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The Growing Church: Part 5
By Mark D. Roberts | Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Part 5 of series: The Growing Church: A Bible Study in Ephesians 4
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This is the fifth and final part of my address to the Presbyterians for Renewal breakfast at the General Assembly of the PCUSA. So far I’ve covered the following: preface; overview of Ephesians 1-3; God’s plan for the cosmos and the role of the church in this plan; the call to seek unity; the role of pastors as teachers; the calling of all Christians to be ministers of Christ; the call to the church to grow up in maturity and size; the measure of maturity in terms of how the church reacts to “winds of doctrine” in the culture. Yesterday’s post dealt with the call in Ephesians 4:15 to grow up by “speaking the truth in love.” I focused especially on the “speak the truth” part of this phrase. Today I’ll pick up the rest.
. . . in Love
But, speaking the truth is not the end of it, is it? We are not just to speak the truth, but to do so in love. Whenever truth-speaking is mixed with haughtiness, whenever it’s combined with arrogance, whenever the truth is delivered so as to hurt people, this falls short of Ephesians 4. The church will grow as we speak the truth in love. Truth needs love to be communicated rightly. Love needs the truth to be expressed rightly. In the church of Jesus Christ, truth and love can never be separated, because both reflect the God who is both truth and love.
Speaking the truth in love means that we communicate “with all humility and gentleness,” as we read in Ephesians 4:2. It means we don’t return anger for anger, attack for attack. When we are maligned, we offer a word of peace. When we are misrepresented, we clarify without malice. Though the wind of our culture urges us to wage war with words, the call of the Gospel compels us to wage peace through our words.
But speaking the truth in love entails more than just talking in a kind and respectful way. It also has to do with living in loving relationship with one another. Our responsibility as leaders in our churches is to create communities of trust and intimacy so that people can speak truthfully with each other. Our churches need to be places where we can say: “I know this is hard, but I believe Scripture is calling you to stay in your marriage;” or “I’m so attracted to a colleague at work that I’m tempted to leave my wife;” or “God has not abandoned you even though it might feel like he has;” or “I’m just not sure I believe in God anymore;” or “This is the body of Christ, broken for you.”
Don’t you yearn for the PCUSA to be a church where we speak the truth in love, where we’re unashamed of God’s revelation in Scripture, and where we communicate that revelation with tenderness and compassion?
Don’t you yearn for the PCUSA to be a church that proclaims the good news of God’s plan to unite all things in Christ, and that demonstrates this good news by our own unity in Christ?
Don’t you yearn for the PCUSA to be a church that profoundly engages the culture around us while preserving the truth delivered to us in Scripture?
Don’t you yearn for the PCUSA to be a church that grows up in every way into Christ as we speak the truth of Christ in the way of Christ?
Some of you will have the chance, indeed, the responsibility, to do this very thing in the next few days. The debate in the General Assembly will no doubt be hot and heavy at times. I expect some people will say things you’ll find offensive and hurtful. Your deep convictions will surely be criticized, maybe even derided as antique or bigoted. It will be tempting to abandon ship and head for a safe harbor where the winds of doctrine aren’t blowing your way. Or you may want to stand up and hit back, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But even in the midst of such understandable temptations, I pray God will give you the grace to speak the truth in love. Speak with humility. Speak with gentleness. Speak with conviction. This is the only way we have any hope of growing back to wholeness as part of the body of Christ.
As Each Part is Working Properly
Even as I say this, you might be secretly thinking that you don’t matter. In an Assembly full of pastors, theologians, and learned people, how will your voice make a difference?
May I remind you of how Ephesians 4:15-16 ends. We will grow up as the body of Christ, it says, “as each part is working properly” (4:16). As each part is working properly! That’s how God has joined and knit together the church. Each part matters, including you. So don’t dismiss your importance to the process you’re about to enter as a delegate to this General Assembly. Your job isn’t to guarantee any particular outcome. It’s to be faithful to live out your calling, and this means doing your part of speaking the truth in love.
But whatever happens here in San Jose in the next few days, our churches won’t experience the renewal for which we pray until each part begins to work properly. My friends, I know I’m speaking to the choir here, or perhaps I might say these days, to the band. You’re the folks who are working properly in your churches, no doubt doing your share and so much more. So I’m not sending you back to your home church with more work to do.
But I am suggesting that you and I need to think and pray about how we can help our churches become bodies in which each part works properly. How can we help our fellow pew sitters realize that they really matter? How can we set our pastors free to be the pastor-teachers they are called to be, so that they might equip every member for ministry? How can we become churches in which all of us embrace our high calling to be ministers of Jesus Christ, both in the church and in the world?
I don’t know exactly how to answer these questions, but I’m working on it. Truly. My passion for the ministry of God’s people is one of the main things that led me to leave my beloved congregation in Irvine and join the team at Laity Lodge. One of my main responsibilities there is to discover how to help churches equip and empower God’s people for ministry. So I’ll keep working away on this issue, and I look forward to your partnership. As I discover ways to help the people of God live as the ministers they’re called to be, I’ll let you know what I find. But what I do know for sure today is that the way forward for us is centered in speaking the truth in love. In this way we will indeed grow up into Christ. (Photo: In The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge, we explore ways people can live out their faith in the workplace.)
Conclusion
I will conclude with the benediction at the end of Ephesians 3. This is, in fact, the last thing I said to Irvine Presbyterian Church as its pastor. This text is full of hope and power. So, listen to the Word of God. Believe it, and live it!
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (3: 20-21)
If you would like to read my original PFR address in its entirety, without the pictures or the daily blog breaks, you can download a PDF version here.
Topics: Growing Church | 2 Comments »
The Growing Church: Part 4
By Mark D. Roberts | Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Part 4 of series: The Growing Church: A Bible Study in Ephesians 4
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This is the fourth part of my address to the Presbyterians for Renewal breakfast at the General Assembly of the PCUSA. So far I’ve covered the following: preface; overview of Ephesians 1-3; God’s plan for the cosmos and the role of the church in this plan; the call to seek unity; the role of pastors as teachers; the calling of all Christians to be ministers of Christ; the call to the church to grow up in maturity and size; the measure of maturity in terms of how the church reacts to “winds of doctrine” in the culture. Now on to Part 4 . . . .
Speaking the Truth . . .
Ephesians 4 shows us the way forward in our growth as a church. It comes in verses 15 and 16:
But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.
Notice the imperative “we must grow up in every way.” Growth is not an option we can take or leave. It’s God’s command for us. And, once again, growth isn’t limited to one dimension, either quality or quantity. We’re to grow up in every way.
How? What’s the key to healthy church growth? Speaking the truth in love. In contrast to being blown about by every wind of doctrine, we are to be people who know and speak the truth. One of our Great Ends as a denomination is “the preservation of the truth” (G-1.0200). Moreover, we affirm that “truth is in order to goodness,” that true belief is the essential foundation of right action (G-1.0304).
