January 2007
When Martin Luther started a dialog in October of 1517 around his 95 talking points, he didn’t intend to start a revolution. But he did. The Protest-tant Reformation was arguably the most significant event in Christianity’s second millennium. And boy, did it change things – and not all for the good. With the battle cry of sola gratia, sola fida, sola Christos and sola scriptura the forces of revolution swept Western Europe. And everything changed. Looking back from our vantage point, many today think the spiritual revolutionaries of the 1500’s went too far, some think not far enough, while others consider the Reformation one step in a longer journey. To be sure, the impact has had an irreversible, lasting effect on the Church universal. It all started with one man who wanted to talk about the issues.
A thousand years earlier Patricius (St. Patrick), a Roman Briton, took the church beyond the culturally-Roman world, to the Celts who were considered to be barbaric pagans. The standard practice was to Romanize/civilize before you tried to Christianize. By going to the Celts, Patrick went beyond that practice. What Patrick did in going to the uncivilized was truly revolutionary in his day. Many consider Patrick and those who followed after him to be the first true missionaries in the West since biblical times, crossing the boundaries of culture and language with the Gospel of the Kingdom. The Celts were reached for Christ, and incredible spiritual communities were formed, both as an outcome and as a means of mission. It all started with one man who wanted to share the life he had found in Christ with other people.
Spiritual revolutions in the Church are often started without the intent to do so, like Luther. Sometime they are started by the intentional action of someone, like Patrick. Always there is a passion instilled in the revolutionary (whether they come to the revolution by accident or intention) by the Holy Spirit for something beyond the current reality. They have a vision for a better country (Hebrews 11:16), and hope to realize at least some of it in the Church of their generation.
When such spiritual revolutions emerge, they will not be ignored. They have a way of demanding attention, and they are dismissed only at one’s own peril. When confronted by such radical shifts like those brought on by Luther and Patrick, church leaders are required to respond. Try to stop it, you might be crushed by its momentum. Try to ignore it, it might pass you by, leaving you in the dust of history. Try to control it, you might find yourself loosing everything. Try to nurture it and mature it, you might find yourself partnering with God.
There is a revolution coming in the Western Church. In fact, it is here now. You can’t stop it – don’t even try. You can ignore it – and lose out big-time. And don’t fool yourself – you can’t control it. Find out how to partner with God in it, bringing this emerging move of God to maturity. Maybe like Luther you have found yourself in the revolution by accident. Maybe you are like Patrick, and you are called to foster the revolution intentionally. Whatever you do, find a way to surf this wave of the Spirit, giving your heart fully to the work of the Lord, because like Luther and Patrick, you want to play your part. The revolution starts with you – let Jesus refresh the wineskin of your heart.
“But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.”
- Jesus, Luke 5:38
No comments:
Post a Comment