to survive we'll actually die and that if we lay down our life we'll actually live? Such a paradox takes tremendous faith in a God that we cannot see. Jesus had this faith with his own life and ministry. And his faithfulness was rewarded with the Resurrection. He laid down one life to take up another life. He had faith that dying was the gateway to living.
I believe the modern church has come to a time when it must choose to die if it is going to live. The mainstream institutional church must give up its current form and die if it has a chance of living in a new form down the road. But we must not die because it is our only way to live, we must die because we have a savior who died and He is also our Lord, Master, and Guide. We must die not just as individuals but as a church if we are to follow in the way of Jesus.
It will take tremendous faith for the church to realize that the most successful action it can take in the eyes of God is to lay down its life. We think that by avoiding death and preserving the church as we've known it is honoring God, but it is actually an act of faithlessness.
We must die to church being about us. We must die to a church with walls and beautiful buildings. We must die to a church that exists to meet the needs of the saints rather than equipping them for the work of ministry in the world. We must die to churches that are refugee camps for a people who are still fighting for a Christian culture rather than an alternative Kingdom. We must die to spending our money and energy on things that make us comfortable. We must die to the very way of doing church that many of us have come to call home over these last centuries.
But I believe that if we die to ourselves, we will find eternal life and the gospel will go on in ways we could have never imagined. The church that dies is the church that is resurrected. Do you believe in the Resurrection, Church?
Why is this moment the climax of the gospel? Because it exhibits a love that is eternal, victorious, and powerful. By laying down our lives, we will find eternal life. Jesus puts it this way in John 12: "24Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.25 Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life."
Do we believe this? Do we actually believe that if we try to survive we'll actually die and that if we lay down our life we'll actually live? Such a paradox takes tremendous faith in a God that we cannot see. Jesus had this faith with his own life and ministry. And his faithfulness was rewarded with the Resurrection. He laid down one life to take up another life. He had faith that dying was the gateway to living.
I believe the modern church has come to a time when it must choose to die if it is going to live. The mainstream institutional church must give up its current form and die if it has a chance of living in a new form down the road. But we must not die because it is our only way to live, we must die because we have a savior who died and He is also our Lord, Master, and Guide. We must die not just as individuals but as a church if we are to follow in the way of Jesus.
It will take tremendous faith for the church to realize that the most successful action it can take in the eyes of God is to lay down its life. We think that by avoiding death and preserving the church as we've known it is honoring God, but it is actually an act of faithlessness.
We must die to church being about us. We must die to a church with walls and beautiful buildings. We must die to a church that exists to meet the needs of the saints rather than equipping them for the work of ministry in the world. We must die to churches that are refugee camps for a people who are still fighting for a Christian culture rather than an alternative Kingdom. We must die to spending our money and energy on things that make us comfortable. We must die to the very way of doing church that many of us have come to call home over these last centuries.
But I believe that if we die to ourselves, we will find eternal life and the gospel will go on in ways we could have never imagined. The church that dies is the church that is resurrected. Do you believe in the Resurrection, Church?
Monday, May 21, 2012
The Failure of the Pastoral Role
I don't doubt that there are biblical and Godly reasons why certain persons should be in certain types of leadership in the Church. I've come to terms with the fact that hierarchy can be holy. But the way that the modern church has turned the office of a "Pastor" into a kind of all inclusive Christian role is simply wrong. Pastors and lay-persons are both responsible for maintaining this problem. For many who grow up in church in America, the pastor is expected to do a lot of things that I believe all Christians are supposed to do. In our modern institutional churches in the west, the pastor is expected to do the work of the church rather than lead the church. This distinction may seem insignificant, but I believe it is largely responsible for the disengagement and low commitment level of many congregations. Let me give you an example. "Pastor, why haven't you visited Mary in the nursing home yet? No one from our church has seen her since she arrived at the new facility." Visitation of the sick, dying, and bereaved has NEVER been a biblical role reserved for Elders in the body of Christ. If anything, it is a responsibility of all Christians. "I've stopped coming to Church because the pastor would just walk by me like I wasn't even there. She only greeted me once a month before worship." Keeping up personally with each individual in a large church is impossible for one person, but I have found people countless times who become inactive or leave the church altogether because "the pastor didn't really reach out to me". Aren't all Christians supposed to reach out to one another? Since when is it the expectation of one person to do what all Christians should be doing. Let me be clear, my issue is not that Clergy persons have too much to do (in fact I think we can get pretty lazy sometimes). My issue is that by taking on so many responsibilities that belong to the whole church, Pastors give everyone else excuses NOT to be Christians in their daily life. When I do the "rounds" at church, greeting persons and introducing myself and learning something about their life, I'm not trying to be a good pastor, I'm trying to model Christian behavior that we should all embody. When I visit the sick or comfort the grieving I'm not filling the tasks of an ordained elder, I'm showing other Christians how they too should care for their own. When I teach from the scriptures the truth of the gospel I'm not imparting some secret knowledge to a group of students, I'm exemplifying that a knowledge of the bible and its message is available to all. When Pastors are expected to do the work of the church (be the body of Christ by themselves), they become products for a needy people and eventually those churches will die. The only biblical and sustainable model for pastoral leadership is one where everyone is empowered to do the work of the church and no one person is expected to do it all.
