A Church On The Move

Finally here...our Portable Church Storage system!

It's not the opening of a new building, but it certainly is going to make a difference in the life of our church!

This trailer, along with the custom-made cases inside will make our church setup more efficient so that our set-up team won't get burnt out!

Preparing for "Work" Series

I've been continuing to read and study in preparation for an upcoming series on "Work" with respect to the Gospel. In my study, I've come across the following quote, written by William Diehl in a book called Christianity and Real Life :

In the almost thirty years of my professional career, my church has never once suggested that there be any type of accounting of my on-the-job ministry to others. My church has never once offered to improve those skills which could make me a better minister, nor has it ever asked if I needed any kind of support in what I was doing. There has never been an inquiry into the types of ethical decisions I must face, or whether I seek to communicate the faith to my coworkers. I have never been in a congregation where there was any type of public affirmation of a ministry in my career. In short, I must conclude that my church really doesn't have the least interest whether or how I minister in my daily work.

In the church, I think it's safe to say that people aren't thoroughly equipped to apply their belief to work because there is often a dualistic mentality in the church, where we separate the sacred from the profane, the holy from the unholy, the in from the out. Therefore, the everyday attitudes of Christians towards work are heavily influenced by the dominant values of the society.

In light of this, I'm really looking forward to this series...as I desire to see Immanuel more effective engage the world around and live out the Gospel in everything...

Real or Fake?

This past Sunday I shared about the fruit of the Spirit, and how we must be careful not to assume that when we display love, joy, peace, patience, etc. that it is fruit of the Spirit, because we are capable of producing counterfeit fruit that comes from selfish motivation rather than from love. It is very important for us to consider this because only as we understand the Gospel deeply will we produce the qualitatively different fruit of the Spirit. Only in the power of the Gospel can we overcome our sinful nature. Therefore, we must not "settle" for external "virtue" that does not flow from the Spirit because of the Gospel, but we must continue to live in the freedom of the Gospel and seek to produce true fruit. The following list helps to understand what true and counterfeit fruit looks like. It is taken from Redeemer Presbyterian Church's bible study series on Galatians written by Dr. Timothy Keller.

1. Love
Definition– To serve a person for their good and intrinsic value, not for what the person brings you.
Opposite– Fear: self-protection and abusing people.
Counterfeit– Selfish affection. Rescuing someone but really rescuing self. Attracted not to person, but to how this person’s love makes you feel about yourself.

2. Joy
Definition– Delight in God and his salvation for sheer beauty and worth of who he is.
Opposite– Hopelessness, despair.
Counterfeit– Elation that comes with blessings not the Blesser! Mood swings based on circumstances.

3. Peace
Definition– Confidence and rest in the wisdom and sovereignty of God more than your own.
Opposite– Anxiety and worry.
Counterfeit– Indifference, apathy, not caring about something. “I don’t care.”

4. Patience
Definition– Ability to take trouble (from others or life) without blowing. To suffer joyfully.
Opposite– Resentment toward God and others.
Counterfeit– Cynicism. Self-righteousness. “This is too small to be bothered about.”

5. Kindness
Definition– Practical kindness with vulnerability out of deep inner security.
Opposite– Envy. Unable to rejoice other’s joy.
Counterfeit– Manipulative good deeds. “Right hand knowing what left hand is doing.” Self-congratulation and self-righteousness.

6. Goodness (integrity)
Definition– Honesty, transparency. Being the same in one situation as another.
Opposite– Phoniness; hypocrisy.
Counterfeit– Truth without love. “Getting it off the chest” for your sake.

7. Faithfulness
Definition– Loyalty. Courage. To be principle-driven, committed, utterly reliable. True to one’s word.
Opposite– Opportunist. Fair-weather friend.
Counterfeit– Love without truth. Being loyal when you should be willing to confront or challenge.

8. Gentleness (humility)
Definition– Self-forgetfulness.
Opposite– Superiority: self-absorbed self-aggrandizement.
Counterfeit– Inferiority: self-absorbed, self-consciousness.

