Monday, February 14, 2005
Transforming Christianity
Last week's extended conversation on the Simple Gospel continues. Adrian Warnock drives it forward with his relentless since Saturday quoting of Charles Spurgeon. In one of his Sunday Spurgeon posts Adrian notes, "The simple gospel changes us." Talk about pithy!
I have long been of the opinion that the church at large sells itself short when it offers only salvation. Christ's mission was one of transformation. John 10:10 - "The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly." When you save a drowning man, you give him more life, but not abundant life. Paul said 2 Cor 5:17 - Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. This is not just being saved from hell. This is radical stuff.
Amy's Humble Musings points out that the church has lost cultural influence because it is not sufficiently distinguishable from the greater cultural. (HT: Transforming Sermons) If we were transformed instead of merely saved, would not such a distinction be obvious? Come to think of it, Milton Stanley may be seriously on to something calling his blog "Transforming Sermons."
I am certain that if we got serious about transforming and not just saving, that the pews would contain fewer people and budgets would be smaller. Nonetheless we might really change the world this way. The megachurches place very little in front of their "membership" in terms of challenges to transformation, that's probably why they are "mega." However, I think "mega" is completely antithetical to how Christ intended for us to do this.
How do you call people to transformation? Well you can issue the call from the pulpit, but you cannot exercise the accountability. Was it the 5000 that Jesus fed that transformed the world? No -- it was the 12 that He walked, slept, ate, joked, and worked with that changed even the way we count time.
I do not, by the way, mean to sell salvation short -- it's a good thing. I just think it's a better thing when it is a by-product of transformation.
Rom 12:2 - And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
I have long been of the opinion that the church at large sells itself short when it offers only salvation. Christ's mission was one of transformation. John 10:10 - "The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly." When you save a drowning man, you give him more life, but not abundant life. Paul said 2 Cor 5:17 - Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. This is not just being saved from hell. This is radical stuff.
Amy's Humble Musings points out that the church has lost cultural influence because it is not sufficiently distinguishable from the greater cultural. (HT: Transforming Sermons) If we were transformed instead of merely saved, would not such a distinction be obvious? Come to think of it, Milton Stanley may be seriously on to something calling his blog "Transforming Sermons."
I am certain that if we got serious about transforming and not just saving, that the pews would contain fewer people and budgets would be smaller. Nonetheless we might really change the world this way. The megachurches place very little in front of their "membership" in terms of challenges to transformation, that's probably why they are "mega." However, I think "mega" is completely antithetical to how Christ intended for us to do this.
How do you call people to transformation? Well you can issue the call from the pulpit, but you cannot exercise the accountability. Was it the 5000 that Jesus fed that transformed the world? No -- it was the 12 that He walked, slept, ate, joked, and worked with that changed even the way we count time.
I do not, by the way, mean to sell salvation short -- it's a good thing. I just think it's a better thing when it is a by-product of transformation.
Rom 12:2 - And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
