I used to really struggle with Paul’s invitation to imitate him as he imitates Christ. I misread it thinking that he was telling people to imitate his imitation of Jesus. Sort of like someone impersonating an impersonator. Like me impersonating Frank Caliendo as he is impersonating John Madden.
But what Paul was calling them and us to do was to imitate Christ, just as he was seeking to do. Instead of an expression of arrogance it really is a solid principle. We are to all be imitators of Christ. We are to mimic Him…we really are to play the part of Jesus in the movie called our life.
What neither Paul nor Jesus calls us to do is imitate each other!
I heard Erwin McManus say and I will paraphrase, “I don’t want to be relevant. Relevant means just like everyone else who is already there.” If I understood him and I think I did, the same thing could be said about contemporary. Both basically mean, “ just like those around you.” It simply means existing in the same time period.
The church seems to be very happy with being current. We are very happy to just be like whatever is current. It seems to me that the biggest bunch of copy-cats on the planet is the church. You let one church find an effective way of reaching people in a certain place or with a certain style, and look out! Let the cloning begin!
It is amazing to what length churches will go in order to succeed. If a new church is succeeding and their name is different, the church down the street will change their name. If another church is drawing crowds with black curtains, rock bands and light shows you can then count on others will follow the pattern. It’s really no different than steeples or Colonial style buildings from fifty years ago. We see something and we think that what we see is making the difference, and we clone it.
When I find myself ready to copy some other ministry I have to wonder is it really about the kingdom and the calling. Could it be really be about competing? Sometimes it seems like churches are not partners in the kingdom but rather competitors vying for the same market share. It starts looking a whole lot like it’s more about commissions and not “The Commission.”
Could it be that just as Jesus has called each individual to be his or her own unique and gifted member of the body that this is what he wants for the local church too? Maybe He has called each church and each pastor to lead each church in such a way that together all the churches can reach the whole community and or region. What if instead of trying to clone the most recent methodology for success we started really trying to imitate Christ?
When John the Baptist was challenged with the success of Jesus he responded simply, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.” John did not start copying Jesus methods so he could compete. John just kept on doing what God called him to do.
How has God gifted you? Who and what has he called you and your organization to be? Instead of worrying about competing, let’s become partners and serve as compliments to each other. Instead of cloning a ministry that is having success in the area, why not partner with them. Instead of spending a fortune to become competitive why not try to become more like Jesus.
What if we stopped trying to copy what we can see and started trying to copy the one we cannot see…Jesus. What if we really invested in being REAL instead of relevant? What if we started trying to be Christ-like instead of contemporary? What if we stopped trying to tap into current trends and we tried to tap into an ancient truth: “not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord.” Or to be more relevant; Not by trends, nor by production teams, but by my Spirit says the Lord. What if we stopped cloning the competition…and started really being imitators of Jesus. I am pretty sure that is what the word Christian is supposed to mean.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
PJ2 The Great Commission
One of the things I love and hate about the English language is that words can have so many different meanings based on how they are used. For instance, Jesus gave us the Great Commission when He said, “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28:19
Or I can say “there is a great commission on the sale of certain items in our store.” Or I can say, “because of her injury, she will be out of commission for a while.”
Commission can mean mandate, it can mean money, or it can refer to the ability to operate of perform.
As has been proven through the centuries it is very easy for a religious organization to gravitate from the Great Commission toward the great commissions that can be generated in the name of the Great Commission.
For some, in spite of all of their statements and symbolism about the Great Commission, it really is about the great commissions: the money.
In the business world, organizations like banks, discount retail marts and restaurants have figured out that if you want to reach more people, then create more and more places where the people are. Go to where there is a need and fill it.
However some churches want to see how big they can build their buildings. It seems that the greatness of the modern church is measured by how big its parking lots are and how many the sanctuary will seat rather than how many people it is sending out as a part of the Great Commission.
For some it is about power, prestige and profits. It’s about comfort and convenience and consumerism. It’s about the commissions. Power-broker pastors, dizzy with their own charisma, begin to believe that the world deserves to hear them speak and therefore millions should be spent in order to grant them their wish, once a week.
One day I can see the pastors of the twentieth century standing before God and hearing Him ask, “you raised how many millions to build a building so that the majority of your congregation could sit comfortably for one hour a week and listen to you speak?”
Does it seem likely that Jesus Christ, who never owned a place to lay his head, will be pleased that America spent hundreds of millions of dollars so that we could sit segregated and self-righteous for one hour a week while the third world starved to death and went to hell?
Is it possible that the church is out of commission because it has forsaken the Great Commission for the great commissions? Somebody is speaking porky-jesus if they believe that when Jesus said “upon this rock I will build my church” that He was referring to the buildings instead of the body!