9. Self-control
Definition– Ability to choose the urgent over the important thing.
Opposite– A driven, impulsive, uncontrolled person.
Counterfeit– Willpower through pride or through more “functional” idols.

Raising Children in the Gospel

As we are trying to center our lives in the Gospel, we've had to think through parenting in light of the gospel. In the process, I found a 12-step program to raising a Pharisee (coming from a seminar given by Rev. Carey Hardy), which is kind of a backwards way of thinking about Gospel-centered parenting. If you follow these practices, you will increase the probability of raising a Pharisee, rather than a child who understands the grace of the gospel. Here they are :

1. Majoring on external instead of internal issues.

This is majoring on controlling a child's behavior without using Scripture and prayer to deal with his or her heart. This will produce a Pharisee--everything looks good on the outside, but inwardly he is corrupt (Matthew 23:23-24, 27-28). Don't settle for superficial repentance by your child.

2. Excessive control

This is not balancing discipline with instruction. If you try to control and micromanage everything a child thinks and does, you build accountability only to yourself instead of God. Instead, you want to create a God-consciousness. Don't seek to be the ultimate authority. You must teach them how to think for themselves--how to evaluate. Otherwise, they grow up only knowing how to live by a set of rules and do's and don'ts.

3. Overreacting to failure

This includes not allowing the freedom to fail. It's treating failure as the end of the world. you must see failure as an opportunity for instruction. But many parents live in fear of failure--and thus they become excessive controllers. This may be manifested in calling attention to every mistake. It's a performance-based love that expects perfection.

4. Being unforgiving and impatient.

Instead of a home that is filled with joy, there is an oppressive, negative atmosphere. Sinful choices by your children definitely need to be dealt with. But make sure there is a visible end to the consequences, with the home thus returning to a pleasant atmosphere of peace and tranquility. When you are not getting over their failure, you are teaching how to be unforgiving.

5. Elevating preference over biblical principle.

Some parents are prone to emphasize rules that really don't reflect the Bible at all. Instead, the rules reflect personal preferences. There is nothing inherently wrong with maintaining some rules that flow out of personal preferences. But care must be taken to avoid equating them with biblical commands, or again, allowing them to become excessive. That is what the Pharisees did. If you are enforcing too many of your preferences, or neglecting to teach biblical principles as the child matures, then preferential rule may be perceived as being the same as biblical commands and principles...and they grow up with this pharisaical mindset.

6. Unnecessary separatism

As your children grow, they must be involved with other children; this is a testing ground and provides opportunities for training. There is a balance here -- you have to be discerning about the company your child gets involved with. But some parents go to such an extreme that they won't allow their children to be involved with other children--even Christian children. Children need to be around other kids -- lost kids, spiritual kids, mediocre kids. Separating them will teach them to have a mentality of superiority that is not in line with the gospel. It also keeps them from learning to love others who are not like them.

7. Judging others...other families

This is being judgmental about other families, about things going on in the church; being critical of everything, constantly fault-finding, producing constant criticism. When you do this in front of children, you're developing that judgmental spirit in them.

8. Being "belligerent" -- a fighter

As the child watches you take on every wrong thing in the church, every example of wrong thinking in others, they learn the lifestyle of a fighter. Thus, they end up learning what to fight against and not necessarily what to fight for.

9. Favoritism

Favoritism teaches a child to want to be only with people who are like you and who meet your standards. This leads to the separatism mentioned earlier.

10. No humor

You need to know how to not take yourself so seriously and how to not take things in this world so seriously at times.

11. Building up their self-esteem

A "high self-esteem" is not a biblical concept. Nor is the need to learn to love yourself. Emphasis on self-esteem encourages individuals to become like Pharisees; they are encouraged to delve into self, to be focused on self, to build up self.

12. Lack of genuine spirituality

Living hypocritically teaches hypocrisy. You won't be perfect as a parent, but there must be a level of integrity visible to your children. Hypocrisy can be manifested in a parent who never admits his or her wrong. This gives children a wrong impression of spirituality, and that's a cheap substitute for true spirituality.

