Giving Jesus or Demanding Morals

I was struck by something coming out of my pastor's message last weekend and some reading that I'm currently doing. I was struck by the fact that Christians have the reputation of requiring someone to be morally in agreement before they can come to Jesus.

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It's more than a reputation, really. It's a pretty accurate description. One of the factors that leads to this is our uncomfortable nature with messy spirituality. Take for example a good friend of mine I baptized not too long ago. I've known him for many years, however (like many followers of Christ) he didn't have a crisis point of faith. For him it was a journey of Christ revealing Himself. It wasn't neat and clean and well defined, but it was genuine and sincere.

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We have to have defined lines. You must believe this, this, and this in order to be accepted. Before introducing people to Jesus we introduce people to our sense of morality, or what we think it should be. The thing is, we're called to first introduce them to Jesus...to the love of God and the acceptance of sinners through the sacrifice of Christ...to the freedom from sin and bondage that Jesus brings to us. But instead, we offer them bondage to our senses of morality before introducing them to Christ.

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This speaks heavily to our understanding of the Spirit's work of sanctification. We feel the need to pigeonhole someone into a certain moral standard in our own time frame. Get saved, then get clean. Oh...I love this one...it's a slogan I saw on a church sign: "Catch em', Clean em', Clone em'. Nice and neat process, huh (by the way, I DISDAIN church slogans and cliches...they're utterly unhelpful).

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But this is not the way it works. Does it work for you that way? I have another friend who is a recovering addict. They also deal with a number of other issues. I've told them time after time - just allow God to work on one thing at a time. He'll work with you and deliver you from these addictions. And God has. But it's not been neat and clean and timely. It's been a long process and it's been a difficult one. But God is doing it.

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I say all that to say this: Share Jesus and demonstrate the moral you want others to live. Don't even speak it. Let your good works shine before men so THEN they may see and glorify our Father in heaven.

Critical or Constructive?

What I'm convicted of is that we need a constructive ethic within the body of Christ. What I've read, seen, and heard are very assumptive criticisms of the state of the church. I'm fearful of this type of criticism, because in some cases it is broad generalizations of classes, sizes, or styles of churches. I must admit that it's easy to jump aboard the wagon of criticism and calling everything into question. I did. I became very unsatisfied. I questioned why I was doing this all in the first place if the church was such a big failure.

After distilling these thoughts over several months I've learned a constructive ethic of critique. I've allowed criticisms of the church to challenge me, but I'm not going to throw out the church as I know it. It's not because I'm solidified in the way the church has to be, but I think there are so many good churches out there doing great things that nobody ever hears about on a broader scale.

Take, for instance, a conversation I had a few weeks ago in a car ride on the way to a prison visit. My fellow passenger was telling me how his church opens its doors before services on Sundays to feed the homeless of the city. He shared that it gets messy sometimes because some of the homeless wander into the sanctuary and sleep (they don't kick them out, by the way). They also partner with other city churches to house the homeless over the coldest months of the year. I've never heard of this and I wouldn't have without this car ride.

My concern is that in as much as we critique the church of what it could be we also go about telling stories of what it is. I love the church. I don't love the building, but I love the body of believers that makes it up. I realize what we do within the building is a very small part of what the church is, but it is a good part. There are always things that we can work on, but I know many pastors in many churches who labor over that time on a Sunday morning when they instruct the body in the Scriptures. I marvel at the presence of God as believers come together and worship. These are good things. They are only exclusive in as much as we allow them to be. They can take place anytime throughout any day at any given place. This is the mission of the church to do just that. To proclaim through word, deed, and character the message of the life of Christ.

A Constructive Outlook

One of the things I've noticed in reading over the past few months is how people have been critiquing the church. In this move from wherever we were to a more missional emphasis we're reading things through a different lens...and this is good. When it becomes a challenge is when we see the old model of what many would call the 'institutional' church in a state of such disarray that we feel there is little to no worth in it.

