by Tom Johnston
During the 1980’s there was the now-famous “Just Say No” campaign to teach teens and children that they could refuse the temptation of illicit drug use when such an opportunity was presented to them. The push for awareness did much to bring to the forefront the major issue we face with drug addiction in our country. Today, the Church in the West faces a similar scourge – we have an addiction of our own – and most of the pastors I know are enslaved to this poison.
What are we addicted to? Transfer growth. Yup, that’s it. We are driven by the need to see our churches “grow,” our “ministry expand” and our “community impact increase” (not to mention the desire to increase the church budget). We need the validation of more people attending our gatherings and services. Attendance at a service is the core metric of the church in our country, the one by which we measure success. This is how we “get high” as pastors. We get a “buzz” off our numbers, and we are addicted.
Rather than make our own disciples, which we validly do want more of, we are very content to let the wandering sheep from another flock nestle in with us. Think I’m crazy? With the hundreds of billions of dollars we are spending on ministry each year in the US, the evangelism growth rate of the Church is still at only about 5-7%, meaning that 93-95% of our growth comes from people who are already Christians!
Still think I’m crazy? Then ask yourself this question: When was the last time you sent someone packing? I mean, not some problem folks you are dealing with in church discipline, but rather, say, a healthy, spiritually mature, financially well-off couple with 2.5 kids who have been long-term members at the church down the street. These folks show up at your doorstep as “visitors” for a few weeks – and you’re hoping that they are going to make your church their new spiritual home – you need the “workers” and the cash. And this “hit” makes you feel good because they are coming to your place!
Ever stop to think why they are visiting? What happened at the last place? Was there a problem which needs to be resolved? Is their motive consumer-oriented, and they are “shopping” for a new church? Your place is nicer, better worship, more programs? Or are they “cruise-imatics” always moving from church to church?
Whatever the reason, if you receive them into fellowship, you have the potential of doing several (negative) things: first, you may enable their dysfunctional behavior – the root of the reason for transition; second, you receive that dysfunction into your church by receiving them, and third; you could mar the Body of Christ, leaving issues unresolved, and mostly, you allow attendance to be your core metric, displacing a call to devotion to Christ, His Church and His mission. The focus switches from disciple-making to vending spiritual goods and services so people attend, and you feed the transfer cycle of the consumer-driven church.
Please do not believe the lies, either. What lies? The ones the Enemy whispers in the ears of the addicted pastor: “Their last pastor didn’t really understand them.” “I can help them in a way he couldn’t.” “They need our church to take the next step in their spiritual growth” “Our church is better.” Now, none of us would admit to the last one, yet most of us believe it. The fact is that you – and the church you pastor – are probably no better than the last ones, and any potential issues will remain unresolved.
Granted, there are valid reasons for people coming to your church who are already Christians. Maybe they have moved into the area and are looking for a church. Fine and dandy, no problem here – folks need a church family to be part of. Maybe they have had a valid issue with the last church leadership which wasn’t able to be resolved. Not an issue either, once you check it out in order to determine the validity. Or maybe they are truly called alongside you and your church to work together. No problem – simply have them go back to their pastor and get their pastor’s blessing and release, and receive them in as gifts from God. The problem is, most of the times we don’t follow through like this. We are so glad simply to have someone come that we see no evil and hear no evil. We praise God that our core metric has increased and the budget too. (Yesssssss, my precioussss, we mustn’t forgetsss the budget!)
The problem with the pattern of transfer growth is that it puts our focus on the wrong thing – attendance - and keeps us from engaging the lost, making more and better disciples of Jesus Christ. If the church is growing by transfer, there is less of a motivation for evangelism. All the resources (time, energy, money) then turn inward to care for those already attending. This pattern also weakens the discipleship of the individual and the church as a whole, as no challenges are issued to the individual to address relational conflicts or issues with past pastoral leaders, and on the corporate level, there is not cost of discipleship – one only needs to attend to fulfill their obligation.
As pastors, we can address this temptation we face, and subvert the cycle of transfer growth, seeing healthy disciples made for Jesus. We can be freed from our addiction. By simply building relationship with other pastors in our areas and opening communication with them when someone from their church comes, we can strengthen the Body of Christ as a whole. In one area I pastored in, fourteen churches were networked together for prayer and ministry, and the relational bonds established allowed us to successfully address this exact issue. From there, all you need to do is engage those visiting Christians around receiving a blessing. If they are willing to pursue such a blessing, then they can come, if they are not, then you need to “just say no.”