Versus or For?

A couple of weeks ago on a Monday, I went to UIC to lead some students in prayer for the new school year. And it was an incredibly encouraging time for me. Something was different. Very different.

As I prayed and thought about it, I realized that the change was this :

In the past, my attitude towards the campus was more US VERSUS THEM. Jerram Barrs, in his book The Heart of Evangelism, writes this :

An "us versus them" mentality can produce fear of the world, a condemning, even hateful attitude toward "sinners", a desire to retreat into the safe haven of our Christian institutions, and an insistence on personal separation from "sinners". If we do not know non-Christians in any personal depth, it is evident that the only evangelism that can take place is technique-based raids from behind the wall of the church into the "enemy-occupied territory" of the world.

That accurately described my past attitude when I would come to campus on Wednesdays. Honestly, I wouldn't really notice people unless they were part of the Servants. And so the thousands of people -- souls -- on campus who were not part of my "tribe" were just scenery. Not only that, but because I didn't come to campus too often, I always felt like an outsider there, like I didn't belong. I never felt comfortable.

However, by the grace of God, His Gospel has been doing a mighty work in my heart. My attitude towards the campus has changed from US VERSUS THEM to US FOR THEM. I have been blessed by God to become a blessing FOR others. How could I have missed this in the past? Jesus Himself said, "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." He came FOR sinners. And so coming to campus recently has been so different. I notice people. I engage people...talk to them. Not just those who are part of our ministry. And it is a joy. Before, if anything, it was a duty. But now, as I understand more of God's heart, it is a joy.

I realize I've been missing out on the heart of God. Why? I think it's because I'd been getting wrapped up in Christianity rather than Christ.

All the more reason to become Gospel-centered.

Gospel-Centered

As Immanuel seeks to be a Gospel-centered church, here are some of the implications of that :

1. That we would read the whole Bible as the Gospel (a la Luke 24)
2. That we would preach and teach the Gospel to believers, not just unbelievers
3. That we would preach and teach the Gospel in every sermon and every lesson
4. That we would see the gospel as both the "milk" and the "meat" of God's word
5. That we would study theology and doctrine to better understand the Gospel, because all theology is Gospel theology
6. That we would view the world, the church, and ourselves through the lens of the Gospel
7. That we would believe the Gospel can change anyone, including ourselves
8. That we would seek to solve all problems (personal, church, social) with the Gospel
9. That we would love others through the Gospel
10. That we would display the beauty of the Gospel by helping others in need through acts of mercy and generosity

As a church, we are learning how the Gospel is not just the entrance into the Christian life, but that it is the key to everything. Though this is a new way of seeing things for many in the church, my prayer is that the Lord would grant us the diligence to really pursue a deeper understanding and experience of the Gospel. Some have said, "It's a lot to think about...", or "It takes too much work...", or "I'm too lazy..." But that's when we have to remember Jesus' call to love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Lord, help us!

Justice and Mercy

This past Sunday, I preached on being Gospel-Centered in the community. The focus was on the place of ministries of justice and mercy at Immanuel. I didn't give very many practical examples or suggestions, but spoke more on the principles behind such ministry.

When you try to think about doing justice as an individual you can be quite overwhelmed with all the needs. Should you tackle slavery in the Sudan, child soldiers in Uganda, AIDS and fresh water wells in parts of Africa, child laborers in Asia, child prostitution in South America, hunger in North Korea or unwed mothers, drug addicts, fatherless children, failing public schools and elder abuse in the Chicago area alone? Before you get overwhelmed, stop and look where you are at right now. Where can you do justice and love mercy in your current situation? If you are a professional you could offer your services to those who really need it but can't afford to pay for it (Lawyers and Doctors are great, but so are Accountants and Mechanics). For those of you in High School and under, at lunch time you can go and sit with the 'loser kid' who is all alone. Parents, maybe you could have your son's friend from a broken home come and live with you. Perhaps you could show mercy by functioning as a foster parent or even adopting a child who is in need. You could mow your elderly neighbor's yard or pay for someone to mow it. Perhaps go get their groceries when you get yours. If you are a student maybe you could baby sit for those who can't afford it or help a parent care for their sick child. Some of you may even have the ability to help others find a place to live, help them buy a home and even find them some furniture to get settled. Jesus has shown grace to us in our destitute state so we must now show grace to those who need our help. Anybody can do something!

