How specialization harms the church
“I’m not gifted in that area, so I don’t have to do that.”
“That’s not my ministry, so I’ll leave that for someone else to do.”
“I was called to do something else, so that’s not my responsibility.”
I’ve heard those excuses my whole life, and, for a long time, I bought into it. But, in the last few years, I’ve changed my mind. In fact, I think this kind of specialization harms the church.
The question was raised recently by Miguel at “God Directed Deviations” in his post “Aren’t All Christians Supposed to Make Disciples, Be Witnesses, and Evangelize?”
Miguel offers a couple of quotes: one of which supports that specialization based on giftings while the other does not support this kind of specialization. There is some back and forth (but still a good discussion) in the comments as well.
So, what is the discussion about? Well, according to Scripture, we know that some people are gifted at teaching. Others are gifted at encouraging. Still others are gifted at serving. In fact, we find many different spiritual gifts listed in Scripture, and it’s clear that 1) different people have different gifts, 2) no one has every gift, and 3) those with a certain gift should serve in that way.
The question is, then, who is responsible for teaching? For encouraging? For serving? For giving? For pastoring? For administering? For prophesying?
Are those gifted in those areas responsible for serving in those areas? Of course they are. Peter states that emphatically in 1 Peter 4:10. Paul says something similar in 1 Corinthians 12:7.
But, here’s the thing, given that those gifted are responsible for serving in that particular area, it does not follow logically (or scripturally) that others are not responsible for serving in that particular area. In fact, I think that all followers of Jesus Christ are responsible for teaching, serving, giving, encouraging, prophesying, pastoring, showing mercy, and any other type of service toward others.
Why would I conclude that all believers are responsible for these types of service (even when not gifted in that area)? Well, there are several reasons. For one, the results of any kind of service are not dependent upon the one serving, but upon God working through his Spirit in the life of the person serving. Also, the multitude of “one another” passages which are addressed to all believers (at least, all recipients of that particular letter) moves us away from any kind of specialization.
Thus, I believe that ALL Christians are responsible to “teach one another,” even those who are gifted at teaching. I believe that all followers of Jesus are supposed to “serve one another,” even those who are gifted as servants. All believers should “encourage one another,” even those who have been given the gift of encouragement.
So, what happens when only those gifted in teaching teach? What happens when only those who have the spiritual gift of evangelism do the evangelizing? What happens when only the spiritually gifted pastors serve through shepherding others? What happens is that the church is hindered in its growth and maturity, and we began to rely on certain people instead of relying on the Holy Spirit.
The church truly is a relational organism, and we rely on God’s life and power in each and every one of us, in whichever way he chooses to work at any time.
Yes, it is our responsibility, our calling, and our ministry.
Learning about discipleship by leading a pace group in a half marathon
Did you know that Thanksgiving Day is one of the biggest (perhaps THE biggest) running day of the year? It’s true. In our area, there were two big races, one with over 1500 runners and the other with over 2000 runners. And, remember, I live in a small town. In Raleigh and Durham and other larger towns around RDU, there were even larger races.
Last week on Thanksgiving Day, I was given an awesome opportunity. I was asked to lead one of the pace groups for the Skinny Turkey half marathon (13.1 miles). What does a pace leader do? Well, it was my responsible to run the race in a constant pace in order to finish at a certain time. For me, I was asked to lead the group that finished in 2:30 (two hours and thirty minutes). Now, this is quite a bit slower than I normally run a half marathon. So for the week before the race, I practiced running at the slower pace.
During the race, I was responsible for encouraging the runners who wanted to stay with my pace group. Of course, we encouraged and cheered other runners as well, both those who were running faster than us and those who were running slower than us. (Runners are usually a very encouraging group!)
As I was running this race and leading the pace group (trying to keep my pace as consistent as possible and to stay on schedule to finish in 2:30), I realized that there were some similarities and differences between pacing a race and discipleship.
For instance, it was very important that I understood what was happening around me, how the other runners were doing, and to help those who were struggling as much as possible. I think this is similar to discipleship as we help one another follow Jesus Christ.
Of course, there is a big difference here as well. Why? Well, I could not change my pace in order to slow down for runners who needed to slow. Also, I was always the pace leader, but in life and discipleship, the one “pacing” often changes based on situations and circumstances.
Then, I started wondering what a “pace group” for life would look like. People would help one another along. They would “slow down” or “speed up” based on the group as a whole. Those who were stronger at any one time would help those who were struggling. Of course, at any one time, some of those who were stronger at one time could be the ones who need help later. Perhaps different ones would be stronger going “uphill” while others would be stronger going “downhill.”