Sunday, May 13, 2012
The Sunday Squash
Lately on Sunday mornings, I've been feeling like I'm trying to squeez the universe into a thimble. I want all of the transforming power and redeeming grace of God to be realized and avaliable during one hour of corporate worship. I want people to catupult into a life of faith that will leave them changed forever. I want to make disciples that will be agents of transformation in the world. This needs to happen between 11:00am and 12 noon on Sunday. "I may not have another chance! This is it! Most people who come will not have another time during their week (or month, or year) to spend an hour intentionally focused on Christ and their faith in Him. If it doesn't happen now, it won't happen." So my mind thinks as I come to worship each week.
But does God want me to feel this way about Sunday morning worship? Sure, I know that corporate worship is a holy time that holds great power for all who attend. I know lives can be changed in a moment and that coming together as a community is biblical. But I have a sense that I shouldn't be putting so much emphasis (and presure) on what turns out to be only one aspect of the Christian life. And it dawns on me, maybe the reason the extent of many people's Christian life is Sunday morning is because they've learned, like I have, that this is the moment of the week when "God Happens". What if the pressure to change lives and make disciples wasn't put so overwhelmingly on Sunday worship? What if that burden was shared properly among the other aspects of the life of faith that scripture and tradition charges us with? What if we made it clear each week during worship that it wasn't the most important part of being a Christian and that it wasn't the only (and primary) way to relate to Christ's Church. What if Christian leaders spent the time they spent on planning worship on gathering people into missional activity in their communty. What if the pinnical of our week wasn't Sunday but the days when we are building small groups and fostering one-on-one discipleship? What if we allowed Christian worship to be Christian worship and didn't try to make it evangelistic preaching or apostolic teaching? What if we didn't try to represent every element of community in that one hour? Would people look for more? Would they start asking for other ways to get involved if we stopped giving them the reader's digest version of everything? More likely, we have work to do. Work to emphasize disciple making and world-transforming rather than worship spaces, professional muscisians and excellent preaching. Maybe our work as Christian leaders is not to get more people to have a cursory encounter with God in a large group but to guide them, one by one, into meaningful and life-altering relationships with Christ through other people. Maybe we give up having the best show in town and instead work on making the best disciples and the most living church.
But does God want me to feel this way about Sunday morning worship? Sure, I know that corporate worship is a holy time that holds great power for all who attend. I know lives can be changed in a moment and that coming together as a community is biblical. But I have a sense that I shouldn't be putting so much emphasis (and presure) on what turns out to be only one aspect of the Christian life. And it dawns on me, maybe the reason the extent of many people's Christian life is Sunday morning is because they've learned, like I have, that this is the moment of the week when "God Happens". What if the pressure to change lives and make disciples wasn't put so overwhelmingly on Sunday worship? What if that burden was shared properly among the other aspects of the life of faith that scripture and tradition charges us with? What if we made it clear each week during worship that it wasn't the most important part of being a Christian and that it wasn't the only (and primary) way to relate to Christ's Church. What if Christian leaders spent the time they spent on planning worship on gathering people into missional activity in their communty. What if the pinnical of our week wasn't Sunday but the days when we are building small groups and fostering one-on-one discipleship? What if we allowed Christian worship to be Christian worship and didn't try to make it evangelistic preaching or apostolic teaching? What if we didn't try to represent every element of community in that one hour? Would people look for more? Would they start asking for other ways to get involved if we stopped giving them the reader's digest version of everything? More likely, we have work to do. Work to emphasize disciple making and world-transforming rather than worship spaces, professional muscisians and excellent preaching. Maybe our work as Christian leaders is not to get more people to have a cursory encounter with God in a large group but to guide them, one by one, into meaningful and life-altering relationships with Christ through other people. Maybe we give up having the best show in town and instead work on making the best disciples and the most living church.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Each One Sent
I've been talking about a dream for the church in which EACH person experiences the transforming power of a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Each one Known
Each one Loved
Each one Called
Each one Sent
Today I'll talk about the last element, Each one Sent:
When people are known by God and their family of faith and when they are fully accepted and loved in genuine relationships they begin to understand their value, giftedness and unique call by God. Upon the moment that such a call is heard and accepted, the natural and immediate result is for that person to be sent to fulfill it. Just because someone knows they have a calling, doesn't mean they have accepted the authority and responsibility of carrying that calling out. I've met many people who know what God has called them to do in life but have never been sent by the church to go and accomplish that calling. This may seem insignificant until we think about people's insecurity, hesitancy to act alone, and fear of seeming crazy ("God told me so!") or arrogant ("He wants to use me because I'm especially special!"). Believe it or not people need permission, affirmation, and authority to go and be who they are.