We can't do everything, but we can all do something!

Martin Luther on Work

I'm reading a book on the relationship between Work and God. Our work matters to God, and God matters to our work. I've still got a long way to go, but I came across this quote from Martin Luther, where it says,

Luther observed that God's blessings at times come to us through our labors and at times without our labors, but never because of our labors; for God always gives them because of His undeserved mercy...He uses our labor as a sort of mask, under the cover of which he blesses us and grants us what is His, so that there is room for faith.

More to come on the issue of work from a Gospel-centered perspective...

Joshua Harris and Facebook, part 2

Two entries ago I wrote about becoming a friend of Joshua Harris on Facebook. Well, he lasted exactly one week on Facebook before deciding to quit Facebook altogether. He writes about his reasons why on his personal blog on August 24 in an entry entitled "My One and Only Week on Facebook" His thoughts and confessions in the entry are pretty challenging. Here are some excerpts, if you don't want to read the whole thing :

First, I just don't have enough self-control not to check my page constantly. In one week I saw what many of you warned me about: it's addictive. I found myself tempted to update my "status" every five minutes. "Joshua Harris is walking across his office. Joshua Harris sitting in his office chair. Joshua Harris is wasting valuable time describing what he is doing."...
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The other reason I feel right about making my time with Facebook just a visit is a little harder to explain. How do I put this? I found that it encouraged me to think about me even more than I already do--which is admittedly already quite a bit. Does that make any sense? Without any help from the internet I'm inclined to give way too much time to evaluating myself, thinking about myself and wondering what other people think of me. If that egocentrism is a little flame, than Facebook for me is a gasoline IV feeding the fire. I need to grow in self-forgetfulness. I need to worry more about what God is thinking of me. I need to be preoccupied with what he's written in his word, not what somebody just wrote on my "wall."

Thanks, Joshua, for being open and honest and Godward. I think about Hebrews 12:1 "Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."
Now, he doesn't condemn Facebook altogether, but confesses that, knowing his own heart, he doesn't think it's helpful for him. Will I follow suit? I know I face similar temptations that he does/did...Where will the Lord bring me on this?

The Cost of Moving a Church Toward Gospel-Centeredness

I read the following excerpt in an article entitled, "Crucial Issues in Gospel and Community" by Jeff Louie. I was simultaneously challenged and encouraged by these words, and find that I am going to need much prayer for the task ahead of me. Furthermore, I realize how much my life will need to be transformed in this process -- I need strength, patience, perseverance, and I must "bleed the gospel ideals". Hmmmph. Although I am early in this process of moving Immanuel Community Church toward gospel-centeredness, I wholeheartedly agree with what he says towards the end : "But is it worth it? Definitely, yes!" Amen! May the Lord grant that my joy would not just be wrapped up in my own grasping of the beautiful gospel, but also in seeing my precious brothers and sisters embracing it in their hearts and lives.

The Cost of Moving a Church Toward Gospel-Centeredness

The transformation of an existing church toward a gospel-centeredness will require a high degree of commitment, and perseverance by the leadership and especially by the lead pastor. It can take months, but more like years of commitment. The lead pastor must not only support the gospel ideals, but he must bleed the gospel ideals. He is not to relegate the work to an assistant pastor, but must be totally committed and involve himself.

The leadership needs to have a high degree of spiritual strength, as many in the congregation will not understand where you are taking them. There will be those who catch on quickly, those in the middle who will follow whatever happens, but also those who are resistant to change. People attached themselves to an existing church, because they liked that church’s culture when they joined. If that culture is being changed, you will hear disparaging comments.

