Reinstituting Hospitality Back Into The Church In New Forms

Shepherding Builds Community

How Do You Prepare God’s People For Works of Service? Part VII

In the early 1900’s homes had “parlors”, “sitting rooms”, and “living rooms” for the purpose of informal and formal “visits” from friends and family.  Sunday afternoons were times of traveling to friends for “visits” or be asked over for a meal.  Hospitality was extended to all.  Churches were part of a local community, and since the horse and buggy era was coming to a close, most activities happened locally, usually around church functions.  By the end of the century with the automobile, people were passing each other on the way to church, no longer attending the closest community church, but traveling to the church that now best met their family’s needs in a changing social and religious climate.

Today homes have “entertainment centers” as center pieces in “family/recreation rooms”.  Most families hibernate in them: Pop controls the flat large screen High Definition Television with his complex remote control; the children play video games on their X-box or WIII system; Mom and/or the children text their friends on their smart phones.  No one needs to have “friends over” to visit anymore because they can text, Facebook, Skype, or Face Time them on their Smart Phones. “In person” presence is no longer required, just audio and video and the availability of internet connections. The gift of hospitality is becoming a diminishing and soon to be lost art of developing community.

I believe the shepherding aspect of the five fold may be glue in keeping “church community”.  Although social networking keeps people in contact, there is still nothing like a personal touch, a caring hug, the tone of voice that brings comfort and peace, and a look in one’s eye of assurance and respect. Shepherding is all about relationship and the caring, nurturing, and developing of others to transform them into the likeness of Jesus Christ as well as bringing unity to the body of Christ. 

Hospitality is still the key, because hospitality is all about openness and transparency. When we open our lives and homes and become transparent, people see us for whom we really are.  My question is, “When you open up and become transparent, do others see Jesus in you?”  That development of Jesus in you is what shepherding is all about: not just planting the seed, but nourishing it, maintaining it, cultivating it, and releasing it when ripe for harvest.  Do you feel “at home” in your own skin? Do you feel comfort and at peace? If so, be transparent, and open yourself up to others, so they can “experience” Jesus in you and through you. That is the art of discipleship, of mentoring, of spiritual parenting, of shepherding.

If the Church is to remain the center of hospitality, then the believers in Jesus Christ have to be willing to be exposed, be vulnerable, and take risks if they plan on helping to care for, develop, and mature their brothers and sisters in the Lord. I John 3:16 is crucial in this effort, for we, as brothers and sisters in the faith, have to learn what it means to “lay down your life for your brethren.” Only then will the true art of “shepherding” will occur through the five fold in the body of Christ, the Church.

The Simplicity of Shepherding; Just Caring For Others

How Do You Prepare God’s People For Works of Service? Part VI

Bottom Line: Pastoring/Shepherd is as simple as caring.  Everyone wants to be cared for, loved, and accepted. Shepherding is all about caring for the sheep, their nurture and development. A good shepherd lives with his sheep and knows each individually. Shepherding is all about relationship, a relationship between a shepherd and his sheep.  Jesus is our chief shepherd, and he has a personal relationship with each of his sheep.  In the five fold sense, we too can be shepherds if we invest individually in the lives of brothers and sisters in Christ who we get to intimately know, nurture, develop, and build up a bond around caring.

You don’t have to be a professional Christian to be a shepherd because it is not about position but about relationship. “Investment in others” is the key ingredient to shepherding.  You continue to pour yourself into others to help them develop into becoming a more Christ-like Christian. It is imperative that Christian elders, those older in the faith, give out, invest, and pour into younger Christians for their spiritual development.

Spiritual development does not necessarily mean formal academic religious education. It just means helping someone along to “mature” and “grow” into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Just practical things are important like: how to get through tough times, how to handle grief, loss, and setbacks, how to develop and independent prayer lifestyle, how to develop a disciplined life of Bible reading allowing the Holy Spirit to be one’s teacher, how to hear the voice of God for oneself and be obedient to that voice, how to receive from the Lord and others as well as how to be a giver, how to build proper, healthy, relationships with others that builds trust, honesty, and integrity, how to love unconditionally, what it means to “live by faith”, how to trust the Holy Spirit, etc.  All these can apply to practical daily applications, and we need older, practical, experienced Christians who have wrestled within themselves and gone through these issues in their personal lives to help other younger Christians walk through their journeys.

As I have discussed in an earlier blog, there is power in walking out one’s faith in pairs like the 70 disciples Jesus sent out or the Road to Emmaus experience. Jesus invested in only twelve intimately for the purpose of their spiritual development that would be the foundation for this new group, the Church. As the Church grew, elders, older Christians, and the Apostles invested in others in developing them toward the maturity of Jesus Christ individually to bring unity to the body corporately.

Finally, what is the cost? We cannot determine the cost in dollars and cents but in time.  Shepherding takes time, commitment, and availability. To shepherd you have to keep your time flexible, for your commitment is to the sheep, and when they need you, you need to be available.  Commitment to your sheep will demand unconditional love at inconvenient times over unconventional circumstances. Godly parenting takes time, commitment, and availability. Children demand their parent’s time, their loyalty or commitment, and their availability at all times. The proper development, nurture, and care of your children all hinges around the time your willing to give, the commitment of unconditional love at inconvenient times in unconventional circumstances that you are willing to give, and the availability of your time to them.  Christian parenting, Christian shepherding is no different.  It is the responsibility of the family structure to reproduce itself from generation to generation through developing, nurturing, and caring for the next generation. 

In most churches today, we believers do not take or offer our time to shepherd others because we are too busy. We won’t commit ourselves to developing caring relationships that build community because we will not commit our priorities in developing the kingdom of God because we are too busy with secular life.  We aren’t available because we feel that we are already over booked!  As parents we have to some times quit taking our kids to soccer practice to keep them active, to the library to keep them reading, to their friends to develop a social life, to youth group to keep them in the church, to grandmas to build family relationships, to school center activities and after school activities, so our children don’t “miss out”, but rather stay home, cuddle up on the couch with them, read a book to them, discuss their day, let them tell their stories of their day from their point of view, hug them, accept them, listen to them, and just unconditionally accept them for where they are at in the developmental stage of their life in their present conditions. That is shepherding: spending time investing in them.

A wise financial planner teaches his clients how to “invest their money” wisely to earn good dividends; a wise Christian teaches younger Christians how to “invest their time” wisely in others developing, nurturing, and caring for others while building lasting, intimate, meaningful relationships bonding together the Body of Christ into a community.  That is shepherding.

Evangelism: Savoring Tips & Guidelines

How Do You Prepare God’s People For Works of Service? Part V

Even though every believer should do evangelism, most of us do not know how to do it or feel very awkward when trying to evangelize.  Here are some tips:

- Natural Story Telling: Evangelism should be a natural response of just telling the story of our own spiritual journey.  Often just telling how you met the Lord, what has comprised your spiritual journey, how your journey has become a lifestyle are all ways of evangelizing.  I remember once when some friends were evangelizing, I just shared about how making Jesus Lord of my life and the power of the Holy Spirit had an impact on my spiritual walk. This left a dramatic impact on those I shared it with, and they not only made Jesus their Savior but also Lord and were willing to receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. Evangelism can be as simple as telling your personal story.

- Personal Evangelism: Evangelism is most effective when one on one. Even though we Christians spend millions on television and radio programs, one on one evangelism is still the most efficient and impactful method. There is nothing that beats personal contact, eye contact, and personal discussion and care.

- Building Relationships: Often building relationships of trust, respect, and care open doors for people to want to hear our stories, our message. Relationships are key to communications in the kingdom of God, and establishing them with unbelievers is of essence if we are to win them for Jesus.

- Outside The Walls: Evangelism should occur outside the walls of our church buildings. We need to quit relying on the Pastor and his staff to “give” an evangelism message through their sermons.  Evangelistic sermons have their place and effectiveness, but should not be a substitute for our individual sharing with people in the work place, those we recreate with, our neighbors and friends. 

- Vulnerability: Care is the best thing we can give an unbeliever. Everybody needs to feel cared for. If you build a relationship with a person who thinks you genuinely care for them, they will listen to you and believe that what you said is valid.  Evangelism is all about care: Jesus cared so much for us as sinners that he was willing to lay down his life on the Cross for us.  A key component to evangelism is your willingness to lay down your life for others, just not Christians, but non-Christians too. Only when you are willing to lay down your life and expose your life, will others become vulnerable and open up and expose their lives to you. 

- Stay Simple: Try to refrain from talking “Christian-eze”. Keep your message simple and sincere. Don’t talk down to them as if you are a saint, and they are an ain’t; talk face to face, eye to eye, peer to peer.

-Win With Love: We often think of Bull Horn Evangelists with a Hell-Fire & Brimstone Condemnation message, emphasizing a need for a savior.  What kind of God do we want to portray? What kind of God do we want to offer? True, there will be a judgment day, but we are living in an age of Grace, so we should extend grace, mercy, forgiveness, unconditional love, and a willingness to go the second mile in spit of who they are or how they act towards us. “Loving them into the kingdom” is far more effective, especially for their later spiritual growth, than scaring “the hell out of them”!

- Just Be Who You Are In Jesus; Be Genuine, Not A Hypocritical Phony:  Two men hung on either side of Jesus. The three were peers as “condemned criminals”, but the one criminal recognized that Jesus was innocent; he had done no wrong, yet he was suffering the same fate as the two who had “earned” their death sentence.  Jesus’ righteousness stood on its own, recognized by one of the criminals, rejected by the other. The one who acknowledged it was assured by Jesus to be with him in heaven, the other not. Don’t try to be some spiritual giant, someone who you are not; just be yourself in Jesus. Allow the Holy Spirit to use you and speak through you, and let the unbelievers whom you are a witness to draw their own conclusions. Hopefully it will be the same as the criminal who is with Jesus in heaven today.

