Granted, over the years I have learned many lessons from God. (and by the way, they are almost always through experience rather than head knowledge.) This is not the first, or most profound, but it is one of the most recent.
It is interesting that we learn lessons better in situations we might not care for too much. So, why do we sometimes look at these situations as places we want to leave, escape from, run from?
I don't think the church was meant to be a place of comfort. It is supposed to be a furnace of healing and learning. Your place of comfort is supposed to be in your heavenly father's lap. That is a personal thing (and it can be a group thing too.. But it is a personal intimate thing between you and God). Church is supposed to be a rough and sometimes uncomfortable place where God grows you up fast because you have to actually deal with REAL PEOPLE and REAL ISSUES.
Does that happen "In church" for you?
My family has been gathering with a group of believers for the past three months or so. A very informal, house style gathering. That part I like. I like the open and non-programmed environment. But because most of the others in the group don't have the same background that I have, there are a lot of things said and done that I wince at. There are differences of opinion. There are differences of understanding. There are doctrinal differences in some cases. There are maturity level differences. (and trust me, my wife and I have discussed these things and wondered if we should leave or if this is a place God wants us to stay.)
But one thing has come out of this. People are open to discuss and confront and state their views. I have confronted people (as gently as possible) when I felt they were just plain wrong about something. It is never comfortable to do that (especially as a relative newcomer). However, it is profitable. I know what issues God is working in me now... and what He is working in others around me.
When I sat in a church "audience" and knew people only at a surface level it was not like this. When most of the people around me grew up with a similar church experience, there was little conflict (except about silly things like methods of ministry and trivial things of that sort). There was no challenging on issues deeper than ministry philosophies and things that didn't really amount to much.
In the past year I have spent time in the Book of Hebrews. Studying it with others... and by some "coincidence" it keeps coming back into my life. One of the things the Lord has re-emphasized to me this year is the truths found in Hebrews 10:24: "... let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds."
I have learned that this verse sounds so "nice"... It sounds like such an ideal... but walking it out can be stressful, painful, and anxiety ridden at times!
It means summoning the courage to "risk" a relationship, to confront someone on something you see in their life, or urge them to step up to something they are gifted in but have been afraid to do. Or sometimes worse... Being on the receiving end and trying not to take what they say as an attack but rather the loving concern of a friend.
I try to keep Proverbs 27: 6 in mind at all times...
"Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses."
There have been times in our small loose knit, un-organized, open gatherings, when I have thought half the people in the group were wrong or going off the deep end. But it is in this environment, and in a gathering of people who are at least willing to speak their mind, listen to you speak yours... and seek God's best in it all... there the Lord has me growing.
This past Sunday was really trying for me because not only did we as a group study that passage in Hebrews again, but God made me live it out too. I had to confront someone about their beliefs and their point of view. I didn't want to do it. Yet, I know that I didn't want to "trade truth for false unity" (as a verse in one of the songs we listened to that day stated it). I knew I had to discuss a subject that I felt I could not let slide. I had to trust that it was better to resolve this issue of understanding with my brother than to put on a false mask of Christian happiness and tolerance... keeping that false unity going...
And you know, I found out some things about my brother who had the differing opinion. I found out his hurts and his experiences. I learned a thing or two more about God because I had to make sure what I was saying was lining up with God's Word. Well... we didn't totally resolve our views... but I think we both grew and know, and trust each other better for it. I would never have understood my brother like that if I had chosen to zip my lip and avoid confrontation.
That does not happen in pew sitting land very often.
As difficult as it can be, it is much more refreshing to live in this land where things can be unpredictable. It is because I know I can trust others there to take what is said and be honest with me. It is preferable to me more than in the wandering wasteland of comfort I left behind.
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Friday, November 12, 2004
"So, How is House Church Going?"
I had the "pastor" of the church I used to attend (we still communicate) ask me the other day, "so, how is that house church going?".
It got me to sit down and write a response... so I thought I would put it here too...
I have come to think less about "how to DO church" and more about how to "BE the church". Which makes even the label "house church" sound funny to me now. So, I am not sure how to answer how the house church is going, but here is part of the journey I have been on....
On a personal level, we are getting together with and meeting more people now -- getting to know more people than we ever have before -- going outside of our familiar acquaintances and circle of friends to meet new people (as well as staying in touch with old friends) and that has been good. We have met up with a small group of believers who get together... Meeting in their homes or wherever they can. Many have been "outside of the organized church" for 4- 10 years. We met another couple through the internet who has just recently started hanging out with us, worshiping and praying with us who had left an abusive church two years back and finally were convinced that they needed to seek out new relationships with Christians but not in a typical church setting.
The more I consider what Jesus said and what Paul and others wrote... The more I see that the emphasis (even in the New Testament) is about PERSONAL responsibility, faith, and relationships rather than describing a 'movement' or a 'procedure for organizational ministry'. Jesus said next to nothing about what this thing the "church" would be, except to describe it in personal terms of the people's nature and responsibilities... How to live, how to act, how to worship the Lord (with their lives -- spirit and truth -- location is not important... Etc.).
I told you once (maybe more than once) that John 3:8 has always fascinated me... I kept thinking maybe there was something more in that verse that I kept overlooking but could not quite put my finger on?... I think maybe some small insight into it was given to me while reading an article by a guy from New Zealand named Jack Grey.
Link to Jack Grey's article: "My search for the church (part 1)".
He mentioned the talk to Nicodemus in john 3 and it peaked my attention. This writer was talking about a new view of what the 'church' might be: That it was not primarily organizational... That it was primarily personal and directed by God as a collection of individuals. (in other words, it was meant to be a people of God who practiced a life of being led by the LORD himself and as a PART of that, they would live their lives together not to simply meet and live out some kind of spiritual life, but as a part of the rest of the whole of their lives. They were a 'force' hidden in society (sometimes for safety's sake because of persecution) that was not a 'tangible' or 'targetable' group... Nothing to really see except individuals who followed the Lord, loved one another and loved everyone else too.
So... He pointed to John 3:8 where Jesus is describing these people who are "Born Again"... (In essence... The Christians who would come and become the church)
"...The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
For years I read this and thought, "this is speaking of how the Spirit moves in our lives... We see that He is active but we can't put our finger on him... Like the wind." Then it dawned on me that if you really read the verse... It is not really saying the SPIRIT is like this... It says that EVERYONE BORN OF THE SPIRIT is like this. It is only descriptive of the Spirit in that He live IN US... But Jesus is talking about US.
I started thinking... How can we be like that? What does that mean? Hear and see the effects of a Christian but not know where it comes from or where it is going?
That is where I started thinking that Jesus was really describing the church here... Not in organizational terms like we are used to hearing, but on a personal level... That the church, if it were simple like I mentioned above, would be a force for influence, change, blessing, love on a culture even though it would be hard to pin down where it was coming from, what it was called, where it's leadership was, where it was located... All the things we would normally think of asking about a religious organization. It was "untouchable" as a group because there wasn't really a "group" or an organization, or a location, or anything beyond the individuals who made up God's Spirit-led guerrilla force. It would be like the police looking for a suspect using the wrong eyewitness description.
