Anyone who has walked with the Lord for any length of time knows that things are not always easy and comfortable. There are seasons in our lives where it seems everything has gone wrong. We try to comfort ourselves as much as we can in the fact that Job, Abraham, David, Paul, even Jesus experienced difficult times, and yet this was the Lords will for them to go through this time and come out with a tested and purified faith. However, in my own life and in the lives of other believers who I have know, often I hear the phrase, "I thought this is the way the Lord wanted me to go, but now it seems difficult / road blocked / uncomfortable / closed door..."
Now I admit, when it is myself in these situations I come to the same conclusion initially. I see these difficult times and see it as a path I don't want to go down... and I say, "looks like the Lord closed this door". When in fact, how is it I can jump to such a conclusion when I know that all those others in the Bible who went through tough times and it was the Lord who called them to go through it.
This notion of open and closed doors... I think it is a misused concept.
To be sure, the Lord will direct us. And the few verses where this idea of closed doors is spoken of (and a whole theology and misunderstanding has been drawn from) do not say anything about the fact that some doors the Lord opens and asks us to walk through will not be comfortable or inviting doors.
take a look at the passage that most directly states this concept of the Lord opening a door...
Colossians 4:3
"And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains."
Note that Paul is not asking them to pray that God will make the way open by making it easy. Notice that he even says he is in chains as a result of proclaiming the mystery of Christ. We might like to read it that he is asking them to pray for an easier way, but he really says no such thing.
There are a multitude of other passages and people in the Bible which might be used as examples where the hallway of doors before them seems to demonstrate the concept that God will 'clear the way' by opening paths to us and closing other paths. But if you really take the time to examine them, the open doors given to these people are not always comfortable or easy ones.
Sometimes God opens a door and it is a dark passage and looks creepy. We take a look at it and think this must really be a closed door because it is so foreboding. We look around and see another door lit by a quaint porch light with the sound of laughter and joy behind it. The door is actually closed, but we go to it and knock because it seems so much easier and more inviting. "This must be the way the Lord wishes us to go. not down that dark tunnel."
All the while we ignore the fact that the OPEN door is frightening and the CLOSED one is inviting.
When Paul was told by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem but was later 'warned' by the prophet Agabus (Acts 21) that he would be bound and taken captive if he went... I don't think Agabus' message was a warning to Paul that he should not go to Jerusalem (He had just been told by the Spirit to go), but it was rather to prepare Paul for what he would now have to go through. The Lord was asking Paul to walk through a door that would lead to his imprisonment and eventually his death. But on the way, Paul would get a chance to speak to many people about Jesus, and would have the opportunity to fulfill what Paul wished for: "...that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains."
Walking out my Christianity in the place I am now... in a small group of believers who often don't see things as I do, in a setting that is not as comfortable and controlled as a typical religious organization (which most people call a "church"), I find I am called to walk through doors that I want to fool myself into believing are closed... but are in fact open. The Spirit has not changed His mind about the path I am traveling (which He set me on) he is just reminding me and preparing me (like he did for Paul through Agabus) for what lies down the path of this open door.
Sunday, January 30, 2005
Saturday, January 22, 2005
Open Letter to Christianity Today
Dear Editor,
I read a recent blog entry ( http://weblogs.oxegen.us/lifestream/archive/2005/01/21/6161.aspx ) that reflected my thoughts about your recent article "The Church—Why Bother" by Tim Stafford ( http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/001/26.42.html).
I wanted you to know that I am one of those believers Wayne Jacobsen mentioned in this blog article who have discovered an incredible life among the church of Jesus Christ outside the walls of the institution that Mr. Stafford championed in his article.
I am a 39 year old believer from Garden Grove, California who has been a believer for 30 years. I grew up in the institutional church. In the past I have served as a Sunday school teacher, a small group leader, a deacon, a pastor/elder and have lead a monthly jail ministry. But I found that the structured mechanical services and programs of the institutional church were not able to allow the life of Jesus to grow and move as it should in my life or the lives of others around me.
My family and I left the attendance of a structured religious organization in order to find a deeper relationship with the Lord and other believers, not to get away from these elements of the Christian life. It was not a lack of desire for the Lord that drove me from the religious organizational church, it was a desire to know Him better and live out His Life. Tim Stafford's assumption that the institutions of the religious organizations he terms 'the church' are the only and best way for a Christian to grow, is simply not true. I have found connections to the true Church outside the walls of the organizations and meetings of man and see now why Jesus described us as a "wind" to Nicodemus ( John 3 ). We are a living breathing church that is not constrained by a model or definition. We demonstrate the power and movement of the Spirit of God without a label that can be placed on us.
Since leaving the schedule of our local church we have found more and deeper relationships than we ever had in the religious Christian organizational church we had been a part of for the previous 10 years. We have come to understand more things about the teachings of scripture (which used to be constrained to a definition built on our assumptions about what the 'church' was). Granted, it does come down to one's desire to pursue God personally. Simply not attending 'services' and not seeking to pursue God personally will never get one there... But I have found connections to numerous of people who were starving to death spiritually in the institutional church. They left the meetings and the structure behind to seek new live among the church that exists outside of these structures. They left to grow in their Christian walk. Not to abandon it.