Hopefully these are some tips that can be useful in your journey toward evangelism, the telling of what Jesus is and has done in your life.  Evangelism, like faith, is simple. Just be genuine, be yourself, be caring, and keep it simple.

Evangelism: Mid Wife, Coach, Husband, Mentor, Model

How Do You Prepare God’s People For Works of Service? Part IV

How do “equip” or “prepare” someone for evangelism? Good question. In the past the churches that I have attended have had many “evangelistic sermons” by visiting evangelists, or the local pastor preached on the topic of evangelism, or a Bible Study group studied evangelism through some book written on the topic.  No one ever went with me out of the streets or took me along when they evangelized until I broke from the church where I grew up to aide a minister who was starting an inner-city church in our area. He was an evangelist at heart, for that was his passion. Often I went with him on his evangelistic excursions and watch him work.  That was the best training that I ever received on evangelism; when someone actually walked it out with me.

Evangelism is all about birthing. Women understand the process better than men for they have experienced labor pains, birthing pains, the joys associated with the actual birth, the instant motive to mother at birth, etc. When I was born, my father was not allowed to be present. When we had our children, I was allowed to not only go into the birthing room, but was allowed into the Operating Room during a Caesarian procedure.  Today entire families can be in a birthing room as the mother sits in a bathing pool while all witness the birth.  Experiencing a birth is a wonderful memory etched in one’s life forever. It is a joyous moment, a fulfilling moment, an exciting moment, a moment filled with hope and promise filled with dreams for the future.

A father learns that a pregnancy is a nine-month ordeal, not just an instantaneous event. The mother goes through different stages throughout the pregnancy: throwing up, sickness, urges, cravings, cramps, discomforts of a child on her bladder, kickings, movement, and eventually contractions. At birth, all those discomforts and miseries vanish into ecstasy and joy, but pre-birth is a process.  Often when evangelizing one-on-one we forget that there may be trials, discomforts, and even pain in the process of leading one toward the saving grace of Jesus.  It may take days, weeks, months, even years of constantly serving, sharing, extending grace to an unbeliever to prepare his/her heart and spirit to receive the grace he/she so drastically needs.  The most effective evangelistic strategy is “walking with” the unbeliever through this stage of his spiritual journey in unconditional love and grace so that they can see their need. Later we will see how after birth, one needs to also have someone “walking with” them through nurture, care, development, and spiritual growth. The Church is all about “body ministry”, not being alone, but having someone “walking it out with you.” 

I once attended a mass evangelistic rally with Dr. Tony Campolo as the speaker/evangelist. Since it rained, the event was held indoors, and the crowd was predominately people who already had accepted Jesus as their savior. Dr. Campolo asked how many people there had accepted the Lord through television or radio. A sparse few raised their hands.  How many through mass evangelism? A handful of hands were raised. How many through one-on-one, someone speaking to you personally? Hundred raised their hands.

So how do we equip or prepare someone to be an evangelist? We walk it out with them. Go in pairs, mentoring, modeling by doing, being involved with people’s live, releasing people when they are ready to branch out on their own and take someone with them, multiplication.  The greatest investment we can give to someone is “our time”, not our money. Spending time with them, developing an atmosphere of trust, care, grace, and unconditional love are the tools for effective evangelism. There may be trials, temptations, failures and even falls, disappointments, and pains along the way, and they will probably fight you all the way, resisting the invitation you give them, but that is part of the “pregnancy” phase.  In faith, one has to “believe” that the unbeliever will become saved, will receive the saving grace from Jesus that will have eternal consequences, will walk beside them and believe for their “miracle of salvation”, and will bathe them in prayer.

There is no greater exhilarating experience than the moment one becomes “born again” nor when someone else accepts the invitation of a “born again” experience with Jesus Christ. It is like a mother at birth: the miseries and pains are forgotten; the joy of (eternal) life is rejoiced.  Most mother’s experience multiple births in their lives, and an evangelist is the same. A believer pushed by the evangelistic spirit immediately seeks another pregnancy to produce another spiritual birth.  They are driven by the passion for birth and rebirth. Evangelists are truly spiritual midwives. 

So how do we equip believers to be effective evangelists? Walk it out with them! Model by “doing”, then allowing them do “do” it before releasing them to be on their own, hopefully for them to take someone else under their wing to model and multiply the process.  It is not about academic education of understanding the topic of evangelizing, but about actually “doing it with others”. That takes time; that is the price of investment into the kingdom of God.

No, Not More “How To Do Books”!

 How Do You Prepare God’s People For Works of Service? Part III

- Question: How do you  “prepare God’s people for works of service”?

If you check out a Christian book store, you will find whole sections on “How To” books.  “Books for Dummies” have become popular in an effort to teach the “dumbest” how “to do” the simplest task.  Churches love to organize Bible Studies and Small Groups around reading these How-To books. You can probably find books entitled “12 Steps To A Successful Prayer Life”, “7 Ways to More Effective Evangelism”, etc. If the pastor detects a weakness in his congregation’s spiritual and moral life, it will call for more sermons about the topic, more discussions through organized Bible Studies and Small Discussion Groups. 

Nikki shoes has a slogan I think is effective: “Just Do It!”  Their commercials show athletes who are talented. Rather than talking about their sport, they are to “just do it!”  Enjoyment is in the “doing”, the competing, the experiencing the event. As a Church we should understand that it is not what you say that is important, but what you do.  It is in the “doing” that is effective, for the “doing” brings results.

Part of “preparing the saints for service” is “doing” it in front of them as an example, then releasing them to “do it”.  Leading by example was the most effective teaching approach for Jesus  He lead by example, often creating what I call “God Moments” of experience in his disciple’s life by being there with his disciples “doing it”.  Jesus taught his disciples to “walk the walk” rather than just “talk the walk”.  There was no “walk” that Jesus made his disciples do that he himself did not walk.  He wanted them to bear one another’s crosses, only after he bore his own because he led by example.  He tried to teach them about what was ahead for himself and them, the Cross, which proved ineffective because they did not understand until He lead by example dying on the cross and then they too had to experience for themselves in their lives. The had to “just do it”, experience it in order to be effective.  Showing by example “leads the way”, but “releasing them” will force them to “just do it”!  Paul soon learned not to think of the consequences, “just do it”!

I will take experience over theology any day.  It is important to “know” what you believe, but it is eve more import to “do” what you believe. As an experienced public school teacher of 40 years, I will take a field trip over book work in a sterile classroom any day.

So how do we apply this to the five fold?  Evangelism means “being there” (available) for the birth and knowing what to do and “doing it” when birthing a newborn into the kingdom of God.  Pastoral care means “being there for someone in need” and actually “meeting their need”.  Teaching means literally “walking beside someone” in everyday field trips through life while “doing” the kingdom of God principles that you are teaching.  Prophetic means “hearing from God” for yourself and teaching others how to hear from God for themselves and be obedient to what they have heard. Apostolic means seeing over someone’s personal spiritual development because you are physically there for them throughout their journey, then releasing them to “just do it”, to begin to fly as eagles (Isaiah 40).

How do you “prepare the saints for service”? You “just do it”, not just talk about it.

The Power of Pairs

How Do You Prepare God’s People For Works of Service? Part II

- Question: How do you  “prepare God’s people for works of service”?

I never thought this way before, but maybe one reason for Jesus to send disciples out in pairs was that one disciple was “equipping” the other “to serve” others by first “serving” the one with them by example.  What better way to teach “serving” than by leading by example and serving the one with you. There is power in standing beside someone who is older in the Lord, more mature in the Spirit, and “experience” with them the power of their spiritual walk and journey.

As a 24 year old, I had the opportunity to walk with a man through the streets of my city.  Growing up in a conservative, plain dressed, religious community of faith who believed their lifestyle was their witness, I did not know how to verbalize my faith and “birth” others into the kingdom of God, called evangelism. I use to watch in awe as he would lead others into the kingdom. I have used some of his techniques throughout my life to “birth” others into this kingdom. I am eternally grateful that I got to stand beside this man and learn by his example of “doing it”, not just talking about it.

Jesus led by example, with usually another disciple by his side watching everything he did. He didn’t teach “about” healing; he just healed. His disciples “experienced” the power of healing literally right before their eyes. He didn’t teach “about” God’s, his Father’s, provisions; he just fed the 5,000. He later had to discuss the principles of the kingdom with them to enhance their understanding of what they had seen and experienced. Although he often spoke in parables that only were understood by the power and openness to the Holy Spirit, it was the doing, the actually playing out before his disciples that proved the most effective way to teach.

Paul and Barnabas were sent out together. Barnabas, the older of the two, was known as “the encourager”, just the person needed to balance Pau’s intense personality.  Later Paul would take Mark, Timothy, and others with him, now as the elder, teaching the younger how to advance the kingdom of God.

If we, the Church, are to “equip” or “prepare the saints for service”, maybe we should “pair up” with another Christian for a season to learn from them by experiencing daily activities in life’s journey or to pour into someone else’s spiritual life preparing them for the future.  The price: our time, our availability, our dedication, our unselfish giving, and our unconditional love.

When Jesus paired up the 70 to prepared towns before he would come to them, the results were astounding as Jesus literally saw satan falling from heaven. There is power in preparation, and we must begin to prepare those younger in the Christian faith than ourselves by walking beside them, teaching them what we know through example and experience, equipping them for their life long spiritual journey. That is the principle of power pairing in the kingdom of God.

First, We Must Understand Kings & Kingdoms

 How Do You Prepare God’s People For Works of Service? Part I

My wife is an eternal romantic; “Camelot” is her favorite movie. There is something about a good looking King Arthur, a Lady Guinevere, and Sir Lancelot.  “Camelot” was to be a place of peace, tranquility, and equality as the knights sat around a Round Table to share power. Everything appeared perfect, but a love triangle brings down the kingdom.