I guess I picture it something like the American revolution... An organized force (human society) being overcome by a hit-and run, rag-tag un-seen army that does not seem to have any organization or leader... And yet seems led by one mind or one passion. For us that leader and passion is the Lord alone.
It got me to sit down and write a response... so I thought I would put it here too...
I have come to think less about "how to DO church" and more about how to "BE the church". Which makes even the label "house church" sound funny to me now. So, I am not sure how to answer how the house church is going, but here is part of the journey I have been on....
On a personal level, we are getting together with and meeting more people now -- getting to know more people than we ever have before -- going outside of our familiar acquaintances and circle of friends to meet new people (as well as staying in touch with old friends) and that has been good. We have met up with a small group of believers who get together... Meeting in their homes or wherever they can. Many have been "outside of the organized church" for 4- 10 years. We met another couple through the internet who has just recently started hanging out with us, worshiping and praying with us who had left an abusive church two years back and finally were convinced that they needed to seek out new relationships with Christians but not in a typical church setting.
The more I consider what Jesus said and what Paul and others wrote... The more I see that the emphasis (even in the New Testament) is about PERSONAL responsibility, faith, and relationships rather than describing a 'movement' or a 'procedure for organizational ministry'. Jesus said next to nothing about what this thing the "church" would be, except to describe it in personal terms of the people's nature and responsibilities... How to live, how to act, how to worship the Lord (with their lives -- spirit and truth -- location is not important... Etc.).
I told you once (maybe more than once) that John 3:8 has always fascinated me... I kept thinking maybe there was something more in that verse that I kept overlooking but could not quite put my finger on?... I think maybe some small insight into it was given to me while reading an article by a guy from New Zealand named Jack Grey.
Link to Jack Grey's article: "My search for the church (part 1)".
He mentioned the talk to Nicodemus in john 3 and it peaked my attention. This writer was talking about a new view of what the 'church' might be: That it was not primarily organizational... That it was primarily personal and directed by God as a collection of individuals. (in other words, it was meant to be a people of God who practiced a life of being led by the LORD himself and as a PART of that, they would live their lives together not to simply meet and live out some kind of spiritual life, but as a part of the rest of the whole of their lives. They were a 'force' hidden in society (sometimes for safety's sake because of persecution) that was not a 'tangible' or 'targetable' group... Nothing to really see except individuals who followed the Lord, loved one another and loved everyone else too.
So... He pointed to John 3:8 where Jesus is describing these people who are "Born Again"... (In essence... The Christians who would come and become the church)
"...The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
For years I read this and thought, "this is speaking of how the Spirit moves in our lives... We see that He is active but we can't put our finger on him... Like the wind." Then it dawned on me that if you really read the verse... It is not really saying the SPIRIT is like this... It says that EVERYONE BORN OF THE SPIRIT is like this. It is only descriptive of the Spirit in that He live IN US... But Jesus is talking about US.
I started thinking... How can we be like that? What does that mean? Hear and see the effects of a Christian but not know where it comes from or where it is going?
That is where I started thinking that Jesus was really describing the church here... Not in organizational terms like we are used to hearing, but on a personal level... That the church, if it were simple like I mentioned above, would be a force for influence, change, blessing, love on a culture even though it would be hard to pin down where it was coming from, what it was called, where it's leadership was, where it was located... All the things we would normally think of asking about a religious organization. It was "untouchable" as a group because there wasn't really a "group" or an organization, or a location, or anything beyond the individuals who made up God's Spirit-led guerrilla force. It would be like the police looking for a suspect using the wrong eyewitness description.
I guess I picture it something like the American revolution... An organized force (human society) being overcome by a hit-and run, rag-tag un-seen army that does not seem to have any organization or leader... And yet seems led by one mind or one passion. For us that leader and passion is the Lord alone.
Thursday, November 04, 2004
Politics, Morals and the Church
It is interesting to me that the press was so "surprised" to discover that the voting of people in this year's presidential election was primarily swayed by character, morality and religious standards. They seem to be astonished that these issues trumped the issues of foreign policy, economics, and other more "practical" issues.
I am pleasantly surprised that things turned out as they did. I guess it was surprising to me because I so completely see how my faith is the foundation of my morality, and it seems that faith is so mechanical or worse, non-existent, in so many people these days.
Now, while it is possible to hold to some standard of values without faith in God, there is no absolute standard without God's laws being the final word on the subject. If God's laws are not the foundation of one's morality, then the morality is based on culture, tradition, feelings, whims or worse. I guess there is enough residual flavor of Christianity in our nation's culture to give a semblance of Godly morals... but in reality it is probably just a latent image of true faith in God's laws which has become more cultural and traditional than anything else.
The problem with true Christians relying on these cultural and traditional moralities when it comes to the laws and electing of officials in our government is that cultural and traditional morals morph, change and deteriorate with time. We were "lucky" this time. Now our courts will have appointees who uphold some semblance of Christian values due to the man we elected as president. However, in four years, we may not be so lucky. The cultural morality might wear thin and not elect leaders based on morals that are similar to true Godly morality next time.
If we (the church) do not start acting more like Salt and Light -- influencing our culture by founding people's morality on the world view of God's Word -- we will see out nation fall into a new cultural morality that looks less and less like the morals of Christ.
Most "pastors" in institutional church organizations see it as politically incorrect to talk about the moral issues of the day which are closely tied to political issues. They have unknowingly created a mindset in church-goers that your Christian beliefs, and your practical political beliefs exist side by side but never interact. "Pastors" may not intend to teach this, but by refusing to speak on political issues which are tied to moral standards of the Bible, they teach it none the less. Most church-goers have learned by example that these two sides of belief do not have to interact or coincide, because the "pastor" keeps them separate too. Inadvertently, "pastors" are teaching their "flocks" to put on their Church beliefs for Sunday, and their political and moral beliefs the rest of the week. But that is not what Jesus or the Bible tells us about our beliefs. We are to have a "world view" that that includes our political, moral, and day to day beliefs as well as our religious beliefs and they all must be aligned with the scripture. Founded on God's laws and wisdom.
Those of us who are not a part of the institutional church should be all the more fervent and unafraid of speaking God's morality even when it steps on political toes or treads on cultural whims.
Politics is a part of life; life is meant to be governed by morality; legitimate morality can only come from God; therefore, these things should be a natural part for a Christian's conversation and life. There is no "separation of church and state" - not in the US constitution, nor should there be in the heart of a Christian. If your politics are not governed by your religious understanding, then you are a walking contradiction.
Now, I am not saying that the "right" morality is aligned with one or another political party. Political parties are human institutions (on the whole) and can not possibly be equivalent to true Christian morality and purpose. However, we as those who hold to Christ and God's laws should pick our support of individuals, parties and initiatives based on God's morality rather than our personal well-being, convenience, preferences or culture.
Those Christians who think it is wrong for the church or Christians to be involved in politics are missing a few key commands of Christ. First of all, Jesus told us to love our neighbor and do good to those who hate us. If you know that God's laws for human government, morality and order are the best for mankind, wouldn't you be subjecting your neighbor to the worst, or at least not the best if you refused to take a biblically moral AND political stand for the laws of this land? By not voting down laws and politicians who bring ungodly laws to the books, you are subjecting yourself, your family and your neighbor to things God's Words says are wrong, sinful and downright bad for us!