And where do we find this truth that leads to goodness? For centuries, we Presbyterians have affirmed that the truth once came to us in the Word of God made flesh, in Jesus the Christ. And now it comes to us in the Word of God written, the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament. The written Word, like the incarnate Word, has both human and divine characteristics. But in the mystery of biblical inspiration, God has spoken authoritatively in Scripture, which is therefore worthy of our study, our belief, and our obedience. Thus in the first chapter of the Book of Order we read that “[i]nsofar as Christ’s will for the Church is set forth in Scripture, it is to be obeyed” (G-1.0100c). The same is true for our personal lives as Christians.
Of course I’m saying nothing new here. The authority of Scripture is the bedrock of the Reformation, upon which Presbyterians have built a house that has stood for centuries. But in recent times, other authorities have vied to replace the Bible as our chief authority. Some folks have argued that we ought to put our trust more in reason than in Scripture. Science will reveal the truth to us, we’re promised. Others have sought to reduce biblical teachings to a few simple, plastic truths, such as the call to love. We assume the freedom to mold love into anything we want it to be in any given situation. Thus Scripture ends up calling us to do whatever we want to do. But the most pervasive competitor to biblical authority today isn’t reason or reductionism. It’s emotion. Today’s credo, “I feel, therefore I am,” offers the ultimate source of truth. I can’t tell you how many times in the last twenty years I’ve heard faithful Presbyterians say, “Yes, I know that’s what the Bible teaches. But that just doesn’t feel right to me.” Personal emotion and subjective experience trump God’s Word. Of course if it turns out that your feelings and my feelings don’t line up, then we have no external arbiter. So truth becomes a matter of power. The one with the most power defines the truth. (Photo: the Reformation Monument in Geneva, Switzerland)
I believe the greatest need in our church today isn’t a new Book of Order, or a new missional consciousness, or a new outreach to younger people, or whatever else is on the agenda, no matter how valuable these things may be. The greatest need in our denomination is a reaffirmation of the truth of God as revealed in Scripture. Only then will we be people who can speak the truth. Only then will we be able to turn the tide of denominational decline so that we might begin once again to grow up in all ways into Christ.
I know full well that what I’ve just said is offensive to the majority of Americans. According to the recent Pew survey, it may well be offensive to most Presbyterians. But, while I freely admit my own limitations in discerning the truth, and while I’m quite sure that I sometimes get the truth wrong, I nevertheless believe that God makes his truth known in Scripture, and that the church will never be healthy until we speak this truth among ourselves and to our world.
To be continued . . . .
Topics: Growing Church | 2 Comments »
The Growing Church: Part 3
By Mark D. Roberts | Monday, June 30, 2008
Part 3 of series: The Growing Church: A Bible Study in Ephesians 4
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Note: Of course I’m aware of the recent actions of the General Assembly, and am deeply concerned about them. I’ll have things to say about them in a few days. But I want to continue this series on The Growing Church. Even though the PCUSA is now in an unprecedented time of crisis, the mission of the church of Jesus Christ has not changed. In fact, the mission of individual PCUSA churches has not changed in light of what the General Assembly has done, though their actions have made it more difficult for churches to faithfully execute their mission. If you are looking for a wise response to the PCUSA crisis, I’d refer you to a statement by Presbyterians for Renewal: “Reshaping the PC(USA): PFR Looks Beyond the 218th General Assembly.” More later . . . .
This is the third part of my address to the Presbyterians for Renewal breakfast at the General Assembly of the PCUSA. The first part included a preface and an overview of Ephesians 1-3, which revealed God’s plan for the cosmos and the role of the church in this plan. The second part examined the call to seek unity, the role of pastors as teachers, and the calling of all Christians to be ministers of Christ. Now, on to Part 3 . . . .
Building Up the Body of Christ
According to Ephesians 4, pastors and other church leaders equip God’s people “for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (4:12). In fact, we’re to grow up both in maturity and in size. When the church is functioning in a healthy way, it will become more and more like Christ, and it will become bigger and bigger.
While there’s little debate these days about the church needing to mature, I realize that such a blunt statement of numerical church growth is bound to raise a few hackles. This is especially true in a denomination that saw a 2.6% decline in membership last year alone, and in which most of our churches are losing members. For years I’ve heard all the rhetoric about quality over quantity, and the criticisms of church growth strategies. But one cannot read Ephesians with an open mind and not conclude that the church of Jesus Christ is supposed to be growing in size as well as strength. Yes, yes, there are sometimes good reasons why churches don’t grow for a season. Pruning, after all, is a necessary part of healthy growth. But if our denomination and our churches don’t grow year after year after year, and if, in fact, they continue to shrink year after year after year, when are we going to be honest enough with ourselves and with our Lord to admit that something must be terribly wrong?
Minimally, we must not be doing a very good job as a church when it comes to equipping people to do the ministry of Christ. Church growth, from the perspective of Ephesians 4, isn’t a matter of clever programming or technological innovation. It doesn’t require an ad budget or a snappy new image. Rather, it’s the result of God’s people being trained for and doing their ministry, which involves building up the body of Christ.
Evidence of Maturity
“But,” we might respond when confronted by the reality of our numerical decline, “at least we’re growing in maturity.” I expect this is true in the case of many churches. But how can we know if this is more than just wishful thinking? Ephesians 4 gives us some guidance here. Though our English translations usually put a period at the end of verse 13, in fact the Greek original continues the thought into verse 14. A more accurate translation would say that the church is to grow up in size and maturity, “so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming” (4:14; italics my translation of hina meketi omen). You can measure the maturity of the church, according to Ephesians 4, by the church’s response to the spirit of the age as it blows through the halls of academia, and stirs up the waves of the media, and inflates the sails of pop culture.
A grown up church interacts responsibly with the world in which it lives, yet without buying into that world’s latest fads and fancies. It responds to the community in which it has been sent by God, but without merely echoing that community’s values. A mature church takes seriously the cultural trends of its milieu, but always weighs these trends in the scales of God’s truth. Such a church is relevant, but not pandering as it responds to its neighbors.
On the contrary, a church of spiritual infants rides the wave of the moment, celebrating its apparent relevance while rushing toward the rocks of its destruction. It abandons God’s timeless truth in favor of timeliness. It chases after whatever is hot, whatever is fashionable, whatever promises not to offend. It models itself after social institutions, arguing that the church should imitate the ways of business, or government, or the media. The immature church is rudderless, moving all over the place, yet never getting anywhere. (Photo: the treacherous and sometimes deadly waves of Lumahai Beach on the island of Kauai.)
My friends, the winds of doctrine are blowing at gale force these days, and we can easily be blown far off course as a church. Did you see the San Jose Mercury News on Monday morning? There, on the front page, was an article entitled “Survey: Americans see salvation in many religions.” This story reported on the results of a survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. One of survey’s findings was that 70% of Americans with a religious affiliation agreed that “many religions can lead to eternal life.” This is no surprise, really, in a cultural in which relativism rules the day. So how did members of the PCUSA answer this question, given our longstanding conviction as a denomination that salvation comes through Jesus Christ, who is “the only Savior and Lord” (G-3.0300)? Did 70% of our members abandon the biblical doctrine of salvation through Christ alone in favor of the culturally-acceptable “many religions can lead to eternal life” view? No, not 70%, but 80% (Pew Report, p. 134). Talk about being blown about by winds of doctrine! We Presbyterians are windsurfing these days, I think. Maybe our denomination isn’t growing because the vast majority of our members believe that their non-Christian friends and neighbors are in fine shape without Jesus Christ. I’m afraid that when it comes to biblical standards for maturity, we Presbyterians have a long way to grow.
