Has anyone ever read the book called "The Shack"? It is a very popular book that presents a different - very different for some people - view of God and His relationship with people. I will not give a summary of the book or spoil the ending or anything, but if you have read it then you know what I am talking about. And if you have not read it, then I hope that you do. At the very least, it is an interesting read.
But here is the problem that we run into when things like this come out. These are the things that are on the edge - the things that are slightly controversial but extremely helpful. There are two groups that people fall into when these books or videos or music comes out: the group that immediately denounces these things because they do not agree with strict Christian theology and the group that gets something out of these books that helps their lives. But we do not need to form these two opposing groups. We do not need to have controversies and arguments and meaningless debates with two sides who will never change their positions. We don't need to have rebels, and we don't need to have theological dictators.
What we need to have is a Middle Road - a place where we can all walk together.
Recently, I have been researching what the Christian media has been saying about The Shack because of a discussion that I have been having with the editor of Treasure Valley Christian News. But this discussion and mild research has brought to light a disturbing phenomenon. It is something that we need to stop doing because it is getting us nowhere.
These controversial books and resources are something that certain Christian leaders and media members like to prey upon. It seems like anything - anything - that is inconsistent with theology and Scriptures is immediately deemed heresy and red stamped with a "DO NOT READ" sticker. It almost seems like these leaders use a metal detector to find things that could potentially somehow cause people to go astray - while completely ignoring any benefits that the books can have, as well. In the case of The Shack, the book is a fiction book. It is not meant to be a systematic theology or a Bible study. It is simply a fiction book that wants to try to tell a story that can help people connect better with the Lord.
And that is exactly what it does. Despite any of its alleged or real faults, the book does a great job of helping people get closer to Christ. Maybe proponents of the book are too defensive and are furthering the argument - but that is beside the point. It is undeniable that The Shack has helped people get one step (or many steps) closer to God. Basically, The Shack is an interesting fiction book that has uniquely helped people get closer to God.
We have to quit arguing. We have to quit putting things down because they are minutely off-base - so minutely that no one would ever notice if leaders and media members had not negatively identified them. While theology and Scripture are definitely important to our faith, its defense needs to be tempered with reason and experience. The Shack is a good book that can help people get closer to the Lord - plus it does not hurt to be reminded of our Scriptural and theological foundation.
Our in-house fights and controversies are getting us nowhere. But if we figure out how to walk on the Middle Road together - well, that will take us somewhere.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Two Commercials About The Middle Road
Sometimes in life we can be doing something completely unrelated to anything - and yet we will see a clear picture of God and what God is doing in this world. I had a recent experience where I saw two really clear pictures of The Middle Road lived out in a commercial. It was unexpected, but it was great.
The first commercial was that VISA Commercial that shows everything running smoothly with something - a cafeteria or a greenhouse. The reason why everything is running so smoothly is because the people are all using debit cards. But then when one person pulls out a check to pay for their puchases, everything stops. After the person is done paying for their stuff, then everything starts flowing again as normal. It is a great commercial that shows how things flow and run and go smooth with the use of certain things, but then something old can disrupt that. But even though there is something that disrupts it, it still works.
The second commercial is that Heineken commercial where everyone shares their drinks with people. This commercial has an excellent message and a really beautiful concept. The commercial starts out with one person sharing his drink with another. Then that person takes the drink and gives it to somebody else. This continues on through about eight different people. But the beauty of it lies in the actual people. The commercial shows people of all different backgrounds and types sharing with each other. There is a ballerina, a Hispanic cowboy, a huge hair logger, an Indian woman, and many others. All of these people connect with each other despite their many differences. The commercial shows how this one thing connects these people that probably do not have anything else in common. These diverse individuals 'share the good' with each other and connect despite their differences.
These commercials truly show the Middle Road lived out in daily life. The Middle Road is all about putting aside differences. It is about learning how to do things in a new way. The Middle Road focuses on how we can all come together. Just like the Heinekin commercial, the Middle Road seeks to focus on the things that we have in common, not the things that make us different. The Middle Road is all about finding new ways to do things that will connect us to people - community, care, and love to a world that needs it.
These two commercials are good representations of what The Middle Road looks like.
The first commercial was that VISA Commercial that shows everything running smoothly with something - a cafeteria or a greenhouse. The reason why everything is running so smoothly is because the people are all using debit cards. But then when one person pulls out a check to pay for their puchases, everything stops. After the person is done paying for their stuff, then everything starts flowing again as normal. It is a great commercial that shows how things flow and run and go smooth with the use of certain things, but then something old can disrupt that. But even though there is something that disrupts it, it still works.
