This is in response to a blog I wrote last week about living the Kingdom life. While that is all true, the analogy isn’t complete. So I’m here to add another story.
There is an idea that exists; a grand sweeping idea that lives, moves, and breathes. It has the power to give life and take it. It possesses the hope of something more. Then there is us. We are a people living without a home. We are strangers and aliens in a land foreign to us. Because we don’t belong, the world around us hates us. But we live with the idea buried deep within our hearts. The idea gives us a hope that we have a home somewhere.We know it exists, but only within our hearts. It has the power to change us and those around us; even those that hate us – especially those that hate us!
The idea that I speak of is Christ. He was much, much more than simply a man.He was also a divine being that loved us beyond anything we can comprehend. This idea, this love, is what is meant to fuel us as Christians. But something has been lost.
“The weakness of so many modern Christians is that they feel too much at home in the world. In their effort to achieve restful “adjustment” to unregenerate society they have lost their pilgrim character and become an essential part of the very moral order against which they are sent to protest. The world recognizes them and accepts them for what they are. And this is the saddest thing that can be said about them. They are not lonely, but neither are they saints.”
AW Tozer
We are apart of a Kingdom, yes, but we are pilgrims who are living far from our home. We must not lose our identity and become something we are not. But we are also not called to shrink away and hide. We are called to missional living.
“Jesus comes with saving love for the world. He creates the church as a missional community to join Him in His mission of saving the world. He invites me to be part of the community to experience His saving love and participate in it.”
Brian McLaren
We are meant to live open (Missional) and yet also closed existences (Kingdom). Just as Christ was both man and God, we must remember that we are called to be both Missional (man) and Kingdom (God) minded. At times they may seem to contradict each other, but it is that tension that keeps us in check.
Wikipedia [in describing Missional livng] puts it best, “All believers are missionaries who are sent to be a blessing to the culture around them through a lifestyle that mimics God’s kingdom here on earth.”
And I’ll go ahead and accuse myself of being critical and often times offering no answers. SO let me embark upon these questions. It will bring us into territory that is bigger than me, so your input into the journey is paramount. I need all of you to take apart in this.
So let me answer the easiest part first: is the church worth saving?
The answer is a resounding YES. It must. The bride/church is meant to exists until He returns.
Then that leads us to the first question: how do we change the church?
Walk with me for a bit as I meander around the question. Christ cleared the church with a whip because the people had forgotten its intended purposed. So clear your mind about any church clutter you may have entertained thus far in the conversation. Step into the clearing with me.
Picture this. You are apart of a Kingdom. A mighty Kingdom. Now picture this Kingdom established deep within enemy territory. You serve a mighty King. To live you must obey what is governed by your King. To survive you must protect yourself from the enemy that surrounds you. You live in a walled city. Men stay watch over its walls at all times. As you leave those walls, you gird yourself with heavy armor; protection against what may come your way. You serve a cause greater than yourself. This Kingdom is your hope and life. You live to provide for your family and serve your King with honor. You would die for your King and your family.
Now apply this to your lives now. What if we as Christians lived like we had a King? Like we lived with a kingdom? Like we had an enemy outside the walls. If that was reality, how would it shape our lives today?
What if prayer, like the men in the watchtower, were necessary by someone within the body of the church at all times? If the post is left, the city is vulnerable.
If we began to take on this Kingdom view, how would it change our churches (little “c” churches, not THE CHURCH - His people)? We have forgotten that this battle we are in is LIFE and DEATH. Part spiritual, part physical. The events of 9/11 changed our views on safety and patriotism, but they quickly faded away. What if life was like 9/11 every day? How would you live differently?
We have an enemy (some flesh, some spirit) that seeks to “steal, kill, and destroy”. Do we act like it? I get angry because the church has turned into psychiatry and steps to good living. We have lost our edge, our drive to be apart of his Kingdom. We have left our city unguarded and taken up residence with the enemy. The dream has been forgotten and we’ve moved on with our lives.
What if we began to see the church as our lifeblood? Not the walls or steeple. But the people and community we have there. What if it wasn’t simply once a week? What if we sought out to live this Kingdom lifestyle?
This whole vision is all a dream you wake up from. It makes sense, at the time, but it doesn’t within the context of the world of your awakend state. You know it’s real, but can’t completely define it. We’re just waiting for it to take physical form. So wake up dreamers. Wipe the sleep from your eyes. Until now, we’ve lived alone and dreamless within the dark forest. We’ve scrimped and scratched by to live. Step out of the forest and into the clearing… your Kingdom awaits.
One thing that really rang in my ears during our Christmas Eve service was the angel’s description of Christ to Joseph and Mary.
Actually, before I get to that point, let me rewind to the preface of these events. Picture this, the angel Gabriel - a warrior, and imposing figure (this is noted by the fact that his greeting are always begun with “Do not be afraid” or as the message puts it “foo, don’t wet your pants) shows up on the scene. He knows Christ [though no one else yet does]. He has served under King Jesus, so anything he says about Christ is a bit of a understatement given to a people who really have no idea what they’re getting themselves into. Needless to say he is not only the messenger of God, he also knows what he’s talking about first hand.
Luke 1: 32-33 [Gabriel speaking to Mary]
32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”
Matthew 1: 20-21 [Gabriel speaking to Joseph]
20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
And I know I’ve said this before, but this idea brought me back. I truly believe that how we view Christ effects how we’ll follow Him. Jesus was not meek and mild. He was and is the commander of an angelic army (remember the “Do not be afraid” guys - yeah he’s their leader). He is the Son of the Most High - the destined ruler of His People. He is also the savior King - sent to set the captives free.
Do I hear meek and mild? Hardly. So as we choose to call ourselves christians - followers of Christ, remember who it is we serve. Never forget we serve the King.
Think about it. Paris Hilton. Famous for being famous. Does she have talent? No. She has made a career out of being fluff. Just a blonde and nothing much else. But man do the folks flock to her…
Look at the American church. It’s growing to be growing - but have we seen any real change in the hearts of the people? We feel like we must entertain people to get them in the doors. We are ashamed of the Gospel, so we make sure we up the fluff factor. Put on a good show, a make the money, and call it a day. Job well done.
I truly believe that we have lost our awe over the Gospel. We think that it alone is not enough to change people. “I mean it’s good and all, but where’s the WOW factor?” I was once told by a pastor (I’m dead serious). Wow factor? What about the overwhelming power of the Gospel. Don’t blame the Word for being impotent - check your own pants.
When we can simply understand that we’re a people in need of a God. And that his word and message is more than sufficent - there is an utmost power in it.
Let us not be apart of the Paris Hilton Church - blonde, pretty and empty.
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