To be continued . . . .
Topics: Growing Church | 4 Comments »
Sunday Inspiration from The High Calling
By Mark D. Roberts | Sunday, June 29, 2008
Not Peace, but a Sword
”Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword.”
At first glance, we might recoil from this statement of Jesus. Isn’t he the Prince of Peace? Hasn’t he come to bring peace on earth? Didn’t Jesus instruct his followers to eschew violence? How can he say that he has come to bring not peace, but a sword?
These concerns are helpful, because they motivate us to dig more deeply into the meaning of Matthew 10:34. We must remember that Jews in the time of Jesus anticipated that the Messiah would usher in a time of peace for Israel. No doubt many of Jesus’ own followers expected the same of him. Indeed, the coming of Jesus as Messiah would ultimately lead to peace (see Isa. 52:7; Luke 1:79, 2:14; John 14:27; Eph. 2:11-22). But before the peace of God’s kingdom enveloped the world, there would be inevitable conflict. Indeed, Jesus explains that families would experience the “sword,” that is, division, because of him (vv. 35-37).
Jesus does not intend for his disciples to pick up the sword, literally, in order to advance the cause of God’s kingdom (see Matt. 5:9, 5:38-48, 26:52). But he wants us to know that living for him will sometimes lead to negative responses, even to division in our most valued relationships. It will be hard to remain faithful to Jesus in these times, yet that is our calling and privilege.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: Have you ever experienced the “sword” of division because of your faith in Christ? Or have you seen this in the lives of close friends? What should we do as peacemakers when we’re faced with division and tension because of our faith?
PRAYER: Dear Lord, I must confess that I don’t especially like this verse from Matthew. I’m much happier with “peace on earth” than “not peace, but a sword.” And, to be honest, there have been times when I backed away from bearing witness to you because I didn’t want to stir up trouble. I want people to like me, not to think I’m some sort of a religious nut. Forgive me, Lord, when I have blunted your message and masked my faith so as to avoid the inevitable “sword” of division and conflict.
Your calling is not an easy one, Lord. We are to be peacemakers, but not “nicemakers.” As we seek genuine peace by proclaiming and living out the good news of the kingdom, there will be times of conflict and division. True disciples don’t always win popularity contests. So help us, Lord, to seek real peace, not superficial calm. May we be faithful to you and your message, no matter what the results. By your grace, may we be people of truth who speak and live with boldness and humility. Amen.
Daily Reflections from The High Calling.org
This devotional comes from The High Calling of Our Daily Work (www.thehighcalling.org). You can read my Daily Reflections there, or sign up to have them sent to your email inbox each day. This website contains lots of encouragement for people who are trying to live out their faith in the workplace.
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A Miraculous Cure for Bug Bite Itching?
By Mark D. Roberts | Saturday, June 28, 2008
First of all, let me be clear that I am not a doctor. (Well, okay, I have a Ph.D. But I’m not a medical doctor.) One should never take my medical advice too seriously.
Second, let me add that I’m generally very suspicious of “home remedies” for bodily ills, especially when they’re found on the Internet. There is no end to the nonsense out there.
But, I have found on the Internet what I’m beginning to think is a miraculous cure for bug bite itching. (Okay, okay. It’s not miraculous in the strict sense. Just surprising and wonderful.)
A little background: I am quite allergic to bug bits and stings. I have to be especially careful with bee and wasp stings, to which my body overreacts big time. But even less major bits, like mosquitoes, often lead to an unusually strong response. Where most folks get little bumbs that itch for a few hours, I can get large welts that itch terrible for days. It’s much worse with spider bites and the like.
The bad news for me is that I now live in Texas, in the country, no less. My love to the outskirts of Boerne must have brought cheers to the insect kingdom, because bugs love to bite me, and there are tons of them where we live. We’ve got the usual bees and wasps, plus mosquitoes, biting ants, fire ants, chiggers, spiders, noseeums, etc. etc. The mosquitoes haven’t been too bad. But I’ve had my share of chigger and ant bites, mostly because I haven’t been careful.
In my itching agony a few weeks ago, I decided to do some Web surfing to see if I could find some relief. I’d been using the typical treatments – hydrocortisone cream, Benadry cream, etc. – with modest success. But I wondered if I could find something better. As I surfed around, I started running into lots of people who found heat to be helpful in reliving itches. Here are some examples: Poison Ivy; People’s Pharmacy; Home Remedies.
This is ironic, of course, because heat often causes itches (heat rash, etc.) or can make them worse. But many people testified the applying significant heat to an itch for a short amount of time made the itch disappear for several hours, maybe even longer. I was skeptical, but figured it would be worth a try. I had been gardening in sandals, and had been foolish enough not to apply insect repellent to my feet. I got about a dozen ant bites, which soon became swollen centerpoints of major itching. My lotions were not helping. So I decided to try heat.
Some of the proponents of heat therapy for itches recommend using very hot water, not so hot as to burn the skin, but just a little cooler than this. Others swear by hair dryers. They recommending pointing a hair dryer at an itchy spot for several seconds or minutes. The skin should become uncomfortably hot, but not anywhere near being burned. After this heating of the skin happens, the itch is supposed to go away.
I got out my wife’s hair dryer and followed the instructions I had found online. I heated up one of my worst bites for about a minute. My skin felt hot and began to hurt. But I was careful not to burn myself. When it seemed like I had done enough, I removed the hair dryer and waited to see what would happen. In a few more seconds, it seemed like the itch had completely disappeared. But I thought I might be doing a mind over matter trick, so I decided to treat my other bites and see what happened. In about five minutes I had blown dry all of my bites. And it felt as if I had no more itching, just some residual warmth. About ten minutes later the feeling of warmth had vanished, and so had my itching. Completely. I felt amazing relief. And it continued for probably six hours. Then I did a second treatment, and that was pretty much the end of itching. The bites were still there as nasty little welts. But I had no discomfort. Now, about three weeks later, they are healing up much as they would ordinarily.
Since that first experiment, I’ve treated a few more bites with the same results. I’m quite sure I’m not fooling myself with wishful thinking. Heating up a bite and the area right around it with a hair dryer really does seem to take away the itch.
I’m sharing my findings with you because it’s summertime, and the bugs are hungry. If you try the blow-drying method and it brings relief, then I’m glad. I do realize there’s some risk in putting this up online. If you do something stupid and burn yourself with your hair dryer or get electrocuted, you or your heirs will probably want to sue me. So let me say, once again, that I am not a medical doctor. I don’t know if there are any long-term disadvantages to this method of itch relief (other than that it uses electricity which adds to global warming). And whatever you do, don’t burn yourself. Be sure to read and follow all the warnings that come with your hair dryer. Don’t do what I’m recommending while sitting in a bathtub. Don’t do it in a rainstorm. Don’t do it while standing up high on an aluminum ladder. Don’t do it while driving in a car or talking on a cell phone. Don’t do it while filling your car with gasoline. Don’t do it while using mind-altering prescription drugs. Etc. etc. etc. Fill in your own legal boilerplate.
