the drum|rob fairbanks

Is the Church too strong?

By Jeff

I cannot help but wonder if our churches have become too muscular?  Have our churches become immobilized due to overwhelming attendance and the resulting church politics? Is it possible to grow die hard disciples out of a large church? Special Forces soldiers and Rangers are rarely stacked with muscle and yet they are the most effective soldiers in the field. Should we strive to build congregations so full of Christians that they are impressive on the exterior due to mass but rendered ineffective by the very same characteristic that we find impressive?

 

Special Forces soldiers and Rangers are not stacked with muscle for a reason. Too much muscle hinders agility and speed, thus making them a slower target. It seems that we as the Church have placed too much value on well attended services (just as athletes can become obsessed with numbers numerically representing their performance) that we have created congregations that cannot run the race of missions. Unfortunately, since the church has supported the numbers game, the congregants have followed suit. We now have vast amounts of congregants who have overloaded their lives with things that seem to be positive (like muscle) but leave them unable to walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death unless they make some serious sacrifices before they begin their march through the Valley.  We as a church have packed on so much ‘muscle’ that we cannot quickly adapt to the changing currents in the ocean in which we swim.

 

We must become more like Special Forces soldiers or Rangers, we need to cut the excessive muscle and re-gain our agility to navigate through this rapidly changing world.

Have We Really ‘Forgotten’ How to Do Church?

By Troy

As a Theology major at Whitworth, I’ve had the privilege of reading a wide variety of Christian literature. I’ve read through the Bible, numerous early Christian primary sources, biblical commentaries, etc.  One consequence of my extensive reading is the tendency to become a literary critic. For me, the older the book, the more weight and authority it carries (this is a generalization). After reading Ignatius, Clement or Irenaeus, it’s easy to see how these works have survived the centuries. But I tend to read contemporary authors more critically. In other words, they haven’t stood the test of time yet.

 

In class, we are reading Forgotten Ways (2006) by Alan Hirsch. After slogging through the book, I was left disappointed by the wordiness and ‘fluff’ of Hirsch’s writing (and the excessive use of charts!). Although Hirsch does offer some valuable insight for contemporary church leaders, I found the book characteristic of ‘emergent church’ literature. Forgotten Ways is full of emergent buzz words such as missional, organic, fluidity, ‘authentic Jesus movement’ that appear to be cutting-edge. At least to me, these words are nebulous and vague. After more than two hundred pages, it’s still not clear to me what mDNA and the Apostolic Genius are! I felt the book was just another attempt to formulate a ‘successful’ 21^st century church.

 

Hirsch confidently asserts: “the Apostolic Genius lies dormant in you, me, and every local church that seeks to follow Jesus faithfully in any time. We have quite simply forgotten how to access and trigger it” (22). This seems to suggest thatwe possess the keys to unlocking the Apostolic Genius; and when/if we find it, the Church will flourish. There is little mention of the working of the Holy Spirit or God as Lord of the Church. And have we really forgotten how to do church? I agree that the church-growth and attractional-church models aren’t healthy, but the church has managed to survive two thousand years. There is no magic model to success, as “unlocking the Apostolic Genius” suggests.

 

I agree that mission is a critical aspect to the Church, but I also affirm the importance of true worship and diligent study of Scripture. Mission is not superior, but rather goes hand-in-hand with worship, theology, liturgy, and sacrament.

 

Like other contemporary ‘emergent’ authors, Hirsch is simply offering a new model for “doing church.” New
styles of doing church come and go like many other fads and trends. Well we have not ‘forgotten’ how to do church, Hirsch does offer excellent insights, provoking critiques, and challenging applications. But in my opinion, Hirsch is neither a diligent biblical exegete nor a careful historian. Hirsch  is no Irenaeus, but we can add his opinion (with grace) to the Christian melting pot as we progress towards renewed expressions of the Church.

Missional living --> as we are going make disciples

 By Brendan

The concept of missional living has been brought to the forefront of my mind as I have entered into this New Year. My paradigm of missions has been forced into a place of reflection and rediscovery. My own concept of missions seems to be evolving as God is faithfully opening my eyes to His very nature and character.

I have at one time or another thought of missions as supporting—whether financially, or through prayer—someone else. I have also at one point or another treated missions as something that one does through short-term trips (somewhere else) of relief or encouragement. And finally I have thought of missions as something that is lived out through love for those I am in community with, essentially attractional community—John 13:35, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." But all of these conceptions of missions seem to fall short of the incarnation. Christ’s ultimate example.

The nature of God is characterized by His sending of His own son, Jesus. In doing so Jesus left the comforts of heaven and stepped down from his position of authority into our world and experienced all things as we do. Another aspect of the nature of God is apparent in Jesus’ life as He lived relationally. Jesus reached out to the “unlovable” those who were on the fringes of society, lepers, widows, prostitutes, “sinners”, the poor, and the unreligious. He set the ultimate example of love as he interacted with sinners, healed the sick, and called fisherman, and tax collectors to join Him on His mission.