Americans know very little about kings and kingdoms. The American Revolution was all about breaking from those traditions, the tyranny of a king and rule by the people, yet today American seems not to have faith in its governing system. The President’s most popular day is his Inauguration Day, his first day in office. After that his popularity drops. Currently only 18% of Americans feel Congress, the rule of the people, is doing its job, yet they fail to “vote the bums out” because they selfishly work to get building projects, roads, government grants, and jobs into their districts, so their constituents keep them in office.  Americans do not know what “submission” as a “subject” to the king really means.

First, you must realize that in a kingdom, everything revolves around the King, the people are only his subjects. The king has all authority, rules, reigns, governs, and judges. As long as you are in the kind’s favor, you are safe, so loyalty to the king is of utmost importance to maintain your life and lifestyle. Bottom line: Everything is done for the good of the kingdom through serving the king.

The king gives his nobles “territories” to govern for the price of loyalty, requiring them to come to the King’s aide in season of battles. The King’s subjects are servants, the doers that keep the kingdom running: the blacksmith, the carpenter, the chambermaids, the knights, the farmers, the weavers, etc. They do their occupations to support the kingdom.

Although King Arthur’s Camelot is but myth, the kingdom of God is reality. John the Baptist, the forerunner, came to announce the coming kingdom by proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.” Jesus, the King of this kingdom, while on earth, exerted his energies in teaching kingdom of God principles.

 Christians need to understand that there is an actual kingdom of God lead by King Jesus. He gives territories, in the New Testament they are called cities, to his Church to rule and reign, but expects them to unit around himself during spiritual battle.  His subjects, his believers, are to do their common occupations to support the kingdom while developing community.

Jesus, our King, is also our High Priest and our sacrificial lamb. At the Cross he established his kingdom, vertically (Eph. 4:8-10, John 3:16) and is now seated on his Throne ruling and reigning. At the Cross he established his kingdom horizontally (IJohn 3:16) on the principle of laying down your life for your brethren. I contend you can not learn or know how to lay down your life for your brethren until you have learned to lay down your life for your king. “To obey is better than sacrifice,” Jesus said, and obedience is the requirement of every subject in Jesus’ kingdom.  In America, we have the mindset that we would rather be “free” than “obedient”, so it is hard for American Christians to sometime understand the full impact of kingdom theology.

If we, believers in Jesus Christ, Christians, the Church, wish to rule and reign with Christ, we need to learn how to serve our King, Jesus, first and foremost before we can ever learn how to serve our Brethren. If we are willing to be obedient to the King, Jesus, through His Holy Spirit, he will instruct his subjects, believers in Jesus, on “how to” live out kingdom principles, to actually walk them out, not just learn about them. He has prepared the way (through John the Baptist); he has built the road (Is. 57); and he teaches while walking on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24).

The first step in knowing how to “prepare the saints to serve” is to first teach them how to be in loyal submission to their king, Jesus, who will do the instructing through His Holy Spirit from there.

MISSIONS: RELATIONAL OR STRUCTURAL?

 The Clash Of “Mindsets”: Structural Versus Relational

The way one looks at church, structural verses relational, will effect they look at missions.

Most of us, who have grown up in the Church, look at missions as a place “missionaries” go or a thing do.  Missionaries are people who go around from church to church to raise (actually forced to beg for) money, so that they can be a “professional”, having an income to free them financially while “ministering”.  Unlike Paul, who was a tent maker on his missionary endeavors, a missionary goes forth as a paid professional.  What he builds is a kingdom that depends on him, for he usually remains atop of the pyramidal structure he creates.  A true missionary, like Paul, would move one, allowing those he “equipped” locally to maintain the new work, freeing himself to move on and start, plant, or birth a new work.  A good way to tell if missionary endeavor is relational or pyramidal in structure is by seeing who is leading.  Is the missionary over them, or are the natives ministering relationally to their native neighbors, brothers and sisters, families, and communities.  If missions were structured as a pyramid or hierarchy, the structure will want to stay to keep its structure and maintain its positions.  If the structure is relational, then there is no need for a hierarchal, pyramid, institutional structure because spiritual life flows horizontally among the participants.  The banned underground Church in China is an excellent example when placed beside the institutional Church in China that the government permits.  There are no westernized missionaries “overseeing” the spiritual life of the Chinese Church today, yet it is a vibrant, living organism rather than a highly structured organization partially due to persecution.   A persecuted church is often forced to abandon its structure for survival.

As a person growing up in the American church, I believe that missionaries eventually open up either missionary hospitals or Bible Schools.  The Bible Schools are to train future “pastors” to go out and start, develop and maintain new churches.  That is structural religious thinking.  Relationally, I believe, Ephesians 4 outlines how we are to “equip the saints”, not “equip a staff”, for the work of “service”, not necessarily paid professional service, to bring “maturity” to the saints in being more Christ-like, into the image of Jesus, and to bring “unity” to the body.  Bible Schools preach the doctrine of the churches that finance the endeavor and propagate their uniqueness and correctness of theology doctrine compared to other “sects” of the Church, bringing division in the Body of Christ.

If someone came in and relationally developed and released those believers in the body of Christ to be evangelistic, reaching those in their culture who are lost to find Jesus in terms that their culture understands, to be shepherds, caring physically, mentally, and spiritually to the context of their cultural community, to be teachers of the Word, the Bible, by not only interpreting, but applying the written word to their culture world (in a way like Wycliffe Bible Translators do today), to be prophets so the native people in their own land can hear the voice of God for themselves and claim God to be the God of their nation, region, and community, to be apostles releasing their own people according to their spiritual gifting to their own people in the culture of their own country but under Biblical principles, written and living.  Someone has already done that: Paul, and how he did that is recorded in most of the books in the New Testament after the four gospels.

Saul, like us, first went to where he was familiar when entering a new town, a new culture.  He went to any existing synagogue, to God’s people like his own, only to be rejected by most of them, often thrown out, even stoned by some thinking him dead.  Rejection forced him to then look to the native culture, the gentiles, who accepted his evangelistic message, received and developed his pastoral, shepherding care towards one another, got grounded in the written scriptures of his day through the unified message of the “apostles’ teaching”, grew in the intimacy of a personal relationship with their God through Jesus prophetically, and acceptance the “seeing over” what the Holy Spirit was doing through the apostolic.  Then as one of their “apostles”, Paul “released” them to do the work “of service” for which he had trained and equipped them and moved on.  Other “apostles”, “prophets”, and “teachers” in the body of Christ would pass through to help to continue to “equip” THEM and “release” THEM.  Never did Paul nor any other apostle, prophet, teacher, etc. rule over or control them, or remain there to dictate “apostolic oversight” that controlled a pyramidal, hierarchal, institutional structure, contrary to what the Roman Catholic, pyramidal, institutional church claims.

Paul set up relational “networks” throughout his known world at his time with whom he loved, nurtured, encouraged, and longed to see and be with, but whom he never “controlled”, opting in allowing the Holy Spirit to flow freely and birth, develop, and maintain His Church in a culture through those living in that culture.  The “relational” mission mind is far different than the “structural” mission mind, and the Church needs to allow the Holy Spirit to “teach us all things” in how to birth, maintain, and develop such endeavors through His people in His/their locality.

CONTROL VS. RELEASE - WHAT HAPPENS IN A COCOON?

Caterpillar to Butterfly: Control– TO – Equipping and Releasing

From Caterpillar to Cocoon to Butterfly – Part XII

In this series we have been asking the question, “What happens with metamorphosis during the cocoon stage?”  How, structurally, do you get a butterfly from what once was a caterpillar? In my Aug. 20, 2011’s blog, I listed several forms of transformation that I see occurring inside the cocoon of change for the church.   Today we will look at the principle: Controls people (caterpillar) TO Equipping and releasing people (butterfly).

Caterpillar: Up to now, historically the Church has not done a very good job “equipping the saints for the work of service” (Eph. 4).  With the clergy/laity differential, most of the work is done by the professional clergy and staff asking only their parishioners to “follow their lead.” With a professional staff, much training is done, but that is not necessarily true for the saints.  A church is always excited when a young man decides to go into the “professional” ministry, as his equipping or training begins towards the goal of becoming a professional.  Often churches have attempted to “train” their people, only to not release them once trained.  Mindsets are that the clergy does the work because that is what they are paid to do as professionals has hampered the church.  With a pyramidal church structure, the issue of “control” over a congregation can become more of an influence that training, developing, and releasing them.

Butterfly:  With the five fold, when discovering one’s passion and point of view, the church can equip them to do what drives them, their passion, no matter if it is evangelistic, pastoral, teaching, prophetic, or apostolic.   Equipping comes through serving and being served by each member of the five fold who are also laity and learning to “lay down one’s life for their brethren.”  The apostle has probably experienced the other four passions in his life, but the purpose for his gift is to see the big picture, to network, develop, nurture, support, and edify the other four giftings, then, most importantly, release them to do what they are gifted to do.  Releasing means “hands off”, no control, but remain in a supportive role. Apostle Paul is an excellent example of a man who did all four passions when birthing churches on his missionary journeys, only to physically leave them, release them, and only correspond with them through letters.  Because his techniques were all “relational”” when birthing and developing a new church, he could relationally “release” them with confidence of their giftings in Jesus Christ to carry on and expand the work.

The Differences: Old School church prepares and develops one to be a “professional” in what they call “full time ministry”.  Higher education through westernized teaching philosophies is the route provided to produce a well educated professional rather than a hands on, trained and developed laity. New School church’s mission is to “equip the saints”, not the staff, for the “works of service.”  The goal is to birth, nurture, and develop the skills which goes along with one’s passions.  All this development is of no use unless it is “released”, freed to move ahead in one’s passion.  Even with that freedom will come accountability through relationships to the other four passions and points of view in the five fold ministry.

