“Let us understand that to believe in the Lord himself, and to believe a formula, are actually two different motions. By the grace of God, one Christian has his eyes opened to see what kind of person he is; he therefore lays himself down and believes in the Lord, trusting the latter to do within him what he himself cannot do. As its consequence, he obtains release and is fully satisfied before God. Later on, though, another believer comes along. Upon hearing the testimony of the first person, he too asks God to enlighten him that he may know how useless a man he is. He too learns to believe in God and to humbly abandon himself. Yet it strangely turns out that he does not receive the deliverance which the first one experiences. What is the explanation for this? It is because the first brother has living faith which enables him to touch the Lord as well as believe in God, while the second brother has not faith at all but only a “copied faith formula”; and thus he does not reach God. Briefly stated, what this second brother gets is a method, not the Lord. A method has no power nor effectiveness; for not being Christ, it is simply a dead thing.”
Watchman Nee
In light of Bob Mumford's cry that "they just want to see His face", how can we bring Christ to the world in a way that they encounter Him and not a formula?
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Deconstructing the “Church” -Part 1
What we have been attempting to do for about four years I will call "deconstructing" the church. Basically we have been attempting to digitize the church, that is, reduce it down to its most basic and irreducible form, where, if we remove one more thing, it will no longer be the church. There are a lot of reasons for this, one being that the replication of DNA takes place at the cellular level, rather than the most developed, complex level... another is that I am too tired to do the big church thing.... another was the influence of a book by Lamar Boshman on "Future Worship” that traced the locus of emphasis in church life from the sacraments in the middle ages.... to the pulpit in the reformation… to the platform in the electronic church.... and he predicted that in the digital age the locus of God's presence would be "in the midst of his people"....
From a missional point of view, we wanted to develop a model of church life that can easily be replicated in any social group or context with minimal scaffolding...Like catching or uploading a virus.
So, we started “deconstructing” layers of church life. The building was the first to go…then Sunday School, worship team…centralized giving and a joint financial account, then the leadership structure: the senior pastor, elders and staff.
Not surprisingly, one of the hardest things to get rid of was a weekly “meeting” for structured worship (worship meaning music and singing). This was especially hard for those who were raised in a context of weekly Sunday morning meetings. We now encourage the smaller committed groups to decide for themselves how often, when and where to meet, as we also encourage them to to give but empower them to hear from God about where to give.
We suggest Acts 2:42 as a guideline for their gathering. To truly empower the laity, and abolish the clergy-laity division will require more radical action than most leaders have been willing to take up to this point.
From a missional point of view, we wanted to develop a model of church life that can easily be replicated in any social group or context with minimal scaffolding...Like catching or uploading a virus.
So, we started “deconstructing” layers of church life. The building was the first to go…then Sunday School, worship team…centralized giving and a joint financial account, then the leadership structure: the senior pastor, elders and staff.
Not surprisingly, one of the hardest things to get rid of was a weekly “meeting” for structured worship (worship meaning music and singing). This was especially hard for those who were raised in a context of weekly Sunday morning meetings. We now encourage the smaller committed groups to decide for themselves how often, when and where to meet, as we also encourage them to to give but empower them to hear from God about where to give.
We suggest Acts 2:42 as a guideline for their gathering. To truly empower the laity, and abolish the clergy-laity division will require more radical action than most leaders have been willing to take up to this point.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Jesus and personal responsability
here are some scriptures to consider as we reflect on Matt's first installment about Post Institutionalism.
PHI 2:12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;
GAL 6:5 For each one shall bear his own load.
1JO 2:27 And as for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him.
Any thoughts how to interpret these in the our current context? What does it mean for us to work out our salvation? Or bear own own load? Why does John say that we have no need for anyone to teach us? In what way does his anointing teach us al things?
PHI 2:12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;
GAL 6:5 For each one shall bear his own load.
1JO 2:27 And as for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him.
Any thoughts how to interpret these in the our current context? What does it mean for us to work out our salvation? Or bear own own load? Why does John say that we have no need for anyone to teach us? In what way does his anointing teach us al things?
Friday, September 14, 2007
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Post-Institutionalism
This article was originally published on Newsvine.com here to an audience of secularists, naturalists, hindus, etc. It is my deep feeling that what the world needs now are "post-Christian" followers of Christ.
A few years ago I really believed in the power of institutions. My experiences as a student, as an athlete, and as a church member were positive. Over time however, I have seen a rapid decline in the effectiveness of institutions with a corresponding increase in costs to manage. I began to notice that there were lots of people on the “outside” of these institutions. It would be easy to dismiss these “outsiders” as a fringe element, but the number of people who are losing out to institutionalism is growing at a rapid pace.
We often hail the greatness of our political, social, business, educational, and religious institutions. True greatness does not lie in building and protecting institutions, but in building and protecting people, families, and communities. Institutions stay “pure” by purging the “impure”. Families on the other hand, stay pure by integrating and building health and wholeness into each member.
The post-institutional era is about building organically through family and community structures with wholeness, collaboration, and good stewardship in mind.