If you try this and it works for you, please add a comment to this post. If you try it and it doesn’t work, ditto. And if you have some other sure fire method itch relief, let us know. Good luck!
Topics: Recommendations | 18 Comments »
The Growing Church: Part 2
By Mark D. Roberts | Friday, June 27, 2008
Part 2 of series: The Growing Church: A Bible Study in Ephesians 4 Permalink for this post / Permalink for this series
This is the second part of my address to the Presbyterians for Renewal breakfast at the General Assembly of the PCUSA. The first part included a preface and an overview of Ephesians 1-3, which revealed God’s plan for the cosmos and the role of the church in this plan. Now, on to Part 2 . . . .
Where Should We Begin?
So where should we begin in our effort to lead a life worthy of the calling to live for the praise of God’s glory?
The answer of Ephesians 4 begins in a most surprising way. It says we’re to live “with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (4:3). The verb translated here as “making every effort” conveys a sense of urgency, of eagerness. We’re to desire unity and work to preserve it.
If you’re sitting in this room today, if you’re still working and praying for the renewal of the PCUSA even after so many years of fighting and frustration, may I suggest that you have indeed been “making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Oh, I’m sure many of us haven’t done this with much eagerness. Exhaustion has a way of depleting our zeal. Perhaps we’ve sought unity more out of duty than passion. But, even so, I believe our efforts to keep the fractured PCUSA together are consistent with the call of Ephesians 4:3.
Now I realize that some would say we have no more unity to preserve, that our theological divisions run so deep as to destroy our denominational unity. This may be true today, though I don’t think so. And it may be true tomorrow, though I pray it won’t be so. Scripture makes it clear elsewhere, in 1 Corinthians 5 or 2 John, for example, that unity isn’t an absolute value. There are times when persistent sin or theological error can break our spiritual connectionalism and lead to necessary separation. But, even in such sad situations, may we still yearn for restoration, for genuine unity that reflects the Gospel.
Pastors as Teachers
My limited time this morning requires me to skip some marvelous material in verses 4-10 of Ephesians 4. I’ll jump down to verse 11, where it reads:
The gifts [Christ] gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.
Notice that, in this passage, gifts are not abilities for ministry, but the people who provide leadership in the church, including pastor-teachers. The Greek original links these two roles essentially, by the way. Here is a reminder for those of us who are pastors that teaching is essential to our leadership. We are not just community organizers, counselors, dialogue-starters, and program directors. We have been given the responsibility of teaching God’s truth to God’s people. Too often in our day, churches expect pastors to do a myriad of other things besides teaching, thus diluting pastoral effectiveness and, ultimately, impoverishing churches. Even preachers can sometimes minimize the importance of teaching.
Pastors, may we recommit ourselves today to shepherding our people by being faithful teachers of God’s truth.
Lay leaders, be sure your pastors are your “pastor-teachers.” Give them the time and support they need to fulfill this crucial biblical calling.
Equipping God’s People for Ministry
Notice the task Christ has given the pastor-teachers and other leaders. They are “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (4:12). I expect you know that in the New Testament, the word “saint” doesn’t mean “extra special spiritual person,” but “ordinary person set apart by God for God’s purposes.” Every Christian is a saint. And according to Ephesians 4:12, every Christian is called to do the work of ministry. Scripture is abundantly clear, in this passage most of all, that every single Christian is a minister of Christ. Every one. Pastors are not the only ministers. Rather, they are given the special task of training ministers, the people of God, for their ministry.
I’m aware that this isn’t new information for most of us here today, though I can still remember the time I first learned I was a minister of Christ. It was in February of 1972, the first Sunday when Lloyd Ogilvie came as the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, my home church. During that worship service, Dr. Ogilvie began in his sonorous voice: “Today, I want introduce you to the ministers of this church.” Now as a critical fourteen-year-old, I thought this was a silly statement. After all, we knew the ministers of the church. They weren’t new. Only Dr. Ogilvie was new. The ministers were those men who sat up front in the black robes. But then Dr. Ogilvie continued, “So I want you to turn to the people sitting next to you and say to them, ‘You are a minister of Jesus Christ in this church.’” I couldn’t believe my ears. We were ministers of Jesus Christ! How was this possible? I did as Dr. Ogilvie said, even though it was pretty awkward to tell my dad that he was a minister of Jesus Christ. Fourteen-year-old boys don’t talk to their fathers that way. But I will never, ever forget the surprise of that moment, the first time I ever thought that I, a mere lay person, was a minister. (Photo: from the right, Howard E. Butt, Jr., the founder of Laity Lodge; me; Lloyd Ogilvie, who as speaking at Laity Lodge)
Years later, as a pastor, one of my greatest joys was watching people I had equipped do their ministry, whether in the church or the world. What a delight it was to hear of how a manager began to treat her employees differently because of Christ, or how a father started to teach the Bible to his children, rather than delegating their discipleship to the Sunday School. I loved it when people who were once caught in conspicuous consumption chose to invest dozens of hours helping to build a Habitat for Humanity house, or when government officials learned to seek God’s guidance for their decisions.
To be continued . . . .
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The Growing Church: Part 1
By Mark D. Roberts | Thursday, June 26, 2008
Part 1 of series: The Growing Church: A Bible Study in Ephesians 4
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This is the first part of my address to the Presbyterians for Renewal breakfast at the General Assembly of the PCUSA.
Preface
First of all, I want to thank you for coming out this morning . . . and so early! Of course General Assembly is pretty much a vacation anyway, so I guess it’s not that much of a sacrifice to miss a little sleep. (Not!) Now you know why the PFR folk invite speakers from Texas. For you this breakfast began at 6:30 in the morning, and some of you are just waking up. For me it felt like 8:30, and I’m ready to roll, y’all.
I bring greetings from Laity Lodge, my new ministry in the Hill Country of Texas outside of San Antonio. I know some of you are familiar with this wonderful ministry. Many of you are not, but I hope you’ll get more acquainted with us in the future. We share a common vision of multi-layered renewal, and a passion for helping the people of God live as ministers of Jesus Christ. (Photo: A bumble bee on a flower at Laity Lodge)
I want to offer thanks to God for Presbyterians for Renewal. Throughout the past twenty years, PFR has been an outstanding source of wisdom and encouragement for me and thousands of others like me. I am grateful for this ministry and for all that PFR is doing to bring renewal to our churches and to our denomination.
Next, I want to thank PFR’s leaders for the extraordinary privilege of speaking at this renowned breakfast. When I consider some of those you have had address you in recent years, Tom Gillespie, Richard Mouw, and my mentor, Lloyd Ogilvie, I am humbled by the opportunity you have given me. I hope to live up to your trust in asking me to speak this morning.