Missional Living, as exemplified by Jesus seems to be the example of both go, and as you are going. What I mean by that is Jesus came to our world, and as he was going (living) He made disciples. So He was both sent and was obedient to live in a way that cultivated The Kingdom right where He was.

Jesus example has caused me to reflect on my understanding of missions and how it is practically acted out in my own life. Am I loving those who culturally are “unlovable”, those on the fringes of society, or those who I rub shoulders with daily? Am I following Christ example? Am I ultimately following Christ’s call for my life?

 

Segregated Sundays

By Laura

According to the Pew Center research, only 7 percent of American churches are racially integrated. This fact to me is shocking. Most Christians I talk to agree that racial reconciliation is important, but then why is there still such segregation taking place within the body of Christ? Various attempts have been made in the Church to work towards this racial reconciliation by encouraging individuals to build interracial relationships. But this strategy has obviously not been successful, at least not so far. The main issue with this approach is its disregard for structural segregation which will not be resolved through individual efforts at reconciliation. It will take the Church as a whole, working together, to begin shifting the composition of American churches to reflect the diversity that is evident among God’s people.

Much of the segregation that takes place in churches is a result of residential separation  that has been so institutionalized in our society. The fact that people of different races do not live in the same neighborhoods, ultimately means they will most likely not be attending the same schools, offices, or churches. In his book, American Apartheid, Douglas Massey explains that “deleterious neighborhood conditions are built into the structure of the black community. They occur because segregation concentrates poverty to build a set of mutually reinforcing and self-feeding spirals of decline into black neighborhoods.” The fact that Black Americans have higher poverty rates than White Americans should motivate the Church to see that something has to change.

I believe that the Church can be an instrument of racial reconciliation both on the individual and structural level by finding a way to bring integration, cooperation, and equality within the church itself. How can the Church expect to live into its missional identity when Sundays are considered by some to be the most segregated day of the week? A racially integrated church would break down many negative effects of racial segregation and allow resources to be shared and needs to be met that would not otherwise take place, demonstrating God’s missional heart. So what do you think? Is the church segregated because different races just prefer their own style of worship and preaching? Or is there a deeper issue that will take a Church following the example of Christ to address?

Give my faith back to me...

    I recently had a conversation with a friend about the difficulties that arise from having a particularly charismatic pastor. We've talked about this in class, we've read about it in books, but nonetheless it's rather alarming to think about what happens if, well, something happens to this charismatic pastor. In my friend's situation, the church fractured after the pastor left because, in his words, the pastor was "guarding their faith." Once he was gone, many the church members felt as though the burden of their faith pressing upon them much more heavily. In Forgotten Ways, Alan Hirsch mentions that true apostolic leadership creates the environment for other ministries to develop. When there is a highly charismatic and people-pleasing pastor, other ministries may exist but it is likely that their impact will be quite secondary to the main event: the pastor's sermon. In apostolic leadership, there is still defined leadership, but the individual and the smaller group are given much more weight. The environment created discourages consumeristic faith rather than encourages it. 
    If we only encourage one type of leader to be a pastor, we are likely to perpetuate the situation that many churches find themselves in: a body of Christians dependent on the faith of another to live fully as followers of Christ. By encouraging and recognizing other forms of leadership, we are much more likely to create an environment where real discipleship and formation can occur.

   Noah P.

Will the new Martin Luther please stand up?

 

As I continue to research and work on my paper that has pretty much turned into a case study focused primarily on my church I grew up in, asking the question, “what does/will it take for “dying traditional denominations to hear, embrace, and begin living the “missional church” approach?” This post isn’t a masked attempt at trying to get others to answer it for me, not by any means. This post has sort of manifested itself into a lament of mine, venting my frustrations, because I’m starting to become more and more convinced that it will the only way to bring true change within these traditional denominations is from the heart of their governing bodies, like the Presbytery for the Presbyterians. Even still, I think it will take a larger than life personality like Martin Luther to do something scandalous and dramatic that pisses off enough people to grab people’s attention; something like posting a modern day 95 theses. If not, I honestly think that these traditional denominations will literally die. I understand that sounds pretty outlandish, cryptic, and slightly prophetic, but if you examine the average ages that populate traditional denominations, and compare it with their stubbornness (which seems to increase with age), its not looking too good. I am not trying to be insensitive to get a few laughs or to entice people into reading this. I say these things A) because I think they are true and B) because this bleak reality really upsets me. I have hope in the Holy Spirit, and what it is doing in the missional church movement, and also for the few number of already established churches who have reformed their ways, but over all for these traditional denominations, it doesn’t look to good; at least for the American church. Will there be anyone bold enough to stand up and be a modern day Martin Luther? Will the new Martin Luther please stand up?