When I was a kid I was a part of a larger church. It was very traditional in many ways. A group of friends and I really wanted to do some new things within the church. We wanted to transform the church into something that we thought it could be. What we didn't do was appreciate what was there. We were critical of what wasn't there and what wasn't being done. I see this in some of the current missional conversation.

For example, Michael Frost wrote a great book entitled Exiles. I was trackin' until the last few chapters where he went on a little soapbox on the current state of music within the church. I felt that instead of bringing a better construction of what could be there was criticism of what was.

As we look at our current church situation it is important to be constructive toward the current institutional church (the type that meets in buildings that use pastors, etc :-). It's great how the missional conversation is going, but as one who serves a local congregation I'm needing some breathing room in how I think through all this. At first I just wanted to quit. I thought what we're doing was so against what the missional church is supposed to do...but it wasn't. I was just thinking that everything had to go in order for us to become this missional people. But I've learned to be challenged by the call to mission without giving up everything. In contrast to McClaren's new book I'm not so much into everything must change...perhaps things must shift...perhaps Some Things must change...but I'm not sure everything has to. To think that way insinuates there's nothing worthwhile in the local congregations we have now. As a part of an amazing community of faith I would have to argue otherwise.

What's a Definition of Missional?

"Exactly what would a "missional" church do that a "non-missional" church wouldn't do?"

This question was left as a comment on my previous entry about "Being Missional for the Wrong Motive." I'm going to attempt to answer this...and maybe only in part. But let's give it a shot.

First, let's look at what the church has been great about doing over the last twenty years or so. By and large there has been a big push toward cultural relevancy...or making the gospel applicable to those of our surrounding culture. This has come through how we preach (or how we don't preach). We've become sensitive to the seekers and have really rearranged our churches (for better or worse) around the visiting seeker. This was a profound move for a church that by and large had an 'in the world but avoid the world' mentality before that. So we were able to span the gap between the church and the world by making ourselves a little less threatening to the outsider.

One of the things this produced was the megachurch who marketed themselves toward a certain demographic. Then you had the smaller churches that would try to follow their seeker driven models. Houses of worship became more appealing to attend. It wasn't all about the Sunday best suit and tie anymore so much as it was coming together to seek God...or perhaps seek after God. What I'd like to focus on here is the houses of worship and the ministries they produced during this time, because I believe that has a great deal to do with the distinction between missional or not missional.

In order to reach those outside the church became focused on events as a main mechanism for reaching people. It would look to hold events to draw seekers into the church in order to make a connection. This was fantastic at the time because it was bringing people into the church who might have not come before. So churches would hold community festivals, motorcycle Sundays, etc. Point being, the base of all the ministries of the church was still the church. The mentality was still to get the people to come. The old Field of Dreams motto was almost the one of the church..."If we build it...if we have this or that...then they will come.

Therein lies the distinction, at least for me. The 'missional movement' is looking to move the church beyond itself. Let me put it this way:

Less Missionally Focused Church - Picture it as a grocery store.
Missionally Focused Church - Picture it as the distribution center for a food bank.

It may be a poor analogy, but I think it works. The former is founded on people coming to it. The goal of the grocery store is to bring people to it to buy its products. The mission of the distribution center is to be a supplier of the food to other food banks that will feed the people. Both provide food, but they are vastly different in mission. One expects people to come, the other acts as one who goes out and provides. One is a single entity, one works in partnership with others (Please don't carry this too far...I know the grocery store has to have partners to get it's food...that's not my point :-) . In other words the missionally focused church positions itself in such a way where it (church building, facilities, in house ministries) are only a PORTION of the total ministry of the church. This type of church will continually look to reorient itself to be a part of the local community in ways that serve the poor, needy, outcast...or basically just serve their neighbor.

