Showing posts with label mission. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mission. Show all posts

Tuesday 21 April 2020

An unchanging Gospel for an ever-changing world

To restrict one’s comments on our constantly changing world to social and economic factors would be to speak as if one was a politician. It’s often said that “everything is politics.” We also need to say that “politics isn’t everything.” Even in the Church, there seems to be a reticence of speaking about the Good News of Jesus Christ. Recently, I attended a conference where one questioner said, “I’ll mention the awkward word - evangelism”! This comment seems to reflect the feeling that the Church is being squeezed into the world’s mould. We talk of the world’s problems – “What a mess we’re in.” We hesitate to speak of the Saviour who can get us out of our mess. We watch as people fill their lives with many things. We hesitate to speak of “a God-shaped blank” which only Christ can fill. We’re called to be more than social commentators. We’re called “to preach Good News” (Luke 4:18).
We live in an ever-changing world. We can get so wrapped up in an analysis of the changes in society that we forget the great words brought to our attention at the beginning of the new Millennium – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). We must not begin and end with sociological observation. It doesn’t take a genius to see that today’s world is very different from the world of fifty years ago! We must press on to make a theological assessment of these changes. This may not require great intellectual understanding. It may have more to do with an ongoing commitment to following Jesus Christ – “I have decided to follow Jesus … If no-one joins me, still I will follow.” With Jesus Christ at the centre of our thinking and living, we will evaluate changes in society in a distinctively Christ-centred way, which is quite different from the analyses offered to us by sociologists.
Offering a theological analysis of contemporary society does not mean that we ‘curse’ the society within which we live. We must always bring the Good News of God’s love – “God so loved the world …” (John 3:16). That doesn’t mean that we become uncritical of the world. We must never forget these words: “Do not love the world or the things of the world” (1 John 2:15). How are we to “seek the welfare of the city”? Do we get so caught up in earthly city that we forget about “the city of God” – so wrapped up in a this – worldly outlook that we lose sight of the eternal dimension – God’s eternal love, God’s eternal purpose, God’s eternal Kingdom? It’s often said that we can become too heavenly-minded to be any earthly-good. Have we reached the stage where we need to be reminded that we can become too earthly-minded to be any heavenly-good?
It’s often said that people no longer understand Biblical and theological language. What are we to do about this? Are we to “demythologize” the Christian message? Can we share the Good News if we are dismissive of the facts on which the Gospel is based – “Christ died for our sins” and was “raised on the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)? By focusing on words such as suffering, social justice and mystery, we may find points of contact with people’s experience. This may lead to wide-ranging discussion of issues that are of general interest to people who might describe themselves as humanists. At what point do we speak of Christ? Sometimes, when we speak of dialogue, it can end up in a rambling type of discussion which never really gets very near to focusing attention on the Jesus Christ of the Bible. He always has more to say to us than simply calling us to love our neighbour. When we get people’s attention, what are we to say to them? If we are to get their attention for Jesus Christ, we must surely seek to move beyond a conversation about social issues.
It’s often said that our theology should be an “answering theology.” We are to engage with the questions people are asking. Recognizing the importance of this approach, we should be aware of the danger that our theology can end up becoming a “questioning theology.” When we end up saying things like, “We have more questions than answers”, are we not losing the simplicity of the Gospel which tells us of God’s Answer to the problem of human sin? We don’t need to have “all the answers to all the questions”, but we can point to “Christ Jesus who came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). “The courage to doubt” may help us to acknowledge that we don’t have all the answers. It is only the courage of faith that will enable us to confess Christ as our Saviour and call upon others to trust in Him. What do we mean when we use words like “evangelism” and “mission”? If “evangelism” means no more than bringing people to faith in God, have we taken them any further than the deist who sees ‘God’ as the most rational explanation of the mystery of life. Surely, evangelism takes us beyond this by focusing attention on our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. When mission emphasizes the importance of being a “gracious neighbour”, we must surely take care to make it clear that being a gracious neighbour arises out of loving the Lord our God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength (Luke 10:27).
If, in our understanding of our work for the Lord, we emphasize the importance of both our words and our actions, I don’t think there is any great need to say that evangelism is one thing and mission is something else. Both words describe our commitment to serving the Lord in the whole of life.What are we to say about the distinction between “believing” and “belonging”?