Implications Today:  Personally, I have been trained with a group of men to become “lay speakers” in a denomination, but few of us in the class ever got the opportunity to fill any pulpits when pastors were away on vacations.  They controlled their pulpits rather than releasing them. I also have been trained to operate prophetically with fifty other people, to be able to be part of a prophetic presbytery, seeking the Holy Spirit, discerning His will for someone’s life, and in faith giving them a prophetic word.  Today, none of us are in prophetic presbyteries anymore.  Training a laity and actually releasing him/her to give one freedom to minister in their gifting and passions has been a rarity in my fifty years as a church attendee.  That needs to change drastically if the church is to take Ephesians 4 and the Great Commission seriously. 

Conclusion:  Instead of “enabling” Christians, the laity, to just “follow” everything the clergy proposes, then criticizing them for being lethargic in living out their faith, the church needs to be better at “equipping the saints” and take that more seriously.  The investment should not be in creating a professional staff, but in equipping and developing the already existing saints, those who make up the local body of Christ.  If we would equip (birth, nurture, teach, spiritually edify, and see over) the saints currently in our churches for service, then release them, we would see a revolutionary change, called revival or reformation, in the church today. You know, a butterfly can never be "free" to "fly" until it is "released" from its cocoon.  Oh, I dream to see the day of that release!

Staffing Or Equipping: The Challenge of the 21st Century Church

 A Look at Kent Hunter’s “The Future Is Now: How God Is Moving In The 21^st Century Church 

I came across an ebook by Kent R. Hunter of Church Doctor Ministries entitled “The Future Is Now: How God Is Moving In The 21^st Century Church.”  I would like to quote from this source since it is so good, and then add a few of my analysis to it. 

From Chapter 15 – The Church Staff: A Dysfunctional Business Plan, Hunter says: “At the risk of sounding non- academic, the traditional approach for training church workers has outlived its sensibility. It is no longer possible for many to leave seminary with an $80,000 debt, take on a $40,000 annual salary, provide for a family of four, pay off bills, live near the poverty level, and function with a clear mind to accomplish adequate ministry.... It is no longer economically feasible for the system to survive.”

In the 21^st Century, the Church has to look towards different avenues for Church leadership in economic hard times.  We have been programmed to believe that the local church has to be lead and staffed professionally. I grew up in a church that still have the “free ministry”, as they call it.  They have seven “elders” who do everything that most church pastors do while still holding down secular jobs.  This duel leadership has served them well, causing them to “raise” leadership from with in their own body of local believers rather than looking outward to professionals coming in to supply leadership.  Equipping their youth to be future leaders is a must if their system is to survive.  (Most church Youth Groups are not focused in training leadership for the future for their local church when their church will look toward professionally bringing in pastors when needed.) Financially, with out budgeting for staffing needs, which is usually a large chunk out of most church’s budgets, they take offering for different needs as they arise.  I witnessed a night over $10,000 was raised to complete a church in a third world country, and only a dozen people were in attendance when the offering was taken! They have freedom in their giving when not under constraints of “meeting the budget” heavy laden with staffing and building maintenance items.

Most of what Hunter says in his ebook I have totally agreed with, but I do find a differencing of opinions when he said, “Equipping those called to ministry should be a seamless discipleship process in the context of the local church. It begins as a casual volunteer, then moves to a more involved volunteer, to a full-time volunteer, to the part-time paid volunteer, to the half-time paid volunteer, to the full-time paid staff person. It is at this point when many will take further biblical training. Most will obtain further education while they remain in their community and on the job. They will use long-distance learning or attend an occasional short-term, short-burst, boot-camp-type courses of no longer than two weeks away from family and church community.”

There are two misnomers about Hunter’s way of thinking: 1) discipleship leads to professional development and 2) training must come from our traditional westernized Bible college, seminary, educational system.

Hunter is still thinking in terms of a discipleship training that leads to a professional “full-time paid staff person.”  We have to ditch the volunteer/staff division (also known as laity/clergy rift) by responding to Ephesians 4’s call to “equip the SAINTS  for the work of service,” not equip the staff or staff in training for the professional work of ministry. The “full-time ministry” as in full-time “professional” ministry myth must be addressed.  The Church has been called to equip the “saints”, that are already employed, who are already the salt and light to the world in their secular job, to “serve” those in the secular world and those in the body of Christ.  Paul was a tent maker as well a “preacher/pastor/parson/rector/minister”!  He made tents and socially hung out in tents not in a church building.  He did not get insolated like most of today’s clergy do.  He had to stay in the world to impact the world for Jesus.

The second point:  The academic, thinking, westernize approach apposes the Jewish, lamad, experience approach of teaching.  If the Church is to be based on “head knowledge”, then degrees are important, but if it is to be based on “heart knowledge”, then the development of practical everyday “experiences”, the “doing the principles, not just knowing them” becomes of importance!  Theology, intellectual Biblical interpretation, divides; practical every day living, experiencing, working out one’s faith individually and most importantly corporately in community unites.

Again, I feel, another viable option for the 21^st Century Church is the five fold.  It’s goal is not to make believers, the saints, into professionals, or highly educated individuals, but to bring them into the “maturity” of being in the fullness of Jesus Christ, Christ-like as well as bring unity corporately.  It has nothing to do with finances, nor the influence of finances upon the Church.

The questions is how the Church is to equip the saints, something the Holy Spirit is only beginning to teach the Church.  I feel instead of developing from volunteer to half volunteer, half professional to full-time professional, the five fold has so much more to offer the “saints”.  The evangelist “births” the saints into the kingdom, the pastoral shepherd nurtures, cares and develops them through daily life experiences, the teacher teaches from every day life lessons by challenging their faith based on the Word of God, while the prophet works on making the Logos Word taught by the teacher the Rhema Word, or living out one’s faith while learning to commune with God, and finally the apostle “sees over” what the Holy Spirit is doing in individual’s lives and corporately as a community of faith.  What is produced: a more mature Christlike believer being developed into the image of Jesus Christ, and a unified community of faith working together to equip, care, develop, nurture, and release each other and new believers to “serve”.

The 21^st Century Church needs to embrace a “saint” based ministry system rather than a professional ministry system, facing the challenges of how to equip, develop, care, maintain, nurture, and release the saints to “serve”.  My Prayer: Holy Spirit come, be our teacher, show us, the Church, how to develop the five fold to mature the saints into the image of Jesus Christ while brining his Body into unity.

Equipping Series – Part VI: Accountability In The Church

 “Ephesians 4” Call To Equip The Saints For The Work Of Service Through Accountability:

I believe the five fold passions and points of view are in every believer in Jesus Christ since the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ indwells them.  So how do we allow the artesian well of the Holy Spirit to surface effectively in all believers to bring maturity and unity to the Body of Christ?  That is the calling of the five fold ministry of the Church.

If you allow each of the five fold to arise as a separate entity, you have set yourself up for church splits, theological battles, divisions, and spiritual anarchy in the Church which has been the pattern historically for centuries.  How can five passions that are so different and can be so divisive if practiced alone, be so powerful and unifying to the Body of Christ, His Church?  The answer is in one word: accountability. 

Each of the five must be accountable to the other four through service, through humility, with a spirit of receiving not rejecting, with a spirit of encouragement not criticism, with open accepting arms, not closed ones in opposition. In short, practicing I John 3:16-18, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. We ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.  If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has not pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?  Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in the truth.”  I am tired of the Church talking about unity, claiming to be one Church under Jesus Christ, but never practicing it.  The Church needs to take "actions" in the "truth" of the gospel and start brining maturity to its believers and unity to the Body.

In other words, we can’t “pick up” anything until we “lay it down”.  Let’s lay down our lives, lay down our previous mindsets, lay down traditions, lay down previous theologies that have divided the Body of Christ, lay down our defensive critical spirits towards other camps, groups, etc. under the banner of Christianity.  Let’s lay them on the altar of as an act of worship.  Allow Jesus to do with them as He wills: either burn up and destroy them, or like Daniel’s personal experience in the lion’s den, protect them and allow them to arise with life, or make them totally new and give them back to us.  Allow the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ then to teach, implement, and develop in the Church what Jesus’ will is for that which you have been willing to lay down.   Jesus had to lay down his life in order to become resurrected.  The Cross always precedes resurrection.  Let’s lay down horizontally everything in our spiritual and physical lives and allow the supernatural power of God, vertically, to intersect, invade that which we laid down, horizontally, and we have “The Cross”.  Only through The Cross whose vertical intersection (John 3:16) of our horizontal relationships with our own brethren (I John 3:16) can bring the humbleness, the brokenness, that which is needed to make five different passionate points of view to “see in unity” in the “Revelation of Jesus Christ”, the Church, as a whole!

Each of the five fold must serve the other four in humility, to minister to their points of weakness, so they can be effective in their callings, their missions, their passions.  Each of the five fold must allow the other four to serve them in humility, to minister to their points of weakness, so they can be strong and effective in their mission, calling, and passion in the Kingdom of God.  Accountability comes through giving and taking through service!  Each must give through service to the other four and receive through service from the other four in order for the five fold to be effective.

The Church has not seen this kind of accountability since its birth centuries ago, for this form of accountability is not through hierarchal leadership but broken servanthood from and to one another, nor is it through power or position but through equality.  You not only use your passion to serve others but are freed to develop, grow, and use your passion by being served by other brothers/sisters in the Lord.  No one passion or point of view is “the leader” or “the head” under this form of accountability, but is shared jointly and rises to leadership only when called upon by the Holy Spirit.  When the spirit of evangelism is needed, the evangelist will arise with the backing of a pastor/shepherd, teacher, prophet, and apostle and will be free to minister in their evangelistic calling.  When the spirit of shepherding, of teaching, of prophecy, and the apostolic spirit is needed, they can arise with the backing and support of the other four.  Their backs are always covered while being free to do what they do best, their passion to serve Jesus Christ in his gifting to them!  What a refreshing, healthy, harmonious way to minister.