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Just Say Yes
by Mike Chong Perkinson
The odd tension we face in serving our Lord within the sphere of pastoral ministry is the paradoxical nature of public ministry and our human state. You know the reality that while we seek to draw people’s attention to Jesus we do so by being visible, receiving attention ourselves. God seeks to display the wonder of His Son through human vessels. Complicating this paradoxical tension is the unfortunate reality that the mystery of the Kingdom is often lost within the confines of our understanding what makes a man or woman of God successful in ministry.
It is quite apparent that no matter how we slice it, what we score (attendance, buildings and cash) determines how we really define success and what we ultimately say “yes” to. The tension is that those who are called to this incredible privilege of shepherding God’s people struggle to make ends meet trying to obey the voice of their Father (saying “yes” to God) while trying to measure up to the human standards that tend to dominate our church world.
It’s that odd curiosity that surfaces when you are attending a pastor’s gathering - curiosity that wants to know just how big the other pastor’s church is. Of course we like people asking us how our church is doing when large numbers are getting saved, attendance is increasing, disciples are being made, and money is flowing in – ask away. However, when numbers are not increasing we tend to shy away from the question and when asked we oddly default to a biblical description. It might sound something like this, “Mike how’s your church doing?” Translated means how many are you running?
If my church is not growing numerically, I might answer with, “Well, we are growing deep in our love for God and each other, people’s lives are really changing and our hearts are breaking for the lost.” Isn’t that strange, we tend to default to a biblical response in the midst of perceived failure. Maybe that should be the response in every case?
A good friend of mine who pastors a great church once said to me, “It will be rather embarrassing when I get to heaven and talk with the apostle Paul and have to tell him that I could not grow the church or do what the Father wanted because I did not have an adequate parking lot.” Now please know that I am all for speaking our culture’s language and providing adequate parking and the like for people. However, my friend caught the essence of his struggle in ministry. He realized he was looking to external realities and the humanistic definition of success to drive him rather than what the Father had called him to do.
As the Church we tend to over-react to our problems and swing the pendulum to the opposite extreme. We often react by dealing with the wineskin (our form and structure) rather than taking a hard look at the wine. Is the life, love and grace of Jesus manifested in our lives, our families, our leadership community, our church, etc? Reaction is not the issue here but response, more specifically our response to God.
In my pastoral experience I have met many leaders who have dreams and aspirations that are from God Himself and yet are not living out that dream. Instead they find themselves caught in the machinery of church, serving the demands of the form and structure while seeking (often well intentioned) to bring people to Christ. Our scorecards only make this more difficult as the core matrix of success still hovers around attendance, buildings and cash. As my pastor said years ago, “Just because you have a lot of people does not mean you have a church. It just means you have a lot of people.”
And so, just say yes to the voice of our Father who called you and still desires to pour His life, love and grace in you and through you for the expressed purpose of extending His Kingdom in your life and the lives of those you are privileged to lead. Say yes to God!
The odd tension we face in serving our Lord within the sphere of pastoral ministry is the paradoxical nature of public ministry and our human state. You know the reality that while we seek to draw people’s attention to Jesus we do so by being visible, receiving attention ourselves. God seeks to display the wonder of His Son through human vessels. Complicating this paradoxical tension is the unfortunate reality that the mystery of the Kingdom is often lost within the confines of our understanding what makes a man or woman of God successful in ministry.
It is quite apparent that no matter how we slice it, what we score (attendance, buildings and cash) determines how we really define success and what we ultimately say “yes” to. The tension is that those who are called to this incredible privilege of shepherding God’s people struggle to make ends meet trying to obey the voice of their Father (saying “yes” to God) while trying to measure up to the human standards that tend to dominate our church world.
It’s that odd curiosity that surfaces when you are attending a pastor’s gathering - curiosity that wants to know just how big the other pastor’s church is. Of course we like people asking us how our church is doing when large numbers are getting saved, attendance is increasing, disciples are being made, and money is flowing in – ask away. However, when numbers are not increasing we tend to shy away from the question and when asked we oddly default to a biblical description. It might sound something like this, “Mike how’s your church doing?” Translated means how many are you running?