Once someones call is understood and accepted, it is the role of the Body of Christ to send (commission) that person to act and to covenant to support them in the living out of their call. Our concept of this is extremely limited in the mainstream church and it is a huge factor in why lay-leadership is such a problem in the local church.
To send someone is to do several things. First it tells the person that his/her calling is not just about him/her. Its about God and His mission in the world taking place through His people, the church. Secondly, sending someone tells them that they are a living, important, and unique part of that mission. Thirdly, sending people gives them the permission to act with the authority of a community behind them. It allows them to take risks, but also provides them accountability and support when the calling is not easy to live out.
Think about this, the very identity of the 12 disciples was defined by the fact that Jesus sent them to accomplish His mission in the world. The word "apostle" simply means "one who is sent". Who are we? We are the ones who are sent! We aren't the ones who came up with this mission or calling on our own but we come on behalf of one who holds unending love and power for the world that is here at our disposal through grace! The point of becoming a Christian is to become an apostle (lower case "a") and to be sent out to accomplish the mission of God in a unique way by using your own gifts, calling, and environment.
As the church we must Send people out and empower them to be all they are created to be. Every worship service should have a commissioning of "regular" Christians - A mother who is sent to be an apostle to her family and the mother's day out she works for. A retired man who is sent to be an apostle to his breakfast group, golf buddies, and grandchildren. An accountant who is sent to be an apostle to his firm, clients, and industry.
When we are known and loved we can be truly called and sent. This is one of God's dreams for the church!
Each one Known
Each one Loved
Each one Called
Each one Sent
Today I'll talk about the last element, Each one Sent:
When people are known by God and their family of faith and when they are fully accepted and loved in genuine relationships they begin to understand their value, giftedness and unique call by God. Upon the moment that such a call is heard and accepted, the natural and immediate result is for that person to be sent to fulfill it. Just because someone knows they have a calling, doesn't mean they have accepted the authority and responsibility of carrying that calling out. I've met many people who know what God has called them to do in life but have never been sent by the church to go and accomplish that calling. This may seem insignificant until we think about people's insecurity, hesitancy to act alone, and fear of seeming crazy ("God told me so!") or arrogant ("He wants to use me because I'm especially special!"). Believe it or not people need permission, affirmation, and authority to go and be who they are.
Once someones call is understood and accepted, it is the role of the Body of Christ to send (commission) that person to act and to covenant to support them in the living out of their call. Our concept of this is extremely limited in the mainstream church and it is a huge factor in why lay-leadership is such a problem in the local church.
To send someone is to do several things. First it tells the person that his/her calling is not just about him/her. Its about God and His mission in the world taking place through His people, the church. Secondly, sending someone tells them that they are a living, important, and unique part of that mission. Thirdly, sending people gives them the permission to act with the authority of a community behind them. It allows them to take risks, but also provides them accountability and support when the calling is not easy to live out.
Think about this, the very identity of the 12 disciples was defined by the fact that Jesus sent them to accomplish His mission in the world. The word "apostle" simply means "one who is sent". Who are we? We are the ones who are sent! We aren't the ones who came up with this mission or calling on our own but we come on behalf of one who holds unending love and power for the world that is here at our disposal through grace! The point of becoming a Christian is to become an apostle (lower case "a") and to be sent out to accomplish the mission of God in a unique way by using your own gifts, calling, and environment.
As the church we must Send people out and empower them to be all they are created to be. Every worship service should have a commissioning of "regular" Christians - A mother who is sent to be an apostle to her family and the mother's day out she works for. A retired man who is sent to be an apostle to his breakfast group, golf buddies, and grandchildren. An accountant who is sent to be an apostle to his firm, clients, and industry.
When we are known and loved we can be truly called and sent. This is one of God's dreams for the church!