Could it be that we have become far too much like our Roman Catholic fore-fathers who in the name of Jesus created a denomination of people who were ignorant of the gospel, held captive by fear and deception in order to maintain power, prestige and profits. Are we guilty of building cathedrals that function like corrals rather than calling our flocks to fulfill the great commission and go therefore into all the world?
Maybe its time we took a good look at which commission we are really after.
Or I can say “there is a great commission on the sale of certain items in our store.” Or I can say, “because of her injury, she will be out of commission for a while.”
Commission can mean mandate, it can mean money, or it can refer to the ability to operate of perform.
As has been proven through the centuries it is very easy for a religious organization to gravitate from the Great Commission toward the great commissions that can be generated in the name of the Great Commission.
For some, in spite of all of their statements and symbolism about the Great Commission, it really is about the great commissions: the money.
In the business world, organizations like banks, discount retail marts and restaurants have figured out that if you want to reach more people, then create more and more places where the people are. Go to where there is a need and fill it.
However some churches want to see how big they can build their buildings. It seems that the greatness of the modern church is measured by how big its parking lots are and how many the sanctuary will seat rather than how many people it is sending out as a part of the Great Commission.
For some it is about power, prestige and profits. It’s about comfort and convenience and consumerism. It’s about the commissions. Power-broker pastors, dizzy with their own charisma, begin to believe that the world deserves to hear them speak and therefore millions should be spent in order to grant them their wish, once a week.
One day I can see the pastors of the twentieth century standing before God and hearing Him ask, “you raised how many millions to build a building so that the majority of your congregation could sit comfortably for one hour a week and listen to you speak?”
Does it seem likely that Jesus Christ, who never owned a place to lay his head, will be pleased that America spent hundreds of millions of dollars so that we could sit segregated and self-righteous for one hour a week while the third world starved to death and went to hell?
Is it possible that the church is out of commission because it has forsaken the Great Commission for the great commissions? Somebody is speaking porky-jesus if they believe that when Jesus said “upon this rock I will build my church” that He was referring to the buildings instead of the body!
Could it be that we have become far too much like our Roman Catholic fore-fathers who in the name of Jesus created a denomination of people who were ignorant of the gospel, held captive by fear and deception in order to maintain power, prestige and profits. Are we guilty of building cathedrals that function like corrals rather than calling our flocks to fulfill the great commission and go therefore into all the world?
Maybe its time we took a good look at which commission we are really after.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Back in the U.S. of A.
Our trip to Honduras went great! We were able to accomplish a lot both in construction and for The Kingdom. We made some great new relationships with some amazing people. Juan, you are a real image of Jesus. Clementina, you are the best, and your tamales, aye yie yie! Omar, God is going to use you in a big way! I can hardly wait to see my new friends again.
Please find more of Porky-Jesus below...
heart to heart,
kenn
Please find more of Porky-Jesus below...
heart to heart,
kenn
Porky-Jesus / Let us pray!
No religious function can properly begin unless someone leads in a quick word of prayer. This has always puzzled me. I mean, if it’s a word of prayer is it just one word? And if it’s a quick word of prayer does that mean it has to be said more quickly than usual?
Prayer is such an interesting subject. Its one of those things about which people love to talk but few have any time or tendency to participate. Books on prayer are fairly popular. Sermons about prayer are even well received.
And if you want to get a group of well fed sheep in a stampede! Just talk about how Madeline Murray O’Hare, “the spawn of Satan,” got prayer out of school! And if you have email, you realize that she must be still on the prowl! I get an email about her just about twice a year if not more. And I probably will not make it to heaven either because I don’t love Jesus enough to forward it to everyone in my contacts. Because according to the email my faith is in serous question if I do not forward it.
Did I say a sheep stampede? Boy that’s scary isn’t it? A hundred sheep trotting along, teeth bared, wool wafting in the wind. They run into each other and stop. A few of them see grass and give up walking altogether. They just stop and eat. Those that manage to keep going for a few moments keep going with furrowed brows as they bleat baaahhh! Baaaahhhh! I get goose-bumps just imagining the scary sight. Where was I? Oh yeah.
Doesn’t it seem that in most services prayer is kind of like a sprig of parsley on your dinner plate? It’s not really a part of the meal its just there to add color. So it is with prayer in many services. There is an obligatory prayer placed in the order of service so as to actually acknowledge that God is invited to what it is we are doing in His name.
Isn’t it odd that prayer remains a part of the official events in Washington?