If my church is not growing numerically, I might answer with, “Well, we are growing deep in our love for God and each other, people’s lives are really changing and our hearts are breaking for the lost.” Isn’t that strange, we tend to default to a biblical response in the midst of perceived failure. Maybe that should be the response in every case?
A good friend of mine who pastors a great church once said to me, “It will be rather embarrassing when I get to heaven and talk with the apostle Paul and have to tell him that I could not grow the church or do what the Father wanted because I did not have an adequate parking lot.” Now please know that I am all for speaking our culture’s language and providing adequate parking and the like for people. However, my friend caught the essence of his struggle in ministry. He realized he was looking to external realities and the humanistic definition of success to drive him rather than what the Father had called him to do.
As the Church we tend to over-react to our problems and swing the pendulum to the opposite extreme. We often react by dealing with the wineskin (our form and structure) rather than taking a hard look at the wine. Is the life, love and grace of Jesus manifested in our lives, our families, our leadership community, our church, etc? Reaction is not the issue here but response, more specifically our response to God.
In my pastoral experience I have met many leaders who have dreams and aspirations that are from God Himself and yet are not living out that dream. Instead they find themselves caught in the machinery of church, serving the demands of the form and structure while seeking (often well intentioned) to bring people to Christ. Our scorecards only make this more difficult as the core matrix of success still hovers around attendance, buildings and cash. As my pastor said years ago, “Just because you have a lot of people does not mean you have a church. It just means you have a lot of people.”
And so, just say yes to the voice of our Father who called you and still desires to pour His life, love and grace in you and through you for the expressed purpose of extending His Kingdom in your life and the lives of those you are privileged to lead. Say yes to God!
Success and failure is not the issue in the Kingdom of God. God is not interested in how many we have or how effective we are as He is how obedient we have been, how faithful we have been as sons/daughters, servants, and stewards of the Kingdom. The issue for us as sons and daughters of the King is obedience and only doing what we see the Father doing. Success is best defined as obedience.
- Are you doing what the Father is asking of you?
- Are you waking up each day feeling like its Christmas because you get to partner with the King of Kings?
- Are you more in love with Jesus today?
- Are people pressing you and asking you about the hope that is within you? (1 Peter 3:15)
Just say yes to God, submit to His call and purpose in your life and be the son/daughter He has made you to be and seek out a mentor or coach to help you grow in your spirituality as well as grow in your ministry skill sets.
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Pivot Point for the Christian West
by Tom Johnston
When the Emperor Constantine won the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in 312 A.D. the emerging Christian Church in the Western world entered into a new central role in society and culture. While preparing for the battle, Constantine, who was not a follower of Christ, had a vision from the Christian God in which he saw the Cross – with the words written over it - in hoc signo vinces — "In this sign you will conquer." This was a pivotal point for the Western Church.
Painting a cross on the shields of his solders as a talisman, Constantine wins the battle. One year later he issues the Edict of Milan, legitimizing the Christian faith, ending persecution and restoring the property rights of Christians. This paves the way for the Emperor Theodosius I to make Christianity the official state religion of Roman Empire in 391 A.D. The rest is, as they say, history.
From the Fourth Century on we begin to see the emergence of something we have come to call Christendom – a geo-socio-political reality in which the Church became the central influence in politics, government, culture and everyday life. For more than a millennium this order grew in geographic scope and temporal power. The Christian Church became the central pole of the fabric of the life in the West, for nobles and commoners alike. Culture is a system of customs, values and beliefs, and for centuries the Church was the major influencer in all of things.
This began to change during the Enlightenment and the Protestant Reformation, where the power of the Church was questioned by empiricists and ultimately fractured by reformers, with its political role weakened along with the monarchies it supported – and which had supported it.
Even within Protestantism, the concept of Christendom lived on, now empowered by the new concept of democracy. This was all brought to the shores of the New World by the Pilgrims in their vision for a new social order based in their views of Scripture and a new awareness of their own political power, and embodied in John Winthrop’s City on a Hill. So, the Church in the U.S. is an inheritor of the concept of Christendom, which continued to exert influence in our nation into the Twentieth Century. Since the 1960’s the perceived division between the Church and the rest of society has grown, culminating in what is now termed “The Culture War.”