Secondly, the book of Romans tells us to obey the laws of the land and be subject to rulers as long as they are not in conflict with God's laws. This is not a suggestion. Now it is not this way everywhere in the world, but here in the USA, in this century, to be considered a good and faithful member of society our government relies on us (the citizens) to vote. That is the backbone of our governmental structure. If we refuse to do this, and refuse to participate, we are violating a command of God to be subject to the governing authorities... to be a good citizen. It is not a matter of our right to vote or not vote. It is a matter of obeying God to be a model to our culture as a Christian citizen.
For those inside the institutional church, you are bound to be influenced by your pastors preaching... or lack of it. True, some will speak and live these truths in spite of their "church" or "pastor" -- and because of this they will be labeled as rebels (even though they are doing what the "pastor" should be doing). Others, whose church has a political/religious mix that is based more on culture than God's law will go to the flow and think of their political party as their religion.
We should really BE THE CHURCH rather than ATTEND AND ORGANIZATION... but there is more... to BE THE CHURCH we must learn to not fall prey to the politically correct view that politics and faith do not intersect.
I am pleasantly surprised that things turned out as they did. I guess it was surprising to me because I so completely see how my faith is the foundation of my morality, and it seems that faith is so mechanical or worse, non-existent, in so many people these days.
Now, while it is possible to hold to some standard of values without faith in God, there is no absolute standard without God's laws being the final word on the subject. If God's laws are not the foundation of one's morality, then the morality is based on culture, tradition, feelings, whims or worse. I guess there is enough residual flavor of Christianity in our nation's culture to give a semblance of Godly morals... but in reality it is probably just a latent image of true faith in God's laws which has become more cultural and traditional than anything else.
The problem with true Christians relying on these cultural and traditional moralities when it comes to the laws and electing of officials in our government is that cultural and traditional morals morph, change and deteriorate with time. We were "lucky" this time. Now our courts will have appointees who uphold some semblance of Christian values due to the man we elected as president. However, in four years, we may not be so lucky. The cultural morality might wear thin and not elect leaders based on morals that are similar to true Godly morality next time.
If we (the church) do not start acting more like Salt and Light -- influencing our culture by founding people's morality on the world view of God's Word -- we will see out nation fall into a new cultural morality that looks less and less like the morals of Christ.
Most "pastors" in institutional church organizations see it as politically incorrect to talk about the moral issues of the day which are closely tied to political issues. They have unknowingly created a mindset in church-goers that your Christian beliefs, and your practical political beliefs exist side by side but never interact. "Pastors" may not intend to teach this, but by refusing to speak on political issues which are tied to moral standards of the Bible, they teach it none the less. Most church-goers have learned by example that these two sides of belief do not have to interact or coincide, because the "pastor" keeps them separate too. Inadvertently, "pastors" are teaching their "flocks" to put on their Church beliefs for Sunday, and their political and moral beliefs the rest of the week. But that is not what Jesus or the Bible tells us about our beliefs. We are to have a "world view" that that includes our political, moral, and day to day beliefs as well as our religious beliefs and they all must be aligned with the scripture. Founded on God's laws and wisdom.
Those of us who are not a part of the institutional church should be all the more fervent and unafraid of speaking God's morality even when it steps on political toes or treads on cultural whims.
Politics is a part of life; life is meant to be governed by morality; legitimate morality can only come from God; therefore, these things should be a natural part for a Christian's conversation and life. There is no "separation of church and state" - not in the US constitution, nor should there be in the heart of a Christian. If your politics are not governed by your religious understanding, then you are a walking contradiction.
Now, I am not saying that the "right" morality is aligned with one or another political party. Political parties are human institutions (on the whole) and can not possibly be equivalent to true Christian morality and purpose. However, we as those who hold to Christ and God's laws should pick our support of individuals, parties and initiatives based on God's morality rather than our personal well-being, convenience, preferences or culture.
Those Christians who think it is wrong for the church or Christians to be involved in politics are missing a few key commands of Christ. First of all, Jesus told us to love our neighbor and do good to those who hate us. If you know that God's laws for human government, morality and order are the best for mankind, wouldn't you be subjecting your neighbor to the worst, or at least not the best if you refused to take a biblically moral AND political stand for the laws of this land? By not voting down laws and politicians who bring ungodly laws to the books, you are subjecting yourself, your family and your neighbor to things God's Words says are wrong, sinful and downright bad for us!
Secondly, the book of Romans tells us to obey the laws of the land and be subject to rulers as long as they are not in conflict with God's laws. This is not a suggestion. Now it is not this way everywhere in the world, but here in the USA, in this century, to be considered a good and faithful member of society our government relies on us (the citizens) to vote. That is the backbone of our governmental structure. If we refuse to do this, and refuse to participate, we are violating a command of God to be subject to the governing authorities... to be a good citizen. It is not a matter of our right to vote or not vote. It is a matter of obeying God to be a model to our culture as a Christian citizen.
For those inside the institutional church, you are bound to be influenced by your pastors preaching... or lack of it. True, some will speak and live these truths in spite of their "church" or "pastor" -- and because of this they will be labeled as rebels (even though they are doing what the "pastor" should be doing). Others, whose church has a political/religious mix that is based more on culture than God's law will go to the flow and think of their political party as their religion.
We should really BE THE CHURCH rather than ATTEND AND ORGANIZATION... but there is more... to BE THE CHURCH we must learn to not fall prey to the politically correct view that politics and faith do not intersect.
Tuesday, October 26, 2004
Labels
Sigh...
I've been reading up on this whole "emergent church", and "postmodern" church stuff tonight. A few months back I left the attendance of a "institutional church" or as some call it an 'organizational church" (at least those terms actually describe something). Within the "institutional church" there are Denominations with more labels... within denominations there are individual church names. Some of these practice 'movements" like "cell church" or "seeker sensitive" or "purpose driven". Then of course, there are the "non-denominational ministries" with all of their labels.
Will Christians ever get tired of labels?
I naively thought that when I left the "institutional church" behind I would ONLY find people who were tired of the labels. But I guess not. I have found many who are seeking something without all the trinkets of the instituional church, but it seems that just being outside of the instituional church does not mean everyone is free of the labels. I really truly just want to leave the labels behind and just BE the church that follows Christ. It does not need a name, it does not need a definition, it does not need to appeal to the new culture, or emerge from something (whatever that means). It does not need property or buildings. It does not need a 501c3 or a constitution in my opinion.
I honestly can't believe that when the church was brand new, just out of the box... that they worried much about such things. They could not have. They had no time for such foolishness! They were caught up with such issues as FEEDING themselves and their widows and orphans. They were busy finding places to live for all 3000+ out of town visitors who became the church. They were trying to comprehend this amazing thing that Jesus had told them of and that they were experiencing through His Spirit!. Yet, in the middle of all this, they seemed to find time to gather to hear of Jesus, and to pray and to tell others about Him. They found time to love one another and share and give. They didn't spend time labeling things.