Although we do not see it in our current system of leadership and hierarchy in our church structures, the five fold can become a reality when everyone is willing to lay down their lives for each other.  That happened in the book of Acts where they freely gave, freely received, freely ministered, and felt freedom and support when the Holy Spirit released them into ministry. Trusting the lead of the Holy Spirit individually and corporately is the key to the effectiveness of this accountability system and the power behind its success.

My prayer is that we, the Church, embrace what already exists in our churches, the evangelistic, pastoral, teaching, prophetic, and apostolic spirits which already exist in its individual believers in Jesus, begin to lay them down on the altar, relinquish control to the Holy Spirit, allowing our Supernatural God to vertically dissect our horizontal world of relationships, The Cross, to produce a powerful resurrected Church. Let's quit talking about it; let's just do it! 

Equipping Series – Part V: Apostles

“Ephesians 4” Call To Equip The Saints For The Work Of Service As A Apostles:

I believe the five fold passions and points of view are in every believer in Jesus Christ since the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ indwells them.  So how do we allow the artesian well of the Holy Spirit to surface the apostolic spirit that is in all believers?  That is the calling of the five fold ministry of the Church.

If there was ever a time in Church history for one to be called to “see over” what the Holy Spirit is doing in the body of Christ, to release the various giftings in the Body of Christ, to bring maturity to individual Christians into the likeness and image of Jesus Christ, to bring unity to the Bride of Christ to usher in his return, it is now!  So, how can we, the 21^st century Church allow the creative apostolic spirit to arise in believers, aiding, caring, developing, and then releasing him to produce fruit for the Kingdom of God?

I certainly don’t have all the answers, but encourage you to ask the creative Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ to give you “revelation” of who He is and how to show that to others.  I only offer a few suggestions:

The Price Is Heavy:  Read in the gospels what it cost Saul when he became Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles: ridicule, rejections, being stoned near death several times, constant conflict, opposition, and travel.  He had to “die to self” in order to “live in Jesus Christ.”  I personally believe the only way five different passions and points of view can be effectively used in unity is by those involved practicing I John 3:16, “laying down your life for your brethren.”  To be an apostle you major in death to bring life, a heavy price.  You have to lay down your life for your brethren to give them life; lay down your giftings to allow your brethren’s giftings to arise and be released; laying down doing it yourself to let others develop, grow, and mature into the image of Jesus Christ, and lay down your personal life to see the Body of Christ corporately have life in unity.  It is an awesome price!

“Seeing Over”, Not “Oversight”, An Issue Of Control:  A Christian with a true apostolic calling enjoys “seeing over” what the Holy Spirit is doing, and constantly releasing the Holy Spirit to do so.  They lose all control to the Holy Spirit, instead listening to the still small voice prophetically to the Holy Spirit, being grounded in the Logos Word, while teaching how the Rhema Word is the living Logos Word, exemplified through his own life, while caring for, nurturing and developing the saints towards maturity in Jesus Christ, while allowing birthing, newness, and renewal to always be present in the Body of Christ.  They give up all control to the Holy Spirit, only to be obedient to Him!  If the Holy Spirit is to be in control, the apostles must forfeit all control.

The Power Of Releasing Others, Not Doing It Yourself:  Want it done right?  Then it is easier to do it yourself, at least until you become overwhelmed with too much to do!  The apostle oversees the nurturing and developing of the corporate body of Christ by overseeing the nurturing and developing of individuals in the body of Christ towards their “maturity” in the likeness of Christ.  The most powerful tool an apostle has is that of “releasing”: releasing the Holy Spirit to teach and minister, releasing individual members in the body of Christ to use their passions and points of view for “service”, and releasing the Body of Christ as a whole in its efforts to become the Bride of Christ.  Apostles can birth, can nurture, can teach, can give revelation of Jesus Christ to individuals and the body, but chose not to do so in order to release others to do it!  This way the Church grows.

A Wider Visions:  An apostle can not help himself, because it is not at all about him personally, only his vision, his passion, how he pictures the Body of Christ as a whole.  If Jesus is exemplifying and revealing who He is on the earth right now through His Church, then the apostle must see the Body of Christ as a Revelation of Jesus Christ!  An apostle is allowed to see this wide vision, because that is who he is in Jesus.

Release The Apostle:  The worst thing to do after training or equipping someone is then to stifle their vision, their enthusiasm, their drive, their passion, and just let them sit back. RELEASE THEM TO SERVE!  You have equipped the apostolic for the “works of service”, so let them serve!  Let them do what drives them: Release the five different passions and points of view for the maturity of believers in Jesus Christ to be like Jesus Christ and the Church to be unified to be the unified Body of Christ!  As he released the other four, they will effectively serve the body and mature in Jesus. Release them. Will we ever think one is “ready” to be an apostle? Probably not, for apostles have awesome responsibilities and insights. Will they make mistakes? We hope not, but the answer, of course is yes, we all do. Peter majored in mistakes when leading the infant, newly born, developing, but listening Church in the 1^st century.  Submission and service is a two way street, and the apostle will serve and be served by the other four bringing unity and accountability to the Church.  Church, lets equip, nurture, care, then release, while continuing serve the apostle bringing accountability and unity, and we see a “new day” in a “new way” that the Church does church!

Equipping Series – Part IV: Prophets

“Ephesians 4” Call To Equip The Saints For The Work Of Service As A Prophet:

I believe the five fold passions and points of view are in every believer in Jesus Christ since the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ indwells them.  So how do we allow the artesian well of the Holy Spirit to surface the prophetic spirit that is in all believers?  That is the calling of the five fold ministry of the Church.

If it weren’t for the prophet, heresies, or cults would thrive in the body of Christ, dead religion would reign instead of a living church, and the spiritual revelation of “Jesus Christ” would be lost to academia and a political system as occurred in the Dark Ages when the prophetic word was silenced.  So, how can we, the 21^st century Church learn from the past, and allow the creative prophetic spirit to arise in believers, aiding, caring, developing, and then releasing him to produce fruit for the Kingdom of God?

I certainly don’t have all the answers, but encourage you to ask the creative Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ to give you “revelation” of who He is and how to show that to others.  I only offer a few suggestions:

Be Grounded in the Logos Word: Like the five fold teacher, the prophet too must be grounded in the Logos World.  If their “prophetic revelations” do not line up with the Logos Word, then they are in error.  The purpose of the prophet is to bring “revelation” to the Logos Word, and that must always be “revealing Jesus Christ”, who and what He is, and his fulfillment of the Logos Word.  Jesus is the alpha & omega, the first and last Word, so all “revelation” should be about him!

Don’t Be A Samuel, The Only One Hearing The Voice Of God:  The most effective five fold prophet will be one who teaches each and every believer in Jesus Christ that he/she can hear God for themselves.  In a time of darkness and dryness in Israel, only Samuel heard the voice of God.  But today, the veil in the Temple has been rent; God’s spirit and voice is no longer confined to the priesthood of Israel, but to all believers in Jesus Christ.  If God’s Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ is in you, then the voice of God is in you.  Prophets need to teach all believers how to hear that inner voice and be obedient to it.  Being in God’s “rest” is learning how to prophetically stop, look, and listen to that inner voice, then practice obedience.  As Jesus would say, “it is written, ‘to obey is better than sacrifice.’”  This is a prophet’s contribution to the five fold.

Your Mission Is To Bring Revelation of Jesus Christ.  Do It Practically, Not With You Head Stuck In The Heavenlies:  I have heard some prophets give utterances in prophetic “jargon” that only those who claimed to be prophets could understand.  Again “practicality” is far more effective than “religious jargon.”  The prophet should try to make the “revelation of Jesus Christ” that they attained to be as understandable by all in the body of Christ than just among their band of prophets.  As the saying goes, “one can be too heavenly minded for our earthly good.”  The prophetic is powerful: the practical revelation of one’s life, like the Woman at the Well, the laying on of hands and the Holy Spirit falling on Jew and Gentile, and the understanding of a practical experience in the terms of a “revelation of Jesus Christ” to them that is scripturally sound!  When this gift is misused, it ushers in disastrous results, but when used practically, insightfully, in a humble spirit of service, it is one of the most powerful ones in the body of Christ.

Releasing The Prophet:  The worst thing to do after training or equipping someone is then to stifle their vision, their enthusiasm, their drive, their passion, and just let them sit back. RELEASE THEM TO SERVE!  You have equipped the prophet for the “works of service”, so let them serve!  They can serve the lost through prophetic evangelism or the Church by revealing Jesus Christ in a living way.  Let them do what drives them: Serve the Body of Christ through Revelations of Jesus Christ!  Don’t place restraints on them that the other four in the five fold could do for them.  They need not have to birth, nurture, teach, or see over developing Christians.  The passions of the others can aide them in the development of Christians spiritually by releasing them to teach the body how to hear the voice of the Lord personally and corporately and be obedient to what they have seen or heard.  Release them.  Will we ever think one is “ready” to be a prophet? Probably not; will they make mistakes? Yes, of course, we all do, but the evangelist will energize them through their excitement for birthing, the pastor/shepherd will nurture and care for them, the teacher will ground them in the Logos Word, and the apostle will give proper oversight, “seeing over” what and how the Holy Spirit is doing in the prophet’s life.  The prophet will submit to the ministry of the other four as they minister to him bringing proper accountability in his/her life.

Church, let equip, nurture, care, then release, while continuing serve the prophet bringing accountability, and we see a “new day” in a “new way” that the Church does church!

