Brerah

Missional vs. my heart

It happened again today. It happens many times after I listen to or read something from Tim Keller. He gets me really excited about the kingdom of God, and its advance. And then usually sometime not too long afterward, I get depressed when I look at my life and see what role I play/or am not playing in that advance. I understand that I am somewhat in a transition time before starting seminary, but I was reminded of something today that I have been reminded of many times: I don't want to be a pastor/RUF minister/church planter that is chiefly concerned with getting theological concepts across and having a bunch of people (including myself and my family) who could care less about what is happening around us.

Keller talks about the combatant to this by using the word missional. Missional means that everything your church does is to advance the kingdom. The Lord is about the kingdom's advance, and so should pastors be, and so should the sheep be. To talk about the word "evangelistic" usually implies some kind of program or to talk about the "missions" board of your church is to talk about something that isn't the normal work of the church. Missional means that kingdom advancing here and abroad is what your church does, or at least we do everything in our power to help make this so. This may mean that if you live in a hip hop neighborhood, then the praise music at your church is hip hop, and the pastor dress accordingly. If you live in uptown NYC and your congregation is 20 something business people, then you may have more orchestric music and wear a robe to preach in.

Why does this pull at my heart? What is it in me that says, No, you have to wear a robe everywhere you are. It's the most holy thing. Certainly, scripture doesn't speak to the necessity of wearing a robe, although you could argue that the priests in the days of old wore them. But does that make it mandated or right? What if they wore them b/c that was custom of the day?

My friend Matt was telling me about something Dr. Richard Pratt said in a class this summer, and it is like that thought that is sticking to a piece of gum in my mind. He was calling the class to repentance over their desire to be in ministry as a profession, and to go take a church, or do RUF, or whatever, because its easy and relatively predictable and safe. This is challenging to me because I look at the scriptures and they don't talk about the gospel being safe. Good yes, safe no. (cue, Chronicles of Narnia). Jesus isn't meant to be made a profession of ease and comfort. If I believe that there are kingdoms fighting in this world for our allegiance, I have also to believe that reaching as many people in the most effective way with the gospel has to be my goal. And if you are interested in this kingdom spreading, shouldn't it be yours?

Thoughts?

posted by corbs @ 9:36 PM