Learning from One Another
This is going to be a different kind of post than I usually publish. I believe that followers of Jesus Christ should be humble enough to learn from other followers of Jesus Christ, even if those others are “different”, with “different” beliefs and “different” practices.
I believe that Baptists should learn from Presbyterians who should learn from Methodists who should learn from Disciples of Christ who should learn from Anglicans who should learn from Nondenominationals, etc. I believe that Conservatives should learn from Liberals who should learn from Moderates, etc. I believe that Moderns should learn from Postmoderns who should learn from Premoderns who should learn from Post-postmoderns, etc. We should learn from those who are different from us but who are, nonetheless, our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Therefore, I am going to ask you what you have learned from others. Here are the rules:
1. List only positive things that you have learned from other believers.
2. List only things you have learned from followers of Christ who are different from you (i.e. different denomination, philosophical worldview, hermeneutic, etc.).
3. List only positive things that you have learned (Yes, I meant to repeat this!).
Have you learned something from brothers and sisters in Christ who are different than you? Please share those with us.
A brother needs advice (Guest Blogger)
I received an email from a brother in Christ recently asking for advice. I’ll call him S.P. (for “Senior Pastor”). I’ve enjoyed getting to know S.P. more through email. I asked him if I could share this email with my readers, because some of you have more experience and more wisdom in this area than I do.
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For a long time (at least 15-18 years) I have been convinced that the church is to be led by a plurality of men referred to as elders. This means that no one man is to assume the role of Senior Pastor and to do all the work of “the ministry” himself or even with a “staff.” It seems clear that pastor, elder, overseer, and bishop are all interchangeable terms. Unfortunately, I have not known of any churches that practice this type of leadership structure.
Currently I serve as the Senior Pastor for a church. We are a Baptist church with an elder structure. This is what drew me to this particular congregation. However, while I was told that the Senior Pastor is one of the elders (the first among equals), after more than three years here it is very clear that this is no different than the deacon led Baptist churches I have served at with the deacons or elders functioning as a board of directors. To make matters worse our staff (associate pastors) are not even elders at all. So in our church we have a Senior Pastor (me) who also serves as an elder, the elders, associate pastors who are not elders, and ministry team leaders who function much like deacons should function. What a mess!
Well, I’m tired of it all. For reasons too numerous to list in this email and very similar to the views expressed on your blog, I think this is a serious failure to follow the simple plan of the Scriptures. The result: 1) I am very tired and less than effective, 2) I have all the responsibility for the church’s success or failure (because I’m the Senior Pastor) without all the authority (neither of which I should have – both the responsibility and authority should be shared), 3) I have a frustrated staff who are confused because they are pastors without being elders and so they have very little real authority and much responsibility, 4) the Senior Pastor is viewed like a CEO, 5) other teachers/preachers are not accepted in the pulpit, the ministry of the church is focused upon growth in numbers and budget, not upon “kingdom†things, 6) the overall health of the church suffers.
I know that some would say that other churches with the “traditional” model are doing just fine. I suppose that is true if fine means the efficient running of a corporate organization. But this is not what I believe God has called me to. I want to be a real shepherd. But most of my energy is wasted on management issues that I’m not even good at.
So, I am finally getting the courage of my convictions (again, long held convictions). Something needs to change. But I am not sure what to do. Do you have any advice?
A couple of things I am starting to do (some inspired by Dave Black): 1) I am asking people to call me by my first name, 2) I am going to remove my “ordination” certificate from my wall, and 3) I am teaching through 1 Timothy and addressing these issues as they come up in the text (I’ve expanded my study of 1 Timothy 3:1-7 this week to include other texts about elders). I’m also considering taking our elders through a study on the subject. I might even suggest we drop the use of ecclesiastical titles (I agree with you – only Jesus is the real Senior Pastor).
Do you have any advice? It is particularly hard when all of your training has been to be the Senior Pastor of a church (I’m a seminary graduate). I’m also not as young as I used to be (I’m not old either!). So, I am seeking wise and godly counsel.
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If you have any wise and godly counsel for S.P., please leave it in a comment here.
Bursting the Christian bubble (synchroblog)
(This post is part of a synchroblog called “What Would Jesus Do… With the Church”. See this post or this post for details.)
Over the last few years, God has shown my family that we have been living in a Christian bubble. This is easy to do in seminary. In fact, until a year ago I worked at the seminary, went to school at the seminary, and lived in seminary housing. As we realized that we had very little interaction with those outside the church, we decided to make some changes.