You will hear all sorts of excuses:

“We can’t show compassion, because we are not ready.” When will you be ready? Isn’t “loving our neighbor” the second greatest commandment? It is not an option. Beware that you don’t use this excuse, only to discover that nothing is done 5 years later.

“We are too small of a church.” It is not a matter whether you can implement ministries to change your community. We are not called to “change” our community. But we are called to “love” the people around us. We may, or may not bring a lasting effect. That is up to God. Some churches are bigger and can do more. Churches with lots of strong adults can do more building. Churches with seniors can do more mentoring. Congregations with intellectuals can do more tutoring.

“We won’t be effective, because the people in our neighborhood are different from the people at the church; we would do better to help our own kind.” There are aspects of effectiveness in ministry when the person you help is like yourself. But if you limit yourself to this, and use it as an excuse to do nothing toward the immediate needs of the people around you, then something is wrong. This is not what the second greatest commandment is about. I can’t imagine the Good Samaritan saying, “I’m sorry, I don’t speak your language. I show compassion, but only to my own kind; it’s a matter of effectiveness.” Beware that we do not make “cultural-pride” and “effectiveness” synonymous.

The lead pastor may need to risk his own job for the sake of gospel transformation. This is not another ministry to be added on top of what usually happens at the church. Some will not understand why you are declaring bold truths. Other will claim that you are headed toward a liberal social gospel. There will be times of misunderstanding, bouts of sadness. In the seventeen years at Sunset Church, I estimate that I have been sad at least 25% of the time.

But is it worth it? Definitely, yes! We do not serve ourselves, or institutions. We serve the living God who will judge the works of our hands. We need to stand before the Lord knowing that we strove to represent him in the fullness of his gospel.

The Gospel, Joshua Harris, and Facebook

So I was reading Joshua Harris' blog late Saturday night. Joshua Harris is the senior pastor of Covenant Life Church in Maryland. He is also the author of the famous but not necessarily popular book I Kissed Dating Goodbye. I got to meet him personally at OIL 2006, when he was one of the main speakers. His latest blog entry was entitled "FACEBOOK SURVEY", and it began :

Here's the deal: last night, inspired by my friend (and I mean that in the real-life sense of the word), Kenneth Maresco, I signed up for a Facebook account. This is the first time I've ever tried one of the social-networking sites before and I'm pretty lost but enjoying the novelty of it all.

And he went on with some thoughts and questions about the whole phenomenon of Facebook. But his entry ended with :

Oh, one more quick thing. If you're on Facebook, will you please, please, please be my friend? Thanks. I'm tired of being a friendless loser.

So guess what I did...I went onto Facebook, put his name into the search, eventually tracked him down, and Friend Requested him, thinking, "Wow...that would be great if I could connect with Joshua Harris...he's famous...he's an important person...etc." On my friend request, I wrote, "I read your blog, and so I am Friend Requesting you. I met you at OIL a couple of years ago, and am a pastor in the Chicago area."

Well, early Sunday morning before going to church, I happened to check my computer and there was a notification on my Facebook saying, "Reggie and Joshua Harris are now friends." I must say, it got the day off to a pretty good start! But it got better...

Because in light of reading some books about the cross recently, I started thinking about Facebook, the Gospel, and the Cross. And God blessed me with the following thoughts :

1. A Friend Request is an invitation into relationship. Therefore, if you really think about it, the Cross is God's Friend Request towards us. It is not just how we get saved, but it is His invitation to relationship with Him.
2. I was excited to Friend Request Joshua Harris because I thought it would be cool to be connected with a famous person. The Cross is a different in the sense that the Divine, the Almighty, the Creator and Sustainer of the whole universe is the one who gives the Friend Request (through the Cross) to little old (and sinful) me. The direction is opposite. I was "reaching up" to connect with Joshua Harris, so to speak. If I didn't do that, there would have been no chance for relationship. He doesn't know anything about me. The initiative was all mine. On the other hand, through the cross God reaches down to us. If He didn't do that, there would have been no chance for relationship. The initiative was all His.