When they started to get a little comfortable and maybe did try to become established, God spread them out all over the world through persecution. They started it all over again! It was like dropping a bucket of gasoline into a fire pit! Fires sprung up everywhere that the splashes of flame and fuel landed.
When Paul heard of people forming followings, and people trying to identify with other men rather than Christ, he rebuked them for it!
1 Corinthians 1:11-13
My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
I guess I was surprised (maybe without reason), to find that even in the midst of believers who have left the rituals and programs of what most will label "churches" today, I find new labels. I find that people are still trying to build a better mouse trap and label it and copyright it and distribute it and market it!
Come on people!
The church that Jesus founded was never such a creature! It was not meant to look or act like the institutions of the world!
Jesus described it as a family, as wind, as fire... things that HE established... not things that we have made.
Can we just simply BE the church?
or are we condemned to give it a name?
ps...
read another blog article by 'unchurch'
I've been reading up on this whole "emergent church", and "postmodern" church stuff tonight. A few months back I left the attendance of a "institutional church" or as some call it an 'organizational church" (at least those terms actually describe something). Within the "institutional church" there are Denominations with more labels... within denominations there are individual church names. Some of these practice 'movements" like "cell church" or "seeker sensitive" or "purpose driven". Then of course, there are the "non-denominational ministries" with all of their labels.
Will Christians ever get tired of labels?
I naively thought that when I left the "institutional church" behind I would ONLY find people who were tired of the labels. But I guess not. I have found many who are seeking something without all the trinkets of the instituional church, but it seems that just being outside of the instituional church does not mean everyone is free of the labels. I really truly just want to leave the labels behind and just BE the church that follows Christ. It does not need a name, it does not need a definition, it does not need to appeal to the new culture, or emerge from something (whatever that means). It does not need property or buildings. It does not need a 501c3 or a constitution in my opinion.
I honestly can't believe that when the church was brand new, just out of the box... that they worried much about such things. They could not have. They had no time for such foolishness! They were caught up with such issues as FEEDING themselves and their widows and orphans. They were busy finding places to live for all 3000+ out of town visitors who became the church. They were trying to comprehend this amazing thing that Jesus had told them of and that they were experiencing through His Spirit!. Yet, in the middle of all this, they seemed to find time to gather to hear of Jesus, and to pray and to tell others about Him. They found time to love one another and share and give. They didn't spend time labeling things.
When they started to get a little comfortable and maybe did try to become established, God spread them out all over the world through persecution. They started it all over again! It was like dropping a bucket of gasoline into a fire pit! Fires sprung up everywhere that the splashes of flame and fuel landed.
When Paul heard of people forming followings, and people trying to identify with other men rather than Christ, he rebuked them for it!
1 Corinthians 1:11-13
My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
I guess I was surprised (maybe without reason), to find that even in the midst of believers who have left the rituals and programs of what most will label "churches" today, I find new labels. I find that people are still trying to build a better mouse trap and label it and copyright it and distribute it and market it!
Come on people!
The church that Jesus founded was never such a creature! It was not meant to look or act like the institutions of the world!
Jesus described it as a family, as wind, as fire... things that HE established... not things that we have made.
Can we just simply BE the church?
or are we condemned to give it a name?
ps...
read another blog article by 'unchurch'
Program vs. Personal Ministry
Tonight I have been thinking about all the things that people do in most church organizations to foster various kinds of ministry, unity, fellowship and other things that we as Christians are called to do. On the whole I really do think most programs are started with a sincere love or calling that God places on certain people, but I am afraid most programs go from there and become something they were not intended to be.
I started thinking about this issue because of a discussion at our Sunday gathering this past week. Someone in our group was concerned about another brother who had not been around at our Sunday gatherings or in contact with anyone for a few weeks. The concerned person was thinking that the answer might be to have people call and encourage this missing brother (and others) by starting some kind of rule, agreement or procedure where we will call others who have not been around for a while. He suggested that maybe we could have a policy whereby if a ‘missing person’ had not told anyone that they will be missing for a few weeks, and we don’t see them around, someone should call them. While it might not be harmful to set some kind of general agreement among the members of the Body and maybe even have some people who feel gifted to do such a thing set this up, I think maybe this is how ‘church programs’ get started. Their purpose is noble, and their effect can be truly loving and Christian, but over time these wonderful things take on a life (or lack of life as the case may be) of their own.
Our group discussed this issue and agreed that it was not good that someone was missing contact with the group for so long and that few had called him. It is not the loving thing to left someone drift away, alone.
Some said that since we are all different, have differing personalities and different gifts, it should be those who are closer to the missing person who contact him, not to give an excuse, but just because God has gifted us all differently and not everyone is called to minister to everyone. In some ways that might be true, but really we are to feel each-others pain and rejoice in each other’s triumphs! (Rom 12:15) We are also called to grow in God’s Grace & knowledge – and learn t live a godly life submitted to God (2 pet 3: 11-18). So we are called to do things that might not feel comfortable, but we are to love one another and do what we would have done to ourselves. Therefore we must learn to take our own responsibility to do things that edify and encourage others even if we are not comfortable doing it because “we don’t know them very well” or “it might seem strange to call them” or “they might think I am just calling to get them to come back and put a guilt trip on them”. All these excuses should be tossed aside. We are called to GROW… to be loving like Christ and not be concerned with how others will perceive what we do that is loving. For this kind of love Jesus was called a drunkard and a friend of sinners.
The problem with this whole personal-responsibility thing is that we assume it will be un productive because it is not a program and it is not structured and we all forget … etc. but maybe the problem is our modern-day mentality about such things. We think a production line is better than a hand crafted thing because it is cheaper to make, more can be made and there is a level of quality control procedures that can be built into it. Yet, it is often the handcrafted things, the one of a kind things made by the personal touch of an artist or skilled craftsman that are much more valuable and long lasting.
I think that what God really wants from us is to be personal craftsmen of His Love, not assembly line workers in His factory!
It occurs to me that maybe a lot of the things we have made into church programs, ministries and procedures as an organized church group really do have a corresponding personal responsibility. In other words, it is true that some of the things that are walked out as programs at most churches are truly an attempt to simply walk out a calling that God might well have placed on someone’s heart. They started that way. And many ‘programs’, ‘pastors’, and ‘parishioners’ operate in these programs out of a sincere heart for people and a love for God. I do not doubt the sincerity of most. However, have you ever considered that instead of teaching an assembly of believers to sign up to work the assembly line to call others and encourage them from the attendance list, we should be teaching and challenging people to do something uncomfortable this week, do something God has put on your heart that you have been hesitating to do. Something you think you are not equipped to do.
I’m thinking that instead of creating programs for the church as a group to follow we should be making challenges to ourselves (maybe even in the tangible form of a list) and to each other. If we can’t rely on a programmed, scheduled ‘fellowship’ time, challenge yourself to make time and call someone to have some real fellowship. If you know that you don’t have a program to teach your kids about God, and you know it is your responsibility, make time and challenge yourself to talk to your kids about God and pray with them. Not is a ritual form, but in a day-to-day form. And if you are not felling equipped to do it, train yourself! Read and pray for yourself, or with a few other believers you know.