This is a bit of a tricky assignment, actually. It reminds me of when my children were young and I’d take them to the park. It wasn’t easy to keep my eye on two busy kids when they were four and two and loved going in opposite directions at the same time. But I learned that if I kept moving, always with one child in immediate proximity, I could keep both kids in view. So, today, I have two purposes in view. On the one hand, I want to offer a close-up word of encouragement relative to this General Assembly, especially for those who are delegates. My hope and prayer is that you’ll leave this breakfast with new vision, courage, and conviction as you seek to serve the Lord in the Assembly. On the other hand, I want to speak to the larger issues of our life and mission as a church. No matter what happens in these next few days, all of the basics of our life in Christ will be unchanged. Though the actions of this Assembly might make our work easier, or might make it harder, our calling to the mission of Jesus Christ will remain the same. So I hope also to offer some words of encouragement as we go out into the world as the people of God, sent to make disciples of all nations.
Introduction to Ephesians 4
In our short time this morning, I want to do a Bible study. I plan to focus our attention on the first half of Ephesians 4, pointing to some of the highlights in this watershed passage. This text, I believe, speaks with clarity and power to our situation as leaders in the PCUSA. It calls us to the kind of leadership that’s desperately needed in our denomination, in our churches, and in our world.
Before I get to Ephesians 4, however, let me give a brief overview of its context in this letter. Ephesians begins with a mind-expanding revelation of God’s plan for the cosmos and our role within it. God’s strategy for the fullness of time is “to gather up all things in [Christ], things in heaven and things on earth” (1:10). By bringing everything together under the headship of Christ, God will mend this broken world. Moreover, according to Ephesians 1, we were chosen before the foundation of the world to be part of God’s renewing mission. Out of his great love for us, God has lavished his grace upon us, adopting us as his children, so that we might “live for the praise of his glory” (1:12). Our whole life becomes a means to glorify the Lord as we participate in his mission through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 2 begins with the bad news of our condition outside of Christ: we’re dead. But God, who is rich in mercy, love, and grace, has made us alive in Christ. Because of Christ’s death and resurrection, we have been saved by grace through faith. We do not earn our salvation with good works. But, when we are saved by grace, we are also newly created in Christ for a life of good works. We join God’s mission of cosmic renewal, in which we play a crucial role.
The second half of Ephesians 2 reveals that the saving work of Christ touches more than individuals. It also brings reconciliation among people, represented in the breaking down of the wall of hostility between Jews and Gentiles. Human divisions will be mended as God brings all things together in Christ.
Ephesians 3 reveals the pivotal role of the church in God’s plan. Through the church, God makes known his renewal strategy. The church is the means by which God announces his mission to the cosmos and demonstrates the ultimate success of this mission. Our wholeness and unity as formerly broken and scattered people will tell the world that the Gospel is true. This is what we Presbyterians mean when we say that one of the Great Ends of the church is “the exhibition of the Kingdom of Heaven to the world” (G-1.0200). If you want to know if the Gospel is true, Ephesians tells us, just look at the church. (That, my friends, can be a scary thought!)
If the church is to exhibit the truth of the Gospel, then we will have to live out this truth in our daily life in the world. The final three chapters of Ephesians focus on the practical implications of the theological vision found in the first three chapters. Thus Ephesians 4 begins: “I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called” (4:1). Paul, writing from a prison, urges us to walk the talk, to take our calling, spelled out in Ephesians 1-3, and embody it. It’s not enough to believe it. It’s not enough to proclaim it. We must also live it, each and every day.
To be continued . . . .
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Introduction to A Growing Church: A Bible Study in Ephesians 4
By Mark D. Roberts | Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Today I had the opportunity speak at the Presbyterians for Renewal (PFR) breakfast associated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly in San Jose, California. This was a special privilege because I have such high regard for PFR and its ministries. But it was also a challenging opportunity because many signs at are our General Assembly are foreboding. It seems quite possible that this Assembly will vote to unravel many of our denomination’s long-term commitments, especially to holiness within heterosexual marriage. This isn’t certain, but it may very well happen, and that will be a sad day. It will also create a major mess for evangelicals in the PCUSA, some of whom will be in a new fight for the truth, and others of whom will decide that they’ve had enough of this denomination. I’ll be in the keep-on-fighting crowd, but I sure understand why people get tired of this sort of thing and want to focus, not on interdenominational battles, but rather on the mission of Christ. (Photo: San Jose, California, with the convention center in the foreground, the location of the General Assembly.)
I should add, however, that just because a General Assembly votes to recognize gay ordination or same-sex marriage, this doesn’t make it legal. Such matters still have to be approved by the whole church through its governing bodies [presbyteries], and the presbyteries have a history of upholding biblical truth in the wake of non-biblical General Assembly actions.
My message to the PFR breakfast, was, on the one hand, a word of encouragement related to the General Assembly. Many at the breakfast were voting members of the Assembly, and may be called upon to speak up for biblical truth in the next few days. (They need our prayers!) On the other hand, my message was meant to challenge us with respect to our larger mission. Nothing that happens at the General Assembly will change our basic calling as Christians, though it might complicate the ways we Presbyterians act out that calling.
In my next few posts I will share with you the text of my message at the PFR breakfast. I did not read this text verbatim, but spoke using my manuscript as notes, so what I said was not exactly the same as what I’m printing. But the main themes and most details are the same.
If you’re not a Presbyterian, or not a member of the PCUSA, at any rate, you may wonder if this series on The Growing Church will be helpful to you. A few of the details won’t fit, of course. But I believe the main points in this series talk, which are not my own, but come from Ephesians 4, will speak to you no matter your denominational affiliation. We all need to grapple afresh with the challenging and inspiring insights found in the fourth chapter of one of my favorite books of the Bible.
Tomorrow I’ll begin putting my sections of my address, which will probably require about four posts to complete.
In the meanwhile, I’d ask for your prayers for this General Assembly and for the PCUSA as a whole. We may be in for a rocky road ahead, which is not to say the past thirty years have been smooth ones. I must confess that I’m worried about the health and future of my denomination. But, just to be clear, I am not worried about the health and future of the church of Jesus Christ. Though the church might take a battering, in the end, the gates of Hell will not prevail against it. Thanks be to God!
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Choosing a Church: Final Comments
By Mark D. Roberts | Monday, June 23, 2008
Part 16 of series: Choosing a Church: Some Recommendations
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This will be my final post in this series on choosing a church. Of course I could always say more about this subject, but I think I’ve said what needs to be said, more or less.
Here, in summary, are my eleven specific recommendations if you’re in the process of looking for a new church:
Recommendation #1: Clarify what you value most in a church, though with an open mind and heart.
Recommendation #2: Look for a church that is essentially orthodox, unless . . . .
Recommendation #3: Use the Internet.
Recommendation #4: Meet with the Pastor.
Recommendation #5: Choose a church that proclaims and embodies the gospel of Jesus Christ
Recommendation #6: Choose a church that encourages you in your worship.