Equipping Series – Part III: Teachers

“Ephesians 4” Call To Equip The Saints For The Work Of Service As A Teacher:

I believe the five fold passions and points of view are in every believer in Jesus Christ since the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ indwells them.  So how do we allow the artesian well of the Holy Spirit to surface the teaching spirit that is in all believers?  That is the calling of the five fold ministry of the Church.

If it weren’t for the teacher to teach and set a standard through the Logos Word, The Bible, there would be chaos and no foundation of one’s faith. How can we, the 21^st century Church allow the creative teaching spirit to arise in believers, aiding, caring, developing, and then releasing him to produce fruit for the Kingdom of God?

I certainly don’t have all the answers, but encourage you to ask the creative Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ to give you “revelation” of who He is and how to show that to others.  I only offer a few suggestions:

Be Grounded in the Logos Word:  A five fold teacher must be Biblically based, a disciplined reader of the Bible, a hungry student of the Bible, and one willing to have the “revelation” of “truth”, a revelation of “Jesus Christ”, by the Holy Spirit who Jesus promised would teach you “all things.”  Loving to memorize the Bible is an effective tool.  “Knowing” in his “knower” that he “knows” that he “knows” the Word, the Bible, will allow him to quote scripture whenever needed.

Minister out of the Rhema Word:  But working out of just knowing scripture will only bring “legalism,” making him a Pharisee, like Saul before he became Paul.  A five fold teacher must Live the Logos Word, which I call the Rhema Word, the living out in practical daily life.  Jesus wants us to not only be hearers of the Logos Word, but doers, of the Rhema Word.  Jesus wants a “living gospel” with power from on high.  Jesus “lived out” the gospel to a tee, fulfilling the Logos Word by being the Rhema Word to mankind.  The five fold teacher must live out what he teaches in his daily life, or all is in vain.  Saul, the Pharisee who knew and could quote his Logos Word, became Paul, the apostle, who lived out the Rhema Word of a crucified, yet resurrected and empowered Savior, Lord, and King.

Teach Out of Practical Experience, Not Academic Theology: Jesus never founded a Theological Seminary, Bible College or School, nor training center, not even a Rabbinical Center.  He just walked with 12 men teaching spiritual Kingdom of God principles through practical living.  He took them to harvest fields to teach them about the sower & the seed, to the sea of Galilee to teach them faith by walking on water, taking them in the midst of a hungry multitude to teach them his Father’s provisions by feeding the 5,000, and making them visit an empty tomb to teach them the power of the resurrection.  If it wasn’t practical experience, it wasn’t spiritual truth.  That is the difference between the five fold teacher and today’s academically driven Biblical teachers.  You not only need to be able to quote the scriptures, but more importantly teach their principles by living them out!  Jesus, the Teacher, is the prime example of how to do it.

Releasing The Rhema Five Fold Teacher:  The worst thing to do after training or equipping someone is then to stifle their vision, their enthusiasm, their drive, their passion, and just let them sit back. RELEASE THEM TO SERVE!  You have equipped the teacher for the “works of service”, so let him serve!  Let the teacher teach through service, practically living out the gospel. Let them do what drives them: Teach by doing!  Don’t tie a noose of academia around their neck demanding academic degrees.   Don’t place restraints on them that the other four in the five fold could do for them.  They need not have to birth, nurture, give prophetic insight, or see over developing Christians.  The passions of the others can aide them in the development of these baby Christians by releasing them to teach and live the Word.  Release them.  Will we ever think one is “ready” for teaching? Probably not; will they make mistakes? Yes, of course, we all do, but the evangelist will energize those with calling to teach through their excitement for birthing, the pastor/shepherd will nurture and care for them, the prophet will continually refresh his teaching spirit, and the apostle will give proper oversight, “seeing over” what and how the Holy Spirit is doing in the teacher’s life.  The teacher will submit to the ministry of the other four as they minister to him bringing proper accountability in his/her life.

Church, let equip, nurture, care, then release, while continuing serve the teacher bringing accountability, and we see a “new day” in a “new way” that the Church does church!

Equipping Series – Part 2: Pastor/Shepherds

“Ephesians 4” Call To Equip The Saints For The Work Of Service As A Pastor/Shepherd:

I believe the five fold passions and points of view are in every believer in Jesus Christ since the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ indwells them.  So how do we allow the artesian well of the Holy Spirit to surface the pastoral spirit and gifts that are in all believers?  That is the calling of the five fold ministry of the Church.

If it weren’t for the spiritually birthing process of the pastor/shepherd, most of us would never have grown in Jesus Christ with the goal of “maturing into the image of Jesus Christ.”  We needed “a spiritual mommy or daddy” to model and guide us through this new walk of faith in Jesus.  That pastor/shepherding spirit is in all who believe in Jesus Christ as their savior and Lord.  How can we, the 21^st century Church allow the creative pastoral spirit to arise in believers, aid in nurturing it, caring for it, developing it, and then releasing it to produce fruit for the Kingdom of God?

I certainly don’t have all the answers, but encourage you to ask the creative Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ to give you “revelation” of who He is and how to show that to others.  I only offer a few suggestions:

Begin With The Gift Of Hospitality:  Just open up your home and practice the scripture, “I was a stranger, and you invited me in…”  (Read my book I Was A Stranger And… Get out of print copies on Amazon.com for pennies!) When you make people feel like part of the family, they become comfortable. If they are new converts, you can model the Christian walk, help them practice their new faith, walk out spiritual principles in their daily lives, and build a bond that is special in the Family of God.  I opened my apartment when I was single and got results!  Just as your home may be a comfortable atmosphere to share the gospel, your home is an excellent atmosphere in developing a walk in faith with  “new” family members.

Hanging Out, Listening, Caring, & Empathy Makes A Good Bar Tender: Often I think of Bars as “secular churches” and bar tenders as their “pastors”.  Bar tenders don’t judge; they will sell a beer to anyone.  While wiping glasses they are great listeners, showing empathy, often very caring.  When you cry in your beer, they listen, nod, showing care and concern. They only give advice to those who seek advice. Those who frequent the bar become like family.  The old TV sitcom Cheers so effectively showed that aspect as its viewers were drawn into their family, knowing the characters as if friends.  When someone comes to your home do you stay nonjudgmental no matter what or who they are, listen, show empathy, care, and concern, and only give advice and opinions when asked? We, as pastor/shepherds, who to have more to offer than bars must impact our culture.  Ask the Holy Spirit how you can be hospitable to everyone and anyone.

The Pastoral/Shepherding Spirit Is In Investment: As a public school teacher, I look at every student as an investment in the future of America, the future of our local community, and the future of each and every life of every student that comes under my care and influence.  The Church must look at each new believer as an “investment” in the Kingdom of God.  Your nurturing, caring, counseling, talk with, listening to, aiding, and developing of every believer placed into your care to help grow into maturity, that is in to the fullness of Jesus Christ, is a monumental calling of time, patience, sacrifice, and care that only one with a pastoral/shepherding spirit can handle through the leading of the Holy Spirit. The Price: Time!  Being there 24/7, when needed, is a demand that new Christians pose.  Jesus spent 3 years teaching pastoral skills to his disciples by walking with them daily. Most of the time they fumbled, fell, look like men lacking faith, fighting amongst each other, yet Jesus knew what he was doing “in their development”, for he “nurtured” and “developed” them into becoming the pillars of the Kingdom of God.  They were quite an investment! If you are a Christian, take time to thank those “spiritual parents” who helped you are your spiritual journey, your faith walk, for they were truly five fold pastors/shepherds.

Practicality - Being Real Rather Than Religious:  Being an effective pastor/shepherd is one willing to drop their “religiousity” to become “real”.  Changing a flat tire without swearing is more effective than quoting scripture to the tire.  People want “real” faith exemplified through “real” people, not through people with religious facades.  Some of the best ways to disciple someone is by just being practical.  Help someone learn how to get a job, write a proper resume, and practice an interview.  Teach males in their 20’s how to properly respect women, do the right things to impress them, serve them, show care for them, not dominate and be macho about it.  Teach females in their 20’s how to be attractive physically without being provocative or a stumbling block, how to take care of their home and later possibly a family, how to develop self worth, etc. These are good pastoral skills. Just be real and practical.

Release The Pastor/Shepherd:  The worst thing to do after training or equipping someone is then to stifle their vision, their enthusiasm, their drive, their passion, and just let them sit back. RELEASE THEM TO SERVE!  You have equipped the pastor/teacher for the “works of service”, so let them serve!  Let them do what drives them: Nurture, develop, care, aide, basically serve others in an effort to help them mature into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Don’t place restraints on them that the other four in the five fold could do for them.  They need not have to birth, teach, give prophetic insight, or see over new converts.  The passions of the others can aide them in the development of these baby Christians.  Release them.  Will we ever think one is “ready” for ministry? Probably Not; will they make mistakes? Yes, of course, we all do, but the evangelist will energize those with pastoral callings through their excitement for birthing, the teacher to teach truth into the pastor/shepherd’s life, the prophet continually refreshing the pastoral/shepherding spirit, and the apostle to give proper oversight, “seeing over” what and how the Holy Spirit is doing in the pastor/shepherd’s life.  The pastor/shepherd will submit to the ministry of the other four as they minister to him bringing proper accountability in his/her life.

Church, let equip, nurture, care, then release, while continuing serve the pastor/shepherd bringing accountability, and we see a “new day” in a “new way” that the Church does church!

Equipping Series: Part I - Evangelists

“Ephesians 4” Call To Equip The Saints For The Work Of Service As A Evangelist:

I believe the five fold passions and points of view are in every believer in Jesus Christ since the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ indwells them.  So how do we allow the artesian well of the Holy Spirit to surface the evangelistic spirit that is in all believers?  That is the calling of the five fold ministry of the Church.

