THOUGHTFULLY DRIVING THE PORCELAIN BUS

A Column by John S Schroeder

November 9, 2002

This election week has been filled with prognostications about the future of the Democrats. Their showing nationally was abysmal, but out here in California it's still the 60's and they are stronger than ever, much to my chagrin. Yes, we have a self-involved, Clintonesque, truth-spinner in the statehouse, FOR A SECOND TERM!

The more of this stuff I read though, the more it started to sound really familiar. No, it's not because I read the same thing over and over again. The things that people have been writing about the Dems are very similar to what I have been hearing about the church for some time now. "The church is fading because it is not relevant to today's problems." Actually, I have been hearing that most of my life. The biggest difference is that I am now hearing it inside the church instead of from those on the outside making excuses about why they won't come inside.

I think the analysis is fair for politics; a political party simply has to be relevant. However, I think using that analysis for the church misses a bunch of marks. In the first place, the church defines the issue, not "today." The fact of the matter is there really is only one issue -- SIN. No, I am not being overly simplistic. If we were not sinners, if we had not chosen to separate ourselves from the will of God, if we were not defiant, self-aggrandizing, unrepentant, wretches there would be nothing we could define as an issue or problem. All the seemingly insurmountable problems of our age would vanish in an instant if we were not sinners. Sin is the only "issue" to which the church must address itself. Now, that does not mean that the church should not be dealing with hunger or poverty or homelessness, or any number of other things, but it must first, foremost, and preeminently deal with the issue of sin.

The world does not want to hear about the issue of sin right now, but that does not change the FACT that sin is the issue. God tells us that sin is the issue and I am far more inclined to listen to Him than "today." The church should not, in fact cannot, change its message to suit "today." If it does so, it ceases to be the Church and becomes just another charitable club -- different from the Kiwanis and Rotarians in ritual only.

One of the arguments that has been coming my way lately as I wax eloquent about how Jesus preached the Word and did not try to build an institution is that Jesus did send our disciples in pairs with a definite "plan" to carry the message forward. Yes He did, but the biggest part of that plan was that if a town did not receive the disciples, they were to shake the dust from their sandals and move on. Jesus' plan most definitely did not include instructions on how the disciples were to "fine tune" the message so that those in a town would hear it. Let me say that again, the message was inviolate, those that failed to hear it were to be left behind.

There is an amazing fact in Christian circles that most people in "the church" ignore. Mainline denominations are failing, but the Kingdom of God is growing faster than it ever has in history. In Africa and Asia the gospel is moving through and taking hold with a frightening rapidity. The Kingdom of God is growing; it is only the denominations that are not. The problem is not the message, but rather those that give the message. The conclusion that I draw from all of this is that America, and Western Europe, is clearly not fertile ground for the gospel at this point in history. Maybe we need to shake the dust from our sandals and give our attention to places that are?

There is another observation that needs to be made. The gospel seems to spread like wildfire in places where there is "mission," but in places where "the church" is established, it is dying. A preacher mentioned that fact about the gospel spreading in Africa and dying in America a few weeks ago and the first thing that popped into my head was that we needed to send missionaries to the U.S. Maybe we should give up on the concept of "church" altogether, and have only missions?

There is a second objection that I have to the parallels of the Democrats and the church. A political party is a gathering of like-minded people to accomplish some political end, usually electing similarly minded people to serve in office. A political party seeks something from the world. It must remain "relevant" to get what it wants from the world. The church is in very different circumstances. The church wants nothing from the world; it only wants to give something to the world. That is such a vital thing to remember. We seek nothing from the world, save response. We do not seek popularity, we do not seek money, we do not seek votes, and we do not seek anything that this world has to offer. We seek God Almighty. God and God alone is sufficient to all our needs. If we seek Him, He will supply all else.

Increasingly, I am getting the feeling that Christianity is becoming just another lifestyle choice. Certainly Christianity will affect one's lifestyle, but IT-IS-SO-MUCH-MORE-THE-THAN-THAT. Christianity surrounds, it consumes, and it transforms. Christianity is beyond lifestyle; it is beyond obsession. Christianity is about who I am and how I live. One without the other is empty and shallow. Faith without action is meaningless; action without faith is worldly.

Lord, I want to meaningful, and of Your Kingdom.

With Love,