Gathered & Dispersed

NOVEMBER 4, 2011
There is today and frequently has been through church history, heated debate on the merits of ‘attractional’ vs ‘missional’ models of church. Missional advocates might point out that ‘attractional’ models are more often about ‘in-grab’ rather than ‘outreach’. They are commenting on the fact that ‘attractional’ churches seek to run excellent programs that often foster a ‘consumer’ mindset. This in turn leads to centralized building costs and a growing Christian ‘subculture’ that is severely limited in its missional capacity. This is not something easily reproduced, is less flexible for mission and requires higher maintenance. Missional advocates will declare that smaller flexible models of church are more wieldy and informal and more able to do mission, being embedded in their target communities. They are low maintenance and more easy to reproduce.
‘Attractional’ advocates will argue that without large gatherings people often become too easily isolated or discouraged. That they need the inspiration and encouragement of larger gatherings and that they have skill sets of excellence in teaching, worship, children’s work and counsel that are not available in smaller groups. They will argue their capacity for mission is greater because of their resources and that they can be a prayer force to be reckoned with!  So the debate goes.

But what if both are right? What if each is a part of the answer and both are needed to fully express the DNA of who we are in Gods design; the rhythm of celebration and mission, of transcendence and incarnation, of gathered and dispersed. What if the two models were to work in harmony within the season and culture they find themselves? – Not trying to do what the other is strong at, but doing what they each do best and developing a healthy rhythm of gathered and dispersed, both accountable to the other and without seeking to control.

The OT people of God had a pattern of temple and synagogue, woven with festivals, special times of prayer, and large celebrations. This reflected their calling as a holy nation of God, and as tribes on a journey in the earth, formed by him to prepare the world for messiah.The synagogue was a low maintenance extended family and community where relationship and learning took place ‘on the ground’. There was a weekly rhythm of Sabbath and family rites of passage, of community prayers and apprenticeship in all manner of skills. It was capable of being a genuine community with flexible gatherings and relevant learning styles.The temple on the other hand was a gathering point for these many dozens of synagogues, uniting them in the bigger mission and call of God to be a holy people and a light to nations. Its role was to remind the people of God of their final destination; to express the hope of Isaiah 6 and Rev 21. The temple served to overcome isolation and tempered individualism, it trained and fostered mission and acted as a centre of prayer for the nations and an expression of the transcendent.

When Jesus declared his body to be the new temple, he was linking all the seasons and rhythms of faith to himself. He was linking both temple and synagogue functions forever to himself, challenging the assumption that buildings (whether temples, homes, synagogues, or in fact any holy ‘places’) were an end in themselves. Jesus didn’t only overturn moneychangers tables in the temple; he exposed hypocrisy in the heart of one whose home he attended, and wicked unbelief in the hearts of a synagogues’ leaders. Jesus was not challenging the rhythms of temple and synagogue, or the use of buildings for various forms of gathering; he was challenging the hypocrisy that had usurped their meaning. He redeemed the parable of the Jerusalem Temple and redirecting attention back to where it should have been in the first place.

For as long as they were welcome, the early church continued to use the temple courts, they continued to use the synagogue and their own homes, but the meaning of all of these spaces had forever changed for them. Neither Jesus nor Paul preached that synagogue or temple were the right or wrong way to gather. What is clear is that whenever the church has the freedom to do so, it benefits from a healthy rhythm of gathered and dispersed. Gathering in season to a large celebration in order to be inspired, encouraged and commissioned, then dispersing in ‘missional’ communities that are embedded in their context, having genuine relationships with those around them and expressing the resurrection love of Christ to a dying hopeless world.

Ents and Avalanches

I woke up this morning thinking about Ents and avalanches.
I think trees represent something profoundly comforting, and also something wildly exciting. They were always my hiding place and ‘den‘ as a child. Whenever we went away on a holiday I would often be looking for a potential place of vertical refuge. We had a large weeping willow in our garden, and whenever life troubled me, I would lodge myself in its branches to retreat and think, drawing unconscious comfort from the beauty of nature and the solidness of the tree itself.
But trees were more than a comfort, they were an adventure, a place of imagining wild stories and other possibilities. Trees had an element of danger (especially if they were very high and hard to climb) and their wildness stimulated my imagination. Even before I read Lord of The Rings, they were sleeping giants who, if roused, could wreak mighty acts of vengeance upon any presumptuous enemies who trespassed their holy forests...
These two dimensions of safety and adventure are captured so wonderfully in the Lord of The Rings, where the two little Hobbits stumble upon Treebeard, the tree-man shepherd of the forest. They convince him that they are neither Orcs nor Dwarves (with axes), and make friends with this long winded wood giant. Elsewhere in the story the wizard Gandalf, concerned for their safety, declares that if the hobbits have met Treebeard then they will be safe. They have befriended a mighty one who will protect them and keep them from harm.
Tolkien profoundly understood the nature of life and the battles we face. He especially knew that there are many ways to win a war. In other parts of the story mighty warriors and kings lead noble peoples in desperate defense of their lives. Many of them are hard pressed, holding fortresses against overwhelming odds and awful enemies. Their skills, experience and courage are their great strength, but even with their skills they ultimately need help from outside to win the day. The story of Merry, Pippin and Treebeard is another sort of courage and a different kind of victory. The two hobbits are agents of change way beyond their own strength, skill or experience. They are two pebbles that start an avalanche. They set in motion forces of incredible consequence and ride to war from the (relative) safety of a treetop! With a simple act of subversion they awaken the giant Ents to the dangers they face and stir their ‘slow to anger’ vengeance an the enemy who has destroyed their forest and their friends.
My mornings imagining was about both safety and adventure. I want to sit on the safe haven of Treebeards shoulders while he leads the roused Ents to battle! Like a humble hobbit, I want to be the pebble that generates an avalanche. I believe that is our calling as Gods children. We have a safe haven in which to hide - It is on the shoulders of an almighty heavenly Father. He is our ‘strong tower’ from whose vantage point we can see the battle below and not be afraid. He is our fortress and our refuge, and like Treebeard he is a moving fortress! When we befriend the living God we become partners in the battle to overcome long held strongholds of bitterness and blight and bring about a transformation. After a period of intercession; making our simple plea for action on the part of the oppressed and forgotten, He will at times sit us on his shoulders while he goes to war to restore what is good and make clean that which was polluted. This is what Tolkien speaks of. This is what scripture promises. This is an adventure in which we are catalysts and co-workers. You can engage in Godly battles from the safety of his shoulders, but I promise you its quite a ride!!