The main issue with the non-missional (and I don't really like slapping that label on anyone) church is that they view their house of worship and their ministries as the place where people need to come to find God. If they want to do something with the community, they reinvent the wheel, put their churches name on it, and then go about doing it themselves without building a partnership with someone who is already doing the same thing in the local community...but they just aren't 'Christian.' The missional church would/should look to join up with anyone out there that's doing what that particular church feels called to, even if they are not people of faith. That is NOT compromising. Rather, that is building relationships and partnerships and supporting the calling both of you feel. In that partnership there is immense opportunity for the Spirit's work and for us to give witness through our conversation and work flavored with the salt and light of the gospel.

I hope, at least in part, this gives some insight into what I see as the difference between the two. This post has gone on long enough, so let's just put it out there and get some feedback before we move on. I have some other thoughts we'll save perhaps for next time.

I'm also shooting Todd Hiestand an e-mail to see if he would comment on the question we're trying to address. He's a local pastor in Philly with a good pulse about such things. Check him out at http://www.toddhiestand.com/. I'm not sure when and if he'll post on it, but check it out either way. It's a great blog.

Missional for the Wrong Motive

So what happens if we're missional for the wrong motives?

I'm reading an excellent book by Michael Frost and he gives some great insight into such a question. He writes in Exiles pg 206 (on my reading list on Shelfari :-)...

"It seems that the very nature of mass movements has changed. Whereas people once acted because they believed strongly in a cause and were prepared to invest their time, energy, and money in a collective of like-minded people, now they are more inclined to protest or donate money in short bursts to express how they 'feel' about a particular situation. Protest marches and donations to aid organizations are now forms of self-expression, ways of conveying our feelings about a particular issue.By saying this, I am not dismissing the genuineness of those feelings...what I am saying is that people seem to need a valve for regular, brief responses to global issues, rather than being motivated to join long-term movements for change."

If we're missional for the wrong motives we'll fade out. Our commitments will be shorter. We will have less vested in the relationships. If we are doing it out of proper motives there will be times, perhaps frequently, where there is a great wrestling in our hearts with sticking it out. The issues we ought to be dealing with should be difficult, and they should demand something that will cost us. In truth, we should not be able to achieve a commitment to mission on our own.

This is where Jesus' words in John speak so loudly to me...I am the vine, you are the branches. If a man remain in me and I in Him he will bear much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing. Apart from Him I can do nothing. I again come back to the challenge of the Spirit working within our mission. Galatians 6 says something to the effect don't give up...for if you persevere you will reap a harvest in the proper time. Perseverance. Long-suffering. Depending on what version of the Bible you read...these are words that describe one of the fruits of the Spirit.

When one commits to the coming of the Kingdom of God they are not committing to a popular movement among Christian or cultural circles. They are committing themselves to Jesus and the agenda that Jesus was all about. It's an agenda that has spanned time. It is not short term, but it is life-long. As we seek to be missional we can't have the idea that we're going to go in and help someone less fortunate. It's not only about going in, helping someone, and leaving. It's not only about sending money for relief, aid, or benevolence. It's about YOU changing as you do these things and build relationships with those you are serving.

That's why this has to be a move of the Spirit of God within the believer attempting to be missional. This is not a part of our natural inclination. It's not a part of our culture. It goes against the grain of every selfish bone in our body. It is easy to give aid or serve someone without actually changing as a result. So we give a little of our excess money to a good cause without actually changing our spending habits. We continue to gorge ourselves with food after serving at the shelter. Something happens as we consider the needs of those we serve: solidarity.

THAT is what happens as we do this missional thing. We allow God to work in us and on us in how we live and how we act. We become new creations that are more beautiful because they are changing as the Spirit uses what we see and experience to mold our hearts of clay.

I am convinced you cannot become missional either as a church or as an individual follower of Jesus if you are not willing to have the Spirit do something transforming and changing in your own life (for me, it's a little thing called continual sanctification). It's not only bringing Jesus to people, but it's me becoming more like Jesus. And once again, this comes through the work of the Holy Spirit in my life...and as much as we do to serve others in our lives, we must do the same to nurture the work of the Spirit in our hearts.