- jessemac

 

Patience

               For me one of the most difficult things in the world is being patient. Due to the fact that I have grown up in consumer based culture, patience is not my best virtue. I find myself many times wanting something as quick as I can get. I believe this type of attitude transfers over to some of the attitudes in our churches. I can only speak from my own personal background and feelings toward this subject. It seems to me that some churches do take a more consumerist approach to cater to the needs of a certain group. The church has become commercialized. I see the church emphasizing programs that stress numbers. The numbers of Christians and converts become more important than actually developing people into Christ followers. The attentions of most modern day churches here in America have taken a corporate approach to the Gospel. This compromises of the Gospel highlights the positive attributes of Christianity and disregards the intense struggle Christianity can be. I believe that Jesus personified the Gospel through his relationships. This gets me to my point. I believe that many churches have concentrated on sheer numbers and not enough on actual discipleship. What is the point of numbers? Do numbers help us here or in heaven? This is one area of the church where I believe we have missed the point. Many new converts end up leaving the faith because the Gospel was not fully expressed to them. In other words they find the faith to be fraudulent and more difficult than expected. People new to the faith who undergo discipleship programs at least learn what Christianity is. I believe that churches need to be patient when they construct new programs and sermons. Understand that this is about God’s kingdom and his will. It’s not about having meaningless social status or having Christianity become the biggest religion based on numbers, but not actually practiced. Christianity is centered on God and should be taught accordingly. I’m not suggesting that this will fix the churches problem or create Christendom, but I’m suggesting that this will create people who are serious about their faith. Relationships take time and patience. Jesus took the time to express the Gospel to his disciples so that they could carry it out to all nations, and we are called to do the same.

-Cory      

 

Come As You Are...

Every day as I have the honor and privilege of driving past Liberty Baptist Church on my way to class. LBC is a small church located on the corner of Graves and Ivanhoe not to far from my house. Here is their website (and in case you were wondering...you need to look at the website to understand my point. Look closely...) :

http://www.lbcspokane.com/

Did you see it? Can you already tell why I'm upset? Do you understand why I want to take the long road to and from school sometimes? Well in case you missed it I will let you know. Liberty Baptist Church has the phrase "Come As You Are, Leave Better" attached to their website. To make it even better, they have a GIGANTIC sign on the outside of their church (right underneath the cross) with that phrase blaring across the front in huge letters. Oh and I forgot to mention...the background of the sign is an American flag. Thank you LBC for reminding us all that the Church is an American thing and should not be confused with some other "foreign" religion. After all, Jesus was born on the South Hill, right?

So that is why I am upset. I have to look at this sign everyday on my way to school. As we sat and talked about the implications of the incarnation, the theological truths of the Bible, and the actual Gospel message that needs to be shared with the world, I couldn't help but think about LBC. In all honesty, just makes me sad. True, it is fun to sit around and complain about how "they are wrong" or how "we should go steal that sign and burn it", but the truth is that they are trying their best to communicate the Gospel to outsiders. However, the way they are doing it is unhealthy and not missional. 

I'm not sure I need to say much about the American flag background of the sign. That is a no no. God is everywhere, not just in the states, and His Church extends to all peoples and countries. "Come As You Are"? Sure, great, awesome. But what about that is missional? What about that statement makes it sound like the people in that congregation are leaving their building to try and share the message of Jesus Christ? To me it sounds as though they expect passers by to walk in, take a seat, and start giving 15% right off the bat. "Leave Better"? Don't get me started. This is Prosperity-Gospel at its finest. But hey, if it was my church I would probably have done the same. Who wants a huge sign that says, "Come As You Are, Leave with the really difficult, challenging, important, self-denying task of spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ"? Not this guy (too much text to pay for...not enough money left for a new gym). I understand where the sign is coming from. Yes, we can come to church as we are. Yes, we will leave better people because of the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. But no, we should not expect people to simply walk in from the street without us making the effort to go to them and engage in their life and culture, not the other way around. And no, we should not set people up to think that life is going to be better as a result of going to church. Life is going to be hard. You will have to give up things that you do not want to give up. But eventually, the love and grace of Jesus Christ will allow us to live the life we are truly meant to have. That is the message that we should put on our signs.

Sean

 

Missional VS. Attractional

These last couple of days we have been in class I have thought a great deal about attractionallism, the traditional approach to reach out to one's community. This topic brings me back to my youth group days. My youth pastor lead a student led ministry where we were constantly figuring out new ways to attract students and how to keep them attending our youth group. I remember having a conversation with my youth pastor where he told me it is a constant battle to attract students in a world that offers so much more than a church could ever offer.

    This is where I first decided that the traditional approach (the attractional approach) simply wasn’t working, believe me, I practically lived at the church. It has been enlightening to see that there are other methods to living as the body of Christ. I think it is liberating to know that there is a much more effective method to living within the body and living incarnationally. I am excited to live incarnationally, to love the people within my context and to let God do the work in people rather than trying to do the work myself. I have tried to do the attracting myself through trying to persuade people into belief or inviting people to church in hopes that they will accept Christ. These methods never made a dent and I remember feeling discontent and useless to the Kingdom. In Short, I feel as if my eyes have been opened and a weight has been lifted in learning more about living missionally and incarnationally. The church needs to change if we want to truly live as the body of Christ but that cannot happen without each Christian's commitment to live incarnationally every day.

Jeremy

 

How to Plant a Church

via www.youtube.com

This is both funny and terrifyingly close to what happens in most new church plants - where the missio Dei gets talked about and maybe even included in the name of the church but rarely lived out. It is enough to draw a crowd of already socialized Christians...right?