After a long break I just wanted to give my Christmas greeting to all. Possibly like many of you I have been engaged this Christmas in family debates on a variety of issues and putting the world to rights. The current scandal over global warming data was a favourite topic this Christmas. Rather than state my opinion I will simply direct you to Greg Boyds blog on this. As usual he has written a well researched and measured response to the debate that you can view here

I am tentatively making a N.Y resolution to increase my blogging in 2010, largely due to several amazing discussions this blog has generated late 2009. I appreciate all the emails - do keep them coming - or add your comments and add to this simple offering. Grace and peace.

Reflecting

I love the bits in the bible where God talks to himself. He is seen reflecting, deciding, wieghing things up and making decisions. You see this especially in Genesis where God is chatting to himself within the trinity about how to make man, and what he thinks of each bit of his creation work. (other examples include; Gen 11:7, 6:1-8)
Genesis says we are made in His image, and part of that image is the ability to reflect, to hold an internal discussion with ones thoughts and memories, reflecting on our daily experiences, drawing lessons and conclusions, drawing aside to listen to our heavenly father and making fresh plans with him.
My reflections this summer have drawn me to a stronger conviction of Fathers love; of his faithfulness, and of his strong desire to pour out blessings in a new season of grace.
Why should God want to bless me? Who am I that he should be mindful of me? Its not that I am more saintly or less prone to weakness, or more spiritual than others, its simply that whenever we take time (reflection & listening does take time) to hear his voice among the rattle and hum of our own inner voices, We discover he is making plans for us. And when I start to listen to those plans I start to realise afresh that Father, far from being the architect of lifes obstacles, is actually intent on my blessing. Not just mine of course; the Kingdom principle is that we are always 'blessed to be a blessing'. We recieve his love so that we have love to give away. Always God draws us out of introspection into the bigger picture, and one of the ways we experience that blessing is usually in knowing that we have been commissioned to a task. It may be an old task or it may be a new one, but like Isaiah in the temple, we feel the coals on our lips and experience a new warmth in our hearts.
Our reflections and our enquires with God will always take us on a journey. Three years ago we started a new journey with our church; The Well, Camberwell. As we reflected and prayed as a team, we felt God clearly lead us to moved the church into three large 'missional communities' that would release peoples gifts more. These have served us well and prepared us in many areas. New members and long term mebers are coming forward with fresh ideas and creative initiatives. We have only just begun the journey that God is taking us on, but its clearly a new season that reqires a cycle of reflecting, listening, shaping, acting, celebrating,and reflecting again...