Many in the Church seek to fight to maintain the last vestiges of Christendom, seeking to re-exert cultural influence through political means. Those who seek to limit what they consider to be the archaic beliefs and restrictive rules of Christian faith push back – with both vaguely defined groups becoming “pro”-something while acting very “anti” in their words and behaviors.
But here is the truth – Christendom is dead. Let’s face it, the culture war has been lost – even the “sin stats” of the Church in America look like those of the non-professing segment of our society. The Church is no longer calling the shots, morally, culturally or politically. Statistics indicate that we aren’t even reaching a percentage of the population equivalent to our own children. So, what do we do? Give up? Run away? Turn inward? Many have responded in such ways, and many more will do so. Yet we have a great opportunity ahead of us, one which could see a rebirth of the Church in the West. But it will require yet another pivot point.
With the Church no longer being the center pole of the Western world, we must shift our thinking. No longer the cultural driver or universal center, we must become the resource of our society. We live in the midst of so much tremendous need in all areas, and we have the opportunity to bring the resources of the living Christ to bear on those issues. We must serve others – even those who we may consider to be like “Samaritans.” We must love our neighbors – unconditionally – just as God has first loved us – “while we were yet sinners.” We must be willing to resource local community needs, working alongside governmental and “secular” agencies. We must stop trying to compete for the “marketshare” of the American heart and minds, and bring the wholeness of Christ to those with broken hearts and troubled minds. We should not compromise our prophetic mandate to point out sin in the culture, but before we talk about their speck we have to first remove our log. We have to call sin what it is – sin, but words flowing from a heart full of God’s grace – which will be received when we do our own repentance. When we do this, and someone asks us why, it is then we can share the love and life of Christ with them, giving a defense for the hope that is within us.
So Christendom is dead, but the Church is very much alive. We have before us a great opportunity, but to take advantage of this we must no longer try to dominate and be the center, but rather we must serve and become the resource Christ would have us be to our society.
What are your thoughts?
When the Emperor Constantine won the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in 312 A.D. the emerging Christian Church in the Western world entered into a new central role in society and culture. While preparing for the battle, Constantine, who was not a follower of Christ, had a vision from the Christian God in which he saw the Cross – with the words written over it - in hoc signo vinces — "In this sign you will conquer." This was a pivotal point for the Western Church.
Painting a cross on the shields of his solders as a talisman, Constantine wins the battle. One year later he issues the Edict of Milan, legitimizing the Christian faith, ending persecution and restoring the property rights of Christians. This paves the way for the Emperor Theodosius I to make Christianity the official state religion of Roman Empire in 391 A.D. The rest is, as they say, history.
From the Fourth Century on we begin to see the emergence of something we have come to call Christendom – a geo-socio-political reality in which the Church became the central influence in politics, government, culture and everyday life. For more than a millennium this order grew in geographic scope and temporal power. The Christian Church became the central pole of the fabric of the life in the West, for nobles and commoners alike. Culture is a system of customs, values and beliefs, and for centuries the Church was the major influencer in all of things.
This began to change during the Enlightenment and the Protestant Reformation, where the power of the Church was questioned by empiricists and ultimately fractured by reformers, with its political role weakened along with the monarchies it supported – and which had supported it.
Even within Protestantism, the concept of Christendom lived on, now empowered by the new concept of democracy. This was all brought to the shores of the New World by the Pilgrims in their vision for a new social order based in their views of Scripture and a new awareness of their own political power, and embodied in John Winthrop’s City on a Hill. So, the Church in the U.S. is an inheritor of the concept of Christendom, which continued to exert influence in our nation into the Twentieth Century. Since the 1960’s the perceived division between the Church and the rest of society has grown, culminating in what is now termed “The Culture War.”
Many in the Church seek to fight to maintain the last vestiges of Christendom, seeking to re-exert cultural influence through political means. Those who seek to limit what they consider to be the archaic beliefs and restrictive rules of Christian faith push back – with both vaguely defined groups becoming “pro”-something while acting very “anti” in their words and behaviors.