Along the way, the group would help one another keep the “goal” in mind. But, of course, the “goal” isn’t 13.1 miles ahead; it is a lifetime of “running.” We rest together when necessary; we keep running together when we can.
Of course, that’s the church as it’s described in Scripture. I love it when God uses running to give me a glimpse of how his children should live together in Jesus Christ.
Replay: Grace to More People = More Thanksgiving to God
For the last few days – since Thanksgiving Day actually – I’ve been “replaying” some of my Thanksgiving-based posts from the last few years. This is from a post called “Grace to More People = More Thanksgiving to God” which I originally published 2 years ago. This post examines the connection between grace and thanksgiving – a connection that Paul makes in his second letter to the Christians in Corinth.
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Grace to More People = More Thanksgiving to God
On this Thanksgiving Day (actually, for the last few days), I’ve been thinking about and writing about thanksgiving, gratefulness, giving thanks, etc. For this Thanksgiving Day post, I want to return to Paul second letter to the Corinthians. (Well, it may have been his third or fourth letter, but it’s the second letter that still exists, so we call it 2 Corinthians.)
In 2 Corinthians 4, Paul writes about the hardships that he has faced while traveling around the Roman Empire proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ. But, several times, Paul tells his readers that he does not lose heart and that they should not lose heart.
At one point, Paul makes the following statement:
For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. (2 Corinthians 4:15 ESV)
“As grace extends to more and more people” is a reference to the goal of Paul’s apostolic work. He travels from city to city and from region to region and proclaims the good news of Jesus Christ so that the grace of God might be extended to more and more people.
There are many great things that happen as God’s grace is extended to more and more people. For instance, those people become God’s children. They are indwelled by the Holy Spirit. They become members of one another and members of Jesus Christ. They are justified.
But, notice Paul’s focus in this particular passage. As God’s grace is extended to more and more people, the amount of thanks being offered to God increases, and this brings glory to God.
When Paul thinks of thanking God, he thinks of those people who God has brought into his life (like the believers in Corinth – see 1 Corinthians 1:4). However, thinking about the many people who were continuously being included in God’s family because of the ever increasing reaches of God grace also caused Paul to thank God.
We all have many, many reasons to be grateful to God. Most of us can thank God for our families, our health, for food, for clothing, for shelter. We can thank God for other believers and friends and family. We can thank God for his work in our life and in the lives of the church.
But, let’s never stop thanking God (and encouraging others to thank God) that his grace is being extended to more and more people!
NOT Thanksgiving
Two years ago, I wrote a post called “NOT Thankful.” This seems like a good time to “replay” this post. Why? Because many of us (especially in the United States) are thankful today. But, what about yesterday? What about tomorrow? Next week? Will we still be thankful? If I’m honest – and I try to be – then there are more times when I’m NOT thankful than times when I am thankful. And, my like of thanksgiving has nothing to do with the date or with the blessings of God. It has everything to do with my own heart. What about you?
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NOT Thankful
Thankfulness… thanking God… I thank God for many things… most things… sometimes… even usually.
I have to be honest… I’m not thankful to God for all things.
I’m not.
I want to be.
But I’m not.
Maybe it’s not that important that I be thankful for all things…
…giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ… (Ephesians 5:20 ESV)
[D]o not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:6 ESV)
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3:17 ESV)
[G]ive thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you… (1 Thessalonians 5:18 ESV)
Ok. So, maybe it is important to be thankful for all things. But, I must also be honest with myself (and with God and with others) that I’m not thankful for all things. I’m not even thankful for all people. I’m not thankful for all circumstances or events. Sometimes, if I’m completely honest, I’m not thankful for anything at all.
But, since I kept reading passages about thankfulness, I found a passage that mirrors my thankfulness very well:
The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ (Luke 18:11-12 ESV)
Finally… a passage about thankfulness that I can completely support!
The secondary concern with imitation in Scripture
As I mentioned in my post “Lessons in Imitation,” the idea of imitation is very important to the authors of the New Testament. This is especially true of Paul, but John (at least) also exhorts his readers toward imitation. In that post, I listed several of the passages in Scripture in which people were exhorted toward imitation. Those instructions included the imitation of God as well as the imitation of other followers of Jesus (both the authors and others).
When we read through those passages, we can see that the primary concern of the authors is for the readers to consider who they are imitating. In this post, I want to consider another concern about imitation that can only be inferred from those passages, and so is a secondary concern.
What concern is that? While the primary concern of the scriptural authors is for the readers to think carefully about who they are imitating, a secondary concern is for the readers to think about the kind of life they are living and that others are imitating.