Thinking about all of this, I was greatly encouraged to think that through the Cross and through the Gospel, I am a friend of God. What an amazing truth to embrace!

Remembering The Call Of A Leader

What is a Christian leader? How can we judge the success or failure of a leader? The gospel itself gives us the standard for Christian ministry, and it often is found to be a different standard than we often use. As much as the gospel is in us, as much as we are living it out, we will be able to lead others. In his book, The Cross and Christian Ministry, D.A. Carson reminds us of the proper way to view leadership and to gauge our success or failure :

Those of us who want to be leaders in the church today, then, must begin by recognizing that there is no special, elitist qualification. This observation is entirely in line with the lists of qualifications for leadership given elsewhere in the New Testament. For example, when Paul in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 sets out the qualifications for an overseer, the most remarkable feature of the list is that it is unremarkable. It contains nothing about intelligence, decisiveness, drive, wealth, power. Almost everything on the list is elsewhere in the New Testament required of all believers...
...So what we must recognize is that the demands of Christian leadership do not set a Christian apart into exclusive and elitist categories where certain new rules and privileges apply. Rather, Christian leadership demands a focus of the kinds of characteristics and virtues that ought to be present in Christians everywhere. That is precisely what makes it possible for Christian leaders to serve as models, as well as teachers, in the church of God.
...What it means to be a servant of Christ is to be obligated to promote the gospel by word and example, the gospel of the crucified Messiah. That is absolutely fundamental. There is no valid Christian leadership that does not throb with this mandate. We must repent of our endless fascination for "leadership" that smacks much more of hierarchical models (I am the boss, and, for all below me on the ladder, what I say goes) or of democratic models (give the people what they want; take another poll, scratch where they itch). All valid Christian leadership, however varied its style, however diverse its functions, must begin with this fundamental recognition : Christian leaders have been entrusted with the gospel, the secret things of God that have been hidden in ages past but that are now proclaimed, by their ministry, to men and women everywhere. Moreover, they must beware of politely assuming such a stance, while their real interest lies elsewhere. This will not do. The servants of Christ have a fundamental charge laid on them : They have been entrusted with the gospel, and all their service turns on making that gospel known and on encouraging the people of God, by word, example, and discipline, to live it out.

How Inadequacy Can Be A Good Thing

The other day, I was asked by a budding church leader, "Do you ever feel overwhelmed?". And, not trying to be overly dramatic, I replied, "ALL the time!" As a church planter facing the task of leading a new church, that's exactly how I feel. I feel the task is huge. I feel my abilities are inadequate. I feel people will be impatient with me. "ALL the time!" Somehow, my feeling overwhelmed in and of itself seemed to be encouragement to this leader -- perhaps because I could empathize with their own feelings of being overwhelmed. But is that encouragement enough? I think it helps a little, but it is insufficient in bringing about the necessary perseverance in this leader during times of deep trial and testing. So then what? I came across the following while reading a book on Gospel-Centered ministry :

Do not fear weakness, illness, or a sense of being overwhelmed.
The truth of the matter is that such experiences are often the occasions when God most greatly displays his power. As long as people are impressed by your powerful personality and impressive gifts, there is very little room for you to impress them with a crucified Savior. "I came to you," Paul confesses, "in weakness and fear, and with much trembling," (1 Corinthians 2:3) -- so much so that he needed special encouragement from God himself (Acts 18:9-10). But Paul knew that God's strength is most greatly displayed in connection with our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:1-10). Although he suffered fears, illness, weakness, and a tremendous sense of being overwhelmed by the enormity of the task, he did not fear the fear; his weakness was not compounded by focusing on his weakness. Far from it! He could write, "That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong," (2 Corinthians 12:10). That is the testimony of a man who has learned to minister under the cross.