August 2003 Archives

Churches begin dying when they fail to bridge the gap between faith and the world. They are dying when they no longer apply the faith to the world around them. They are dying when they are seen as hypocrites and irrelevant.

It appears that the common sentiment in American churches is that faith is for Sunday and not for Monday - Saturday. We have compartmentalized our faith life into a one-hour block on Sunday mornings. And woe be to any pastor that tries to politicize the gospel and tell us that the Bible expects us to vote, lobby, or act in a certain way.

I wonder, "When are Christians ever supposed to apply their faith?" Certainly not in business (see Ken Lay and Enron - he is a Methodist), certainly not in foreign policy (See George W. Bush and the War against Terrorism - he is a Methodist), and certainly not in the voting booth (see the discussion of Gov. Riley and Alabama's tax reform referendum and the opponents).

It appears that a religious affiliation to Christianity has more to do with our desire to belong and not with our desire to change. Seems sad. Seems like a straight road to killing off a church. Thankfully we aren't the church on our own -- God's grace has more to do with it then our ability to follow God's voice.

But then maybe that is my issue and not any of yours...

Jim Collins writes, "There is perhaps no more corrosive trend to the health of our organizations than the rise of the celebrity CEO, the rock-star leader whose deepest ambition is first and foremost self-centric."

When I read this statement, I read "celebrity or rock-star pastor". I think their ambitions are generally good, although I may be a tad naive. Could it be that one of the greatest threats to dying churches is that we're so drawn to these celebrity leaders?

The church is not to be like a bus, where passengers sit quietly and let someone else do the driving, but like an anthill, where everybody is at work. Not everyone who thus ministers will be a church officer, nor will the service they render always be appreciated. But just as every bit of that fabulous complex, the human body, has a job to do, so it is with each of us who believe. --Packer JI. Experiencing God's Presents. Christianity Today, August 12, 2003

Thanks GoNuts from The .Plan

I think many pastors, and subsequently churches, struggle with the need to be relevant. By this, they mean they want to have the answers to life's problems, help people get along and ahead in this world, speak with final authority on the burning issues of our day. Prevailing cultural winds dictate direction and responds. The kingdom's culture, its claims and presence, are ignored, or dismissed out of hand.

Rather than showing how the gospel is relevant now, demonstrating where it speaks tody, church leaders need to remember and reveal the Lving Presence of God. Yes, this undermines the influence of Barth, and neo-othordoxy in general. It's fine to "preach with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other hand." It's not fine when preaching, or other aspects of ministry, are driven by the headlines and the present needs of the culture -- actually, subcultures, when it comes to the church.

Henri Nouwen reminds us that Christian leaders must "live a life that is not dominated by the desire to be relevant but is instad safely anchored in the knowledge of God's first love." Therefore "we have to be mystics. A mystic is a person whose identy is deeply rooted in God's first love." Mystics aren't caught up in etheral trances, wandering moon-eyed through life, discontected from people. They are living in reality; they are living in God.

Nouwen continues: "If there is any focus that the Christian leader of the future will need, it is the discipline of dwelling in the presence of the One who keeps asking us, 'Do you love me? Do you love me? Do you love me?' It is the discipline of contemplative prayer. Through contemplative prayer we can keep ourselves from being pulled from one urgent issue to another and from becoming strangers to our own and God's heart."
Yet, most of what passes for ministry -- the busy work of the church is what it really is -- pulls us from our primary work: To be mystics, contemplatives, those who are able to guide others in to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. In short, we are distracted from prayer. And prayer becomes one more activity rather than a way of life -- prayerfulness.

As Nouwen says, "It is not enough for the priests and ministers of the future to be moral people, well trained, eager to help their fellow humans, and able to respond creatively to the burning issues of their time. All of that is very valuable, but it is not at the heart of Christian leadership. The central question is, Are the leaders of the future truly men and women of God, people with an ardent desire to dwell in God's presence, to listen to God's voice, to look at God's beauty, to touch God's incarnate Word and taste fully God's infinite goodness?"

Well, are we? Are we scandalized enough by Nouwen's words to throw off the demands of people and embrace the claims of Christ on his shepherds? The future of ministry isn't waiting for some bright tomorrow. It's now, right now, that we must help others see the "kingdom among them."

(All Nouwen quotes from In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership.)