Okay, friends, back to the book! Today’s thoughts are taken once again from Reggie McNeal’s book, The Present Future. Remember, I am sharing thoughts from the book that struck a chord with me, personally. I am interested in hearing what some of you might think about these issues as well.
Reggie makes a very interesting observation in his book. He says, “Church leaders seem unable to grasp this simple implication of the new world – people outside the church think church is for church people, not for them” (pg.10). Later he would make this comment, "In North America the invitation to become a Christian has become largely an invitation to convert to the church” (pg.11). Have we as a church missed the point? I wonder at times if we have become so over-focused on doing church right, that we have missed out on being the right kind of church.
Let me explain. All of my life I have grown up in the same church. The whole time I have watched many churches in my fellowship squabble over the “right” way to do church. Some of these discussions have become so intense, that men and women who claim to love and serve God have become some of the most unlovable people and said some of the most ungodly things. Wasn’t it Jesus who said, “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (Jn. 13:35)? I mean seriously, what message are we sending the un-churched around us when we fight like this amongst ourselves? I will tell you what I have been hearing. “Come and join our church because we are the ones that do church right?” But again, I come back to a strong point that I believe, as my grandma used to say, gets stuck in our craw every time we try to swallow. I believe Jesus gave us a mission to be the church, not do church!
Sometimes I believe we are so busy “doing” church that we miss out on the golden opportunities to be the church. What if, instead of fighting about how to do church, we were in the community fixing houses, fixing cars, mowing lawns, raking leaves, painting fences, helping people move in or out, picking up trash, supporting our local schools, etc.? What if, instead of fighting over our church service that we expect people to come to, we were taking church services to the people of our community? I wonder what would happen if a small group of people just started to host an evening worship service in their back yard on Sunday evenings. Does that make somebody’s blood boil? See, I know of some men that I have served with that would be so put out that I wasn’t worshipping in “the building” that they wouldn’t think twice about the people we could possibly reach. Why? Because we must worship the Lord in a church, at least that is what they would say.
Okay, forgive me for taking the bait on this one. If that is true, then let us examine the New Testament church in Acts for a moment. Yes, they did meet together in the temple courts to fulfill the Jewish custom of praying three times a day. I am sure that while they were there, they even praised God. However, the Scriptures also tell us that they meet in each other’s homes enjoying fellowship and praising God. So, if worship has to be in “the temple,” does that mean God did not accept the worship they lifted up in their home’s in the evening? I have served with some that I truly believe would answer “yes” to that question!
Reggie made me think! I wonder if he is making you think. Have you ever considered the number of people that won’t come to worship on a given Sunday; not because they don’t believe in or worship the same God that you and I do, but because they are working? You know the convenient store workers, restaurant workers, grocery store workers, utility crews, and public servants that work so that you and I can selfishly enjoy our Sunday’s. We show up to church and expect the lights and air conditioners to be working. We expect the gas stations to be open so that we can fill up and make it to church. We expect the restaurants to be open so that we can go out and eat rather than cook on Sunday afternoon. “Who is going to be the church to them?”
I know that I have gotten on my soap box about this, but I believe the North American church is missing the point of Jesus’ call to “Go” and make disciples of all nations. Enough from me, for now. What are some of your thoughts? I do want to know, whether you agree or disagree. Are we way off base? How do we fix it? What are we going to do?
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3 comments:
I don't disagree, but I don't have the answer you ended with: "How do we fix it?"
I don't want to jump ahead of you here, but the one, simple question we need to be asking both inside and outside of "the church" is this: What are your expectations of "the church?"
Some with be offended that we should ask that question, saying we should not mold a congregation into being what people want or expect. I totally agree with that. But what we need to hear is what their perceptions are of "the church" and recognize where the gap in our thinking and expectations are in our generation.
Too many who are inside "the church," if they are honest, only expect entertainment, baby sitting and a group that will validate their political positions. Is that what "the church" is suppose to be?
Too many who are outside "the church," if they are honest, only expect harsh judgement, an endless plea for more contributions and an unrealistic demand on their time. Is that what "the church" has become?
We can't ever hope to "be" the church that Christ wanted until we deal with the perceptions both inside and outside of "the church" that are pulling against what being "the church" really means -- which is to be a people called out from the world. Not a people called to live "away from" the world, but to live "different" than the world.
As Bill Jordan said, i agree with what you, and ultimately Reggie McNeal, states.
Ive been struggling with the concept of what exactly is the church. what is the point? I'm gaining a view of religion in a way completely outside the thinking boxes of your day-to-day church of christ member[[or really any church]], and its very refreshing.
Since i attend a christian university i am taking an Old Testament class, and the history there is astounding. Looking in a completely unbiased way at the origin of God, and how He compares to other religions, is eye-opening in ways i cant express. It pushes the limits past church "conflicts".
legalism does not help churches. Even the bible states very plainly that the law cannot save, only condemn. why do we make rules to trap ourselves?! it simply doesnt make sense.
On one hand i say churches need to be better educated, to know exactly what they beleive, where these beleifs come from, and what that means in everyday life. on the other, knowledge brings more responsibility, and a tendency to not 'need' God; which is obviously not good.
What is my role as a christian in Today's America? There is rarely a person who has not heard of the gospel, but in a nation full of people so intent on taking care of themselves, and with no need for a god, what can we do? How should we react to other christians? if they beleive differently that is fine, but do i have a responsibility to push their spiritual thinking to new levels, or let them remain content in the faith they've always known?
i think i presented more questions than answers, but i hope you see my point.
I like reading what Katy had to say. Tons of people my age would read what she wrote and declare it "liberal" mumbo-jumbo. But I don't see it that way.
Those same people are blind to the damage we've done for too many generations with our defense of the church as an institution. That cause has taken on a life of its own and become more important than any effort to grow more like Christ in our daily lives.
My concern, however, is that we all need, want and are better off with the protection of a church family in today's world. Community is something we all need to survive. I expect for Katy that community doesn't need to be very large at this point in her life and she's receptive to being part of a community that is very flexible.
When you get to be an old coot like me you need the power of numbers on your side. There's maybe only one person in a group of 100 that can put up with me for more than five minutes so it takes a larger community to meet the demands of my "needs."
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