But here is the truth – Christendom is dead. Let’s face it, the culture war has been lost – even the “sin stats” of the Church in America look like those of the non-professing segment of our society. The Church is no longer calling the shots, morally, culturally or politically. Statistics indicate that we aren’t even reaching a percentage of the population equivalent to our own children. So, what do we do? Give up? Run away? Turn inward? Many have responded in such ways, and many more will do so. Yet we have a great opportunity ahead of us, one which could see a rebirth of the Church in the West. But it will require yet another pivot point.
With the Church no longer being the center pole of the Western world, we must shift our thinking. No longer the cultural driver or universal center, we must become the resource of our society. We live in the midst of so much tremendous need in all areas, and we have the opportunity to bring the resources of the living Christ to bear on those issues. We must serve others – even those who we may consider to be like “Samaritans.” We must love our neighbors – unconditionally – just as God has first loved us – “while we were yet sinners.” We must be willing to resource local community needs, working alongside governmental and “secular” agencies. We must stop trying to compete for the “marketshare” of the American heart and minds, and bring the wholeness of Christ to those with broken hearts and troubled minds. We should not compromise our prophetic mandate to point out sin in the culture, but before we talk about their speck we have to first remove our log. We have to call sin what it is – sin, but words flowing from a heart full of God’s grace – which will be received when we do our own repentance. When we do this, and someone asks us why, it is then we can share the love and life of Christ with them, giving a defense for the hope that is within us.
So Christendom is dead, but the Church is very much alive. We have before us a great opportunity, but to take advantage of this we must no longer try to dominate and be the center, but rather we must serve and become the resource Christ would have us be to our society.
What are your thoughts?
People of the Treasure
by Mike Chong Perkinson
“God chooses agents who will make it evident that the power which brings the ‘dead’ to ‘life’ is not theirs but His. The minister is like an ‘earthen pot’: cheap, fragile, expendable, unrepairable.” - Jerome Murphy-O’Connor
Strained relationships and disappointments are not only a part of the life of the church in the 21st century it was clearly evident in the life of the early church. After a careful reading of the letters to the church in Corinth, one discovers that the Spirit-people at Corinth were not at all impressed with the apostle Paul. They wanted a leader with more charisma and in whose power and presence they could take pride. He, however, exhibited none of the qualities they desired. In addition to his unimpressive personality and mediocre preaching, his life was characterized by setbacks and failures and suffering. A resume that one would not want for a life of Spirit-empowered person, at least that was what Corinth thought. How could such a weak and fragile person be God’s agent in the salvation of humanity?
This apparently weak apostle utilizes the imagery of clay vessels or “earthen pots” to paint a picture of our walk with Jesus. What comes to mind from the first century context is the imagery of a wrestler who is in the grips with a more skilled opponent. Before a bout, wrestlers would oil their bodies. As they would begin to perspire, sweat now mixed with oil and after a few falls on the soft floor of the ring their bodies became encrusted with clay to the point where they looked like clay statues. Men made of the material that cheap household vessels were crafted.
We live in a world full of clay pots and vessels. The church often finds itself highlighting the clay pot (the wineskin - vessel) more than the treasure that lies within it. The problem is not our worship styles necessarily (although some our outdated) or how we do church. Leith Anderson makes this bold assertion:
While the New Testament speaks often about churches, it is surprisingly silent about many matters that we associate with church structure and life. There is no mention of architecture, pulpits, lengths of typical sermons [or sermons!], rules for having a Sunday school. Little is said about style of music, order of worship, or times of church gatherings. There were no Bibles, denominations, camps, pastor’s conferences, or board meeting minutes. Those who strive to be New Testament churches must seek to live its principles and absolutes, not reproduce the details. (Quoted in Renovation of the Heart, Dallas Willard, p. 235)
We, as a church, have successfully turned the focus to the vessel and away from the treasure that gives life. We are good at reproducing details without principles. Time and time again in our history, we see major movements begin and then fade. That’s why we use the description of “early” (Dominicans, Quakers, Methodists, etc.) when describing a movement. The vessel that emerged in the outbreak of a radical move of God gradually overwhelmed the treasure it initially served to convey. Eventually we add the new movement to our list of movements to be showcased in our museum of Christian history. There is a vast difference between people of the vessel and people of the treasure.