I do not condemn or disparage those who still find their connection to God in the intuitional style church structures... As a child I grew up in such a place, but I have found that being a part of such an organization does not make one better connected to the Body of Christ any more than being in a garage makes one a car. And I don't see where Jesus told us to build the garage anyway.
I read a recent blog entry ( http://weblogs.oxegen.us/lifestream/archive/2005/01/21/6161.aspx ) that reflected my thoughts about your recent article "The Church—Why Bother" by Tim Stafford ( http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/001/26.42.html).
I wanted you to know that I am one of those believers Wayne Jacobsen mentioned in this blog article who have discovered an incredible life among the church of Jesus Christ outside the walls of the institution that Mr. Stafford championed in his article.
I am a 39 year old believer from Garden Grove, California who has been a believer for 30 years. I grew up in the institutional church. In the past I have served as a Sunday school teacher, a small group leader, a deacon, a pastor/elder and have lead a monthly jail ministry. But I found that the structured mechanical services and programs of the institutional church were not able to allow the life of Jesus to grow and move as it should in my life or the lives of others around me.
My family and I left the attendance of a structured religious organization in order to find a deeper relationship with the Lord and other believers, not to get away from these elements of the Christian life. It was not a lack of desire for the Lord that drove me from the religious organizational church, it was a desire to know Him better and live out His Life. Tim Stafford's assumption that the institutions of the religious organizations he terms 'the church' are the only and best way for a Christian to grow, is simply not true. I have found connections to the true Church outside the walls of the organizations and meetings of man and see now why Jesus described us as a "wind" to Nicodemus ( John 3 ). We are a living breathing church that is not constrained by a model or definition. We demonstrate the power and movement of the Spirit of God without a label that can be placed on us.
Since leaving the schedule of our local church we have found more and deeper relationships than we ever had in the religious Christian organizational church we had been a part of for the previous 10 years. We have come to understand more things about the teachings of scripture (which used to be constrained to a definition built on our assumptions about what the 'church' was). Granted, it does come down to one's desire to pursue God personally. Simply not attending 'services' and not seeking to pursue God personally will never get one there... But I have found connections to numerous of people who were starving to death spiritually in the institutional church. They left the meetings and the structure behind to seek new live among the church that exists outside of these structures. They left to grow in their Christian walk. Not to abandon it.
I do not condemn or disparage those who still find their connection to God in the intuitional style church structures... As a child I grew up in such a place, but I have found that being a part of such an organization does not make one better connected to the Body of Christ any more than being in a garage makes one a car. And I don't see where Jesus told us to build the garage anyway.
Monday, January 17, 2005
If you have to be there... it's a cult
Sometime last year my family and other family were sitting around in their living room discussing the "rules" imposed on people who "go to church" -- rules we had all experienced.
One issue that came up was the idea of attendance and calling people who had not 'been to church' in weeks. My wife was relating a conversation she had with another person in our former religious institution (some call it a church). This other person had told my wife how they hated dealing with the pressure of having to show up every week, lest they be cornered later and asked where they were the previous week. They were talking about being able to take a weekend and go do something with their family and not feel obligated to attend. At this point my wife responded to them with this simple statement... (it has since become something of a slogan around our circle of friends) "if you have to be there, it's a cult!"
When she said this, we all got a laugh... simply because it is so true! We have been duped into thinking that we are obeying the Bible's command to "not forsake the assembly of the saints" because we show up every week. I really don't see how coming to a big building, sitting in a pew and listening quietly to a preacher is what the writer of Hebrews had in mind when he wrote that.
There is something kind of funny about this concept of regular church attendance. We are considered to be a "more mature" Christian if we "attend church" once a week... or even a few times a week! and if we don't come every week, well, maybe that means we are just not very 'committed'. Whatever. Seems that living the life outside of the "meetings" is more of an indicator of maturity... hmmm.
Sadly, those who (maybe) out of pure motives (or not) will call or question another believer about his absence the past Sunday often just add to the guilt trip. Their motives may well be of good intentions... and it is good to contact people you have not seen in a while to encourage them... but asking them why they did not attend is missing the point. Sitting in a service on Sunday is not your calling as a Christian. That is the point.
The question is not "Where were you last week? We missed you in church." It should be something more like, "Hey, we have not had time to talk lately, how about we get together sometime to talk and pray?"
Last Sunday we were in the car on the way to the gathering of believers we meet with in one family's home. We knew that this Sunday one couple that had a history and a relationship with this group would be there to say farewell. However, our family did not really know or have any relationship with this family. We had only briefly met them before they had stopped coming to the group regularly. As we were driving I started thinking about it... And my wife and I talked about it... We were thinking that since this was mostly a 'personal farewell sort of thing' it didn't seem relevant or necessary for us to come.