The second commercial is that Heineken commercial where everyone shares their drinks with people. This commercial has an excellent message and a really beautiful concept. The commercial starts out with one person sharing his drink with another. Then that person takes the drink and gives it to somebody else. This continues on through about eight different people. But the beauty of it lies in the actual people. The commercial shows people of all different backgrounds and types sharing with each other. There is a ballerina, a Hispanic cowboy, a huge hair logger, an Indian woman, and many others. All of these people connect with each other despite their many differences. The commercial shows how this one thing connects these people that probably do not have anything else in common. These diverse individuals 'share the good' with each other and connect despite their differences.
These commercials truly show the Middle Road lived out in daily life. The Middle Road is all about putting aside differences. It is about learning how to do things in a new way. The Middle Road focuses on how we can all come together. Just like the Heinekin commercial, the Middle Road seeks to focus on the things that we have in common, not the things that make us different. The Middle Road is all about finding new ways to do things that will connect us to people - community, care, and love to a world that needs it.
These two commercials are good representations of what The Middle Road looks like.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Eye Doctor and the Emergent Church
Have you ever been to the eye doctor when they do that one test where you have to say which one of the things looks better? Like they bring that machine over to your eyes and the eye doctor is like "Okay, which one is clearer - one or two?" and then he shows you two different things that are really similar but there is just a little bit of a difference? Do you know what I am talking about? I think for me it was usually like a row of letters, and he would show me one and then the other and they both would be pretty good, but then he would say "Which one is better - one or two?"
Have you ever experienced that?
It is actually a really interesting situation. It is interesting because both of the things usually work. It's not like one is completely blurry where you can't read it at all and the other is just crystal clear. But one is simply slightly better than the other. They both could totally work. But in your view, one is just better.
I think that this is one of the concepts of the Emergent Church. Many people are confused and probably a little scared about this controversial new topic of the Emergent Church. But the Emergent Church is not saying that we need to just completely get rid of the church like it is now or the church like it has been in the past. Not at all.
The Emergent Church is trying to focus on ways that we can better reach out to This Generation - a younger generation of people that have grown up in a different world full of technology, internet, communication, and many other things. Life for people in the younger generation is much different than life for Baby Boomers or even Generation X. The Emergent Church is trying to find relevant ways to minister the same message through different means to this generation and others alike.
So it is kind of like the eye doctor thing. The Emergent Church is not saying that traditional churches are wrong or blurry. Again, not at all. Just like the eye doctor - they both totally work. But one is just a little bit better in the person's view.
The Emergent Church is trying to reach out to a generation that sees life and church a little differently. They are trying to change the means of our ministry just a little bit so that it is clearer to This Generation. Their concept is to provide a church and a community that is just a little bit better, a little bit clearer.
Hopefully, if we diversify our style of church a little bit, then we can find a middle road that will allow us to minister to people by asking the same question as the eye doctor:
"Which one is better - one or two?"
That's the concept of the Emergent Church.
Have you ever experienced that?
It is actually a really interesting situation. It is interesting because both of the things usually work. It's not like one is completely blurry where you can't read it at all and the other is just crystal clear. But one is simply slightly better than the other. They both could totally work. But in your view, one is just better.
I think that this is one of the concepts of the Emergent Church. Many people are confused and probably a little scared about this controversial new topic of the Emergent Church. But the Emergent Church is not saying that we need to just completely get rid of the church like it is now or the church like it has been in the past. Not at all.
The Emergent Church is trying to focus on ways that we can better reach out to This Generation - a younger generation of people that have grown up in a different world full of technology, internet, communication, and many other things. Life for people in the younger generation is much different than life for Baby Boomers or even Generation X. The Emergent Church is trying to find relevant ways to minister the same message through different means to this generation and others alike.
So it is kind of like the eye doctor thing. The Emergent Church is not saying that traditional churches are wrong or blurry. Again, not at all. Just like the eye doctor - they both totally work. But one is just a little bit better in the person's view.
The Emergent Church is trying to reach out to a generation that sees life and church a little differently. They are trying to change the means of our ministry just a little bit so that it is clearer to This Generation. Their concept is to provide a church and a community that is just a little bit better, a little bit clearer.
Hopefully, if we diversify our style of church a little bit, then we can find a middle road that will allow us to minister to people by asking the same question as the eye doctor:
"Which one is better - one or two?"
That's the concept of the Emergent Church.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Witnessing: Means to an End?
Witnessing is one of the pillars of Christianity. The ability to share the Gospel with others is key for furthering the Church. We all have a responsibility and privilege to share our faith with others through word and deed. But what should our attitude with this witnessing actually be?