There may be people of ‘vague faith’ who do not have a feeling of belonging because they do not really want to move beyond a ‘vague faith.’ Surely, we must ask whether this kind of ‘vague faith’, which shows no real interest in becoming a life-changing faith in Christ, should be described as ‘believing’.
There may also be people of a very strong faith who do not have a sense of belonging when they come to our congregations because they do not feel that Christ is at the centre of all that we do. Often, such people will go elsewhere, feeling that they must look for a fellowship of believers who seek to keep Christ at the centre of their worship and witness.
Whatever else may be said about ‘believing’ and ‘belonging’, those who wish to focus attention on Jesus Christ must surely agree with the statement that “any attempt to promote the church as an institution, to ‘sell’ the church as a form of religious commitment is futile.” We do not promote the church. We “preach … Jesus Christ as Lord” (2 Corinthians 4:5). We do not ‘sell’ the church. We point people to the Saviour, emphasizing that “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).
It is important to welcome God’s “new thing” (Isaiah 43:19). We should not, however, forget the words of Jeremiah 6:16 – “ask for the ancient paths.”
A recent book in the “Faith in an Emerging Culture Series” (Paternoster) –“Metavista: Bible Church and Mission in an Age of Imagination” has received this recommendation: “If you have a taste for the subversive, a passion for the church, a heart for biblical engagement, and an eye on the future; this book is a must-read.” Another recent book – “Why We’re Not Emergent” does not share this enthusiasm for encouraging “a taste for the subversive.” Commenting on this book, Don Carson writes, “the emerging church movement, which taught an entire generation to rebel, is now old enough to find growing numbers of people learning to rebel against its rebellion.” When we read about a book which encourages “a taste for the subversive”, there should be alarm-bells ringing in our minds. When we hear about a protest movement, our thoughts may go back to the original meaning of the word “Protestant.” The Reformation was an Evangelical Reformation. The word, “evangelical” focuses on the Gospel. The Reformation protest was not primarily a negative thing. It was a positive protest for the Gospel. The word, “emergent”, is in danger of becoming ‘all things to all men.’ Is there a spirit of rebellion - a ‘nobody can tell me what to do’ attitude – just under the surface? We should certainly be aware of this danger – especially if a conflict arises between Christ’s teaching and our own inclinations. Who is Lord of our life – Jesus Christ or ourselves? This is the question each of us must face.When we hear “a call for prayerful ‘double listening’ rather than hasty action: listening to what God is saying to the church through biblical and theological reflection, and listening to the cultures of the day”, we must ask, “What are we to do when we hear what today’s culture is saying to us?” If there is a conflict between the voice of today’s culture and the testimony of God’s Word, where will our ‘double listening’ take us? We should welcome the words of caution. Double listening is to be prayerful. Double listening is not to be identified with hasty action. We should also ask the question raised by another recent book, “Reforming or Conforming?” When we speak of “always reforming”, we should take that we do not end up “conforming.”
Where there is a conflict between the Word and the world, we need to make sure that, in our double listening, we don’t end up agreeing with the world and forgetting about the Word. We can still pay lip-service to the Word, while offering ‘interpretations’ which may call in question our commitment to “taking every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).
Looking back to the 1950s, we are reminded of the expression, “Rebel Without A Cause” (James Dean film, 1955). We may wonder about the emergent movement. Where will it lead us? Will we end up being “rebels without a Cross”? Jesus says to us, “Whoever does not bear his cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:27). In our culture, “every man does what is right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). As we listen to this culture, we must take care that we do not lose sight of the “Cross” dimension: “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me”; “God forbid that I should glory except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 2:20; 6:14).We dare not be uncritical of the emergent movement. It could lead us into a spiritual wilderness if we do not take care to ensure that our thinking and living remain grounded in the Scriptures and centred on the Saviour. If we become so wrapped up in a new movement, with its preference for words like “emerging” and “emergent” rather than words like “evangelical” and “evangelism”, we may wonder whether we are being led into “the latest version of liberalism” (Mark Driscoll). In seeking the empowering of the Spirit, we must make sure that we do not forget that God’s “new thing” will not lead to a weakening of our commitment to following the “ancient paths” in which we are grounded in the Scriptures and centred on the Saviour.
While I am not opposed to modern methods of communicating the Gospel, I am concerned that we keep a firm hold on the Gospel we have been called to proclaim. By raising such questions, I wish to echo the question which was asked in Psalm 11:3 – “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

