I got to take in a church planters get together at Mars Hill in Seattle this week. It was probably the most thought provoking exercise I have taken in since coming to Seattle. They dished up hot breakfast and lunch (free) so that guys could interact and then Mike Gunn of Harambee Church laid out some stuff that he has been processing. I'll share thoughts (that's what a blog is for - right?).
The church is far too known for what it stands against rather than what it stands for. Take a poll on the street and you will find people are very clear how the church feels about homosexuality and totally fuzzy about what it means to be "saved". Why? Because the church is much better at pointing fingers at people and their behaviour than it is at pointing to Jesus through demonstration of His love and grace. This is why the church has lost it's influence. Leslie Newbiggen says correctly, "The church is the hermeneutic of the gospel." In other words, the world interprets the gospel through the observation of the church. We have been an embarassment (on the whole) in this department. If we want to penetrate our communities with the gospel, it must be demonstrated in the mission of the church.
What is the function of the church? Mission - Bearing witness to bring glory to God
"The church in our culture; however, is more structured for maintenance than mission."
The Glory of God is the mission of the church, not evangelism, conversion or growth!
"Mission can no longer be thought of as simply soul saving, but must also include the creation of Christian communities, the struggle for justice, and the stewardship of creation."
Pendulum Warning: Evangelism brings glory to God and is part of mission. Don't throw the baby out with the bath water. However, what we have done in the past is focus solely on Evangelism and World Missions (with an emphasis on evangelism) to the exclusion of justice and liberation from oppression. If we would lead in these areas, I believe the world would be much more willing to hear our voice and we would be much more effective as evangelists.
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2 comments:
wow, two posts in one day? nice.
san diego - enjoy, i hope you guys get a lot out of it, and it will be nice to see you afterwards.
church stuff - i think too often Christians want to be the one who gets rid of sin or convicts. but since both of those things are God's jobs... maybe that's blasphemy.
If we would simply live by the "Law of Love" and encourage people to hold the same standard, it would rock the world. Love God...Love your Neighbor. It pretty much sums up the law and prophets. (I didn't come up with that on my own...someone much smarter did.)
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