I actually lead a prayer in the House of Representatives in Washington. That’s right. It was televised on CSPAN and everything. The funny thing was, was what did not get shown on CSPAN. There were not more than thirty people in the room. There might not have been twenty. That’s right, out of 435 representatives in the house; there were probably about thirty people in that historic hall. Prayer is a part of the form, but not a part of the function.
It’s not very different in some churches. Someone prays out loud, most present listen to what is being said. A few actually engage in the experience. We may grunt our consent every now and then and even say amen at the end of the prayer, but did we really pray?
In fact you want to save on the wear and tear of the carpet in your sanctuary, just announce a prayer meeting. The janitor won’t even need to vacuum. It’s true. Have you ever heard about a church that was really packing the pews, in multiple services, because of their prayer times? Their music, yes; the speaker, yes; because they spend large portions of their meeting time on their knees or in quiet contrition before the Lord, never. A service may be rocked deeply on a rare occasion as the people pray, but no one plans or expects to see God move because of their prayer times in the service.
That is one thing that the early church did. Prayer is far removed from the modern day entertainment venues. Yes I said it, Entertainment venues.
If Jesus drove the people out of the temple for the money madness, He would surely drive us out for our entertainment. A whole lot is entertainment. We don’t spend long portions of our time in prayer because prayer is boring. We work on our transitions between segments of the worship service. Why, because we want to look professional and polished. And well, we don’t want folks to lose interest. We must keep them, entertained. And there is nothing entertaining about listening to someone talk with their eyes closed.
In all four Gospels, the occasion of Jesus cleansing the Temple is recorded. In three of them Jesus declares that His Father’s house shall be called “a house of prayer.”
Indulging the fact that a church can be loosely referred as the house of God, it should be first known as a house of prayer.
If you will concede that the church officially began on the day of Pentecost you will note that it was not about singing, preaching or fellowship, it was prayer. When the church faced a challenge, like its leaders being in prison, they resorted first and only to prayer. They did not call the press, they did not form a steering team. They did not call their councilman or call in a favor! They prayed. Every time the early church got into a jam, they prayed their way out!
We are not giving glory to God if we are giving Him glory for something He did not do! We are merely trying to justify our actions and the ends we intended by saying that it was God who did it! You want to know why jail cells open and guards cannot see grown men walking out in plain view? Its because God is doing it in such a way that only God can get the glory! You want to know how an earthquake can tear down a jail and harm no one inside. Because God wants to do it in such a way that only He gets the glory! The reason we would rather picket than pray is because we are neither willing to wait or consider that it might not be God’s idea!
Can you imagine what the opinion of the council is of the church that came in and bullied them with numbers? Did someone ask, who cares what the bunch of bureaucrats think anyway? Well God does. Every member of every council in our nation came screaming from their mother’s loins on their way to a devil’s hell in desperation to run into someone who could show them that God and faith in Christ is more than political power and organizational will. The last thing they need to see and hear was that the church is just another self-willed and self-centered organization.
What if instead of showing up as sheep in wolves’ clothing, and only when there is something vital to the organization is involved, they showed up at every council meeting. And instead of intimidation, they simply communicated in some low-key way that while they meet there, the church group would be praying for the council or board to have God’s wisdom while they made decisions that were in the very best interest of people of their city.
What if the group of people who meet together on Sunday morning spent more of their time praying about the time when they were apart than trying to make their time together more entertaining.
Has it ever occurred to you that in theory, when the church is meeting together that it is at its least effective? Whatever size your church is, let’s say, 250 people. Most of them will sit silently during most of their time together. They will say little and do little, but, when they go their ways, there are 250 individuals who can go out and be Jesus every where they go. In everything they do they can do it as unto Jesus. You have to admit that sitting and listening does not take the power of the Holy Spirit…unless you are A.D.D. like me. But the point is that as a group, prayer is the greatest thing that can be done. Because when the church disperses, the potential is exponentially greater than any one service! The church that is exponential in its prayer time will be exponential in its power and effect on this hell bound world!
Next service, invite everyone to join in many slow words of prayer.
Prayer is such an interesting subject. Its one of those things about which people love to talk but few have any time or tendency to participate. Books on prayer are fairly popular. Sermons about prayer are even well received.
And if you want to get a group of well fed sheep in a stampede! Just talk about how Madeline Murray O’Hare, “the spawn of Satan,” got prayer out of school! And if you have email, you realize that she must be still on the prowl! I get an email about her just about twice a year if not more. And I probably will not make it to heaven either because I don’t love Jesus enough to forward it to everyone in my contacts. Because according to the email my faith is in serous question if I do not forward it.