Beware of the Bandwagon pt. 2

In reading a comment left from yesterday's post I had some further thoughts regarding jumping on the current trends of ministry. Missional ministry presses a heavy emphasis on what we do to live out our faith and to literally bring about the Kingdom of God...or at least aspects...here on earth. These are outward actions that impact lifestyle decisions and should have a big element in service to others. What I haven't read in my readings exploring missional ministry is how the spiritual disciplines, prayer, or the empowering of the Holy Spirit work into such a movement (if anyone has suggestions on such reading, I would appreciate them). There is a lot of emphasis on being like Jesus, but we must also be filled by the Spirit of Christ. The majority of people today would want to be like Jesus because Jesus was a good man. He had good morals. He treated people right. Who wouldn't want to be like Him?

The tension lies with me in the emphasis on doing faith (missional) above the issue of the Spirit's empowerment. I'm not saying missional leaders don't believe this, but it is not a large part of the conversation. What I am saying is that as we serve, we do it with the strength that God provides (as Peter says). In fact, I think the book(s) of Peter would have great things to say to us regarding our current topic. One of my favorite verses from 1 Peter is says something to the effect (sorry...don't have a Bible in front of me) "He who speaks should do so as if he is speaking the very words of God, let him who serves do so with the strength that God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ."

Missional actions ought to come from the conviction of the Spirit through the power of the Spirit. If you haven't noticed yet, social consciousness is becoming a thing of popularity. Sitcoms regularly feature "green" ideas (I love 30 Rock). Celebrities are featuring atrocities such as Darfur and Africa (who can get past Brad and Angelina?). And those things are great for what they are. They are raising awareness. But what happens if we do it just because everyone else is doing it? If we do it simply as actions of service the question arises, "What are we serving them for?" The coming of the Kingdom of God is about the poor, the orphan, and the widow...but it's about the Kingdom of God...the Savior...entering into the hearts of the poor, the orphan, and the widow. It's not only crossing social barriers and addressing social problems but it's bringing eternal life (in there here and now as well as eternity) and salvation (mental, physical, spiritual, emotional...through Christ) into those places as well.

I admit I don't know much. Even with an MDIV I don't consider myself a great theologian. So what I'm about to say may be way off...so grant me some grace here. This is where I think we must be aware of the works of our faith eclipsing the filling of our hearts with the Spirit of God. It is the Spirit that brings to life the acts of service to our fellow man (or woman). People may not come into a saving relationship with Jesus because of our actions, but it ought to be the intent to show them Christ in such a way that draws them to such a loving Savior. No, I'm not saying people are projects. The thought of that sickens me. What I am saying is that the followers of Christ must serve everyone without bias to show them the deep love and care of the Savior of the world.

Our missional actions must originate with a conviction of the Spirit and be empowered with the Spirit of Christ.

Beware of the Bandwagon

We're aware of the dredded bandwagon when it comes to sports, but how often are we aware of it when it comes to movements of the Spirit. Throughout my brief lifetime of 29 years there have been some very generous moves of the Spirit in my own life and the church at large: the 'Seeker Sensative' movement that made us aware that there are actually people outside the church we need to reach...the Vineyard movement that brought into the church a new experience of worship...reaching way back there was the Pentecostal movement that brought an emphasis of the experience of the Spirit moving in the church...and currently there is the missional movement that is bringing a great awareness of God's concern for justice, orphans, widows, and the church being the hands and feet of Jesus.

I've gotten swept up in the missional movement over the past several years. It's amazing to read what's out there in books and magazines and see how much of it deals with the mission of the church and great concern with the poor. It is calling the church back to its work as the church.

What is interesting with each new move of the Spirit is that the past moves of the Spirit are less emphasized or forgotten about in favor of the new move. Does the new move invalidate the old or is the Spirit just trying to continue to move the church along? In the effort to follow the Spirit into the new places of ministry and paradigm changes we would do well to remember where we've been. Israel recounted time after time their history. The church today would be wise to do the same. While not longing for the days of old we should be learning from them. Our past should shape our present as we strive to be the faithful bride of Christ.