Now, don’t misunderstand me, it is important for followers of Jesus Christ to get together in order to encourage one another toward maturity in Christ. These times are very special to my family, and we never want to stop these times of fellowship and teaching and community.
However, I do not think it is good for followers of Jesus to spend all of their time with other followers of Jesus. We are here to take part in God’s mission of reconciling the world to himself. We are God’s ambassadors. And, ambassadors are to go outside of their own country as a representative in a foreign land. We had been ambassadors that spent most of their time staying in their own country… and something had to change.
The first change – a major one – happened just over a year ago. We moved out of seminary housing and into a “real” house about six miles from the seminary. Because of this move, we started finding ourselves reaching outside of the Christian bubble. Since our neighborhood (like many neighborhoods) is a bedroom community, we rarely see our neighbors, which means that much of our time is still being spent with followers of Jesus Christ.
We started asking God how we could spend more time with people who were not part of his family. The first thing he taught us was to not be artificial. It would not help if we started spending time with people with whom we shared nothing in common. Therefore, we wanted to spend time with people with whom we shared the same interests.
The first opportunity presented itself when our son decided he wanted to play football. We registered him for a local team and decided to my wife and I would spend as much time as possible at football practices and games. Because of this, most of the boys on the team know us. The coaches know us. We have met many of the parents. We even had dinner after an away game with some of the boys and their parents. We also started taking one of the boys home after practice.
But, Jesus is directing us to continue moving in this direction. We see Jesus eating in the homes of people like Zacchaeus, the friends of Matthew, and even a Pharisee. In fact, Jesus hung out with those who were outside of the family of God so much that the religious people called him a drunk and a glutton. It is time for us to take the next step and invite some neighbors and acquaintances to our home to continue building relationships with them.
For too long, my family has learned how to build relationships with other brothers and sisters in Christ. We are now being called to build relationships with those who are not in the family of God. This has been a long process, and I do not believe we will completely learn this within the next month. However, I do believe that God will give us opportunities in the next month, because He has given us opportunities in the past.
I don’t know if this actually falls within the bounds of this synchroblog. This is not something new for myself or for my family. This is an area where God has been changing us for the past year or more. However, over the last couple of weeks, we have talked about how we need to move beyond where we are. We have been praying and continue to pray that God would provide more interaction with people outside of his family. We want to be his ambassadors, so we actually want to be among unbelievers. We want God to plead through us, as Paul said he would. We want Jesus to continue to burst our Christian bubble.
Over the next month, I will write about the opportunities that God gives us to build relationships with those who are not following the way of Christ – about the opportunities that God gives us to continue reaching and relating outside the Christian bubble.
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Other contributors to the WWJDWTC Synchroblog:
Glenn Hager
Erin
Gary Means
Alan Knox
The Refuge
Nate Peres
Sally Coleman
Barb
Rick Stillwell
Jeff Greathouse
Dan Allen
Barbara Legere
Jonathan Brink
Jason Ellis
Rainer
Cynthia
Leaders, Sermons, and Church
Here are a few links that I think my readers will find interesting:
Guy at “The M Blog” discusses how non-professionals lead “Weddings, funerals, baptisms, in house churches“. We do realize that these are not scriptural responsibilities of elders alone, right?
Eric at “Hammer and Nail” is asking Sermon Questions. So far he’s asked Question 1, Question 2, and Question 3. I think it is good to ask questions, especially when we don’t like the answers.
Drew at “A Beautiful Collision” has been “Experiencing Church“. I agree that this how the church should always react when people are in need.
Make disciples…
There have been a few good posts about discipleship this week: Terry Goodwin’s “Making Disciples That Make Disciples“, Alan Hirsch’s “leadership as an extension of discipleship“, and Bob Roberts’ “Platforms or Disciples?” Quoting from Roberts:
If churches, denominations, networks, etc. put as much energy and resources into making disciples as they did organizing events, institutions, etc. I’m convinced it would speed up engagement dramatically. I hate the terminology of using “platforms†to engage society. You don’t have to. Make a disciple, help them understand their primary ministry is their vocation, and it should be lived out as a disciple and you’ll see God work and move. This is the only way the Gospel can and will ever be viral.
I like this idea of the gospel being viral. Of course, a viral can only be spread if the person infected in contact with people who are not infected. Unfortunately, I think that many of our “church” practices and programs tend to place infected people in isolation – away from others who need to be infected with the gospel.