Did I say a sheep stampede? Boy that’s scary isn’t it? A hundred sheep trotting along, teeth bared, wool wafting in the wind. They run into each other and stop. A few of them see grass and give up walking altogether. They just stop and eat. Those that manage to keep going for a few moments keep going with furrowed brows as they bleat baaahhh! Baaaahhhh! I get goose-bumps just imagining the scary sight. Where was I? Oh yeah.
Doesn’t it seem that in most services prayer is kind of like a sprig of parsley on your dinner plate? It’s not really a part of the meal its just there to add color. So it is with prayer in many services. There is an obligatory prayer placed in the order of service so as to actually acknowledge that God is invited to what it is we are doing in His name.
Isn’t it odd that prayer remains a part of the official events in Washington?
I actually lead a prayer in the House of Representatives in Washington. That’s right. It was televised on CSPAN and everything. The funny thing was, was what did not get shown on CSPAN. There were not more than thirty people in the room. There might not have been twenty. That’s right, out of 435 representatives in the house; there were probably about thirty people in that historic hall. Prayer is a part of the form, but not a part of the function.
It’s not very different in some churches. Someone prays out loud, most present listen to what is being said. A few actually engage in the experience. We may grunt our consent every now and then and even say amen at the end of the prayer, but did we really pray?
In fact you want to save on the wear and tear of the carpet in your sanctuary, just announce a prayer meeting. The janitor won’t even need to vacuum. It’s true. Have you ever heard about a church that was really packing the pews, in multiple services, because of their prayer times? Their music, yes; the speaker, yes; because they spend large portions of their meeting time on their knees or in quiet contrition before the Lord, never. A service may be rocked deeply on a rare occasion as the people pray, but no one plans or expects to see God move because of their prayer times in the service.
That is one thing that the early church did. Prayer is far removed from the modern day entertainment venues. Yes I said it, Entertainment venues.
If Jesus drove the people out of the temple for the money madness, He would surely drive us out for our entertainment. A whole lot is entertainment. We don’t spend long portions of our time in prayer because prayer is boring. We work on our transitions between segments of the worship service. Why, because we want to look professional and polished. And well, we don’t want folks to lose interest. We must keep them, entertained. And there is nothing entertaining about listening to someone talk with their eyes closed.
In all four Gospels, the occasion of Jesus cleansing the Temple is recorded. In three of them Jesus declares that His Father’s house shall be called “a house of prayer.”
Indulging the fact that a church can be loosely referred as the house of God, it should be first known as a house of prayer.
If you will concede that the church officially began on the day of Pentecost you will note that it was not about singing, preaching or fellowship, it was prayer. When the church faced a challenge, like its leaders being in prison, they resorted first and only to prayer. They did not call the press, they did not form a steering team. They did not call their councilman or call in a favor! They prayed. Every time the early church got into a jam, they prayed their way out!
We are not giving glory to God if we are giving Him glory for something He did not do! We are merely trying to justify our actions and the ends we intended by saying that it was God who did it! You want to know why jail cells open and guards cannot see grown men walking out in plain view? Its because God is doing it in such a way that only God can get the glory! You want to know how an earthquake can tear down a jail and harm no one inside. Because God wants to do it in such a way that only He gets the glory! The reason we would rather picket than pray is because we are neither willing to wait or consider that it might not be God’s idea!
Can you imagine what the opinion of the council is of the church that came in and bullied them with numbers? Did someone ask, who cares what the bunch of bureaucrats think anyway? Well God does. Every member of every council in our nation came screaming from their mother’s loins on their way to a devil’s hell in desperation to run into someone who could show them that God and faith in Christ is more than political power and organizational will. The last thing they need to see and hear was that the church is just another self-willed and self-centered organization.
What if instead of showing up as sheep in wolves’ clothing, and only when there is something vital to the organization is involved, they showed up at every council meeting. And instead of intimidation, they simply communicated in some low-key way that while they meet there, the church group would be praying for the council or board to have God’s wisdom while they made decisions that were in the very best interest of people of their city.
What if the group of people who meet together on Sunday morning spent more of their time praying about the time when they were apart than trying to make their time together more entertaining.
Has it ever occurred to you that in theory, when the church is meeting together that it is at its least effective? Whatever size your church is, let’s say, 250 people. Most of them will sit silently during most of their time together. They will say little and do little, but, when they go their ways, there are 250 individuals who can go out and be Jesus every where they go. In everything they do they can do it as unto Jesus. You have to admit that sitting and listening does not take the power of the Holy Spirit…unless you are A.D.D. like me. But the point is that as a group, prayer is the greatest thing that can be done. Because when the church disperses, the potential is exponentially greater than any one service! The church that is exponential in its prayer time will be exponential in its power and effect on this hell bound world!
Next service, invite everyone to join in many slow words of prayer.
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