A different way to look at things...
In the "Shape of Things to Come" we find Alan Hirsch and Michael Frost bringing more clarification to our discussions. They contend that the early church recognized the equal importance of three commitments: Christ (Communion), Commission (World) and Community (One Another).
"Any emphasis on one at the expense of others is folly. For a church to claim that it "specializes" in worship or teaching is to ignore the whole counsel of the New Testament. Worship that is in some way divorced from mission is counterfeit worship. And likewise, a missioning community that is not informed, inspired, and renewed through godly worship is a pale shadow of what church should be."
My thoughts: The church in America has done a great job specializing and divorcing ourselves from God's original plan while also changing terminology to prove us right. Because the western church has failed in the balance and priorities area -we are in serious decline and we are no longer in the emergency room patching up a thing or two - we are on life support.
WORSHIP/COMMUNION is not just a planned event or a regular Sunday worship service. In fact, many (if not most) worship services are for us and not God. Far too many lazy worshippers consider going to Sunday worship as the main act of service to God. Many believe they must go to "worship" and when they don't like the show or the music or the sermon they gripe over a chicken dinner following the service while spreading their crankiness into the world upon those who serve them coffee. If we have to chuck Sunday worship to get people back or even into intimacy with Jesus -let's do it now. True worship is a love relationship with Jesus that happens everyday as a natural expression of our intense love Him and without reservation. When we truly love Him - we obey Him we are incarnational Christ representatives on mission with His mission. The more we love Him -the more we love the things He loves.
COMMISSION/WORLD is not just a planned church program to draw people in so we can have more buildings, budgets and more bodies to brag about. While some are reached this way many more will never be reached. While the world longs for intimacy, transparency, authenticity, acceptance, love of others, no more you are in and you are out separations, and no more manipulation from us -the western church continues to do it in church and not in the world. We have divorced ourselves from personal responsibility to relationally connect with the unreached. The most common attitude is simply - those in need of Jesus can find Him if they want, we are here at 9th and Chestnut every Sunday at 10:00 a.m. If you don't come here then it is your fault if you go to hell.
COMMUNITY/ONE ANOTHER is a not just a gathering with friends for superfiscial encounters. True Community occurs when we can say anything we want, we can share our pain, we can admit sin, we can be vulnerable while not being judged, criticized, gossipped about by the very people we thought were "family" brothers and sisters in Christ. When the world sees the way we treat each other they have no desire to be treated that way themselves.
When we are not passionately in love with Jesus we will become self-serving people who care less about His Mission and more about ourselves. When we care little about Jesus and only about ourselves there are fewer and fewer new Christ followers added to the body. This always results in more exclusivity and counterfeit forms of community that foster more and more pharisaical attitudes.
I long for New Testament Jesus Love/Communion; Real Commission/World concern; and true authentic Community/One another authentic transparency and love.
When we don't love Jesus we don't love the lost, and when we don't love the lost, we will never have true community, and when we don't love other believers -we can never fully love God.
posted by Bob Carder @ 8:51 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Bob,
You make comment about self-serving Christians that care less about His mission and more about their own personal preferences. It's absolutely amazing to me how this self-serving attitude is just not addressed very much within the American church. The other day I was reading from Luke 17:7-10. Jesus is speaking to his disciples...those who are claiming to follow Him...and He says, "Suppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Won't he rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'"
Wow! I was blown away upon reflection of these words from our Lord. Honestly, Bob, often in the Gospels I see Jesus trying to rid himself of too many disciples...those who were in it for themselves. Jesus came and was "in your face" with the religious leadership of the day. I pray He stays "in my face" with His message. Once I move His message from "in my face" and blameshift the problem of our world to those sinners on the outside then I begin to lose the essence of Jesus message. Yet, isn't that what the majority of American churches are doing. We create a seeker-sensitive atmosphere and invite them outsiders in the walls of the church building to tell them sinners their problem. Perhaps that isn't really seeker-sensitive. Perhaps seeker-sensitive (which Jesus seems to be...and, yes, I actually hate that stupid term of seeker-sensitive...so I apologize for even using it...but we're all familiar with it) is when we actually begin to tackle the issues that are obviously present within the Body...and take our focus OFF the issues that are outside the Body. Perhaps there is a thought there for the Americanized Western Church.
Brothers, may the Lord rid us of a self-deserving attitude...and replace it with an attitude that finds great joy in joining along with the mission found in the message of Jesus. Then we actually begin to imitate our humble God who took on the very nature of a servant...and then...maybe then...the world will begin to listen to our message.
When I consider that passage from Luke in light of the Great Commission I am ashamed of my own expectations of God. I find myself expecting the meal for my days work. Dying to ourself and denying ourself requires more than I have been able to give. Thanks be to God for His grace toward me - a feeble servant at best.
Good comment Curt.
Curt and Terry - You both care more about the Mission of Jesus than your own. Sometimes people think we have an agenda amd they are really right..
To live is such a way as to carry on His Mission through selfless obedience. When people look at you guys they see Jesus and each of you standing in His shadow.
Better to live in the shadow of Jesus than the spotlights of the world.
I'm proud to know you both and am excited to see you pushing forward His agenda -to have Christ-followers who love Him enough to take seriously the Great Commission by making disciples who love Jesus, obey Him and Follow what He started while infolding others into the family who will love, obey, enfold to love, obey and enfold others into His family.
I said A different way of looking at things...It should be different should it?
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