But this has becoming a point of contention for many people recently. One camp would argue that we need to witness so that people can go to heaven. Another camp would argue that we need to share our faith out of simple love for others. One thought would be attributed to the traditional church of years past, and the other thought would be attributed to the emergent church of today. Yet there is a middle road where both of these thoughts can come together to form a great foundation for witnessing.
The emergent church views witnessing not as a means to an end - but as an end unto its own. Witnessing should be done out of love, and it should done with no strings attached. We should share our faith with others because it is an extension of ourselves - not because it is an obligation to get someone else into heaven. Also, our basis for friendships should not be to get someone out of hell. We should befriend people because we love them and we want to experience community with them. Our witnessing and sharing of our faith should be done with no strings attached, out of an extension of who we are, with the sole purpose of love and nothing else.
Yet the traditional approach to witnessing takes a different approach. Older generations focus their witnessing upon the certainties of life after death. People share their faith with others because they want them to gain salvation and find a relationship with the Lord. They have such a heart for others that they do not want them to go to hell. People share their faith with others because the Bible encouarges us to do that in the Great Commission and in other places. Witnessing is a means to an end: hoping that those who hear the Word can accept the Lord and go to heaven. These witnessing actions are done out of love and because of the gravity of the situation of life after death.
These two thoughts seem to be far apart, but there is a Middle Road that can put these thoughts onto the same page. There are pro's and con's to basically everything, but combining these thoughts can reveal a better way.
Witnessing is a vital part of a Christian's life. And it is something that is eternally important. We should take seriously our responsibility to share our faith in order for others to find Jesus and ultimately heaven. We should be intentional and disciplined with this because of its eternal importance. And yet, we should be careful not to intentionally witness without love - a love that has no strings attached. When people share their faith, it needs to be an extension of themselves and not a begrudged chore. Essentially, witnessing is both a means to an end and an end: it is a means and an end.
Instead of arguing about ways to witness and how to witness and things like that, we should simply learn from each other in order to witness to the best of our collective ability. We need to find this Middle Road where we can all walk and learn from each other in order that we can share our faith to bring others in relationship with Christ and into the joy of heaven. Witnessing is so important that we need to intentionally be dedicated to it; but we need to be dedicated to it in love, as an extension of ourselves, and in relation with others.
We need to walk on this Middle Road together.
But this has becoming a point of contention for many people recently. One camp would argue that we need to witness so that people can go to heaven. Another camp would argue that we need to share our faith out of simple love for others. One thought would be attributed to the traditional church of years past, and the other thought would be attributed to the emergent church of today. Yet there is a middle road where both of these thoughts can come together to form a great foundation for witnessing.
The emergent church views witnessing not as a means to an end - but as an end unto its own. Witnessing should be done out of love, and it should done with no strings attached. We should share our faith with others because it is an extension of ourselves - not because it is an obligation to get someone else into heaven. Also, our basis for friendships should not be to get someone out of hell. We should befriend people because we love them and we want to experience community with them. Our witnessing and sharing of our faith should be done with no strings attached, out of an extension of who we are, with the sole purpose of love and nothing else.
Yet the traditional approach to witnessing takes a different approach. Older generations focus their witnessing upon the certainties of life after death. People share their faith with others because they want them to gain salvation and find a relationship with the Lord. They have such a heart for others that they do not want them to go to hell. People share their faith with others because the Bible encouarges us to do that in the Great Commission and in other places. Witnessing is a means to an end: hoping that those who hear the Word can accept the Lord and go to heaven. These witnessing actions are done out of love and because of the gravity of the situation of life after death.
These two thoughts seem to be far apart, but there is a Middle Road that can put these thoughts onto the same page. There are pro's and con's to basically everything, but combining these thoughts can reveal a better way.
Witnessing is a vital part of a Christian's life. And it is something that is eternally important. We should take seriously our responsibility to share our faith in order for others to find Jesus and ultimately heaven. We should be intentional and disciplined with this because of its eternal importance. And yet, we should be careful not to intentionally witness without love - a love that has no strings attached. When people share their faith, it needs to be an extension of themselves and not a begrudged chore. Essentially, witnessing is both a means to an end and an end: it is a means and an end.
Instead of arguing about ways to witness and how to witness and things like that, we should simply learn from each other in order to witness to the best of our collective ability. We need to find this Middle Road where we can all walk and learn from each other in order that we can share our faith to bring others in relationship with Christ and into the joy of heaven. Witnessing is so important that we need to intentionally be dedicated to it; but we need to be dedicated to it in love, as an extension of ourselves, and in relation with others.
We need to walk on this Middle Road together.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