I love the church. I love gathering together with brothers and sisters in Christ. I love to hear what God is doing in their lives and how God is changing them and how they are maturing. I love teaching and being taught. This is all very important. But, we are not infecting new people with the virus of the gospel when we spend all of our time with other believers.
I enjoy discussing theology. I enjoy studying Scripture and the writings of others and diving into different nuances of the apostles’ teachings. I enjoy hearing the different perspectives concerning ecclesiology, leadership, discipleship, the Lord’s Supper, baptism, etc. This is all very important. But, we are not infecting new people with the gospel when we spend all of our time discussing theology.
The gospel is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes. God has chosen to deliver this gospel – this power to salvation – through his people. He has infected us with the gospel so that we can infect others. The assumption, of course, is that we will live among other people – that is, those who have not been impacted by the power of the gospel. The assumption, of course, is that we will make time in our lives to speak and serve others so that the gospel will be made known to them. The assumption, of course, is that we will not place ourselves in isolation.
I like this idea of the gospel being viral. It reminds me that I have been infected with the power of God that is effective toward my salvation. It reminds me that I cannot make disciples if I do not interact with people who have not been infected.
God Loves You 2
Back in May, I posted “God Loves You“. It was fairly well received and seemed to help some people. I thought I would post a sequel.
So, this also goes out to all of my brothers and sisters in Christ:
To those who ask the wrong questions… God loves you!
To those who are ridiculed for being different and who stopped trying to look and act like everyone else… God loves you!
To those who have nothing to put into the offering plate… God loves you!
To those who would prefer not to sing in public… God loves you!
To those who fell asleep before the closing illustration of the third subpoint of the second section of the sermon from Leviticus… God loves you!
To those who like their tattoos, piercings, and long hair… God loves you!
To those who do not get excited about the latest publication by Rick Warren, Beverly Lewis, Max Lucado, Gary Chapman, or even D.A. Carson… God loves you!
To those whose children are not little angels… God loves you!
To those who are ignored or shunned or maligned by leadership… God loves you!
To those who have not memorized the books of the Bible, don’t know where Nineveh is located, and can’t pronounce the name Melchizedek… God loves you!
To those who have children but no spouse, a spouse but no children, or neither spouse nor children… God loves you!
To those who need a listening ear instead of a lecture, a friend with a helping hand instead of a ministry project coordinator, or someone with a gentle tongue instead of wrath and rhetoric… God loves you!
To those who are afraid to trust, afraid to care, afraid to love, or afraid to try… God loves you!
To those who want to follow God, but don’t fit any of the ministry categories… God loves you!
To those who missed “church” four weeks in a row and no one noticed… God loves you!
To those who need five hours of baby sitting instead of a 5 second hug or handshake… God loves you!
To those whose “Sunday best” includes tank tops, ripped jeans, and flip flops… God loves you!
To those who would prefer to have someone show them how to live faithfully instead of tell them to live faithfully… God loves you!
To those who feel burdened by those around them and are not allowed to rest in Christ… God loves you!
Can you imagine living in that kind of love every day, instead of the guilt and shame which we usually allow others and ourselves to subject us to?
Can you imagine offering that kind of love to everyone, instead of the conditional approval that we usually offer people?
God loves you.
Is the church Kid Nation?
Out of Ur has published a good article by Gordon McDonald called “So Many Christian Infants“. He laments the apparent lack of mature followers of Jesus Christ. What does he mean by mature?
Now mature, in my book does not mean the “churchly,†those who have mastered the vocabulary and the litany of church life, who come alive only when the church doors open. Rather, I have in mind those who walk through all the corridors of the larger life—the market-place, the home and community, the playing fields—and do it in such a way that, sooner or later, it is concluded that Jesus’ fingerprints are all over them…
A definition of a mature Christian is lacking. Best to say that you know a mature Christian when you see one. They’re in the New Testament. Barnabas is one. Aquila and Priscilla are others. Onesiphorous impresses me. And so is the mother of Rufus of whom Paul said, “she has been a mother to me.†That’s a short list.
The marks of maturity? Self-sustaining in spiritual devotions. Wise in human relationships. Humble and serving. Comfortable and functional in the everyday world where people of faith can be in short supply. Substantial in conversation; prudent in acquisition; respectful in conflict; faithful in commitments.