If we all did this, if we all refused to rely on a program or someone else to do our ‘spiritual life’ and ‘ministry’ for us, we would find we have a lot of brothers and sisters to rely on and minister with. Not in a programmable fashion, but in a real-life, never easy - but always challenging, maturing and satisfying way!
I started thinking about this issue because of a discussion at our Sunday gathering this past week. Someone in our group was concerned about another brother who had not been around at our Sunday gatherings or in contact with anyone for a few weeks. The concerned person was thinking that the answer might be to have people call and encourage this missing brother (and others) by starting some kind of rule, agreement or procedure where we will call others who have not been around for a while. He suggested that maybe we could have a policy whereby if a ‘missing person’ had not told anyone that they will be missing for a few weeks, and we don’t see them around, someone should call them. While it might not be harmful to set some kind of general agreement among the members of the Body and maybe even have some people who feel gifted to do such a thing set this up, I think maybe this is how ‘church programs’ get started. Their purpose is noble, and their effect can be truly loving and Christian, but over time these wonderful things take on a life (or lack of life as the case may be) of their own.
Our group discussed this issue and agreed that it was not good that someone was missing contact with the group for so long and that few had called him. It is not the loving thing to left someone drift away, alone.
Some said that since we are all different, have differing personalities and different gifts, it should be those who are closer to the missing person who contact him, not to give an excuse, but just because God has gifted us all differently and not everyone is called to minister to everyone. In some ways that might be true, but really we are to feel each-others pain and rejoice in each other’s triumphs! (Rom 12:15) We are also called to grow in God’s Grace & knowledge – and learn t live a godly life submitted to God (2 pet 3: 11-18). So we are called to do things that might not feel comfortable, but we are to love one another and do what we would have done to ourselves. Therefore we must learn to take our own responsibility to do things that edify and encourage others even if we are not comfortable doing it because “we don’t know them very well” or “it might seem strange to call them” or “they might think I am just calling to get them to come back and put a guilt trip on them”. All these excuses should be tossed aside. We are called to GROW… to be loving like Christ and not be concerned with how others will perceive what we do that is loving. For this kind of love Jesus was called a drunkard and a friend of sinners.
The problem with this whole personal-responsibility thing is that we assume it will be un productive because it is not a program and it is not structured and we all forget … etc. but maybe the problem is our modern-day mentality about such things. We think a production line is better than a hand crafted thing because it is cheaper to make, more can be made and there is a level of quality control procedures that can be built into it. Yet, it is often the handcrafted things, the one of a kind things made by the personal touch of an artist or skilled craftsman that are much more valuable and long lasting.
I think that what God really wants from us is to be personal craftsmen of His Love, not assembly line workers in His factory!
It occurs to me that maybe a lot of the things we have made into church programs, ministries and procedures as an organized church group really do have a corresponding personal responsibility. In other words, it is true that some of the things that are walked out as programs at most churches are truly an attempt to simply walk out a calling that God might well have placed on someone’s heart. They started that way. And many ‘programs’, ‘pastors’, and ‘parishioners’ operate in these programs out of a sincere heart for people and a love for God. I do not doubt the sincerity of most. However, have you ever considered that instead of teaching an assembly of believers to sign up to work the assembly line to call others and encourage them from the attendance list, we should be teaching and challenging people to do something uncomfortable this week, do something God has put on your heart that you have been hesitating to do. Something you think you are not equipped to do.
I’m thinking that instead of creating programs for the church as a group to follow we should be making challenges to ourselves (maybe even in the tangible form of a list) and to each other. If we can’t rely on a programmed, scheduled ‘fellowship’ time, challenge yourself to make time and call someone to have some real fellowship. If you know that you don’t have a program to teach your kids about God, and you know it is your responsibility, make time and challenge yourself to talk to your kids about God and pray with them. Not is a ritual form, but in a day-to-day form. And if you are not felling equipped to do it, train yourself! Read and pray for yourself, or with a few other believers you know.
If we all did this, if we all refused to rely on a program or someone else to do our ‘spiritual life’ and ‘ministry’ for us, we would find we have a lot of brothers and sisters to rely on and minister with. Not in a programmable fashion, but in a real-life, never easy - but always challenging, maturing and satisfying way!
Friday, October 15, 2004
I just want to know...
I look at my experiences 'attending church' over my life, and I read about the church in the Bible and keep saying to myself, "There has just got to me something more that I am missing!"
I was very young when God put a hunger in my heart. I don't know exactly when He put it there. My family attended church when I was very young, but stopped some time while I was still small. I learned of salvation through a lady from an organization that taught 'religious instruction' for public school kids in elementary school. Then I knew I was being drawn to Him. I was about ten or eleven. I grew up in a household that was Christian in one sense, but there was little in the way of seeing it. We had stopped 'attending' church, and maybe that was good, maybe not. but I can remember laying awake early Sunday morning listening to the radio preachers because I hungered to know and understand the Lord.
I eventually started attending a church where my Grandparents went... in spite of the fact my parents did not attend. I grew in understanding and I formed a world-view on the foundation of the Bible which would sustain me through the temptations of Highschool and College. I became more involved in ministering to others and even took on 'leadership' roles in the church as I got older. I started to see the 'humanness' of the organized church at this point and the clean simple beauty of what I had pictured as the church started to be clouded. Yet, I think this was God's plan to bring back this hungar.
I began attending a smaller church that really wanted to walk out a 'New Testiment' model of the church. It was about this time that I was married and we began to seek the Lord together. However, as the years went by, many of the things I desired to see and know in a church that was seeking to be like those seen in the pages of Acts stated to seem to fall away. The 'church' began to take on elements of those other churches around us. "Look at what they are doing to minister!, Let's do that too!" seemed to be the battle cry of that church. I had put aside my hungar and desire to see a true New Testiment church and had sucumed to the 'reality' that this is just how church is... there is no more.
Thank God that He sent new people into my life that reminded me of my hungar! I began to re-read things in the Bible that I had let fall from memory. I relalized I had once again put out the fire, the desire that God had placed in my heart to know HIm better and see Him work amoung His people... His Church... in ways that would be miraculous!
I just want to know what it looks like to see these things in person... To know what Jesus really means when he describes his Church...
John 3: 7-8 You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
I want to see that it does not require 'seeker sesitive' or 'target marketing' to reach unbelievers. To be a part of a gathering of believers where unbelievers see the presence of God rather than a ceremony or a well presented moral teaching...
1 Cor 14:24-25
But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all, and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, "God is really among you!"
I want to know what it is like to have my mind spirit and strength focused on Him and not be distracted by all the artificial practices that men have added to the church.
Mark 12:29-34
"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."
"Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.
I just want to see His church being different... being alive... being something that people will stop calling religion and see only as living loving people directed by the Creator.
I just want to know what that is like.
I think that if we do not give up and settle for man's best interpretation of what the church is supposed to be... and simply live it out. We can BE the church and never again want to settle for anything less than the amazing thing that God has called His Church to be.