Monday, April 23, 2012
Each one Called
Each one Known
Each one Loved
Each one Called
Each one Sent
Many churches have a strong emphasis on creating a "family feel". Kind of like the opening to "Cheers", church is a place where everybody knows your name. As the mainstream church, there is often some emphasis on knowing one another. Churches also seem to have a fairly healthy sense that they should love one another. We could do a lot better at this, but it is something I think most churches value to a great extent. These next two elements though are very under-valued and under-emphasized in the institutionalized church. This week I will look at the third element to a dream for the church. Let me talk a little about divine calling.
Every baptized member of the church universal has a divine call upon their life. Every person who has entrusted themselves into the care of Jesus Christ is called to full time ministry. Every Christian, every believer, every one who calls Jesus "Lord" is called by God to the work of realizing his Kingdom in their lives and in the world around them. Calling is not limited to vocation - job - career. A person can live out their calling in any job, setting, or environment. This calling emerges from the transformed life that results through conversion and discipleship. It is a calling that in many ways is common among all believers as far as its values and priorities. We are all called to love, to serve, and to live humbly. But each person has a unique calling that is tailored to use their passions, gifts, and personal relationships for the purpose of furthering God's Kingdom. Many Christians assume that a calling is some kind of anomaly reserved only for a select few. This is simply not true. Our Christian calling does not depend on our extra-ordinary talent or time availability. Every Christian is called by God to a life of service and love for God and their neighbor through everything they do.
One of the biggest obstacles for many Christians in realizing God's call on their lives is a sense that they are not worthy of being called. The mainstream church has recognized the call of Clergy persons and vocational ministries to such a degree that most "regular" Christians can't imagine that they too are called by God to full time ministry. Another obstacle is that many Christians don't feel like they know what it is they are called to. They cannot discern who God is calling them to be in the midst of their everyday lives. But I believe that if we seek in faith the reality that God is calling us and if we are open to hear that call in our lives through our own heart and through the community of faith, we will undoubtably hear the call.
We must encourage one another as Christians to understand and know that we are called. We are gathered as a community to affirm one another in our giftedness and passions. I believe that the body of Christ (the church) is not functioning properly unless each member is fully engaged in their calling. What if you are the leg that is not walking? What if you are the eye that is not seeing? What if you are the heart that is not beating?
Each one Loved
Each one Called
Each one Sent
Many churches have a strong emphasis on creating a "family feel". Kind of like the opening to "Cheers", church is a place where everybody knows your name. As the mainstream church, there is often some emphasis on knowing one another. Churches also seem to have a fairly healthy sense that they should love one another. We could do a lot better at this, but it is something I think most churches value to a great extent. These next two elements though are very under-valued and under-emphasized in the institutionalized church. This week I will look at the third element to a dream for the church. Let me talk a little about divine calling.
Every baptized member of the church universal has a divine call upon their life. Every person who has entrusted themselves into the care of Jesus Christ is called to full time ministry. Every Christian, every believer, every one who calls Jesus "Lord" is called by God to the work of realizing his Kingdom in their lives and in the world around them. Calling is not limited to vocation - job - career. A person can live out their calling in any job, setting, or environment. This calling emerges from the transformed life that results through conversion and discipleship. It is a calling that in many ways is common among all believers as far as its values and priorities. We are all called to love, to serve, and to live humbly. But each person has a unique calling that is tailored to use their passions, gifts, and personal relationships for the purpose of furthering God's Kingdom. Many Christians assume that a calling is some kind of anomaly reserved only for a select few. This is simply not true. Our Christian calling does not depend on our extra-ordinary talent or time availability. Every Christian is called by God to a life of service and love for God and their neighbor through everything they do.
One of the biggest obstacles for many Christians in realizing God's call on their lives is a sense that they are not worthy of being called. The mainstream church has recognized the call of Clergy persons and vocational ministries to such a degree that most "regular" Christians can't imagine that they too are called by God to full time ministry. Another obstacle is that many Christians don't feel like they know what it is they are called to. They cannot discern who God is calling them to be in the midst of their everyday lives. But I believe that if we seek in faith the reality that God is calling us and if we are open to hear that call in our lives through our own heart and through the community of faith, we will undoubtably hear the call.
We must encourage one another as Christians to understand and know that we are called. We are gathered as a community to affirm one another in our giftedness and passions. I believe that the body of Christ (the church) is not functioning properly unless each member is fully engaged in their calling. What if you are the leg that is not walking? What if you are the eye that is not seeing? What if you are the heart that is not beating?
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