I guess it felt like we were 'going to church' to simply attend a meeting... do our duty... ( we figured the people who had personal history with them would be the ones who would mean more to them and we would just kind of 'be there' as unknown warm bodies to them.)
So, instead... we went to a local park with our family and later went over to another couple's house to help them assemble some things for their baby who is scheduled to be born soon.
The refreshing thing was we had no guilt trip that we "missed church"... and the people who called us thought it was a great idea that we had made the choice we did that Sunday!
church is not a place, or a time, or a meeting or a 'service'...
WE ARE the church... WE ARE to be more than just a Sunday meeting. I think this "it's not a just Sunday thing" could be a big part of what I am feeling about how we should BE the church rather than ATTEND church.
Years ago I wrote up a little study pamphlet about "being the church". I can distinctly recall specifically wording it to say we should "BE the church rather than ATTEND it." One of the "Elders" at the church organization I was a part of at the time told me I should re-phrase it to say, "Be the church AS WELL AS Attend it." I struggled with his comment because my whole point was that ATTENDING anything does not make one the church. But he was afraid people would take that to mean they didn't have to attend church... and well, looking back on it... maybe that is what God was trying to tell me. I was still in the mindset of attending church too. But I knew there was more than attending. I didn't totally understand that what I had written was actually correct in it's extreme position... we don't have to "attend church" because we CAN'T "attend church". Church is not attended. We are church and should live like it daily.
So... I stick to my wife's statement... "if you have to be there, it's a cult!"
One issue that came up was the idea of attendance and calling people who had not 'been to church' in weeks. My wife was relating a conversation she had with another person in our former religious institution (some call it a church). This other person had told my wife how they hated dealing with the pressure of having to show up every week, lest they be cornered later and asked where they were the previous week. They were talking about being able to take a weekend and go do something with their family and not feel obligated to attend. At this point my wife responded to them with this simple statement... (it has since become something of a slogan around our circle of friends) "if you have to be there, it's a cult!"
When she said this, we all got a laugh... simply because it is so true! We have been duped into thinking that we are obeying the Bible's command to "not forsake the assembly of the saints" because we show up every week. I really don't see how coming to a big building, sitting in a pew and listening quietly to a preacher is what the writer of Hebrews had in mind when he wrote that.
There is something kind of funny about this concept of regular church attendance. We are considered to be a "more mature" Christian if we "attend church" once a week... or even a few times a week! and if we don't come every week, well, maybe that means we are just not very 'committed'. Whatever. Seems that living the life outside of the "meetings" is more of an indicator of maturity... hmmm.
Sadly, those who (maybe) out of pure motives (or not) will call or question another believer about his absence the past Sunday often just add to the guilt trip. Their motives may well be of good intentions... and it is good to contact people you have not seen in a while to encourage them... but asking them why they did not attend is missing the point. Sitting in a service on Sunday is not your calling as a Christian. That is the point.
The question is not "Where were you last week? We missed you in church." It should be something more like, "Hey, we have not had time to talk lately, how about we get together sometime to talk and pray?"
Last Sunday we were in the car on the way to the gathering of believers we meet with in one family's home. We knew that this Sunday one couple that had a history and a relationship with this group would be there to say farewell. However, our family did not really know or have any relationship with this family. We had only briefly met them before they had stopped coming to the group regularly. As we were driving I started thinking about it... And my wife and I talked about it... We were thinking that since this was mostly a 'personal farewell sort of thing' it didn't seem relevant or necessary for us to come.
I guess it felt like we were 'going to church' to simply attend a meeting... do our duty... ( we figured the people who had personal history with them would be the ones who would mean more to them and we would just kind of 'be there' as unknown warm bodies to them.)
So, instead... we went to a local park with our family and later went over to another couple's house to help them assemble some things for their baby who is scheduled to be born soon.
The refreshing thing was we had no guilt trip that we "missed church"... and the people who called us thought it was a great idea that we had made the choice we did that Sunday!
church is not a place, or a time, or a meeting or a 'service'...
WE ARE the church... WE ARE to be more than just a Sunday meeting. I think this "it's not a just Sunday thing" could be a big part of what I am feeling about how we should BE the church rather than ATTEND church.
Years ago I wrote up a little study pamphlet about "being the church". I can distinctly recall specifically wording it to say we should "BE the church rather than ATTEND it." One of the "Elders" at the church organization I was a part of at the time told me I should re-phrase it to say, "Be the church AS WELL AS Attend it." I struggled with his comment because my whole point was that ATTENDING anything does not make one the church. But he was afraid people would take that to mean they didn't have to attend church... and well, looking back on it... maybe that is what God was trying to tell me. I was still in the mindset of attending church too. But I knew there was more than attending. I didn't totally understand that what I had written was actually correct in it's extreme position... we don't have to "attend church" because we CAN'T "attend church". Church is not attended. We are church and should live like it daily.
So... I stick to my wife's statement... "if you have to be there, it's a cult!"
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