I just finished reading a book that has really made me think about the church called The Tangible Kingdom. To all those working in a church, attending a church, or even been burned by church; I challenge you to read this book! Here are some selections that really impacted me throughout the first few chapters:
We have churches everywhere, but they smell musty, fussy, clubby, judgmental, mean, punishing, ungenerous, and are not compelling people to come or stay.
Christians must learn how to live the gospel as a distinct people who no longer occupy the center of society. We must learn to build relational bridges that win a hearing.
Tension also comes when you know you can’t go back to present forms of church, but you don’t know what going forward will look like or what it will cost us in life, focus, family, or finances.
There are 2 primary camps of Christians: 1) “Jerusalem Christians”- those who see the person of Jesus through their traditions and the literal interpretation of doctrine, and 2) “Galilee Christians”- those who see the Christian message through the person of Jesus and the narratives about his life.
To move forward, we can’t keep everything we’ve always had. We have to pick what to take, what is absolutely necessary, and leave behind some things that have been important to us.
Wise leadership requires that you steward everyone well; pastor everyone well; be honest with where you want to go and try to express what the journey will feel like, what they won’t get to take if they go, and what it will cost them if they do. Then let people decide for themselves.
“Doing church different is like rearranging chairs on the Titanic.” We must realize that slight tweaks, new music, creative lighting, wearing hula shirts, shorts, and flip-flops won’t make doing church more attractive. Church must not be the goal of the gospel anymore… Church should be what ends up happening as a natural response to people wanting to follow us, be with us, and be like us as we are following the way of Christ.
Influence doesn’t happen by extracting ourselves from the world for the sake of our values, but by bringing our values into the culture.