I was very young when God put a hunger in my heart. I don't know exactly when He put it there. My family attended church when I was very young, but stopped some time while I was still small. I learned of salvation through a lady from an organization that taught 'religious instruction' for public school kids in elementary school. Then I knew I was being drawn to Him. I was about ten or eleven. I grew up in a household that was Christian in one sense, but there was little in the way of seeing it. We had stopped 'attending' church, and maybe that was good, maybe not. but I can remember laying awake early Sunday morning listening to the radio preachers because I hungered to know and understand the Lord.
I eventually started attending a church where my Grandparents went... in spite of the fact my parents did not attend. I grew in understanding and I formed a world-view on the foundation of the Bible which would sustain me through the temptations of Highschool and College. I became more involved in ministering to others and even took on 'leadership' roles in the church as I got older. I started to see the 'humanness' of the organized church at this point and the clean simple beauty of what I had pictured as the church started to be clouded. Yet, I think this was God's plan to bring back this hungar.
I began attending a smaller church that really wanted to walk out a 'New Testiment' model of the church. It was about this time that I was married and we began to seek the Lord together. However, as the years went by, many of the things I desired to see and know in a church that was seeking to be like those seen in the pages of Acts stated to seem to fall away. The 'church' began to take on elements of those other churches around us. "Look at what they are doing to minister!, Let's do that too!" seemed to be the battle cry of that church. I had put aside my hungar and desire to see a true New Testiment church and had sucumed to the 'reality' that this is just how church is... there is no more.
Thank God that He sent new people into my life that reminded me of my hungar! I began to re-read things in the Bible that I had let fall from memory. I relalized I had once again put out the fire, the desire that God had placed in my heart to know HIm better and see Him work amoung His people... His Church... in ways that would be miraculous!
I just want to know what it looks like to see these things in person... To know what Jesus really means when he describes his Church...
John 3: 7-8 You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
I want to see that it does not require 'seeker sesitive' or 'target marketing' to reach unbelievers. To be a part of a gathering of believers where unbelievers see the presence of God rather than a ceremony or a well presented moral teaching...
1 Cor 14:24-25
But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all, and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, "God is really among you!"
I want to know what it is like to have my mind spirit and strength focused on Him and not be distracted by all the artificial practices that men have added to the church.
Mark 12:29-34
"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."
"Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.
I just want to see His church being different... being alive... being something that people will stop calling religion and see only as living loving people directed by the Creator.
I just want to know what that is like.
I think that if we do not give up and settle for man's best interpretation of what the church is supposed to be... and simply live it out. We can BE the church and never again want to settle for anything less than the amazing thing that God has called His Church to be.
Thursday, October 07, 2004
So, should we just NOT gather at all?
Some who are fed up with church attendance and "church services" feel we should just go be Lone Ranger Christians...
but, we ARE called and commanded to gather together for many reasons. It is a command of scripture that we gather together... I just think that the current modern concept of a 'service' is totally off track. It looks little to nothing like what the church in the Bible did when they met. Maybe it is not the gathering that needs to go... it is just the way we gather and the ritualized things that need to go.
Today's concept of 'worship service' is a ceremonialized acting out in my view. The church of the Bible met to allow everyone to contribute their giftings... They gathered to encourage, to share a meal, to show love for each other, to pray together... not to be led in singing by a band or a 'worship pastor' and be preached at every week by one man who is professionally trained, not to pretend to fellowship on a superficial level, not to give money to a fund that simply constructs bigger buildings and pays salaries to perpetuate the 'services' of the church, and not to volunteer your service to programs rather than people. In fact, if you take the exact opposite of all these things you would be pretty close to what the Church is talking about in gathering and living as the church.
While the 'typical service' might not be necessarily 'wrong' (as in: we should not allow anyone to do it), it is not something that is necessarily strengthening to individual believers, or the church in general. It is an environment that seems to leave it to the individual if they are going to grow or not. If the person is hungry for God, he will seek something more than this 'service' will offer, and soon the 'service' will seem like candy and not anything nourishing to them (Maybe their head knowledge will be challenged a little, and maybe their feelings tickled by 'worship music' but any exercise of their gifts or understanding or involvement is not being nurtured).
Sadly, those who are comfortable with just sitting, listening... These find it comfortable in a 'service' because they don't have to exercise at all... And thus they are fooled into thinking this is about all that their faith can do. The 'service' becomes only a social event that they think is mandated by scripture, and they think they are being 'fed' by it, when in fact, they are being lulled by it, and at best becoming fat on it for lack of exercise.
I say this not to tear anything down, but because I have experienced it myself. I have been a believer for over 25 years, and I have benefited from the teaching and even the experiences of 'services' no doubt, but I can also say that I should be much further along in the living out of my faith than I am. I think I was one who was taught by 'services' to become fat spiritually and rarely exercise.
The 'Attend worship service and-then-go-serve-outside of the service' model does not work (at least no for me). The church is really to be an 'on the job training' sort of thing in my opinion... Participate in the building up of the church (not the building, the people) as you grow and learn... But today's 'service driven' concept is modeled after the 'go to school first -- become knowledgeable -- then go get practical work experience'.
The modern day concept of 'worship service' just trains people to be sitters and listeners. Even if they hunger for something more, the tendency is toward the path of least resistance... Sit and listen. When I say "Modern concept" I don't mean just this past century (although the last century of Americanized Christianity has taken the 'service' to new places that continue to get further and further from the Bible)...
I mean "modern" in contrast to what we see in the NT.
You could say that the "modern" concept of a 'church service' began the moment the 'church service' was conceived by Constantine in the 300s. I am not arguing for a "better church service"... I am saying that I don't know what a "church service" is because it does not look or sound like what we see in scripture.
How does one Go To Church?
How does one Attend Church?
We ARE the church. You don't GO there!
Taking away the easy-to-use 'worship service' from people and making the gathering just a simple gathering of believers -- open to what the Lord wants to do in their midst -- can be a threatening thing to most Christians. They don't know what to do with that. I think there is actually a bit of "detox" that has to take place in weaning people off of their 'worship service addiction'.
Some say that more private and personal disciplines are necessary rather than gathering, but they say this only because we have over-emphasized the 'gathering' aspect in the institutional church in the form of the 'worship service'. I think there should be a balance of these things. Attendance is not "the thing" and no one should assume that lack of attendance with a group means they are less spiritual.
On the other hand, we are the church only as a GROUP (whether that is a physical gathering or a more long-distance relationship/contact kind of thing)... Not as individuals... And because the gifts God distributed to the individuals of the church are given out to each of us as He sees fit... And because they are intended to edify the body of believers (often in a face to face kind of way)... Gathering of some kind is necessary so that these gifts can be worked and shared with others.
Now... As to whether that means one can be making these contacts and gatherings with various groups, in various locations, and not 'primarily sticking to any one group' ... That might be possible... But given the nature of humans to be social... Having a deep relationship with a few individuals in a group as your constant circle of believers/friends is often the more practical way to walk this out.
All that to say that I agree that the church needs to learn the 'personal responsibility' aspects of being the church... But I also think it is possible to over do that and forget that the church is the believers TOGETHER... One being a hand, one an eye, one a muscle...