Recommendation #7: Choose a church where you can experience genuine Christian fellowship.
Recommendation #8: Choose a church where you will be equipped and encouraged to live out your life as a minister of Christ.
Recommendation #9: Choose a church where you will grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ.
Recommendation #10: Choose a church that sees itself and seeks to live as an outpost of the mission of God in the world.
Recommendation #11: Choose a church that values the Bible as God’s uniquely inspired and authoritative Word.
Recommendation #12: If you have children, choose a church that will help them to know Christ and to grow as his disciples.
Before I finish, I want to remind you of a couple things I said at the beginning of this series. One is that there is no perfect church. Not in this age, at least. Every church has strengths and every church has weaknesses. So when you’re looking for a church, don’t expect perfection that can’t be found. (Photo: The church in Bodie, California, a ghost town. No, this is not a perfect church, though there are no disagreements or problems in this church, since there are no people.)
Moreover, I want to emphasize again that the most important issue when you’re looking for a church is recognizing that the question before is really: What church has God chosen for me? When you put it this way, you realize that choosing a church isn’t simply a matter of figuring out what you value and looking for it. Rather, choosing a church is greatly a matter of prayer in which you seek the Lord’s guidance. He might lead you to a church that fits your expectations quite nicely. Or God might have different things in mind for you. In the end, you’ll want to know that you’re in the church God has chosen for you. This will be especially important when you run into the inevitable discouragements all Christian experience with their church. Knowing that God has led you where you are will help you to stay put and work things through in a way that will help both you and your church to grow into greater maturity.
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Sunday Inspiration from The High Calling
By Mark D. Roberts | Sunday, June 22, 2008
Jesus Forgives Sins
Some people brought to him a paralyzed man on a mat. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “Be encouraged, my child! Your sins are forgiven.”
It’s easy for us to read the story of Jesus forgiving and healing the paralyzed man without being unsettled or even surprised. After all, most of us count on Jesus to forgive us. That’s why he died on the cross.
But if we put ourselves back into the shoes of the people who witnessed this event, we can begin to grasp the significance, even the scandal, of Jesus’ behavior. Jews in the time of Jesus understood that divine forgiveness came through the mediation of temple sacrifices. The temple in Jerusalem was the heart of their faith and practice. But if Jesus could forgive sins without the temple, this implied that it was not necessary. Moreover, Jesus’ contemporaries believed, on the solid basis of the Old Testament, that only God could forgive sins. If Jesus was able to forgive, what did this tell them about God? And about Jesus? No wonder Jesus’ critics were upset while the crowd was amazed and praised God. Jesus was doing unprecedented and astounding things.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: Do you tend to take the forgiveness you have through Christ for granted? Why? Have you taken time recently to reflect upon the wonder of God’s forgiveness? Do you regularly confess your sins so that you might enjoy the freedom of forgiveness?
PRAYER: Gracious Lord, I must confess that I can read this story without having my pulse increase one beat. Sure, you forgave the paralyzed man. That’s what you do. Ho-hum!
Forgive me, Lord, for my nonchalance. Forgive me for taking for granted that which is so marvelous and that which cost you your very life. May I treasure your forgiveness. May I marvel at your grace afresh.
All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because you have become our temple, the one through whom our sins are forgiven. All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because you are so much more than a man. You are God come in the flesh for us and our salvation. Alleluia! Amen.
Daily Reflections from The High Calling.org
This devotional comes from The High Calling of Our Daily Work (www.thehighcalling.org). You can read my Daily Reflections there, or sign up to have them sent to your email inbox each day. This website contains lots of encouragement for people who are trying to live out their faith in the workplace.
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Recommendation #12: If you have children, choose a church that will help them to know Christ and to grow as his disciples.
By Mark D. Roberts | Friday, June 20, 2008
Part 15 of series: Choosing a Church: Some Recommendations
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Obviously, if you don’t have children, then this recommendation isn’t relevant to you. But many who are in the process of looking for a church do have children. In some cases, they are church shopping precisely because they have children, or one child, at least.
During my tenure as pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church, I noted how often parents with a new baby came to check us out. In many cases these parents grew up with some sort of religious background, maybe even with a strong faith in Christ. But somewhere along the way in their college and young adult years they stopped going to church, even though they continued to believe in God and think that God mattered (mostly for later in life). They were too wrapped up in their educations, their careers, or their young marriages to have time for church. But then, all of a sudden, they were blessed with a baby, and their values began to change. They wanted a place for their child to have moral and religious education, as they often put it. Some would even be more specific about wanting their child to know Christ. But most of the new parents who visited our church had only a vague sense that it was important for their child to have a church experience.
I believe that parents are given primary responsibility to help their children know Christ and grow as his disciples. This isn’t something that should be delegate to the Sunday School and youth ministry of a church, even though it often turns out this way. But raising a child as a Christian isn’t something parents are meant to do alone. And in today’s culture which is so hostile to Christian faith and practice, parents desperately need the support and help provided by a strong church.
For many parents, finding a solid children’s program or youth group for their kids is a top priority, trumping many of their own preferences. When friends of mine moved from Irvine to the Chicago area, they hoped to plug in to a Presbyterian church in their community. The church in their town was beautiful, and the worship services were moving to my friends, but the youth ministry was pathetic. They visited Presbyterian churches in neighboring communities, but still couldn’t find a church with a strong, Christ-centered, discipleship-oriented youth ministry. So, after weeks of frustration, they finally visited Willow Creek Community Church, which was a reasonable drive from their home. My friends did not appreciate the Sunday morning worship experience there, which was largely intended for “seekers” rather than mature believers. They liked the preaching, but that was about it. And they did not like the size or the non-denominational ethos of Willow Creek. But their kids loved the youth ministry. My friends checked it out, and soon discovered that it was outstanding both in program and in its discipleship of young believers.
My friends called me for advice. They so much wanted to be in a Presbyterian setting. Yet they wanted what was best for their children. So what should they do? My answer was unequivocal: Join Willow Creek! I explained that if, when their children were grown, they wanted to look for another church, that would be fine. But for many years they needed to be in a place that would help their children know and follow Christ. As it turns out, my friends became deeply involved in the ministry of Willow Creek. Soon they had major leadership positions in the church, and were deeply appreciative of its ministry to them.
What will a church that helps children to be disciples of Christ look like? The forms can vary widely. Some churches will have extensive ministries for children and youth. Others, house churches, will include children in many adult activities, seeing discipleship more as a matter of family participation. At the core, however, a church that offers what children and youth need will be very clear about the priority of introducing them to Christ as Lord and Savior, and helping them grow as his active disciples. (Photo: Vacation Bible School [VBS] at Irvine Presbyterian Church. One sign of a healthy children’s ministry is an active VBS like that at Irvine Pres.)
If you are looking for a church and you have children, I’d encourage you to talk with those who are responsible for ministries with children and youth. In many cases these will be directors or pastors. In other situations you’ll be talking with elders or other non-staff leaders. Ask those in charge about their ministries. Be specific in asking about their core purposes. Do they see themselves mainly as entertainment or babysitting? Or are they in the business of making disciples of young people. Go with the church that has a discipleship emphasis.