I was challenged last night in my own life in a conversation with a Christian brother. There has been an enormous move on my behalf and of our church to become missional. However for me the missional nature of things has eclipsed some of the past moves of the Spirit...especially the part of me that takes root in the Pentecostal tradition. I journaled this morning something to the effect that the danger of becoming too missional is that we become works oriented and lack the need and desperation of the Spirit (that brings salvation). The other end is that if we focus on the Spirit to do the work we tend to get lazy and say it's all up to God.

So in the end what I feel I'm called to is this: Live missionally. Live for the Kingdom of God. Base my decisions not on cultural standards but on Kingdom standards. Love the outcasts and orient my life to serve them. AND. Pray. Pray for the outpouring of the Spirit that has been experienced in times past through great revivals. Fast. Seek God. Don't let up on the pursuit of Almighty God to put the power and drawing of the Spirit of Christ behind the acts of service.

If living missionally and a deep dependance on the Spirit are not in consistent tension there is a danger of floating toward either legalistic unempowered service or simple laziness.

I know this may sound harsh, but this is something that I'm trying to flesh out myself. It's a tension I find myself in.

Check this out...

A prof of mine from Biblical seminary has a blog with some great thoughts. Check this one out on The Mission of God. Here's a brief exerpt:

Here’s my 3 core statements that describe our part of the mission:
a. to glorify God and enjoy him forever in the kingdom of heaven, first here on earth
and then fully in heaven.
b. to extend the kingdom boundaries (a la Ezekiel 47) in order to participate in the
healing of the nations through reconciling, binding up, loosing, feeding, clothing, and
preaching the new good news.
c. to live righteously in exile (Jeremiah 29) for the benefit of all peoples (for their
peace and comfort) and as lights shining on a hill giving glory to God (Matthew 5:14)

Justice in the Burbs pt.2

I've just finished Wil and Lisa Sampson's book, Justice in the Burbs. The final pages brought tears to my eyes as I realize the challenge before me as a husband, father, pastor, and follower of Jesus Christ.

Issues of justice abound all around us. I wonder if sometimes we don't address them because of their overwhelming nature. I think that's the part that brings me to tears. This life entails suffering. The work of our lives for the Kingdom will not alleviate the suffering factor. It may bring healing in some cases, but just as in the cases of those in Hebrews 11 it seems as though we work for a place that will not exist this side of eternity. However, that doesn't mean we don't seek it, live for it, and work for it with everything we have.

I'm making lifestyle choices. I want to live differently because I want to live justly. To live like Christ challenges the fabric of my being which is so ingrained with our present day situation of 'stuff' and personal securities. Think about it, how many relationships don't we have because they'll cost too much or because they're too inconvenient? Have to protect ourselves, right? How much of our personal resources are tied up because we're too far in debt to give anything away to those in need? Living justly requires a shift in thinking. I've begun and I hope you will too. From what I've experienced, living without is much more life-giving than living in so much excess. Blessings on a journey I hope you will take.

How to Navigate this Kingdom

Conviction. I was in conversation today with a friend who was telling me about a hard time they were having. Something didn't turn out the way they wanted or anticipated and the main thing was they were unhappy. However, there were a series of choices that led to that point, all determined by what seemed good.

We live in a conviction-less society. I would pose the challenge is the same for the church. We are guided by culture instead of guiding culture. Culture dictates us rather than Scripture directing us. When we end up in a place where we don't want to be it's often our fault for getting there. We were guided by how we felt, and as you know that changes by the day...or the hour...or minute.

We as people are highly inconsistent and need something besides the head on our shoulders to guide us through a culture which tells us anything goes. But how does this happen? Scripture.