Now, before I begin, I need to make something clear. We do not live a certain way because other people are watching us (noticing how we live and following our example, either good or bad). Instead, we live a certain way in obedience to Jesus Christ and in order to glorify God. However, while other people ARE watching us, and they ARE following our example whether we realize it or not. And, being a good example (of a follower of Jesus Christ and child of God) is part of obeying Jesus and glorifying God.
But, even before talking about what it means to live in a way that honors Jesus, there’s another step that we need to consider – a step that I think many among the church are setting aside. What step is that? Actually sharing life with others so that they are able to see your life and you are able to see their life.
Think about it… How can you imitate someone if you do not know how that person lives? How can someone imitate your way of life if they do not know how you live? For too long, the church has relied almost completely on words (either spoken or written) as the primary method of teaching and discipleship. This is not sufficient.
We must begin sharing our lives with one another – every aspect of our lives – yes, even the parts that you wish were not there. Why? Because that’s how real discipleship, teaching, and fellowship takes place. Anything else is a farce – a fake – not reality.
Of course, the church today does not accept this kind of messiness… because life is messy. Instead, we prefer to have things polished, practiced, excellent. And, I think, this is stunting the growth of many Christians.
So, start sharing your life with other brothers and sisters in Christ. Let them see the good and the bad. It’s okay, even if they reject you. And some will.
But, others will accept you as you are, and you will be able to accept them as they are. And, together, you will learn to imitate good and stay away from evil, and together you will grow in maturity in Jesus Christ.
The primary concern with imitation in Scripture
As I mentioned in my post “Lessons in Imitation,” the idea of imitation is very important to the authors of the New Testament. This is especially true of Paul, but John (at least) also exhorts his readers toward imitation. In that post, I listed several of the passages in Scripture in which people were exhorted toward imitation. Those instructions included the imitation of God as well as the imitation of other followers of Jesus (both the authors and others).
When we read through those passages, we can see that the primary concern of the authors is for the readers to consider who they are imitating. They are not to accept just anyone as someone to be imitated. And, in fact, there are no indications that they should accept someone else to imitate simply because others are imitating that person.
While the authors do not always specify reasons to imitate someone else, a few do. Perhaps John write the most general exhortation when he writes, “Do not imitate evil but imitate good.” (3 John 11 ESV) If you read that passage in context, you’ll see that John is actually comparing two different examples that could be imitated: Diotrephes or Demetrius.
Similarly, we see Paul exhorted others to follow him “as he follows Christ,” to follow others in suffering, and to follow others in hard work. The author of Hebrews says to follow someone’s “faith” only after considering “the outcome of their way of life.” (Hebrews 13:7 ESV)
Finally, think again about this passage that Paul wrote to the church in Corinth:
I urge you, then, be imitators of me. That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church. (1 Corinthians 4:16-17 ESV)
So, not only did Paul encourage the Christians in Corinth to imitate him, but he sent Timothy to them as another example to be imitated. This tells us something important about imitation: we should only imitate people we know and spend time with. “Imitation” in Scripture is about following the example of someone else’s way of life, not simply “following” what the person says.
So, in these passages, the authors are exhorting their readers not only to imitate others, but to carefully consider who they are imitating. And, what is to be considered? The way these people live… what they do… how they respond in difficult situation… are they loving, joyful, peace-filled, etc. even when most people are not?
It is only those who are truly following Jesus consistently that should be imitated. This is the primary concern of the authors of Scripture when they tell their readers to imitate others.
Lessons in Imitation
As I’ve mentioned several times lately, we’re studying through Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus (Ephesians) when we gather together with the church on Sundays. Of course, our discussions usually spill over into times of conversation and encouragement during the week as we see each other in homes, restaurants, parks, wherever.
This last week, we were scheduled to study the first half of chapter 5 together. As I continued studying through the letter and as I focused on chapter 5 last week, I was intrigued by the first few verses of that chapter.
It starts like this:
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1-2 ESV)
I realized when I read this that I had been pretty jaded. Do you understand how shocking it is to be told to “imitate God”? It truly is jarring when you think about it. Of course, Paul followed that up with “walk in love,” and not just any kind of love, but the same love that Jesus Christ demonstrated when he gave up his life for us.
But, going back to that idea of being imitators… there are many instances in Scripture in which the authors exhort the readers to be “imitators.” I started reading through these difference passages, and I was reminded how important imitation is for followers of Jesus Christ.