End of the story... we do need to gather and be in relationship with other believers, and we need to take on personal responsibility for our faith and growth and life, but sitting in a "church service" is not the gathering we are talking about.
Be the Church.
but, we ARE called and commanded to gather together for many reasons. It is a command of scripture that we gather together... I just think that the current modern concept of a 'service' is totally off track. It looks little to nothing like what the church in the Bible did when they met. Maybe it is not the gathering that needs to go... it is just the way we gather and the ritualized things that need to go.
Today's concept of 'worship service' is a ceremonialized acting out in my view. The church of the Bible met to allow everyone to contribute their giftings... They gathered to encourage, to share a meal, to show love for each other, to pray together... not to be led in singing by a band or a 'worship pastor' and be preached at every week by one man who is professionally trained, not to pretend to fellowship on a superficial level, not to give money to a fund that simply constructs bigger buildings and pays salaries to perpetuate the 'services' of the church, and not to volunteer your service to programs rather than people. In fact, if you take the exact opposite of all these things you would be pretty close to what the Church is talking about in gathering and living as the church.
While the 'typical service' might not be necessarily 'wrong' (as in: we should not allow anyone to do it), it is not something that is necessarily strengthening to individual believers, or the church in general. It is an environment that seems to leave it to the individual if they are going to grow or not. If the person is hungry for God, he will seek something more than this 'service' will offer, and soon the 'service' will seem like candy and not anything nourishing to them (Maybe their head knowledge will be challenged a little, and maybe their feelings tickled by 'worship music' but any exercise of their gifts or understanding or involvement is not being nurtured).
Sadly, those who are comfortable with just sitting, listening... These find it comfortable in a 'service' because they don't have to exercise at all... And thus they are fooled into thinking this is about all that their faith can do. The 'service' becomes only a social event that they think is mandated by scripture, and they think they are being 'fed' by it, when in fact, they are being lulled by it, and at best becoming fat on it for lack of exercise.
I say this not to tear anything down, but because I have experienced it myself. I have been a believer for over 25 years, and I have benefited from the teaching and even the experiences of 'services' no doubt, but I can also say that I should be much further along in the living out of my faith than I am. I think I was one who was taught by 'services' to become fat spiritually and rarely exercise.
The 'Attend worship service and-then-go-serve-outside of the service' model does not work (at least no for me). The church is really to be an 'on the job training' sort of thing in my opinion... Participate in the building up of the church (not the building, the people) as you grow and learn... But today's 'service driven' concept is modeled after the 'go to school first -- become knowledgeable -- then go get practical work experience'.
The modern day concept of 'worship service' just trains people to be sitters and listeners. Even if they hunger for something more, the tendency is toward the path of least resistance... Sit and listen. When I say "Modern concept" I don't mean just this past century (although the last century of Americanized Christianity has taken the 'service' to new places that continue to get further and further from the Bible)...
I mean "modern" in contrast to what we see in the NT.
You could say that the "modern" concept of a 'church service' began the moment the 'church service' was conceived by Constantine in the 300s. I am not arguing for a "better church service"... I am saying that I don't know what a "church service" is because it does not look or sound like what we see in scripture.
How does one Go To Church?
How does one Attend Church?
We ARE the church. You don't GO there!
Taking away the easy-to-use 'worship service' from people and making the gathering just a simple gathering of believers -- open to what the Lord wants to do in their midst -- can be a threatening thing to most Christians. They don't know what to do with that. I think there is actually a bit of "detox" that has to take place in weaning people off of their 'worship service addiction'.
Some say that more private and personal disciplines are necessary rather than gathering, but they say this only because we have over-emphasized the 'gathering' aspect in the institutional church in the form of the 'worship service'. I think there should be a balance of these things. Attendance is not "the thing" and no one should assume that lack of attendance with a group means they are less spiritual.
On the other hand, we are the church only as a GROUP (whether that is a physical gathering or a more long-distance relationship/contact kind of thing)... Not as individuals... And because the gifts God distributed to the individuals of the church are given out to each of us as He sees fit... And because they are intended to edify the body of believers (often in a face to face kind of way)... Gathering of some kind is necessary so that these gifts can be worked and shared with others.
Now... As to whether that means one can be making these contacts and gatherings with various groups, in various locations, and not 'primarily sticking to any one group' ... That might be possible... But given the nature of humans to be social... Having a deep relationship with a few individuals in a group as your constant circle of believers/friends is often the more practical way to walk this out.
All that to say that I agree that the church needs to learn the 'personal responsibility' aspects of being the church... But I also think it is possible to over do that and forget that the church is the believers TOGETHER... One being a hand, one an eye, one a muscle...
End of the story... we do need to gather and be in relationship with other believers, and we need to take on personal responsibility for our faith and growth and life, but sitting in a "church service" is not the gathering we are talking about.
Be the Church.
Saturday, September 18, 2004
Attending Church? a Service? or "The Lords Supper"?
First of all, I would like to know where the TERM 'Worship Service" came from. I have never really understood what that really means. Is it that we are performing a service to God? Or proving a "service" to the people who come to the meeting? Or what? It smacks so much of the 15th century clergy/laity thing to me... Like the common fold coming to get a 'service' of blessing from their priest.
Secondly, I don't know that the "Lord's table"/ or Communion or whatever everyone calls it was intended to be such the ritual it is today.
In 1 Cor 11... note that it says in verse 20 & 21: "When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat, for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk."
Paul was saying that the disorder and disregard for one another was wrong, this is true. They should not have just attacked the food and left others without... They should be orderly and wait on each other so that they can share together. But note especially that this is not a "here is your little cracker, and here is your little shot glass of juice" sort of thing. If it was I would find it hard to believe then could gorge themselves on those little crackers and get drunk on the little glasses of wine.
This was a real meal... They were gathering to eat a regular full meal.
Jesus told us, and Paul recounts it here in verse 25, " do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."
NOTE: -- WHENEVER YOU DRINK IT--
I guess I look at this remembrance that Jesus gave us like this... He gave us a way to remember Him in something common that we do several times a day... EAT and Drink. In other words, "when you do the things you do every day, remember and proclaim Me!"
But when we gather with other believers, we should especially see that this is not a trivial thing. Don't treat the potluck like a 'munchies table' when we gather... But rather wait for one another and recognize that in this act of eating together and sharing with one another we should be reminded of Him and His sacrifice for us. And that we should love one another enough to wait for each other and eat together.
So, to bring it back to today... I don't want to make the Lord's supper a "lords snack" anymore... I think we should recognize, that like many of the other examples Jesus gave to his simple disciples, that day-to-day practical things should remind us of Him. We don't invite guests over and serve them a cracker and a tiny glass of drink. We treat them to a meal and fellowship with them.
In the same way, I think Jesus was teaching us that we should be remembering His sacrifice and proclaiming him in the everyday things we have to do... Like eating... Much like the Israelites were told to integrate their faith into their daily life... "Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
So, all that to say that observing the Lord's supper is not an element of a "worship service" (we are not serving people's spiritual need to be a priest to them and provide some priestly service to them in the Lord's supper) but rather it is something that we as believers should be doing together (scheduled or not) as a normal part of life... We have to eat, so eat unto the Lord!