At least one reason for the lack of conviction is the secondary nature Scripture plays in guiding our lives and shaping our beliefs and convictions. Convictions guide you into what you do (helping the poor, being a good steward of what you have, loving enemies, etc) and what you don't do (drunkenness, pre-marital sex, taking advantage of others, etc). The problem is the latter half of what Scripture warns us against is now widely accepted in the church without a second thought. Convictions are not easy to live by because they necessitate sacrifice of what you may want to do, but what is not the best.

Listen to the great words of Paul (1 Cor. 10:23): "Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible, but not everything is constructive." Around me I see a society of people that don't think much of themselves. How do I see this? Because they try to numb their own sense of insecurity with materialism and parasitic relationships that somehow momentarily make them feel better. As a culture we've done plenty to deconstruct ourselves and to make us into nothing more than consumers...and that goes for more than just how we spend our money but also delves into how we view relationships.

Convictions are part of the construct of a person. One with few to no convictions are known for just that. One who holds to their convictions most of the time are seen with respect (that is, unless their forceful and prideful about them). With the dissolution of truth has went the foundation of Scripture, the very basis by which godly conviction is derived. People will hear how the Bible instructs them but then see it as irrelevant because it is so counter-cultural. But for those interested in a guide to help them develop convictions to live by, Scripture is the beginning and the end.

Last word...convictions cannot be held if one only thinks of themselves. Convictions are to guide who you are in relationship to God and others. It's wanting to serve God and serve others. Lack of convictions lead to the entropy of a person...soon it just destroys you from the inside.

2 Kingdoms, pt. 1

Why do we need a better and more comprehensive understanding of the two kingdoms? Primarily I believe because our natural inclinations are to invest in the things of this kingdom, the kingdom of the world, without much thought toward the Kingdom of God. It's more than a monetary investment, it's how we think...where we spend our time...what we support with our convictions...how we view other people...how we view the injustices of the world...how we ignore the injustices of the world...and the list could go on. I also believe it's necessary because of certain elements of the Kingdom that are currently being emphasized.

The popular thing right now is making a difference in the world. Bill Clinton has even written a new book about it (if you want to buy it for me, I'll gladly accept!!!). Several years ago a couple we're close friends with felt the call of God to move into a city, begin a house church, and live among the people there to serve them and live as witnesses. Over the years following it moved from being a call to a trend among others. It was the trendy thing to do to 'revitalize' the city to the point where you would almost have Christian blocks of houses.

Here's the challenge: There is a big difference between working for a cause and working for the Kingdom of God. There's a difference between doing something because it's a cause and doing something because it's a call. On the surface the two can be linked, but under the surface they are far apart. To give a cup of cold water, as Jesus commands, is part of the Kingdom. The other part is teaching them the ways and life of Jesus. A life brought out of poverty but not brought into the light of the gospel I would challenge falls short of the Kingdom of God. Social improvement does not automatically mean Kingdom advancement, neither does simply preaching a message mean we're living out the gospel message. It's a both/and. Currently we're in a trend to meet the social needs, but it needs to be accompanied with the gospel message and the fruit will not only be justice but also inner transformation as well.

So this begins a series for me reflecting on the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world. It attracts me because I've been very caught up in the social elements of the Kingdom lately, but I'm realizing they must be fused with the proclamation elements of sharing the gospel story as well.

An Unbelieving Nation...a Living Reality

I feel I want to give a little more treatment to the prior post, somewhat based on the provacative nature of the title itself.

First, I do not want it to come across that I'm rejoicing in the falleness of our country, or any country for that matter. My point is simply this: we should not be surprised at the evil surrounding us. There will always be falleness around us, and to wish for any other reality till the return of Christ is unbiblical. I am not saying we don't work for the Kingdom, I'm saying we do work for the Kingdom and the voice we use to describe what is around us is one of compassion and not accusation. Jesus was pretty frank when he said "in this world you will have trouble." We aren't to be surprised because of it, but rather work in a Christ-like way for its redemption. It always amazes and convicts me that Jesus only judges the self-righteous, but to the sinner he gives mercy and compassion, for it's his "kindness that leads to repentance."