Wednesday 11 March 2020

Some Thoughts On Mission And Evangelism

Teaching Evangelism

In the preface to his book, The Evangelism of the Early Church, Michael Green states a personal reason for writing the book:
“Most evangelists are not very interested in theology: most theologians are not very interested in evangelism. I am deeply committed to both. So the study of this subject was particularly congenial to me” (p.7).
Green’s book contains a brief but helpful section on “Teaching Evangelism” (pp.204-206).
Green’s emphasis on the unbreakable connection between theology and evangelism encourages us to develop an evangelistic theology.
A theology which does not lead to evangelism remains remote from both the Gospel of God and the need of human beings.
An evangelism which shows little interest in theological reflection tends to become rather superficial, lacking the depth and range of “teaching evangelism”.

Looking up to God and looking out to our community

Here are some more thoughts from Local Church Evangelism, edited by David Wright and Alastair Gray.
Worship comes first.
“”Praise is the primary form of the communication, the sheer enjoyment of the grace of God in our lives - all other communication is an overflow of this, the spread of its scent, affirming in appropriate ways, in various situations, the content and delight of praising God” (p. 49).
Worship leads to Witness.
“the church should be united in love and purpose, wide open to the Spirit of Jesus in prayer and with the outward look of openness to others in love” (p. 28).
Come to Christ and Go for Christ.
“Jesus says both ‘I am the light of the world’ … and ‘You are the light of the world’” (p. 43).

Service, Prayer, Love and Witness

“It is the total ministry of service, prayer, love and witness, throughout the year, which is used to bring new life to the parish” (Local Church Evangelism, edited by David Wright and Alastair Gray, p. 85).
To be reminded of our calling to be faithful in service, prayer, love and witness is to be reminded of our failure.
When, however, we look beyond the inadequacies of our service, prayer, love and witness, we catch a a glimpse of the faithfulness of God - “If we are faithless, He remains faithful” (2 Timothy 2:13).
In the presence of the God of “great faithfulness”, we are reminded that we have “received this ministry by the mercy of God” (Lamentations 3:22; 2 Corinthians 4:1).
We have “received mercy” so that “we might proclaim the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:9-10).
“Shine, Jesus, shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory; blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire … “. These are not only words to be sung. It’s a life to be lived. They are not only words for the mountain-top experience - the exuberance of praise. It’s an all-year round life, a life of service, prayer, love and witness. Let’s live the life and see the difference it makes!

Local Church Evangelism

Here are some thoughts from the “Introduction” to Local Church Evangelism, edited by David Wright and Alastair Gray.
A Definition

“Evangelism may be defined briefly as the God-given task of presenting the good news of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit in order that men and women and children may come to trust in God through him, accept him as their Saviour and serve him as their King in the fellowship of his Church in the world. It is concerned with communicating a specific message - a message that is not only about Jesus Christ but is Jesus Christ - with the aim of winning those who receive it to his allegiance” (p. 9).
A Reminder
“The congregation renewed for mission is God’s primary evangelistic agency” (p. 10).
A Question
“Are our services of worship welcoming, open in spirit and ethos to the outsider, the visitor, the wider community?” (pp. 10-11).
A Challenge
“We need to be more self-critical, not only about the ‘message’, more often implicit than explicit, that our worship conveys to the stranger and the uncommitted, but also about its impact on the congregation itself” (p. 11).

