Yesterday I went over to my buddy Jeremy’s place to help put in a fence…I got in a conversation with one of his neighbor’s friends who had recently started going back to a church because of his kids. As the conversation went on we started talking about the Church. I was asking his thoughts about his new church experience and stuff. He was saying he grew up Methodist, so the new rock music at church was quite different. His wife still did not attend as she ‘didn’t have any experience with the Church as a kid’…i.e. there was nothing to return to, because she had never been. He asked me my thoughts on ‘contemporary’ church…this is where is gets a little tricky. Because on one hand, I didn’t want in the least bit to discourage him from going to his new church, yet on the other hand, I wanted to be honest.
So, I told him that I thought that church’s efforts to be more relevant to culture via music and style were great. However, my fear is that we as church leadership are only creating a tastier religious culture for the churched to consume. I have this creepy feeling that we are replicating the sickness of consumerism from our culture in the Church. ‘I’m not being fed. The teaching isn’t my style. The kids ministry doesn’t do enough. The music is to loud. The room is too dark. The room is too big. I don’t like the color of the pastor’s shirts. I have to park so far away.’ … and even…’I am so fed at my church. I love the pastor’s wardrobe. I am only asked to give 10% of my income at my church. I love the dark and more spiritual feel of the auditorium.’ … these are the cries of people who have become connoisseurs of the Bride of Jesus. And sometimes all we do as leaders is refine their palates. But don’t worry…I didn’t go into that detail with this guy…I instead tried to offer the positive (and less prophet sounding) answer…
I told him, that I think that all of the new things that we are trying are good and express a good heart and good intentions, but I felt like so often we add too much ‘mustard and mayonnaise’ to a simple Jesus sandwich…and never taste the real meat. Call me crazy, but I told this guy that Jesus teachings were very simple, but would take a lifetime of devotion: Love God with your heart, mind, and soul…And love your neighbor as yourself. Trust that Jesus was who He said he was and follow Him. It’s that simple.
The ‘good church-leader’ in me balked. Inside I heard a voice say, “But be sure and add in all the stuff about going to church!…oh and tithing…oh and doing a quiet time…oh and serving in the kids ministry…gotta get that in too! Quick, make sure he knows right away everything that he’s supposed to do or you’re not doing your job!” But I stopped with Jesus. I stopped where He stopped. I believe that Jesus is THE message and that in Him we are guided by the Spirit in God’s timing to maturity. I wanted this guy to hear clearly my belief in the simple message of Jesus, the most simple/dangerous/costly/attainable message in history.
I could have talked all about being missional, being incarnational, being relevant, being worshipful…but instead I walked away from the conversation certain that I had done my Lord right, by putting Him at the forefront, in the center of all things, and as the most important thing. My prayer is that we as followers of the Way would come to believe that Jesus is the way, He is our salvation, and we can trust Him for guidance. I believe that as we live as Jesus lived, a light, an offering, one poured out, touching the ugly, restoring the shamed…He will orchestrate koinonia…true ‘fellowship’…around us…and that is the Church. The earthly manifestation of God’s good intentions for the world.
Justin- That’s all well and good, but I really feel like you did him a great diservice by not discussing Arminianism vs. Calvinism. I think that if you had done that, things would have been made really clear. Maybe next time….
blah blah blah…but was he a republican?
…and taking facetious cues from paul and pc…maybe his wife would benefit from knowing that some churches put women in leadership…there’s a can of worms :-). nice article justin.
Man, I was going to offer some serious comments here but I thought the comments above were hilarious. However, I am at a loss to come up with a good sarcastic comment like those above so I will be a little more genuine and honest.
I agree with you. I believe that church has become a creature that our culture here in America helped create. While there are many good things that come from a focus on ministry, worship, kids programs, etc. the true meaning seems to get watered down. And each Sunday it feels like a little something is missing even though I can’t put my finger on it. Maybe we have tried to become too much all at once to everyone. And maybe church in our culture today would benefit with a “less is more” attitude as we get back to Jesus. Thanks for something to think about.
Justin, I just came across this blog and I had to comment since I was there in person when your conversation with my neighbor’s buddy took place. Of course I first started reading the title and immediately knew what the blog was going to be about. It was actually something that stuck with me from the conversation you had with the guy.
What was it? Well it was the way that you took a seemingly unimportant discussion about sandwiches and how people liked them to be prepared and how you compared them to the modern church’s use of the Gospel. I think his name was Mike. Well Mike mentioned that he did not like mustard or mayonnaise or tomatoes or other things of that nature on his sandwiches as a kid. Some of the tastes that he acquired as a child stuck with him to this day, and as James said it was lunch time Mike reminded him that he didn’t like the extra stuff on the sandwich. Again, you pointed out in to him that the church can add so much stuff and baggage to the simple Gospel of Jesus just like too much mayonnaise on a sandwich.
Justin I just want to encourage you. You have been gifted with an ability to communicate the message of Jesus to those who know nothing about it. You have been gifted with the ability to communicate complex things of God into simple terms of man. Keep up the good work while staying humble before Jesus. Love you brother.