CHARACTERISTICS OF VESSEL PEOPLE AND TREASURE PEOPLE
LIVING AS PEOPLE OF THE TREASURE
If a revolution is going to take place then we must return to the simplicity of our faith, the Irreducible Core of loving God, loving others, and making disciples as we live life. We can live as people of the treasure by living out the following.
“God chooses agents who will make it evident that the power which brings the ‘dead’ to ‘life’ is not theirs but His. The minister is like an ‘earthen pot’: cheap, fragile, expendable, unrepairable.” - Jerome Murphy-O’Connor
Strained relationships and disappointments are not only a part of the life of the church in the 21st century it was clearly evident in the life of the early church. After a careful reading of the letters to the church in Corinth, one discovers that the Spirit-people at Corinth were not at all impressed with the apostle Paul. They wanted a leader with more charisma and in whose power and presence they could take pride. He, however, exhibited none of the qualities they desired. In addition to his unimpressive personality and mediocre preaching, his life was characterized by setbacks and failures and suffering. A resume that one would not want for a life of Spirit-empowered person, at least that was what Corinth thought. How could such a weak and fragile person be God’s agent in the salvation of humanity?
This apparently weak apostle utilizes the imagery of clay vessels or “earthen pots” to paint a picture of our walk with Jesus. What comes to mind from the first century context is the imagery of a wrestler who is in the grips with a more skilled opponent. Before a bout, wrestlers would oil their bodies. As they would begin to perspire, sweat now mixed with oil and after a few falls on the soft floor of the ring their bodies became encrusted with clay to the point where they looked like clay statues. Men made of the material that cheap household vessels were crafted.
We live in a world full of clay pots and vessels. The church often finds itself highlighting the clay pot (the wineskin - vessel) more than the treasure that lies within it. The problem is not our worship styles necessarily (although some our outdated) or how we do church. Leith Anderson makes this bold assertion:
While the New Testament speaks often about churches, it is surprisingly silent about many matters that we associate with church structure and life. There is no mention of architecture, pulpits, lengths of typical sermons [or sermons!], rules for having a Sunday school. Little is said about style of music, order of worship, or times of church gatherings. There were no Bibles, denominations, camps, pastor’s conferences, or board meeting minutes. Those who strive to be New Testament churches must seek to live its principles and absolutes, not reproduce the details. (Quoted in Renovation of the Heart, Dallas Willard, p. 235)
We, as a church, have successfully turned the focus to the vessel and away from the treasure that gives life. We are good at reproducing details without principles. Time and time again in our history, we see major movements begin and then fade. That’s why we use the description of “early” (Dominicans, Quakers, Methodists, etc.) when describing a movement. The vessel that emerged in the outbreak of a radical move of God gradually overwhelmed the treasure it initially served to convey. Eventually we add the new movement to our list of movements to be showcased in our museum of Christian history. There is a vast difference between people of the vessel and people of the treasure.
CHARACTERISTICS OF VESSEL PEOPLE AND TREASURE PEOPLE
LIVING AS PEOPLE OF THE TREASURE
If a revolution is going to take place then we must return to the simplicity of our faith, the Irreducible Core of loving God, loving others, and making disciples as we live life. We can live as people of the treasure by living out the following.
- Give up your life and live as Jesus lived in every venue. There is no distinction between sacred and secular. Focus on the principles and absolutes of Scripture – the treasure—don’t major on the minors or details.
- Make disciples – we are all apprentices of Jesus. The church is to be a place where people are shown and taught how to be disciples of Christ, becoming lights in a darkened world (Philippians 2:15).
- Immerse yourself in the presence of God. That is, seek out God’s presence in every situation of life. The psalmist cried out, “The nearness of God is good.” (Psalm 73:28).
- Transformed: Living lives that do not focus only on behaviors, but the heart. The natural outcome or side effect of a transformed life it to live like Jesus lived and love like Jesus loved. This is a revolution of “peacemakers” (Matthew 5:9). We are most like God when we seek to make peace. We invite you into a revolution that seeks to…
- Be genuinely kind to hostile people, returning a blessing for a curse.
- Be kind to everyone and especially to your family (Galatians 6:10).
- Find someone to disciple you and find someone to disciple.
Go and live your life based in and around the King and the Kingdom of God, loving all He loves, and seeking to make disciples of all who submit their lives to the King!
Tell me what you think. Let’s talk about it.
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