Same goes for the use of gifts and the speaking to one another in 1 Corinthians...
For a moment, step outside of the "worship service" mentality of the current age and imagine a meeting just in the context of people gathered together. Some elements might seem the same as a 'church service' (there would be singing, but it might look different, there might be teaching, but that might look different). I would think the gathering would have much less of a scheduled agenda and the people there would not be coming to sing along to a "worship leader" nor simply sit and listen to a single preacher-man... Rather they would be there to participate in the preaching, encouraging and worship.
I think the main issue with this is the concept of "having church". We don't "have a church meeting"... We don't "do church"... we ARE the CHURCH.
I don't know how to attend "Me"... I don't "go to Me"... Or have a "Me Meeting".... I AM ME. In the same way, I don't understand how to "go to church" or "do church".
Meeting another believer in the parking lot at a grocery store is not "going to church", but it can be BEING THE CHURCH. I don't think we should think about doing the Heb 10:24 things ONLY or even PRIMARILY in some regularly scheduled meeting. We should do it in any planned gathering of the saints, but we should BE THE CHURCH always and anytime we meet, even if that is by 'chance' at the supermarket (where we went to buy some crackers and juice for our communion service on Sunday) -- (Sorry... The sarcastic humor is coming out of me) ;-)
I think maybe the western culture clock-consciousness issues might well be something that hinders a simple and basic understanding of what it means to BE THE CHURCH. We are conditioned to schedule things in our day-planners along with the rest of life. But in reality, being the church is not something you put on a calendar.
Secondly, I don't know that the "Lord's table"/ or Communion or whatever everyone calls it was intended to be such the ritual it is today.
In 1 Cor 11... note that it says in verse 20 & 21: "When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat, for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk."
Paul was saying that the disorder and disregard for one another was wrong, this is true. They should not have just attacked the food and left others without... They should be orderly and wait on each other so that they can share together. But note especially that this is not a "here is your little cracker, and here is your little shot glass of juice" sort of thing. If it was I would find it hard to believe then could gorge themselves on those little crackers and get drunk on the little glasses of wine.
This was a real meal... They were gathering to eat a regular full meal.
Jesus told us, and Paul recounts it here in verse 25, " do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."
NOTE: -- WHENEVER YOU DRINK IT--
I guess I look at this remembrance that Jesus gave us like this... He gave us a way to remember Him in something common that we do several times a day... EAT and Drink. In other words, "when you do the things you do every day, remember and proclaim Me!"
But when we gather with other believers, we should especially see that this is not a trivial thing. Don't treat the potluck like a 'munchies table' when we gather... But rather wait for one another and recognize that in this act of eating together and sharing with one another we should be reminded of Him and His sacrifice for us. And that we should love one another enough to wait for each other and eat together.
So, to bring it back to today... I don't want to make the Lord's supper a "lords snack" anymore... I think we should recognize, that like many of the other examples Jesus gave to his simple disciples, that day-to-day practical things should remind us of Him. We don't invite guests over and serve them a cracker and a tiny glass of drink. We treat them to a meal and fellowship with them.
In the same way, I think Jesus was teaching us that we should be remembering His sacrifice and proclaiming him in the everyday things we have to do... Like eating... Much like the Israelites were told to integrate their faith into their daily life... "Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
So, all that to say that observing the Lord's supper is not an element of a "worship service" (we are not serving people's spiritual need to be a priest to them and provide some priestly service to them in the Lord's supper) but rather it is something that we as believers should be doing together (scheduled or not) as a normal part of life... We have to eat, so eat unto the Lord!
Same goes for the use of gifts and the speaking to one another in 1 Corinthians...
For a moment, step outside of the "worship service" mentality of the current age and imagine a meeting just in the context of people gathered together. Some elements might seem the same as a 'church service' (there would be singing, but it might look different, there might be teaching, but that might look different). I would think the gathering would have much less of a scheduled agenda and the people there would not be coming to sing along to a "worship leader" nor simply sit and listen to a single preacher-man... Rather they would be there to participate in the preaching, encouraging and worship.
I think the main issue with this is the concept of "having church". We don't "have a church meeting"... We don't "do church"... we ARE the CHURCH.
I don't know how to attend "Me"... I don't "go to Me"... Or have a "Me Meeting".... I AM ME. In the same way, I don't understand how to "go to church" or "do church".
Meeting another believer in the parking lot at a grocery store is not "going to church", but it can be BEING THE CHURCH. I don't think we should think about doing the Heb 10:24 things ONLY or even PRIMARILY in some regularly scheduled meeting. We should do it in any planned gathering of the saints, but we should BE THE CHURCH always and anytime we meet, even if that is by 'chance' at the supermarket (where we went to buy some crackers and juice for our communion service on Sunday) -- (Sorry... The sarcastic humor is coming out of me) ;-)
I think maybe the western culture clock-consciousness issues might well be something that hinders a simple and basic understanding of what it means to BE THE CHURCH. We are conditioned to schedule things in our day-planners along with the rest of life. But in reality, being the church is not something you put on a calendar.
You can't attend church
Our culture has misunderstood what the church is. The idea most of us have when we hear the word 'church' is that it is a building, an organization, a corporate entity with a constitution, membership roles and a corporate structure of leadership.
However, if you read your Bible you will find that in reality, the church is simply the believers in Christ who make up his Body. Some will say, "well sure, of course we know that we ARE the church... we know that being in a garage does not make one a car... so attending church does not make us the church..." But, there is more to it than this simplistic idea about the issue. It is still a mistaken notion that you can "attend church".
You can't actually "ATTEND CHURCH". What I am saying is that the organization you are a part of, or the building you visit, the 'services' you sit in on... none of that really has anything much to do with the church. In fact, it may be distracting you from living out what we are supposed to be as the church.
I am not saying that God has not used this system of modeling and understanding "the church" for His kingdom, and I am not saying it is a sin to be a part of a church or "attend church" (if that is what you think you are doing)... I am simply saying that maybe we missed the point. Maybe we have formed the church into something that we model after our corporate structures or our traditions. Maybe we have made it into something it was never intended to be and in the process made it less than it should be.
However, if you read your Bible you will find that in reality, the church is simply the believers in Christ who make up his Body. Some will say, "well sure, of course we know that we ARE the church... we know that being in a garage does not make one a car... so attending church does not make us the church..." But, there is more to it than this simplistic idea about the issue. It is still a mistaken notion that you can "attend church".
You can't actually "ATTEND CHURCH". What I am saying is that the organization you are a part of, or the building you visit, the 'services' you sit in on... none of that really has anything much to do with the church. In fact, it may be distracting you from living out what we are supposed to be as the church.
I am not saying that God has not used this system of modeling and understanding "the church" for His kingdom, and I am not saying it is a sin to be a part of a church or "attend church" (if that is what you think you are doing)... I am simply saying that maybe we missed the point. Maybe we have formed the church into something that we model after our corporate structures or our traditions. Maybe we have made it into something it was never intended to be and in the process made it less than it should be.
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