Here are a few of the passages:
I urge you, then, be imitators of me. That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church. (1 Corinthians 4:16-17 ESEV)
Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1 ESV)
And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. (1 Thessalonians 1:6-7 ESV)
For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews… (1 Thessalonians 2:14 ESV)
For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. (2 Thessalonians 3:7-9 ESV)
And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. (Hebrews 6:11-12 ESV)
Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. (Hebrews 13:7 ESV)
Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God. (3 John 1:11 ESV)
While most of these examples are from Paul’s letters, at least one is from a different author. (Perhaps two are fum a different author, if Hebrews was not written by Paul.) In fact, the most general exhortation is from John when he writes, “Do not imitate evil, but imitate good.”
So, why do you think imitation was so important to these early followers of Jesus?
The City Gates and Community Legal Issues
As I explained in my post “The Church, the Synagogue, and the City Gates,” at least one scholar has concluded that the Jewish synagogue finds its origin in the community activities related to the “city gates” instead of the worship activities related to the temple. Since the early followers of Jesus Christ were greatly influenced by their experiences as part of the first century synagogue, understanding how the synagogue began and what types of activities happened as part of the synagogue can help us also understand the early church.
The gates of various cities are mentioned many times in Scripture. Often, people are said to pass into or out of the gates. Thus, the gates simply represent access to a city. In other passages, gates are said to be barred or fortified, representing the protection or defense of the city. Also, I’ve looked at a few passages in which the king sat on his throne at the gates of the city and other passages in which elders of the community sat at the city gates. In this post, I look at the relationships between the city gates and community legal issues.
Many times, legal issues (both those related to the Law of Moses and others) would be taken before the community at the city gates. Here are a few examples:
Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city, “No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the sight of the sons of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.” (Genesis 23:10-11 ESV)
So Hamor and his son Shechem came to the gate of their city and spoke to the men of their city, saying, “These men are at peace with us; let them dwell in the land and trade in it, for behold, the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters as wives, and let us give them our daughters…” (Genesis 34:20-21 ESV)
…then you shall bring out to your gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you shall stone that man or woman to death with stones. (Deuteronomy 17:5 ESV)
Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, “Turn aside, friend; sit down here.” And he turned aside and sat down. (Ruth 4:1 ESV)
Interestingly, the first example (from Genesis 23) records Abraham taken possession of some land from Ephron the Hittite by going before the people in the city gates with Ephron. As we saw with the “elders” in the previous post, this shows that the practice of gathering at the city gates (especially for taking care of legal issues) was not a practice of the Hebrews only. Instead, it was a cultural practice. (By the way, the suggestion is that this practice – i.e., gathering at the city gates – only changed when the culture changing being influenced by Hellenistic culture and moving the community gatherings away from the gates and toward the city center.)
What can we learn about the important of the city gates and the community based on these passages about legal issues?
Replay: The Problem of Learning from Strangers
Four years ago, back in November 2008, I wrote a post called “Learning from Strangers.” Have you noticed that when you ask a Christian a question today, they will tend to suggest a book to read on the topic? Or, when you’re talking about something, someone tells you what several of his or her favorite authors wrote about it? Perhaps you’re lucky and that doesn’t happen around you. But, I’ve noticed it happening more and more. I think this illustrates a big problem: we’re primarily learning from strangers, i.e., people we do not actually know. That’s the point of this post.
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Learning from Strangers
As followers of Jesus Christ, we should be ready to learn from anyone – especially other brothers and sisters – even if we do not know them. However, when reading through Scripture, it seems that the authors thought most learning would happen within relationships.
These relationships as described in Scripture are “full life” relationships, meaning that we primarily learn from people that we actually know. We know what they say. We know how that treat their family. We know about their work ethic. We know how they treat other people. Thus, we learn from people that we really, truly, actually know.
But, today, things have changed. Strangers (or acquaintances at best) are the primary source of “information” and learning for most Christians. We read books written by people that we do not know. We watch and listen to sermons given by people that we do not know. We attend conferences where the speakers are people that we do not know. We often listen week after week to teaching from people that we do not know – even if they are part of our church.
Thus, when our favorite author, or a powerful speaker, or a gifted musician “fails” we feel betrayed. But, in reality, we are failing ourselves by putting our trust so heavily in people that we actually do not know.
Now, don’t misunderstand me. Books, and tapes, and CD’s, and lectures, and conferences can be very helpful. But, these things should complement the really, true, actual learning and discipleship that takes place through really, true, actual relationships. These things (books, tapes, cd’s, lectures, conferences) should not take the place of relationships.
In fact, we’re now part of a “Christianity” in which relationships are not only secondary, but they are rare. When talking to others, we would prefer to quote our favorite author than to listen to someone we know, perhaps because we don’t really know them.
