"The Future History of the Western Church"
This is a prophetic look ahead that I shared with our Leadership Community back in February 2018 - in the PPE - the Pre-Pandemic Era. I share this now with you in this blog, as I think it is more relevant than ever. - TBJ
"Where is our place in the world?" This is something so many Christians are struggling with right now.
There is a discontinuity in both the society and the Church, and between both as well. We used to "fit" into our culture, but there seems to be less and less space for devoted disciples of Jesus. The culture is split into political polarities and so much disunity. The Church is likewise fractured, as it has not been able to find common ground on so many issues for so long — and now finds itself more divided as it joins in the political division of the larger culture.
The Kingdom "meta-narrative" — the larger over-arching story of God's redemptive work stands in direct conflict with the American cultural meta-narrative — which says that this is no over-arching story that unifies us! No meta-narrative shifts the focus on "local story" — the story of the individual. The attempts in the political and social arenas to "erase the past" (including removing the significance of the Church in the Western story) create discontinuity and allow for a different meta-story to fill in the space. The story is no longer about the US; it's all about ME. Every individual is the star and main character of their own story, which is essentially, by nature, dis-unifying, as billions of individual local stories compete to be THE story.
The church has lost the culture war around the meta-narrative, but the shift to a focus on local stories gives us an opportunity. We must focus on telling our local story about Jesus' transformative work in our lives, just like the man born blind did in John 9:25:
He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”
In Acts 1:8, Jesus said we would be His witnesses—those who testify to the truth of who He is and of His transformative work in our lives. In telling our story, we connect others to Jesus' big story, the Kingdom meta-narrative. This, in turn, helps others find their own place in the story of the Kingdom.
Additionally, the presence of the Kingdom of God in the lives of His people creates a cultural discontinuity of its own. We are not of this world - and it shows (or it should):
From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. - Matthew 11:12
Jesus said John the Baptist stood out because of His passionate pursuit of the Kingdom of God - and his tireless effort to see it advance. In the same way, when we also "seek first the Kingdom and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33), people notice it. Our way of life is divergent from the way of the culture. We stand out.
The Kingdom confronts people, demanding that they make a choice for Jesus:
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. - Matthew 10:34-39
In all this, the Kingdom declares that it has its own culture and demands allegiance to and alignment with Christ. There is a call to join in His story and find the meaning of our own life within it.
Oh, and in the midst of all this, the marginal "church" will continue to collapse. Yes, the Church in the West is in trouble, but the Church of the Word and the Spirit is not! The marginal church has aligned with the wrong kingdom, telling the wrong story—the one full of lies —that places humanity at the center. And this, Jesus, will not tolerate.
Here's our place in the world: in the midst of chaos, each local church must become a "pocket of continuity and stability" that then affects the world around us. The City on a Hill becomes the bastion of light and hope. It's a place of safety, a City of Refuge. It's whole people bringing the wholeness of Christ to others - a House of Healing. It's a "greenhouse" that reproduces, shares, and spreads the life of Christ to those around it. It's a "Kingdom celebration" — a community rejoicing in and sharing the love of God in Christ. Continuity and stability in loving relationships are very attractive to those in the chaos of the storm!
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” - John 13:34-35
So, you might ask, "What's our response?" I see seven things we need to do to create a strong, resilient local church as a bastion of stability:
Attend to your own soul. A local church community is only as strong as its leaders.
Attend to your own spiritual household. As 1 Timothy 3:4 indicates, if it doesn't work at home, you don't get to export it! Stability and continuity for the Church begin in your house.
Look for the wounded, disillusioned, and disconnected, and bring them home.
Prepare to pick up survivors. As the cataclysm intensifies, more churches will continue to close.
Open your heart, your hand, and your home. People need access to you and your life to receive what God has in store for them.
Step up your game in ministry participation. No spectators - every disciple is a player on the field!
And be prepared to step up into leadership. Everyone can influence others toward Christ. The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few (Luke 10:2)
Think through your response to what you just read:
What did the Holy Spirit speak to you through this blog?
What is your next step in obedience to His what He spoke? (Do it now!)
Who can help you engage?
How do you need to pray?
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