So the challenge before us is not to wish we were in a better or different society, but to work for the revelation of the Kingdom in the society we're in. This is done through love, service, patience, and suffering...among other things. I long for the voice of the church to be one of sincere compassion and action on behalf of the fallen world rather than an accusation of what's wrong with the world around us. The darkness is pretty apparent. It exposes itself for what it is. It's not like we have to say "There's too much violence." No kidding. Or how about "Human rights on many levels are being violated." Sure...they are. So what are you going to do about it? How are you going to work to redeem it? It's one thing to have a voice, it's entirely another to turn it into action.

Living in a non-Christian Nation

Before you get mad, hear me out here. Jeremiah 29:11 holds these oft spoken words: "For I know the thoughts I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." Great words. Very encouraging. Most of the time taken out of context.

In reading Justice in the Burbs by Will and Lisa Sampson they made an excellent point about this passage and in a larger picture the privilege it is to live in such a non-Christian place. A few verses earlier Jeremiah writes this: "And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will also have peace." (v. 7) So there is something very connected between being exiled to a place/land that is not your own...in a sense being an alien, a foreigner, or resident of someplace that is not your true home.

That's us today here where we are. We're not home (eternity), but we're in exile here. God has placed you and I where we live and wants to use us to bring peace to the places where we are. As we work toward that end we too find peace. Both are intimately connected. Instead of the constant desire to be removed from such non-Christian surroundings we should be praying for the peace of our surroundings.

I experience this in my neighborhood. There are few of faith that I know of and there are plenty of people in need of Jesus. Awhile ago it become tempting for us to move away to a more secluded place where we would in fact not see many people...but at least it would be peaceful for us! The house deal fell through, and I'm thankful. In spite of difficulties sometimes in the neighborhood we are very blessed to be here among some really good people. Yeah, they aren't Christians, but so what?! I have the opportunity to serve some really good folks and share the love and reality of Christ with them.

All this said I say "look where you are." Where has God placed you in exile? With whom should you be working for peace. The Kingdom of God for any true follower of Christ works towards this end of serving those who he's exiled to/with. So how does that play out for you.

The other day, it played out for me by mowing my neighbors lawn and having him share some wax with me for my car. Sounds hard, huh?

Bearers of the Message

"Bearers - not exclusive beneficiaries. There lay the constant temptation. Again and again it had to be said that election is for responsibility, not for privilege." L. Newbigin

I don't want to get off on the track of election and predestination, but rather responsibility. A guy said to me on Sunday after service something to the effect "I leave feeling bad (not his exact words)"...but then he corrected himself and he said "maybe not bad, responsible." I believe that's the bottom line for us as followers of Jesus: responsibility.

The gospel has been narrowly defined through a salvation that addresses on eternity, but not the present. As I grew up I understood salvation to mean heaven and hell, but as I go on reading the Bible and reading what fellow contemporaries are saying I believe salvation is much more than escapism, but it's new responsibility. It's a responsibility for us to be a part of the Kingdom here and now. It involves bearing God's image to those who have not seen it or believed it yet. There's a great responsibility.

Responsibility is different from beneficiary, which I believe is largely where the emphasis has been placed. Beneficiary looks at what is in it for me. It looks at how it effects me. In a way it's selfish, because it is so self-focused. Responsibility automatically implies action. I must do something now that I have experienced salvation. I must share this redemption with others and I must be a part of God's redeeming plan for the world that was initiated upon the fall, has gone on till present day, and will consummate when Jesus returns again.

Responsibility implies action. Salvation implies action. Jesus exemplifies action.

Therein lies my continued burden for the church - to be a people of action. To build bridges into our communities and to bear the light and life of Christ. It's bigger than going to church, it's about joining in the mission of Jesus. It is this mission I believe people want to be a part of. The mission of the redemption and reconciliation of all things. The more and more the church becomes about this the more I believe people will want to be a part of the church.

Thoughts?