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Recommendation #11: Choose a church that values the Bible as God’s uniquely inspired and authoritative Word.
By Mark D. Roberts | Thursday, June 19, 2008
Part 14 of series: Choosing a Church: Some Recommendations
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If I had been approaching this series on choosing a church more systematically, as if I were writing a book rather than a series of blog posts, odds are this recommendation would have appeared much higher on the list. In a sense, it is presupposed in most of my other recommendations. If you find a church that is essentially orthodox, that proclaims and embodies the gospel, that encourages you in your worship, where you experience genuine fellowship, where you’ll be equipped as a minister, where you’ll grow as a disciple, and that is a missional church, it’s almost guaranteed that this church will also have high regard for Scripture.
You’ll notice that I did not use words often associated with biblical authority, words such as “inerrancy” and “infallibility.” I realize many people would find one or both of these words essential, and that’s fine with me. But, for the sake of this series on choosing a church, I’m not so concerned with the wording that a church uses for the authority of Scripture. What is highly recommended, from my point of view, is that a church value the Bible as uniquely inspired and authoritative.
God’s inspiration touches many things and many people. I believe that God inspires artists and musicians, poets and preachers. I also think God inspires great paintings and symphonies, great novels and sermons. But the Bible stands in a different category as a uniquely inspired document. At least this is what most Christians have believed for centuries and continue to believe around the world today. I stand firmly in this congregation.
The Bible is, therefore, uniquely authoritative. Its truth trumps everything else. In church life, this means that the Bible should be the authoritative source for preaching and teaching. It should guide the decisions of church leaders in a way unparalleled by any other authority. (Photo: St. Mark Presbyterian Church in Boerne, Texas. One of the main things that drew me to this church was its commitment to biblical authority.)
What authorities compete with that of Scripture? Historically, one such authority has been church tradition. Some Christians believe that church tradition stands on par with the Bible when it comes to authority in the church. As one who stands in the Protestant tradition, I believe that church tradition has much to offer, but that the Bible gets the majority vote. Of course in many, many cases Scripture and tradition agree. But if there is a difference, then Scripture should prevail.
Another potentially competing authority is that of church leaders. Yes, of course you find this in the Roman Catholic church, where the authority of the church, as expressed through the Pope, can establish doctrine on par with that based on Scripture, even if there is little or no biblical evidence for that doctrine. Now when the Pope is himself a biblically-centered leader, as in the case of Benedict XVI, that which he teaches will often be consistent with Scripture. But, once again, I’d encourage you to look for a church that prizes biblical truth above all.
I should add, by the way, that there are Roman Catholic churches in which the Bible is taught as an absolute authority. I used to attend such a church sometimes when I was in graduate school. Moreover, there are many Protestant churches that profess the ultimate authority of Scripture, but in fact give that authority to their pastor. The pastor, much like the Pope, is the ultimate and inerrant interpreter of Scripture, and therefore has de facto ultimate and inerrant authority in church matters.
Perhaps the most common competitor to biblical authority these days, at least in the United States, isn’t tradition or church leadership. Rather, it’s one’s personal experiences and feelings. I have heard apparently committed Christians say things like, “Well, I know the Bible says that sex outside of marriage is wrong, but I believe it’s okay for some people because their experience guides them. They feel like they’re doing what’s right. Who am I to judge their experiences and feelings?” It’s becoming increasingly rare for a Christian to say, “Well, my feelings tell me my behavior is just fine. But Scripture teaches otherwise, so my feelings must be wrong.”
Sometimes Christians talk about their feelings and experiences with spiritual language, seeking to baptize their subjectivity. They’ll say something like: “The Holy Spirit has led me to believe that premarital sex is okay,” or “I’m responding to new revelations from the Spirit.” These folks might believe what they’re saying, but in fact it’s simply another way to talk about their personal feelings. And I would not recommend a church that places feelings above biblical truth.
I realize full well that what I’ve said about the priority of biblical authority steps on lots of toes. My Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox readers will feel the press of my shoes. So will my liberal/progressive readers. So will those who give priority to what they consider to be the leading of the Spirit. Surely, if these folks were to write a blog series on choosing a church, they’d have different recommendations. But, for me and my house, it’s essential that a church values the unique inspiration of Scripture and is guided by the unique authority of Scripture. So, if you’re looking for a church, I’d urge you to seek the same.
Practically speaking, you can usually find out what a church believes about Scripture from its website or other materials for visitors. This is certainly a question you might want to ask the pastor. But, even without consulting what a church says about the Bible, you can often tell where it stands by what you observe in a worship service, especially in the sermon. If the preacher regularly bases the sermon upon Scripture, speaking as if the text of the day is fully true, then the church probably has a high view of biblical authority. If, on the other hand, the preacher disagrees with Scripture or corrects it, then you know that other authorities take precedence in the church. If the sermon has little to do with Scripture, chances are that the church doesn’t place a high priority of biblical truth. But this is something you should check out through additional investigation.
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Recommendation #10: Choose a church that sees itself and seeks to live as an outpost of the mission of God in the world.
By Mark D. Roberts | Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Part 13 of series: Choosing a Church: Some Recommendations
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Today I’ll suggest Recommendation #10: Choose a church that sees itself and seeks to live as an outpost of the mission of God in the world.
I could have just said “Choose a missional church,” but many of my readers wouldn’t quite know what this means. Some might thing I’m referring to a church that has an extensive “missions” program: sponsoring overseas missionaries, being involved in local mission, etc. But this wouldn’t get the precise nuance of “missional.”
A missional church sees itself and seeks to live as an outpost of the mission of God in the world. Traditionally, Christian churches though of new church developments or missionary churches as outposts of God’s mission. They weren’t the outposts, but the home bases. Their job was to care for the Christians in their congregation and support the missionary efforts of others. (Photo: The sanctuary of Irvine Presbyterian Church. During my years as pastor there, we worked hard to see ourselves and to live as a missional church. My hope and prayer is that the next pastor will be able to move this fine church even further along the missional path.)
There is much good in this traditional model of church. It has helped spread the good news of Jesus throughout the world. And it has contributed to the planting of thousands of churches in the U.S. But the traditional view that sees the home church as the sending church, rather than the sent church, misses an absolutely central dimension of God’s plan for the church.
If you go back to the Great Commission, where Jesus sent his disciples into the world to make more disciples, it’s clear that these disciples were sent. No question about it. Now their task was to make more disciples of Jesus who would do just as Jesus had commanded his first disciples. So the Great Commission would provide the marching orders, not just for the earliest disciples, but also for all who follow Jesus. Of course, in time, disciples of Jesus wouldn’t need to literally go somewhere to make disciples. They’d already be in the place where God had “sent” them, so to speak. They’d have found their place in the mission (from the Latin word missio, meaning “sending”) of God.
Every single church throughout the world has been, in a sense, sent by God to do the work of the kingdom in that place. In this sense, every church should be a missional church, a church committed to reaching out to make more disciples of Jesus and to living out the reality of the kingdom in its location. Unfortunately, many churches do not see themselves in these terms. They’re stuck in the traditional model of church, rather than in the biblical model.