Jesus not only spoke the gospel of the kingdom, but he also demonstrated it. Paul told people to consider his words and his manner of living. John said that our fellowship with one another is actually fellowship with the Father and the Son. We’ve replaced learning through relationship (knowing someone and their manner of life) with learning from strangers (people we do not know – including their manner of life).
Your favorite author may be able to wax eloquently concerning the theological implications of the love of God. But, you will learn more about the love of God from the person that you actually know – the person who is struggling with his boss, but continues to love her – the person who gives to others while going without himself – the person who would walk into a low income neighborhood because of her concern for the neighbors there.
Relationships are more than pastimes or good ideas. God worked in Scripture primarily through relationships. Discipleship occurs primarily through relationships. Spiritual growth occurs through relationships. Its time to spend less time with our favorite authors and more time with the people that God has placed in our lives.
Replay: Moving from here to there with God
Four and a half years ago, I wrote a post called “You are here” as part of a synchroblog. The topics related to this synchroblog caused me to think about where I was in my life at that time and what God was doing in my life – as far as I could tell. Looking back, I was right about some things, and wrong about other things. Now, 4 1/2 years later, I’m not where I thought I would be, but I’m grateful to God for bringing me here. I looking forward to what he has in store for me in the next 4 1/2 years. I bet it’s not what I’m expecting.
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You are here
This post is part of a synchroblog organized by Glenn from “re-dreaming the dream” (see his post called “Your Turn: May Synchroblog“). In this synchroblog, participants are supposed to tell “a little about the latest chapter of your story”. Specifically, he suggests thinking about the following questions:
- How are you doing?
- What are you doing?
- What are you learning?
- What are you dreaming about?
When I started to think about the “latest chapter in my story”, I thought about one of those maps which have an arrow point to your current location along with the words, “You are here”. Of course, when I look at one of those maps, “Here” is rarely where I want to be. I always want to be “There”, wherever “There” may be. But, the map is still useful, especially in determining how to get from “Here” to “There”.
But, where is “Here” for me? Where is “There”? And, how do I get “There” from “Here”? These are very important questions, and I hope to answer a few of them in this post and in some future posts.
I could focus on many different aspects of my spiritual journey of understanding God, trusting God, relating to people, and understanding the world. Since I write primarily about the church, I think I will focus on one aspect of my understanding of the church that has changed and how that change has affected my life.
When I came to Southeastern to begin seminary just over five years ago, I was very happy with the institutional church system. I had grown up in that system; I had learned how to operate within that system; I had been a lay leader in the system; and I planned to be a professional leader within the institutional church system. There are many good things that happen in and through institutional churches, and this post is not meant as a rant against church systems.
However, as I made my way through seminary, and as I studied the church from the perspective of Scripture, I learned something very interesting: Scripture does not focus on church as a system, but on church as a people. Slowly, my thinking, my studies, and my actions have shifted away from support and defense of an institutional system and toward the strengthening of God’s people – the church.
This change has affected every aspect of my understanding of the church – the clergy/laity distinction, education, discipleship, meetings, discipline, teaching, fellowship, and on and on. While structures and organizations can work to help people relate to one another, they always must be checked and re-checked to make sure they are not hindering God’s people from obeying him and serving one another.
That’s where God has me now… at the moment… that is my, “You are here”. But, where is “There”? Where is God leading me? As I continue to study and as I continue to attempt to follow God in every aspect of my life, I realize that my understanding of how God loves and cares about people is very shallow… very limited. Because of that, my love and concern and service towards people is shallow and limited.
In the last several months I’ve written about social justice, caring for the least, etc. The gospel – the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and his completed work in healing the rift between us and God and other people caused by sin – calls us to both worship God and care for people. As our hearts are turned toward God, our hearts are also turned toward people.
My heart is turning, but its not there yet. I’m still very selfish and self-centered, though I see a direction in my life – a direction that I think God is moving me, because it parallels what we see about God in Scripture. Where and when I do find myself caring about other people, the scope of my concern is still limited primarily to those that I know personally. God cares for all people, especially those who are hurting, oppressed, needy, hungry, fatherless, widowed, and living in a foreign land. My heart is not there yet. But, again, I can sense that God is moving me in that direction.
Honestly, I don’t know exactly what “There” is going to look like. I don’t know exactly what God is going to use to move me from “Here” to “There”. But… I’m willing… honestly, my willingness is shaded with hesitancy because I realize that I will have to give up many things that are special to me – much like the institutional church was special to me. I’m willing… and I trust God to do this… but again, my trust is shaded with doubt – doubt that I will be obedient. All I can do is cry out with the father of the demon-possessed boy – “Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief”.
I am “Here”… God wants me “There”… Lord, you will have to help me get from “Here” to “There”.