Sharing our Faith Effectively

Philemon, Verse 6 - “that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus”.
These words bring to mind several other verses of Scripture.
* “acknowledging every good thing … ” indicates that we are to share our faith in the spirit of thanksgiving, giving thanks to the Lord for all that He has done for us, all that He is doing for us and all that He will do for us.
When we find it difficult to share our faith, we must learn to stand upon God’s Word: “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57).
* “every good thing in you” brings to mind the wonderfully encouraging words of 2 Timothy 1:7 - “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind”.
What a great encouragement it is to know that we can exchange our weakness - “fear” - for the Lord’s strength - “power … love … a sound mind”.
This is the fulfilment of God’s promise in Isaiah 40:31 - “Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength”.
The combination of “power” and “love” is important.
We might say that it is the power of love. It is the love of God at work. It is the power of God at work.
His love motivates us to reach out for Him. His power makes our witness effective for Him.
As well as power and love, there is also the blessing of “a sound mind”.
There are times when we have the opportunity to prepare a message from God’s Word.
We use our minds to think through what the Lord is saying to us and what He wants us to say to the people.
There are other times when we must think on our feet.
We must “always be ready to give a defence to everyone who asks for a reason for a hope that is in us”. We must do this “with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15).
When we have to think on our feet, we must stand upon the Lord’s Word: “do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit” (Mark 13:11).
God’s promise will be fulfilled as we learn in our study of God’s Word, to pray for “the renewal of our mind” (Romans 12:2) - “May the mind of Christ my Saviour live in me from day to day, by His love and power controlling all I do or say”.
We must never forget that the “power” and “love” come from the Lord and not from ourselves.
When there is an effective sharing of our faith, we must always remember this: “This is the Lord’s doing and it is marvellous in our eyes” (Psalm 118:23). This must be our testimony: “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your Name give glory, because of of Your mercy and Your truth” (Psalm 115:1).
* “every good thing” - Here, we are reminded of the great words of Paul in Ephesians 1:3 - “every spiritual blessing”.
Paul speaks here in a spirit of worship - “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”.
He gives thanks to the Lord who “has blessed us with every spiritual blessing”.
“Every spiritual blessing” is to be found “in Christ”.
* “in Christ Jesus” - The final words of Philemon 6 remind us that any good things “in us” have come from Christ.
Paul tells us that, in ourselves, “there is no good thing” (Romans 7:18).
The good things are “in Christ Jesus”.
He gives them to us as He gives Himself to us.
If we are to be effective witnesses for Christ, we must learn to “abide in Christ”. We must never forget this: “without Him we can do nothing”. Abiding in Christ - this is the way of “bearing much fruit” - “May the Word of God dwell richly in my heart from hour to hour, so that all may see I triumph only through His power”.
* There will be times when we must share our faith with those who are going through a time of great suffering. If our words are to be helpful to them, we must pray for the strengthening of our own faith so that we are able to share the Lord’s strength with them: “May the peace of God my Father rule my heart in everything, that I may be calm to comfort sick and sorrowing”.
* An effective sharing of our faith is a sharing of the love of Jesus. We must pray that His love will shine through as we witness for Him: “May the love of Jesus fill me, as the waters fill the sea; Him exalting, self abasing, this is victory”.
* Persevering in the way of faith is not easy. We must take care that we do not lose “our first love” (Revelation 2:4). We must keep our eyes on Jesus. He will give us the strength to continue in the way of faithful obedience: “May I run the race before me, strong and brave to face the foe, looking unto Jesus as I onward go”.

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