7. CHURCH - Are we there yet?

CHURCH, the ESSENTIALS  (7 of 7 - Conclusion)

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.  (Acts 2:1)

Anyone who has watched the movie, “Shrek 2” will remember the very funny sequence in the opening scenes when Shrek and Fiona head off to the kingdom of Far Far Away to introduce Shrek to her parents.  Donkey consummately represents what every parent has experienced when they take their young children on a long road trip.  For Donkey the trip is unbelievably long, thus the unbearably repetitious question. 

These blogs have attempted to point to the essential ingredients that Jesus left behind when a hundred and twenty disciples walked back from the Mount of Olives to the upper room.  To me, they represent the foundational elements of the brand-new entity created by the Holy Spirit with those disciples on the day of Pentecost.  I’m talking about the church.

 Our attention has more often been drawn to the description of the second generation church, the one catalysed by the supernatural signs of a tornado-like sound and then supernatural worship from a bunch of Galileans praising God in at least sixteen different unlearned languages.  When Peter explained what was happening and started to bear testimony to Jesus, as they had been commanded, many felt conviction by the Holy Spirit.  They repented, were baptised and filled with the Spirit;  three thousand of them. 

The next six verses describe something equally, or even more spectacular.  We are told how that same encounter with God transformed three thousand, one hundred and twenty very different and otherwise divided groups into a brand new kind of community.   

Here is a summary of the eleven things (by my count) that made this community a totally new and unique phenomenon in the history of the world:

·       Devotion to hearing and receiving the Word of God (apostles’ teaching).

·       Devotion to hanging out together with the other believers (fellowship).

·       Devotion to sharing the Lord’s Supper (Communion) with others.

·       Devotion to different kinds of prayer.

·       A common and constant experience of God’s awe-inspiring presence.

·       Ongoing experience of supernatural miracles.

·       A level of generosity that was able to see every need met.

·       A commitment to meet openly and publicly.

·       A desire to meet in small groups in homes.

·       A desire for worship.

·       Missional engagement with the wider community that say new people coming to know Christ every single day. 

I simply want to point out that these were the distinguishing characteristics of the second-generation church.  We also need to note that this was not the result of months of training, nor did they do a university course.  They didn’t go on a retreat.  It all happened right where they were.  It was a supernatural work of the Spirit.  We need to remember that. 

We also need to remember what was already inside of those 120 Galilean disciples, namely the five essentials identified in the previous blogs.  Traditional ways of doing church are failing dismally.  Our focus on hierarchical structures and institutionalised rituals, professional productions for spectators or superstar leaders and spectacular buildings should sound a warning to us.  None of them, as such get a mention in the description of the first church.  I am not suggesting that these things are bad in and of themselves.  I am saying that they too easily allow a shift in focus from the things that have Biblical warrant as distinctive essential foundations for building church anywhere with any group of people in any community in any generation: 

·       A sincere unconditional discipleship/relationship with Jesus.

·       A lifestyle identification with the values and purpose of the kingdom of God.

·       A dependence on the supernatural power of the Spirit.

·       A commitment to fulfill the mission of Jesus defined by the Great Commission.

·       A discipleship culture where the passion and motivation come from within the individual disciples(TDT they devoted themselves) not from the front or the top; not by coercion, manipulation or promise of earthly status or reward.

 These should form the agenda of our leaders’ meetings and be the basis upon which we measure where and how we are spending time, money and other resources.  Here are some questions that will give some indication as to whether we getting any closer to apostolic principles and pattern.  In other words, a measured answer to the question, “Are we there yet?” or perhaps, in our case, “Are we any closer to there yet?”  I can see only two measuring standards to answer that question in terms of fulfilment:  1.  Have our communities been given an opportunity to see the “fulness of Christ” through the church? (Ephesians 4:13) and 2.  Have we completed the task set out in the Great Commission in our generation? (Mark 16:15 ).

A few years ago I was introduced to a business book that has bugged me in a good way ever since I picked it up.  It is called, “The Four Disciplines of Execution.” (4DX)[1]  It is all about getting from the place of having a clear important goal and being able to see it fulfilled.  If I were going to cite a Biblical warrant for the process it would be Jesus’ words at the end of the Sermon on the Mount.  He tells a story about two house-builders to show that the only way to make it to the end is to put the kingdom principles (Matthew 5-7) into practice.  Hearing doesn’t change anything.  Knowing the information or ever learning to cite the sermon off by heart is also doomed to fail.  Only execution of the principles will provide a foundation strong enough to overcome obstacles and withstand the forces of destruction.

 Here are the four disciplines:

 1.      Focus only on the wildly (most) important goals.  One or two but no more.

2.     Act on lead measures – things that will actually make a difference.

3.     Keep a compelling scoreboard – measure and record the increase

4.     Create a cadence of accountability – regular small team sharing.

In regard to the church essentials identified in the previous blogs, I believe we need to ask questions like these about our churches.

 1.      Discipleship:   how many people in our church are unconditionally committed to following Jesus regardless of how it will affect their lifestyle?

2.     Kingdom:  how many people are seeking to live by kingdom of God values (eg. Sermon on the mount) and serve kingdom purposes as a first priority?

3.     Holy Spirit:  How many of the people are filled with the Spirit and sincerely seek to live by the power of the Spirit?

4.     Great Commission:  How many people are committed to share the gospel, make disciples to see the Great Commission completely fulfilled?

5.     Passion and Purpose (TDT):  How many people are genuinely devoting themselves to the fellowship and mission of Christ through the church?

 I think we should start with one or at most, two of these goals and cast vision, train and deploy people who will be able to multiply themselves in order to see others in the church similarly embrace the same principles. I think we should work together to identify and prioritise these goals and then take the steps to see increase through generational discipleship rather than hope that our next sermon, or a visiting ministry will accomplish the goal.  Each of these five essential elements can be observed in the ministry of Jesus (the gospels) and in the life of the apostolic church (Acts and Letters).  Let’s see whether they can shape the culture of our congregations.

[1]  The 4 Disciplines of Execution, Chris McChesney, Sean Covey and Jim Huling, Free Press New York, 2012