Roland Allen suggest that our obsession with (wat we perceive to be) correct doctrine and our own standards of morality are significant hindrances to the ‘spontaneous expansion of the church’ as he calls it.

turn the river divx online

What does he mean?

Doesn’t he value doctrine or morality?

Not the case at all, but he does say that when we get more obsessed with teaching people to follow ‘Christianity’ rather than Christ we end up dulling the edge of their faith. Its a bit like the Bible college experience many of us have had. You know the drill – get all excited about following Jesus – decide to go to Bible college to ‘grow in that faith’ and finish up more informed but bored to tears with it. By restraining young Christians from mission activity until they have a sufficiently develoed understanding of doctrine is counterproductive. Allen argues we trust the spirit to guide them into truth rather than having to drill them before sending them out.

On morality he doesn’t see it as a dead issue – not at all – but he does argue that we need to allow Christ to do the convicting and shaping much moreso than we do. While his application is to tribal culture where issues like polygamy are (were) signifcant it does also have bearing on the western world. He describes the problems missionaries have had in the past trying to move tribal people to monogamy before accepting them as followers of Jesus. While this might seem a critical issue to us, to them it may be a non issue. To declare them not ‘Christian’ because they remain in polygamy is akin to declaring our ancestors to not be Christian because they practiced slavery.

When you look at questions of mission and faith thru the eyes of a missionary you see a very different picture than if you look thru the eyes of a western ‘pastor’.

He’s not an easy read, and not everything he says is ‘gold’, but he’s well worth the effort.

Seems I’m not the only one this idea has resonated with. This article expresses a lot of my own experience.

watch friends with money in divx

I am in the process of reading Paul’s letters (one every few days) to try and get a perspective on how he functioned as an apostolic missionary leader with oversight of a number of churches.

It does offer a different take on what he has to from our normal reading. (Myabe its just me but its easy to read the letters purely as instructions for US on how to live)

friday the 13th online

This is the million dollar question…

‘How can the emerging missional church and the established church co-exist?’

Its not my question this time, but Roo’s, one of our forge interns. It is his .acom assignment question and he has posted it on his blog and asked for some online input.

I suggested it would be an interesting exercise for those of us who blog in this field and who are genuinely interested in the question to offer our input (that way he’s at least got some ‘references’ when I come to mark it!)

So what about it?

Why not give him your input as someone actually working in the whole area and help him shape an assignment based on the experiences of those in the know and those who deal with the issues day to day.

I am actually interested to see just how effective it might be using the net as a resource.

Either drop him a comment or post on your own site and link back to him so others can give him some input.

I’ll post my own thoughts later when I’ve had time to sort the dribble from the rubbish.

A few weeks back at the end of the Forge intensive I wrote about the challenge I felt God was putting to me to get involved in some way with the whole area of justice and marginalised people.

I said that this time I would do something. I wasn’t sure what… but it would mean something.

Last week after I had been praying about this question an opportunity came up to get involved in a person’s life on a regular basis. I won’t say any more than that as it would not be appropriate, but I sensed it was a genuine ‘God moment’.

I actually sensed that maybe for me this type of engagement is going to start as a spiritual discipline. (It may even stay as a discipline) We use disciplines to help us become the kind of people we don’t naturally become and I sense that I need this to help shape my character in a way that it does not naturally gravitate to.

The another thought hit me.

Every time I hear someone speak about the issues of justice and marginalisation I find myself cheering – ‘yeh! great idea! lets go!’ and a few days later I have forgotten what I heard and it is business as usual. I really do like the idea of doing something, I am genuinely inspired, but my passion just seems to fade out…

I doubt I will ever be someone with the passion for justice that my mates like Steve McKinnon or Andy Broadbent have, but that’s ok (to a degree).

What struck me as I pondered this is the fact that I rant a lot about evangelism – about getting out there and having a go – about the fact that its not rocket science and its not that difficult. I sense that usually when I have finished preaching people feel like they want to do what I have been talking about. But… just like me and the justice thing – most lose heart quick or it drops off the radar.

I understand that better as I have been processing this stuff on justice.

I am speaking about evangelism and mission again tomorrow night and I want to say ‘people just do something’. If you are not a natural evangelist (and 90% of people aren’t) then don’t drop the ball altogether. Just do something. Make evangelism and mission a spiritual discipline and train yourself into a new way of being.

I am hopeful that as I do what God has called me to in the area of justice that I will actually become more aware of how he sees things and Imight actually start to re-orient who I am and how I live.

I have often said to people that small steps forward are better than no steps at all. Probably should take my own advice…

Ok – come on all you missionary thinkers!

Thanks for the various comments on my post re the Healing festival, but no one offered an opinion on this question:

So here’s a serious question for you…

These guys got together and put on a healing festival. I’m sure part of it was to promote their own businesses, but I also know many of them are very keen to see people healthy and well.

They allowed us to come (as you would hope they would.)

What if… the churches in the area put on a combined healing event (hey what a novel idea…) and these guys asked to be part of it – the reiki girls, the crystal balancing lady, all the practices that we would see as not compatible with a Jesus worldview… would we allow them into our festival?

Whaddayareckon?

Its a hypothetical at this stage, but it does raise some big issues for us churchies. We’ve just been enjoying some lively debate over dinner with my in-laws and I’d like some other input.

Come on folks! Who’s up for it? Who’s got an opinion to share?…

I’ll show my hand and say that I’d be ok with it. I’d see it as a fair thing to be able to attend and participate in each others festivals – which I guess is not a traditional Christian position, but I think its a fair one.

I might not subscribe to the worldview of the reiki crew, but then I don’t subscribe to the theological ideas of the health and wealth brigade either. In fact I reckon I’d have more concern about having them attending than people who would not claim to be Jesus followers…

I hope that’s sufficiently provocative to raise a response!