Christianity and the Evolution of Man

(Picking up on number 19 from my list of 'things I don’t believe in') Tonight’s episode of the TV series on Darwin related the accounts of his battle to publish his studies on evolution, causing outrage among those who held to a ‘biblical’ account of creation. Darwin, a pious man, came to reject belief in a God who would ‘everlastingly punish’ unbelievers (see point 15 in previous blog), and yet he retained his belief in a creator God who was the author of life. Darwin saw glory and majesty in the awesome developments of life on earth, and the reaction of his detractors reveals more about their form of exegesis than it does about Darwin’s precepts. His detractors (and even his dear wife) were products of their culture and believers in a the prevalent (but particularly modern) idea of Christianity that interpreted scripture to mean that mans physical body was made in the image of God, and that therefore, to accept the theory and implications of evolution would be to render their faith obsolete. It also interfered with their understanding of a seven 24 hour day creation.
There are two problems with this conclusion; firstly, it is nowhere stated in the bible that Gods image in us is physically anthropomorphic. In fact it implies anything but in terms of our physical origins. According to scripture we were formed from the dust of the earth, and that to dust we will return... where then is the inviolable ‘image of God’? Of course man is often compared to God, but these comparisons are always to do with spirit and not appearance. In fact, the appearance of Jesus is the first indication that God has taken on human likeness, and not the other way around!
Christians generally accept that the image of God in man was / is in the spirit that he breathed into man, and that this spirit is what will return to God. We are constantly reminded in scripture that we are an amazing blend of earth and heaven. I would suggest that this is a more advanced ‘theory of evolution’ than anything that science has yet come up with. Current physicists tell us that there are many dimensions to time and space. They postulate that our experience and perception of life may just be one of the many planes of existence that are possible. This may sound far fetched, but it is based on current studies in subatomic particles and the very nature of the universe.
The scriptures agree. They teach us that there is a plane of existence we are meant to inherit, and that there is currently a form of ‘supernatural selection’ taking place. Only the strongest and fittest will inherit life in this dimension. However, the strength and fitness required to evolve in this way is a relational and spiritual strength whose measure is love. So, where is the body is all this? Jesus resurrection body was one that apparently existed in more than one dimension. His post resurrection appearance to the disciples in a locked room made some think that he was a ghost, so he ate fish (and probably left the bones) to let them know that he was real... So how could he walk through walls? – Simply because the walls were not as substantial as him! The matter that make up this physical universe that we perceive is not as substantial as we might think, ask any astrophysicist!
Our honour as creatures among Gods creation lies not in where we came from, (the bible is clear that we came from the same dust as all other creatures) but in Gods 'evolutionary' intentions for us... to become sons...with bodies like Jesus.
ii) The second problem with 19th century theology was a predominance of young earth creationism... but that’s another blog...

20 things I dont believe

I used to get asked what I believe in by people. However it happens less nowadays and I'm thinking it is probably because there is an assumption on the part of folk that if I am a Christian, a church leader and an evangelical that I must believe in xyz, so why bother to ask. Such is the distortion of the image of evangelicals in the public mindset that some have (understandably) abandoned the title altogether. The problem I have with doing that is that you abandon the wonderful testimony of the early evangelicals who did not believe or practice that which many who currently claim the title do. In my view the label 'evangelical', much like the label 'Christian' is something still worth fighting to redeem in peoples imagination, if only to honour those who have gone before.
So for those of you who want to take a shot at my beliefs as an evangelical, before you take aim here is a brief list of 20 things I don't believe in (and which annoy me most intensely when people assume that I do.)

1. The so called ‘prosperity gospel’ – number one on the hit list (the indiscriminate teaching that assumes a believer should be prospering in all areas - especially financially - as an indication of Gods approval)
2. That any hope of a better future lies in the hands of a global economy.
3. That being a follower of Christ is defined by what we are against (with the exception of this list)
4. That sexual sin is worse than any other sin
5. That women are meant to be subordinate to men
6. That Gods default emotion is to be angry
7. That what is 'spiritual' and what is 'real' are two different things
8. That leadership is male (ie gender based)
9. That there is a fixed date for Christ's return
10. That Israel's purpose and destiny as a people is to be understood as bound to a strip of land in the Middle East.
11. That 'blessing Israel' means legitimising all geopolitical action in favour of modern Jews
12. That all ‘non Christians' go to hell.
13. That all ‘Christians’ go to heaven
14. That there is or can be such a thing as a 'Christian nation'
15. That hell is eternal conscious torment
16. That 'full time' Christian work is more important/less spiritual than any other vocation
17. That the 'Church' and the 'Kingdom of God' are the same thing
18. That creation and evolution are mutually exclusive
19. That there is an irreconcilable conflict between science and faith
20. That I am always right (this one I confess needs some work)

The Power of a Father

The recent experience of walking my beautiful daughter down the aisle on her wedding day is something I have few adequate words to describe. The whole day was a epiphany from beginning to end.
After my father of the bride speech it appears that I had caused not a small number of, mostly, but not entirely, women to cry.
Without going into my merits or otherwise as a father, I have been struck afresh by the very real power of a father, and how witnessing (or being part of) that relationship at its best can awaken the deepest emotions in all of us.
Post wedding research revealed that my words as a proud father that day made people cry through emotions stirred on a wide spectrum. Some were identifying with a positive experience in knowing thier own father, and my proud words of affirmation were resonating with memories of words their own fathers may have spoken over them. Others were apparently dissolved by the pain of shame and anger at the memory of harsh or absent fathers, and being awakened afresh to a large gap or rent in their unhealed hearts. Indeed one person had to leave the room due to the depth of emotion this raised.
We are all children who long for a father to love us, to affirm us, be proud of us and lay out loving boundries for us. When we see even a glimpse of such a father it touches the heart of who we are and reveals the true Father. He is a 'glorious Father...from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name'. (Eph 3:15 NIV)
In other words, he is the only one who can tell us who we really are. And he is very good at it, even when we dont have a good earthly image to extrapolate from, because even if you've had a bad father, or in the case of a friend of mine - no father at all, we still know intuitively what a good father should be like.
He is all and more, and if my few words can elicit such a response from people across a range of experiences, imagine what one word from a perfect Father can do.