Default Mode (Part 2)

In my last post I talked about how Jesus' disciples reverted back to their default mode of fishing. Even though they were given a much bigger call on their lives to be "fishers of men" they still slipped back into the familiar. I also have done this.

I recently received a direct call from God to plant a church in Tucson, AZ (which I have received in the past and ignored--until now)! I have worked with children and youth for more than 17 years and I always defaulted to this mode. It is more comfortable and familiar. Also, I have a lot of experience in this area and could do it without much help from anyone (or God)?!

I believe God launched me into this new adventure of planting churches to rely on Him for strength and guidance. I don't have a stacked resume in this new endeavor. I have not experienced success in this, but God is teaching me that I need to trust Him and pray for His strength...His agenda...His power. So here I am at the crossroads of a new journey. I am no longer a fisherman, but a fisher of men.

Default Mode

It's funny how when we don't know what to do or are uncomfortable with what we are commissioned to do, we many times revert back to default mode. Here in John 21 we see Jesus' disciples out fishing. This is after they saw Him raised from the dead.

"Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered. He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish."

Back in Luke 5 when Jesus originally called these disciples they were fishing. Jesus told them that from now on they would be "fishers of men." They had a new calling and commission. We see in this account in John that they are again fishing, unsuccessfully mind you. But when Jesus calls out to them to put their net on the right side of the boat, they haul in a miraculous catch.
Here are some lessons to ponder:

1. Jesus has called all of us to be fishers of men (make disciples).
2. When we are connected to Jesus we become successful. We are not successful apart from Jesus.
3. We must consider the calling in our lives and go for it.

Thoughts on "The Hole in the Gospel"

I just started reading "The Hole in the Gospel" by Richard Stearns. Here are my initial thoughts.

I see a pattern developing in the book. The author states that the present gospel seems to have a hole in it. The gospel seems to be more about alleviating poverty and fighting injustice rather than salvation in the work of Jesus Christ, and the church is not out fighting injustice or feeding the poor (or at minimum is blind to it).

So far, it seems, that the author is confusing the gospel for the fruit of the gospel. Let me offer a simile. If the gospel is like a fruit tree, it should grow up and produce fruit. The gospel is the tree and the outgrowth (or fruit) would be an others-centered life (including helping the oppressed and poor). Now the fruit is not the gospel, but only an outgrowth of it. We can offer people the fruit but it is not the tree. I think we could mistake "the root" for the "fruit."

I see a movement happening in our culture of "social justice" where churches and denominations are leaning toward replacing the salvation message of the gospel with social reform agendas. The "hole in the gospel" is actually the omission of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross--His Substitutionary Atonement. The "world" is out trying to fight injustice and poverty (and we should join them), but they ARE NOT preaching the good news of salvation in Christ. That is the church's job.

We must not be lured away from our primary call and substitute social justice for the gospel. To be honest it is much easier to be a part of a movement of social justice than it is to preach Christ crucified. 1 Corinthians 1:18 says,

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

People do not take too kindly to the gospel as they do to the fruit of the gospel. We must preach the gospel and give away its fruit, but we must guard against presenting social justice as the gospel.

I will be continuing to read the book and will update periodically, so my thoughts may meander a bit.

Pawns in the Hands of God

A Poem by Shannon Huetter

At times it seems that life is cruel;
For we are pawns in the hands of God.
Whether rich or poor it is His Rule;
He reigns above with His un-spared rod.

Omnipotent is the God of love
That sees and knows all that's done.
If we should take from Him above,
Remember His Death, our souls He won.

So take my life I cry to Thee,
You, who art my God, and Ruling King.
For even Moses and the prophets could not see
What a God of love and grace could bring.

My God, My God I am Your pawn
That needs Your guidance from dusk till dawn.

Worship--What? Why? How?

Here are some basic questions that need to be asked from time to time.

1. What is worship?
2. Why do we worship?
3. How should we worship?

I believe that Romans 12:1 sums it up well:

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship."

How many times do we have the mentality of "I hope I GET something out of the worship today," rather than, "What can I OFFER today as worship?"

What can we OFFER in our worship, and how would that change the focus of many worship gatherings or services? Just some thoughts!!

Riding a Bus is Like Going to Church (part 1)

Imagine for a moment one day being faced with having to ride the bus to your destination. For some people this is a welcomed change, but for others it arises out of an uncomfortable need. Think of the questions that could run through your head...

"Will I even fit in with those people? What if I get on the wrong bus?

"Is it easy to figure out how to get where I need to go ?"

"Will the driver be helpful or judgmental?"

"How and who do I give my money to?"

"Will it be something I become more comfortable with?"

"What will it feel like on the bus? Will it be clean?"
"Who will I sit next to?"

In the next few posts I want to unpack the similarities of riding a bus for the first time and going to church. I will break the posts down into five topics, The Need, Overcoming Fears, First Impressions, Fitting In, and Telling Others.

We can learn a lot about our churches and how visitors feel and then remove some of the barriers that prevent people from coming back.

Attracting a Crowd or Making Disciples

What has happened to the spiritual landscape of the American Church? Why are we declining in new people coming to faith, and also in “membership” numbers in many churches?

I believe that the push to become bigger has not made us better. “Bigger IS NOT Better, but better is better.” I do not believe that God has called us to attract large crowds to measure our success, but rather to make disciples. Too often we are content with filling up seats with butts, because in our economy, “butts=bucks.” But what if bigger was only a by-product of better?

Let me explain…

Jesus tells us in the great commission to “make disciples.” Even Jesus, during His time on this earth was spent building a few to reach the many. Jesus had no problems with attracting a crowd, as a matter of fact, He often intentionally weeded out those who were just consumers and not sincere followers. His whole mission was to make disciples. He did this by identifying those who would sincerely follow. These men were faithful (not perfect); they were available, and they were teachable. They were F.A.T (faithful, available teachable).

Jesus built the success of the church on people who would go do likewise. The church is people and as we go we will grow. It really is more about sending rather than seating. Attracting a crowd is not the goal only a by-product of making disciples who “go”, “baptize”‘ and “teach”.

The church was meant to grow, but large crowds are not the litmus test for growth, but rather making disciples. I want to close with a quote from Robert Coleman from his book, The Master Plan of Evangelism.

”A few people so dedicated in time will shake the world for God. Victory is never won by the masses.”