Think about it. A political candidate thinks about issues in terms of reelection, not problem solving. A church starts a new marketing campaign to boost membership so that the budget will balance. Rather than thinking about building wholeness into individuals, they are thinking about institutional preservation. Business? Why is Google doing everything they can to avoid the institutional pitfalls that IBM and Microsoft have fallen into?
Close the Door Behind You
To demonstrate the “purge mentality” of institutions I will tell a quick story. In 2002, my family and I moved to Dallas, TX. Through the invitation of a neighbor we started attending a local church. The stated goal of the church was to provide a community for “healthy” families. I pondered that statement and wondered how many people that excluded from this community.
As time progressed I felt a need to serve in the church. I signed up to manage the parking lot before services and help seat people once they came inside. One Sunday, I was put in charge of the “overflow” section. If the front section of pews fills, a divider is pulled back and folding chairs are setup up to accommodate the “overflow”. In order to dissuade people from sitting in the overflow section prior to the front section filling, plastic tape was strung around the chairs barring entry. I was situated in front of the chairs to make sure no one sat in the overflow section until the appointed time.
I looked across the section of chairs to a young man who had jumped the tape blockade and taken a seat in the back row. This was an affront to the overflow section. Not only that… he was wearing an Ozzy Osbourne T-shirt! I walked over and sat down next to him. I said hello. He said hello in return. We talked for a while about how stupid it was to have an overflow section that was blocked off by tape. He could tell that I was “cool” and really didn’t care if he sat back there. He started telling me that he had fallen on rough times and that his parents had thrown him out of the house. I told him that sucked and it sounded very “unchristian”. He agreed. Right about that time, my neighbor (the one that invited us in the first place) came over and said, “mbrennan, what are you doing sitting in the reject section?” Nice… A couple minutes later, this older guy in a suit came over looking very embarrassed. Referring to my new Ozzy loving friend he said, “He’s probably high on God knows what!” It turns out that the old dude was Ozzy man’s dad. Nice… I said to the old guy, “Hey, we’re fine. We’re having a great conversation. Cool out.”
You see, Ozzy’s mom and dad were institutionalists. The institution had failed to reform their son so it was time to purge. They prayed to God that no one witnessed their unhealthy family. Shiny veneer with a black inside.
This was one of the great examples that showed me this truth. It bears repeating:
True greatness doesn’t lie in building and protecting institutions, but in building and protecting people, families, and communities. Institutions stay “pure” by purging the “impure”. Families stay pure by integrating and building wholeness in each member. The post-institutional era is about building organically through family and community structures with wholeness, collaboration, and good stewardship in mind.
So rather than building up Ozzy, we purged him.
Conclusions
So how will the post-institutional world impact you? Do you find yourself looking at problems that absolutely cannot be solved by the government or some other non-responsive institution? Have you noticed that the cost of health care and education are rising, but the quality is falling? There is no lack of intellectual capital, financial capital, and ingenuity to solve many of our problems. The question is are we willing to give ourselves to our own communities? Are we willing to engage our communities and bring non-institutional solutions to our most pressing problems? Many of us are stuck on the couch or by the computer decrying the failures of Washington, the UN, and the World Bank. At some point, the gross failures of institutions will lead to greater action among social entrepreneurs. Common citizens will take matters into their own hands. Some already have.
A few years ago I really believed in the power of institutions. My experiences as a student, as an athlete, and as a church member were positive. Over time however, I have seen a rapid decline in the effectiveness of institutions with a corresponding increase in costs to manage. I began to notice that there were lots of people on the “outside” of these institutions. It would be easy to dismiss these “outsiders” as a fringe element, but the number of people who are losing out to institutionalism is growing at a rapid pace.
We often hail the greatness of our political, social, business, educational, and religious institutions. True greatness does not lie in building and protecting institutions, but in building and protecting people, families, and communities. Institutions stay “pure” by purging the “impure”. Families on the other hand, stay pure by integrating and building health and wholeness into each member.
The post-institutional era is about building organically through family and community structures with wholeness, collaboration, and good stewardship in mind.
Think about it. A political candidate thinks about issues in terms of reelection, not problem solving. A church starts a new marketing campaign to boost membership so that the budget will balance. Rather than thinking about building wholeness into individuals, they are thinking about institutional preservation. Business? Why is Google doing everything they can to avoid the institutional pitfalls that IBM and Microsoft have fallen into?
Close the Door Behind You
To demonstrate the “purge mentality” of institutions I will tell a quick story. In 2002, my family and I moved to Dallas, TX. Through the invitation of a neighbor we started attending a local church. The stated goal of the church was to provide a community for “healthy” families. I pondered that statement and wondered how many people that excluded from this community.
As time progressed I felt a need to serve in the church. I signed up to manage the parking lot before services and help seat people once they came inside. One Sunday, I was put in charge of the “overflow” section. If the front section of pews fills, a divider is pulled back and folding chairs are setup up to accommodate the “overflow”. In order to dissuade people from sitting in the overflow section prior to the front section filling, plastic tape was strung around the chairs barring entry. I was situated in front of the chairs to make sure no one sat in the overflow section until the appointed time.