If it weren’t for the spiritually birthing process of the evangelist, most of us would never have heard the saving gospel of Jesus Christ and how it would transform our lives, dramatically.  That evangelistic spirit is in all who believe in Jesus Christ as their savior and Lord.  How can we, the 21^st century Church allow the creative evangelistic spirit to arise in believers, then help to nurture it, care for it, develop it, and then release it to produce fruit for the Kingdom of God?

I certainly don’t have all the answers, but encourage you to ask the creative Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ to give you “revelation” of who He is and how to show that to others.  I only offer a few suggestions:

Walk The Walk With Believers:  Actually invite those you are mentoring, preparing, and equipping to bring forth the evangelistic spirit to your home to have an informal time of conversation, modeling how you can talk about one’s faith, how you can have people share their narrative stories about their faith or lack of faith, and what to do with their responses.  Model how to bring the conversation back to Jesus and our need for Him, inviting your guest to accept Jesus as a friend, a listener, a savior, a lord, a care taker, etc.  Show scripture like “The Romans Road”, so you know how Biblically to lead to salvation, if needed.  Encourage them after they make a decision for Jesus to share their new narrative with someone else to solidify their experience.  Then welcome them back A.S.A.P. to share their new walk with you.  If you model the power of one-on-one evangelism, they will feel more comfortable when they are placed in that situation.

Live The Walk, Inviting One To Walk With You:  Most people are lead to the Lord by personal contact with a believer.  Believers must walk the walk in their daily lives and walk with others in theirs.  Walking beside nonbelievers in their daily walk allows you to build trust, help them when they fall, practice your faith in needed situations, and learn to just be “real” with people, not “religious”.  Soon they will see a difference, hopefully, in our life compared to their, and a need for a savior and a change, and then have a model from which to begin their new walk when they feel the need for Jesus.  The price: time!  This method takes “time” and “commitment”, but the results are astounding and fruitful.  Practice this living out your walk around the fellowship of believers as your equipping process before being released to walk it out with non-believers.

Personal Narratives Are Powerful:  We all have a story, a personal narrative, an unique tale that pertains only to us, created by us, and lived by us.  No one else has your story, but there can be some commonalities to everyone’s stories.  Personal narratives allow people to know who you are, how you became that person, and what is important to you because of your story.  In other words, it exposes you, makes you vulnerable, and allows others to see who you were B.C., Before Christ, and after you have known him.  The most powerful evangelistic tool you have is your story because it is how you lived life, and its meaning to you.  You don’t need tracts, nor huge Crusade meetings in sports venues, nor Billy Graham television reruns.  All you need is your own story, for it is powerful, meaningful, which offers life, the life in Jesus you now live.  Practice telling your story to believers as an equipping process to build up your confidence and comfort level.

Birthing Is A Process, Not A Religious Practice:  A true evangelist majors in birthing!  They love new things.  They love starting new things.  New project stimulate them.  Taking someone or something from the “old” to the “new” brings them joy.  Allow people whose evangelistic spirit has risen to birth, start, initiate prayers, visions, insights, and directions that the local congregation as a whole is doing.  Their contribution to the “body of Christ” is not just “biological evangelism”, but the entire birthing process.  They know how to handle “birthing pains”, spiritual contractions.  They can be like Barnabas, the encourager, because they can encourage one to see the birth beyond the birthing pains.  They have a vital role in the body to the body of Christ.

Release The Evangelist:  The worst thing to do after training or equipping someone is then to stifle their vision, their enthusiasm, their drive, their passion, and just let them sit back. RELEASE THEM TO SERVE!  You have equipped the evangelist for the “works of service”, so let them serve!  Let them do what drives them: Birth!  Don’t place restraints on them that the other four in the five fold could do for them.  They need not have to shepherd, teach, give prophetic insight, or see over new converts.  Their passion is to win the lost and birth things in the Spirit of Jesus Christ.  Release them.  Will we ever think one is “ready” for ministry? Probably not, for we are called to just let them “do it” after being hearers and seers of what they were to do!  Will they make mistakes? Yes, of course, we all do, but that is the role of the shepherd to give pastoral advice and direction to the evangelist, the teacher to teach truth into the evangelist’s life, the prophet to refresh the evangelist’s spirit, and the apostle to give proper oversight, “seeing over” what and how the Holy Spirit is doing in the evangelist’s life.  The evangelist will submit to the ministry of the other four as they minister to him bringing proper accountability in his/her life.

Church, let equip, nurture, care, then release, while continuing serve the evangelist bringing accountability, and we see a “new day” in a “new way” that the Church does church!

Are We Preparing Christians To Be Professional Clergy, Church Leaders, Energetic Participants, or Enablers?

 What Are We Preparing Christians To Become? Or Are We Preparing At All?

What does today’s Church prepare those who come through their doors, into their fellowship and family to be?  For some churches, the ultimate is to have someone get the “calling” to go into “full time ministry” (alias professional ministry).  For other churches it is leadership training.  Still others hope that everyone who comes through their doors will become energetic participants who are in tact with what programs the church is offering.  Unfortunately most church become enablers, where leadership is doing most of the work and those coming expect them to do it for them.

I have personally felt the pressure of being labeled a good candidate for professional ministry since my teens and have been approached to make that decision in my life.  In my career interest survey given in high school, College Minister ranked #1 among my career choices.  Why have I not chosen ministry or being a campus chaplain as a career move?  Because of prayer where I got a red flags and a distinctive “no” at an invitation for a calling to professional ministry.  Seeking the Lord’s will for my life, I knew that I was to be a teacher of the “word,” and for 40 years I have taught 8^th grade grammar, spelling, reading, writing and literature. Upon retirement, I still feel led to be a “teacher” of the Word, but not necessarily professionally, thus this blog.

I have been through leadership training in the Church of the Brethren, the Mennonite Church, and even United Methodist Church, as well as in Church Planting, and have helped in the birthing of an inner city church, and two home group churches, yet in the current church that I have attended I have had very few leadership opportunities over the last 14 years, but have had a lot of training.

I have responded to invitations to be involved or engaged in various church programs.  I even had the opportunity to head the youth branch of the only major evangelistic Crusade to ever be held in the city where I reside.  I have helped out with Bible Schools, Sunday Schools, prophetic conferences, etc.  I have responded to requests of need to help supplement a church program.

When involved with birthing new churches, or maintaining small group churches, or developing church plants, a vibrancy of spiritual life has help propel me into leadership because of meeting overwhelming “needs” when there is only one pastor and no staff in ministry.  Unfortunately, with the growth churches, and the expanding of staff, the “need” for my services has not been as great, thus a season of inactivity.  It is so easy to allow the pastor and his staff to supply spiritual food through sermons or teachings rather than individual disciplined Bible Study, having them pray for you or tap into prayer chains instead of individual intercessory prayer or personal quiet times of listening for the voice of the Holy Spirit to speak to me personally, or to visit the sick, do prison ministry, open my home for hospitality or ministry, etc. because of my busy schedule.  It is so easy to go to large churches to “blend in”, not being asked to do anything but having all their “ministries” available for “my needs”.

So what is the Church suppose to be doing?  Ephesians 4 claims it is to “equip, prepare, train the saints, those who believer in Jesus Christ, to do the work of service.”  The saints, the everyday believers, are not just to be “hearers of the Word, but doers.”  They are to become the Rhema Word, living out of the Logos, Biblical Word.  They are to be equipped, trained, and prepared to win the lost (evangelism), to nurture, care, and comfort (pastoral/shepherding), to discipline their lives through reading, studying, and allowing the Holy Spirit to teach them the Logos, the written Word (teacher), to profess and carry out the Living Word, the Rhema Word in their daily lives (prophetically), and to “see over” what the Lord is doing with his body, the Church, corporately.  They cannot be a Lone Rangers.  Then once trained, they need to be RELEASED  to DO IT, the work of service! 

Is your pastor the in-resident evangelist, pastor, teacher, hearer of the voice of God, and over seer of the local church?  If he leaves, gets sick, or dies, who is to replace him, another professional?  Or has he trained others under his leadership to do the “work of service” as an evangelist, shepherd, teacher, prophet, or apostle? Does everyone in leadership have to have a college, seminary, Bible College, or online Biblical degree? Or have they “earned” the title of evangelist, shepherd, teacher, prophet, or apostle because the are “doing” the “works of service”?  They are doing it.  The doing earns the adjective in front of them, not the “degree” or the “title of office”.

So I close by asking the question again, “What are we preparing our Christian brothers and sisters to be: professional ministers, trained church leaders, energetic, active participants, or enablers?”  How can the church begin to “equip” the every day believer in Christ so they become “active, equal participants submitting to one another while serving one another” to develop others into the spiritual likeness, called maturity, in Jesus and brining unity to the Body of Christ?

Again, I Repeat: “Passion” Released Brings “Productivity”

The Releasing of Passion in the Five Fold

Recently I met with my local pastor, contemplating my future upon retiring from being a public educator for forty years, asking him how I would now fit into the local body of Christ that he was leading.  His response was to ask me a question, “What are you passionate about?”  My response, “teaching!”

I ask you today, “What are you passionate about in your walk with Jesus?”  What drives you?  What gives you a sense of fulfillment?  For some its missions, others evangelism, hospitality, visitations, caring and nurturing, teaching, seeking God through worship, listening to the voice of God through obedience, marveling at the workings of the Church as a whole, etc.  There are many things one can be passionate about in Jesus. What is your passion?

I believe one of the keys to the five fold is the “releasing” of these “passions” among the saints.  Ephesians 4 challenges us to “equip”, prepare, the saints, the everyday believers in Jesus Christ, for the work of “service.”  If we prepare the saints and allow them to be passionate about the work of the gospel through service, we will witness a productive Church. 

