So you’re meeting regularly with a group of believers who call themselves “church.” But you can’t shake the sense that the atmosphere has gone stale, that you’re missing something. You sense that God intended more for you, but it’s hard to know what that might be. If that’s you, let me offer four questions that are worth answering:
1) Discipleship. Are people continually helping you grow? Your church body needs to be composed of a series of interconnected relationships where those with greater experience are continually helping those who are young in the faith. Think of these as friendship-based apprenticing relationships. They help you to press into God.
2) Community. Are you independent contractors or are you doing life together? In our overly busy world, we have to create space to intersect and add value to one another. We need daily encouragement and support from each other. Yesterday’s blog addresses this issue.
3) Grace and Freedom. Does church make you feel inadequate or encouraged? Most people I know who are running from religion are not rejecting Jesus, they are just tired of the condemnation and control that his followers demonstrate. Legalism is a huge problem in the church. Unless we lead with love, we forfeit the right to share truth.
4) Outreach. Is your faith spilling out into your community and the world? We’ve been given spiritual power and authority for a reason. God wants his family back and he’s chosen you and me as his tools to go get them.
I’ve written more about these basics of church here.
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Seth Barnes
I'm motivated to join God in his global reclamation project. He's on the move, setting his sons and daughters free from their places of captivity. And he's partnering with those of us who have been freed to go and free others.
Great insight! After reading this I know why I love my Jesus and my church family! Miss ya Jennifer!
Yes, yes, yes and yes. Which is a refreshing and encouraging thing to recognize. Our church doesn’t have a building, and we’re are in the middle of another move of the church offices, and potentially looking for yet another suitable meeting place…which can make you feel a bit like the red-headed stepchild of the christian world.
Another church that we connect with at times has a beautiful building, is always in the paper for doing something good, and now my in laws have left our church for this pretty one. The pretty church is a great one…nothing wrong with that…but I have been feeling jealous lately of pretty church.
So it’s very encouraging that I can wholeheartedly say yes to all four points of your blog. We may not have everything that pretty church does, but we have what we need, and there’s nothing wrong with what we’ve got. Thanks, Seth!
You are on a major roll these past two days. Lovin’ it! Keep it comin’! It’s Great! I so agree with the Grace and Freedom statement you made. I see so many of my friends and family not stepping foot in a church due to this statement. It is horrible. I want the church today to look into themselves and see what Christ is really about and if they are really giving what they view Him as or who He really is.
I love this blog, it’s such a confirmation for me at times, like today! This is exactly what is being taught in our Sunday school class: formation, worship, community, service, power, evangelism, stewardship and multiplication are what we are being taught as the main components of discipleship. There are no cutting corners or watering down of anything, I leave each class with a new confidence that I’m in the right place and there is nothing easy about any of it. I thank God that I’m in the right place, I know there are so many out there that are not. God Bless you all today.
Josh
thanks for the encouragement, Jen, Amy, and Josh. These four tenets are the nonnegotiables of the churches that we’ll be planting thru g42. as discouraged as i am sometimes in churches that are ingrown and legalistic, i’m encouraged by the examples of churches like the ones you’re in.
I love how those things come and not necessarily in the “denomination” of our choice, as where I am today. My community is back home, but God has recently given me one here. It is a group of 20 or so seniors! hahahaa… i love it! Man are they incredibly full of wisdom and life!