Gordon suggests that Paul had the same problem in 1 Corinthians. Thus, Paul wrote, “I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ.” (1 Cor 3:1)
Is he correct? Are today’s followers of Jesus Christ satisfied with being infants? Is there a difference between being “churchly” and being mature? Do you know mature believers, as Gordon McDonald describes them?
(Click this link if you are not familiar with Kid Nation.)
To Know and Love God
In our Theological Foundations seminar, we have been reading To Know and Love God by David K. Clark. While I found the content interesting and balanced, I was most impressed by Clark’s conclusion.
Clark asks these questions in his conclusion:
…[W]hat are the implications of evangelical theology done well? What difference will following good method and arriving at profound Christian thinking make? And where should we focus our energies in the future?
He then gives twelve answers to these questions. I thought I would share a few here that are relevant to our discussions concerning the church.
Third, we must not turn away from culture… As flawed as our culture is, a reactionary turn inward will not lead us forward. The early church lived in a culture as full of spiritual counterfeits, sexual enticements, and materialistic allurements as our own. Those Christians learned to live in that world. Although they lived in community with each other, they did not isolate themselves from the broader society. They lived out the light of Christ at all strata of society.
I don’t have anything to add to this statement. This is an area of life where God has been challenging and changing me in the last couple of years.
Fourth, we ought to engage against evangelical polemics… [W]e must guard against focusing too much of the force of our work against our evangelical brothers. The tendency to pursue finer and finer points of theoretical clarification may be acceptable as long as such work is reintegrated into the broader concerns of God’s Kingdom. But if we use the finer and finer points of theology to debate among ourselves, we run the risk of increasingly ingrown discourse.
This is an important statement. Sometimes, as I read certain authors, I get the idea that they believe God’s word originated with them, or that God’s word came only to them (paraphrasing 1 Corinthians 14:36). Humility and graciousness should rule the day when it comes to brothers and sisters discussing God’s Word. Other brothers and sisters are not the enemy.
Sixth, we need more focus on spiritual formation – on gaining sapientia. I do not mean just an intellectual understanding of wisdom, but a spiritual character that is actually shaped by wisdom. Living well in our culture, to say nothing of affecting our culture, requires genuine, internal, spiritual strength.
Yes! Maturity is not measured by the amount of biblical facts that a person knows. Our goal must not be increased scholarship, but increased maturity in Christ – more Christ-likeness displayed in our lives. This maturity does not come through books and papers, but through humble submission to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Seventh, we ought to promote authenticity in relationships. The experience of community is the human context that cultivates sapientia. Thinking biblical thoughts and obeying biblical rules does not necessarily bring inward spiritual change. The “think and obey” approach to spiritual formation can too easily lead to outward forms of conforming religiosity that leave the human heart in a state of decay. The trusted and intimate relationships of true community bring spiritual transformation because growing in Christ is primarily about trusting God, learning honesty, cultivating virtues, and evoking noble feelings.
It takes humility and trust to live in this kind of community. We must be willing to talk about our weaknesses and struggles. We must also be willing to listen to and speak with brothers and sisters concerning their weaknesses and struggles. Love must surround everything that we do and say.
Ninth, this means that we should seek a deeper solidarity with the world church. The church around the world needs the Western church… But equally, the Western church needs the global church.
Perhaps a good place to begin would be with the Christian next door to your home, or in the next office at work, or in the next seat at school. We certainly needs to seek a deeper solidarity with the world church, but I’m not sure we can seek a deeper solidarity with the world church as long as we maintain schisms in the church near us.
Eleventh, we must reestablish balance by working for social peace and justice by eliminating the racism and injustice that are rooted in ethnic identity. I do not subscribe to secular ways of framing the questions of ethnic relationships. But those of us who are North American evangelicals have not really stepped up to be counted on the questions of opportunities for the poor, equality for non-white groups, and “liberty and justice all.” Much research shows that in our evangelical focus on the inner life of faith and in our emphasis on seeing God transform human hearts through conversion, we have lost focus on some of the greatest social issues of our day.
Again, I have very little to add. This is another area where God is challenging and stretching me. We cannot love God without demonstrating that love for others – primarily towards those who are not like us, who are “down and out”, who are in need of love.
While I appreciated much of the theological and philosophical content of this book, the conclusion helped me the most. Are any of Clark’s answers beneficial for you as well?