Often the church has based itself around a certain day to worship, a certain building or place in which to worship, a certain group of people, the staff, to perform needed duties, rather than releasing those who worship, whose bodies are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and who have been called to perform the work of service: the saints, the people who ARE the CHURCH! 

This time of year there are graduations everywhere, celebrations of years of preparation, only to now be released.  Students who are clueless about survival in the world as adults, but academically prepared, released to become adults, released to use those things they were taught in real world situations.  If they have been “prepared” effectively they will become productive.  If what they learned has become their “passion,” that passion released will produce “productivity” and they will earn the title of becoming successful.  Without passion, they become just another cog in the system.

When you think of Church, what drives you?  What are you passionate about?  If released, what would you want to do?  What preparation do you need to dove tail with your passion so that you can be productive for Jesus? Those are the questions each of us and the Church as a whole needs to be asking! 

The church must also ask the question, “What structures my be in place for this to happen, and what current structures have to be removed for this to happen?”  In urban renewal, often old structures must be condemned, torn down, and removed, before new structures can be built to bring life back into that urban area.  The church does not do a very effective job at condemning existing structures that were once productive but have become “traditions” now blocking “renewal”.  Urban renewal always brings opposition from the established entrenched ones, and so does spiritual renewal. 

I believe the five fold is a possible structure that would bring renewal to the Church if allowed to be led by the Holy Spirit at the cost of its members be willing to lay down their lives for one another, a high price for the prize.  All through these 300 blogs I have written, I have challenged you and I as believers, and you and I as the Church to tear down some old structures, once valued with reverence, but now becoming a blockage for spiritual renewal.  I have learned it is easy to lay on the altar the waste, the sin, and the failures of our lives for Jesus to renew, but find it difficult to lay on the altar things that I love, things that have been productive in the past, things that I value, yet they are the very things that must be laid on the altar for the Church to continue to move forward.  Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal those structures and how to remove them; then ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the new structures you are to be “passionate” about and release that passion.

How Does The Church Guard Itself Against False Evangelists, Teachers, Pastors, Prophets, and Apostles?

The Power Of Accountability of the Five Fold

In my last bog I asked, “How can the Church prepare, equip, prepare its saints for the ‘next’ group of false prophets, false teachers, self-proclaimed evangelists and apostles all under the title of ‘pastor’ or elite Church leader?

I have been a Christian for 50 years now, and I have witnessed the rise and fall of several well known, once famous Christian leaders who have risen in power, influence, and affluence, only to tragically fall in shame and disgrace hurting thousands of Christian believers.  Most of these men were very sincere in their Christian faith and beliefs, often starting as humble men, servants, doctrinally sound, but as they grew in stature gaining positions of influence and proclaiming titles and offices, rising up the corporate ladder of the Christian Church, subtle changes began to occur.  Once they gained the “titles” and “offices”, they began to immune themselves from other Christians, particularly those of “lower position”.  They felt “empowered” to “lead” those of less or lower caliber in the family of faith.  Soon they became hard to “get to”, particularly for the common believer.  They had build a cocoon of protection through isolation, self Bible study, individual meditation, and private worship, building even a greater distance between themselves and the “people” of God, their supposedly family.  Soon those “people” would only be needed to “finance” the teachings, the ministry, and their affluence of their leader.   Red flags begin to appear, but who is to stop this leadership, reprimand, correct, or guide this independent leader to bring accountability to his ministry, cause, or platform?

The emphasis of the “Body of Christ” is its “many members”, different parts, different gifting, different talents, different points of view all working “together” for the “unity” of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.  Its emphasis is not on one man, nor on just leadership.  Ephesians 4 calls us to “equip the saints”, not the staff, not just the leadership.  We are to “equip” the “body of Christ” for the “work of service”, not control, not position, not influence or affluence. We need to “equip” or prepare the “saints”, individual members, for “group”, “body”, ministry, not isolated individual ministry for the purpose of “maturing” the saints into the “likeness of Jesus Christ” while bringing “unity” to the “body of Christ”. 

We need to teach the saints the importance of their “new birth” in Jesus Christ, what it means, how it impacted their lives, how to share and tell their story, and how to build “relationships” with non-believers in Jesus Christ, so we can share the “good news”, the gospel.  Then we need to “release” their evangelistic passion under proper accountability of service not control.

We need to teach the saints the importance of “nurture” and “care” in Jesus, how to have a shepherding heart, how to release hospitality to the sick, the afflicted, the poor, the hungry, the wondering, the unemployed, those released from prison or still in prison.  When major disasters hit, like hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc., American’s respond generously.  We need to respond daily to the needs of those around us, not just during disasters.  Finally we need to “release” the saints to “serve”, not as a project, nor a program, nor an evangelistic effort, but as a common everyday life.

We need to teach the saints the importance of daily devotions and Bible reading, teaching the saints discipline themselves to the “manna” of our day, teaching them to allow the Holy Spirit to be their teacher while speaking to them the truth about the passages they read.  We need to teach the saints on how to “dig” for answers in the Bible, how to do effective Bible study.  Then we need to “release” them to share the Word with others.

We need to teach the saints the importance of making that Logos, written Word, the Bible, into the Rhema Word, the living Word, living out the principles taught in the Bible in their daily lives.  We need to take the saints from a theological, academic dissertation of the Bible into a practical, daily, experiential, living out of the Bible through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  We are to not only “talk” the “talk”, but “walk” the “walk.”  Actually we need to “walk” the “talk”, experience the life, the journey, in Jesus.  Then we need to “release” the saints to actually live out their faith journey in Jesus through the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ.

We need to teach the saints the importance of “Body Ministry” and the “seeing over”, or oversight of the Body.  What we do is for the common good of the body, the Church, not ourselves.  Jesus “died” for the Church, we need to “lay down our lives for our brethren.” (I John 3:16)  The five fold is not only for the “maturing” of the saints into the likeness of Jesus, but also to bring “unity” to the Body of Christ.  The gospel is about “dying to self” in order to “lay down our life” through service to our brethren, our family members of faith through Jesus.  It is not about “me”, #1 as we say in America, but about “us”, the Church, the body of Christ.  After we equip the saints towards this endeavor, we then need to “release” them to bring that unity.

Finally, if each of the five fold passions and points of view would subject themselves to serve the other four and be served by them in their daily lives and faith journeys, there would be established a powerful bond of accountability to serve and be served, preventing the isolation, inwardness, self-seeking, proclaimed self-enlightenment, independent spirit that has brought down so many Christian leaders in the past.

If there was ever a time the Church needs the five fold, it is now!

What Grade Do You Give The Church On “Equipping/Preparing”?

Church, A Time For Self Examination.

Early “last” century, most people who attended a local village or town church grew up in the church, attended church all through their adolescence, married in the same church, and raised their families in that church, and got buried on that church’s grounds.  Culturally, that is not the trend in the 21^st century as Americans are more mobile, seek jobs away from their upbringing roots, do not live where they were raised, and feel Facebook, MySpace, Skype, and other social media networks keep them informed of their roots thought they are not there physically.  With this change in cultural trends, the Church also needs to examine what they are “equipping” or “preparing” those who are under their wings for.  Some food to stimulate discussion:

Christian youth groups “hang out” together, establishing relationships.  Peer pressure and peer acceptance are at the forefront.  When going to Christian Youth Conferences, they are told to save every person in their school, change the world, and win the world for Christ.  Sounds good, but how?  Do our churches look beyond their teen years to equip, prepare, or train our teens for their independence and self-searching 20’s.  Do we equip them by teaching each one of them how to read the Word, the Bible, on their own and allow the Holy Spirit to teach them, so when they go off to college, or in the army, or move away for a starter position job they can be grounded in the Word and in their faith?  Do our churches equip, prepare, or train our teens how to establish a daily, vibrant prayer life, a life of worship, a life of intimate relationship with Jesus?  When they go off to seek who they are, trying to find themselves, their identities, will they have to tools, the equipment needed spiritually to establish their own sound beliefs through the Bible while trusting the Holy Spirit, or will they stray from the church in their search?

What if on the church door hung a sign “Building Condemned, Do Not Enter” or “The Practice of Religion Is Prohibited At This Place”?  What would those in your congregation do?  Has the local church equipped, prepared, and trained each of its members to stand on their own faith?  What is that faith?  Now is the time to test the depths of that faith?  If they couldn’t call the pastor or his staff, what would they do to survive on their own?  If no one has been trained to lead, who will lead?  If no one has been equipped or developed to serve, who will serve? If one felt lost in the large mega-church crowd on Sundays, who will they seek out to fellowship with?

If you had to leave your church today, what would be in your spiritual toolbox that you would pull out to use in your new life’s adventure?  What has your local church “invested” that is now part of you?  Who would preach or teach the Word? Could you?  Do you need to be “lead” into worship, or can you do it on your own?  If you can’t call on others, what would your prayer life look like?  If those you have been fellowshipping with were no longer around, who would you begin fellowshipping with?  Would your social life change?  

As a 21^st Century Church we must ask, “What are we equipping, preparing, or training those in our church to do?” How are we to equip, prepare, and train them if we do not know what we are training them for?  What do we “really” need to move ahead in our faith journey if our circumstances or location changes?  If church activities were stripped from your life because of circumstances, sickness, moving, etc., what would you be able to do spiritually? 

These are some tough questions, but I ask, “What have we, as Christians, been called to do horizontally in relationship with one another that would prepare our faith for life’s surprises and the next step in our faith journeys?”  Church is about our vertical relationship with God, our understanding of Him, and how we relate to Him and worship Him.  Church is also about horizontal relationships, and the challenge of these blogs has been to question how we are to “equip”, prepare, or train one another “for the work of the service”, establishing, maintaining, and moving the kingdom of God forward.  That is the challenge of the 21^st Century Church!