You can tell if a church is missional by paying attention to its vision and, indeed, statement of mission. Does this church exist not just for itself, but for the sake of others? Does it see itself as called by God to share the good news of Christ in its community and to live out this good news? A church doesn’t have to use the word “missional” to be missional. But it does have to demonstrate a pervasive commitment to the mission of God in the world.
Some churches might have a missional mission statement, but a traditional modus operandi. A church might say, “We exist to reach others” but, in its actions, show that it actually exists primarily for itself. So when you’re choosing a church, you’ll want to see if that church is actually reaching out to the community in tangible ways. Of course the precise nature of this outreach will vary according to the nature of the community.
It’s quite likely that a missional church will also be involved in the wider mission of God throughout the world. That’s great. It will support missionaries, sponsor mission trips, etc.
As a newcomer to a church, chances are that you’ll be able to evaluate the missional character of the church fairly easily, perhaps even more easily than many of the members. You’ll sense whether the church exists for outsiders, because you are an outsider. You’ll know whether you have been welcomed by many. You’ll see whether core members are looking for new folks to greet, or whether they’re caught up with their own friends.
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Recommendation #9: Choose a church where you will grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ.
By Mark D. Roberts | Monday, June 16, 2008
Part 12 of series: Choosing a Church: Some Recommendations
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Many Christians see life in this world mostly as waiting around until the train arrives to take us to heaven. They don’t realize that this world in a place were we are supposed to serve and honor God by joining in his work of cosmic transformation. And they don’t recognize that, as disciples of Jesus Christ, they are supposed to be growing into greater maturity. By the end of our lives on this earth, each one of us should be well-developed disciples, ready to take the next step as we follow Jesus into the future.
Our word “disciple” comes from the Greek word mathetes, which literally means “learner.” The disciple learns, not by sitting in a classroom and hearing lectures, but by entering into a relationship with a master teacher. A mathetes is what we might call an apprentice or an intern. (Photo: Detail from a painting by Tintoretto, “Christ Washing His Disciples’ Feet,” AD 1547. A fantastic portrait of relational discipleship.)
Jesus’ first disciples had the extraordinary privilege of learning in relationship with him. We see this throughout the Gospels, especially in Mark 3:14: “And [Jesus] appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, and to be sent out to proclaim the message.” Yet before they were able to fulfill their apostolic calling, the apostles were first disciples of Jesus who were called “to be with him.” Here is the relational essence of discipleship.
We, of course, don’t have the opportunity this side of the world to come to be with Jesus in the flesh. So how can we be “with Jesus” in order to grow as his disciples? First, when we put our faith in Christ, we receive his very Spirit, who teaches us his truths and molds our hearts to be like the heart of Jesus. We are with Jesus in that we are with his Spirit.
Second, we can be “with Jesus” when we are with his people. Christian discipleship this side of the Ascension happens as more mature Christians come into relationship with less mature believers, helping them to grow as disciples. This discipleship relationship can be one-on-one, or it can happen in a small group. Large group instruction contributes to discipleship, but can never replace personal, relational discipleship.
Thus, as you look for a church, I’d urge you to find one that gets the fact that all Christians are disciples, and that discipleship is an intentional process of growth in the context of intimate relationship. If the church you’re considering has lots of Bible and ministry classes, this is a fantastic start. But I’d encourage you to look for a church that facilitates relationship-based discipleship as well. This can take different forms: spiritual direction, one-on-one discipleship, small group fellowship, ministry teams, mission trips, etc. etc.
Discipleship isn’t simply a matter of accumulating lots of right doctrine. Some churches have replaced biblical discipleship with an educational model that emphasizes the learning of lots of truth. Now I’m the first one to value learning lots of truth. But merely internalizing truth isn’t full discipleship, though it’s a crucial step. Full discipleship requires both relationship and the living out of truth in daily life.
Discipleship isn’t simply a matter of being in intimate relationships with other Christians, however. As important as relationship is to discipleship, it isn’t the whole story. You can have lots of intimate relationships with other Christians without growing as a disciple of Jesus. So you need at least one relationship that is both intimate and intentionally devoted to your growth in Christ.
Discipleship isn’t simply a matter of doing the works of Jesus, no matter how important this may be. Jesus himself said,
“On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’ Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.’”(Matthew 7:22-23)
Knowing Jesus, truly and personally, is essential to following him as his disciple.
How can you know if a church will help you grow as a disciple? You might start by looking at what a church says about its core vision and mission. Does discipleship (or growth in Christ) show up? Then you might look at the kinds of programs for Christian growth that a church sponsors. Lecture-type classes are good. More intimate contexts for discipleship are even better. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, look at the kind of disciples your potential church is producing. Are they living as active disciples of Christ in every part of life? At home? At work? At church? On the soccer field? In the PTA? With colleagues? With friends? etc. etc. If you see people in a church living out their discipleship on a regular basis, then you can be fairly sure that their church will help you to do the same.
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Sunday Inspiration from The High Calling
By Mark D. Roberts | Sunday, June 15, 2008
The Golden Rule
”Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.”
We find versions of the so-called “Golden Rule” in the ethical teachings of many philosophers and religions. Yet these versions almost always take a negative form: Do not do to others what you do not want them to do to you.
But Jesus moves in a bold direction by teaching us, not just to avoid doing that which we hate ourselves, but to do actively for others that which we would prefer for ourselves. Such a simple command sums up the Old Testament moral law. Moreover, it gives us a basic rule of thumb for all of our actions, whether we’re at work, at home, or at play.
If we are to employ the Golden Rule effectively, however, we need to attend carefully to the needs and desires of others. For example, when I’m sick, I mostly want to be left alone. I don’t want my wife to be hovering over me, seeking to care for my needs. When Linda is ill, on the contrary, she likes lots of attention. So if I apply the Golden Rule simplistically, and leave my wife alone, I’m not ministering to her needs. In order to show love for her and to do what Jesus intends, I need to pay close attention to Linda’s wants and needs.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: How often do you think in terms of the Golden Rule when you’re at work? At home? Out “in the world”? What helps you to attend to the wants and needs of those who are central to your life?
PRAYER: Thank you, gracious Lord, for such a clear, simple, and trustworthy guide for how I’m to live in this world. I only wish I could keep this Golden Rule in my mind and heart more often . . . and do it!
Help me, Lord, to treat others in my office the way I would like to be treated.
Help me to act toward my family in the ways I’d like them to act toward me.
Whether I’m shopping at the market, or driving in traffic, or making a customer complaint, may I always strive to follow your Golden Rule.
Help me to pay close attention to the needs and desires of people in my life so that I might treat them in ways that communicate genuine love and care. Amen.
Daily Reflections from The High Calling.org
This devotional comes from The High Calling of Our Daily Work (www.thehighcalling.org). You can read my Daily Reflections there, or sign up to have them sent to your email inbox each day. This website contains lots of encouragement for people who are trying to live out their faith in the workplace.
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