A Weekend with Friends
Eric (“Hammer and Nail“) and Alice (“Thinking as a Woman“) drove up from Savannah to spend the weekend with us. God is teaching us how to share our home as well as our lives with those he puts in our life. It was a joy to spend time with Eric and Alice and their children.
Eric and Alice and their family once lived near us. Eric was one of our elders. Over the last year, they have moved out of the country, then moved back to Savannah so that their son could undergo cancer treatment. We saw Eric a few months ago, but we had not seen Alice or the rest of the family in almost a year.
We learned something very important this weekend – something more important than sharing our house. When they arrived Friday night, it was almost as if they were just coming to visit like they would before they ever moved. We continued our relationship, discussing our children, our jobs, and our common walk with the Lord. We have talked on the phone and Skype in the last year, but this is the first face-to-face talk. But, God has kept our hearts bound together in him.
I’m beginning to think that this is what fellowship in the Spirit is all about. Even with Eric and Alice we have differences of opinion about certain things. We don’t agree all the time. But, we are one in Christ. We are family – brothers and sisters. We love one another and care for one another. Our love and care and concern doesn’t surface because we agree with one another. Instead, our love and care and concern demonstrate themselves in spite of any disagreements that we may have.
Now, I don’t want you to get the idea that we fought all weekend, but we still love each other. That’s not what I’m talking about. In fact, there were no fights at all. We listened to one another. We cared about what was going on in each other’s lives. And we remembered that in many cases, our personal opinions are not as important as encouraging our brother and sister toward maturity in Christ and comforting and supporting them in times of hurt and need. We did not find it necessary to hammer out all of our differences, because they become very insignificant when we focus on our unity in Christ – our fellowship in the Spirit – our common relationship as children of the Father.
How can we argue about the crumbs that fall to the floor, when the Father has spread a gourmet meal before us? How can we fight about the different nuances of our beliefs, when we share a common inheritance that will never fade and never fail? The Spirit testified to each of our spirits that we are children of God, and we spent our time enjoying our common fellowship with the Father in Christ through the Spirit.
What a joy! What an abundant life! And, now, we wait expectantly for the times when the Father decides to allow our paths to cross again… when we can once again share our struggles and pains and joys and heartaches and victories and trials and hopes face-to-face. We will continue to talk on the phone, and send emails, and comment on blogs. But, as I’ve learned, there is nothing more dear than sharing a few moments, and a few words, and a hug with brothers and sisters who are far away, but who still impact our lives.
Priests offering sacrifices…
In the Book of Hebrews, the author compares the continuing sacrifices of priestly system of Judaism to the “once-for-all” sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
The levitical priest had to offer a sacrifice for his own sin. Jesus did not have to offer a sacrifice for his own sin because he was without sin. The levitical priest offered sacrifices continually. Jesus offered himself as a sacrifice once for all. The levitical sacrifices could not forgive sins. Jesus’ sacrifice was effective in forgiving sins. Thus, the author of Hebrews was able to state that the sacrifice of Jesus was “better” than the sacrifices of the levitical priestly system.
However, Jesus’ sacrifice did not do away with priests or sacrifices. No, Jesus did not destroy the priestly and sacrificial systems. Instead, he turned it inside out. Now, the priests are not special members separated from the other people of God; all of the people of God are priests. Now, sacrifices are not offered only by certain special members of the people of God; all of the people of God can offer sacrifices.
In Hebrews 10:19, the author of Hebrews reminds his readers that because of the finished work of Jesus, they all could enter into the Holiest place, which is not the inner sanctuary of an earthly temple, but into the very presence of God himself. Similarly, in Hebrews 10:22, the author tells his readers that they have been consecrated as priests – with sprinkling and washing, but not just sprinkling and washing that affect the outside of priest, but sprinkling and washing that cleanses the readers from the inside out.
Also, these new covenant priests – meaning the believers hearing Hebrews and even us today – continue to offer sacrifices:
Through him [Jesus Christ] then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. (Hebrews 13:15-16 ESV)
We are forgiven, cleansed, sanctified, and enabled to offer sacrifices of paise to God through Jesus Christ, and we are able to offer pleasing sacrifices to God by doing good to other people and sharing what we have with others. As priests of the new covenant, we are to offer these sacrifices continually in response to Jesus’ “once-for-all” sacrifice.
Peter also recognized our role as new covenant priests:
As you come to him [Jesus Christ], a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 2:4-5 ESV)
Have you offered sacrifices of praise to God today? Have you pleased God with your sacrifices of doing good deeds for others and giving to others?