I looked across the section of chairs to a young man who had jumped the tape blockade and taken a seat in the back row. This was an affront to the overflow section. Not only that… he was wearing an Ozzy Osbourne T-shirt! I walked over and sat down next to him. I said hello. He said hello in return. We talked for a while about how stupid it was to have an overflow section that was blocked off by tape. He could tell that I was “cool” and really didn’t care if he sat back there. He started telling me that he had fallen on rough times and that his parents had thrown him out of the house. I told him that sucked and it sounded very “unchristian”. He agreed. Right about that time, my neighbor (the one that invited us in the first place) came over and said, “mbrennan, what are you doing sitting in the reject section?” Nice… A couple minutes later, this older guy in a suit came over looking very embarrassed. Referring to my new Ozzy loving friend he said, “He’s probably high on God knows what!” It turns out that the old dude was Ozzy man’s dad. Nice… I said to the old guy, “Hey, we’re fine. We’re having a great conversation. Cool out.”
You see, Ozzy’s mom and dad were institutionalists. The institution had failed to reform their son so it was time to purge. They prayed to God that no one witnessed their unhealthy family. Shiny veneer with a black inside.
This was one of the great examples that showed me this truth. It bears repeating:
True greatness doesn’t lie in building and protecting institutions, but in building and protecting people, families, and communities. Institutions stay “pure” by purging the “impure”. Families stay pure by integrating and building wholeness in each member. The post-institutional era is about building organically through family and community structures with wholeness, collaboration, and good stewardship in mind.
So rather than building up Ozzy, we purged him.
Conclusions
So how will the post-institutional world impact you? Do you find yourself looking at problems that absolutely cannot be solved by the government or some other non-responsive institution? Have you noticed that the cost of health care and education are rising, but the quality is falling? There is no lack of intellectual capital, financial capital, and ingenuity to solve many of our problems. The question is are we willing to give ourselves to our own communities? Are we willing to engage our communities and bring non-institutional solutions to our most pressing problems? Many of us are stuck on the couch or by the computer decrying the failures of Washington, the UN, and the World Bank. At some point, the gross failures of institutions will lead to greater action among social entrepreneurs. Common citizens will take matters into their own hands. Some already have.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
THE LORD CHANCELLOR ANNOUNCES A REVOLUTION
In 1620 Francis Bacon published a manifesto. He was critical of endless theoretical philosophizing based on the classical texts and advocated more empirical testing and pragmatic knowledge (Grafton:197).
Both the New World and ancient texts played key roles in Bacon’s dramas of scientific discovery. The title page of the Great Instauration shows a ship sailing past classical columns that represent the pillars of Hercules, the ancient limits of navigation and knowledge. Charles V had taken the pillars as his symbol, with the cautious humanist motto: "Ne plus ultra" "Do not go too far." Bacon kept the pillars but sent his ship past them and lopped off a vital word from the Latin tag: Plus ultra, "Too far is not enough". Discovery, not reading has become the central mode of obtaining important knowledge (Grafton:198).
And anyone who cared to see, as Bacon did, knew exactly at whose doors to lay the blame for the human races general failure to think for itself... The Greeks stood at the beginning of the story, already infected with two sorts of original sin. They had theorized too much and they had known too little. The character of their thought had been fixed in advance by the larger nature of their society. Working competitively in large cities, sophists taught for pay and philosophers for reputation. Both sort of thinker had naturally tried less to find the truth than to win debates. Their philosophy, accordingly, concentrated less on the workings of nature than on the tricks of argument (Grafton:200).
Question: anyone see any parallels with our current situation?
* Taken from Anthony Grafton, New Worlds, Ancient Texts: The Power of Tradition and the Shock of Discovery, London: Harvard University Press, 1992.
Both the New World and ancient texts played key roles in Bacon’s dramas of scientific discovery. The title page of the Great Instauration shows a ship sailing past classical columns that represent the pillars of Hercules, the ancient limits of navigation and knowledge. Charles V had taken the pillars as his symbol, with the cautious humanist motto: "Ne plus ultra" "Do not go too far." Bacon kept the pillars but sent his ship past them and lopped off a vital word from the Latin tag: Plus ultra, "Too far is not enough". Discovery, not reading has become the central mode of obtaining important knowledge (Grafton:198).
And anyone who cared to see, as Bacon did, knew exactly at whose doors to lay the blame for the human races general failure to think for itself... The Greeks stood at the beginning of the story, already infected with two sorts of original sin. They had theorized too much and they had known too little. The character of their thought had been fixed in advance by the larger nature of their society. Working competitively in large cities, sophists taught for pay and philosophers for reputation. Both sort of thinker had naturally tried less to find the truth than to win debates. Their philosophy, accordingly, concentrated less on the workings of nature than on the tricks of argument (Grafton:200).
Question: anyone see any parallels with our current situation?
* Taken from Anthony Grafton, New Worlds, Ancient Texts: The Power of Tradition and the Shock of Discovery, London: Harvard University Press, 1992.
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