Until now (promptly after watching Mark Driscoll and Joshua Harris – both of whom are extremely "successful" and affluent pastors of their own independent mega-churches – interview, and at times almost interrogate, Chan about his St. Francis of Assi Assi-esque decision to leave the comforts of fame and fortune for poverty of the third world), I held Chan in the same regard as other mega-church pastors, such as Driscoll and Harris – not very favorably. Not to say that I am against everything that these modern day Christian heavyweights have done, I just have always had my own personal misgivings and hesitations – and at times nausea – when it came to mega-churches. Without being too damning and for lack of a better term or explanation – people just get nutty.
Anyways, my intent in blogging about this is not to painstakingly critique mega-churches or their pastors (at least that's not my primary goal), but more so to share a few comments or thoughts running through my head while watching Driscoll and Harris' blessed faces during their interview with Chan.
(Here is a link for the video that I found: http://timmybrister.com/2010/08/30/whats-next-for-francis-chan/)
ONE – From this video at least (and I concede that out of respect for my own sanity, I do not follow Driscoll's theology or teaching and only know what I hear from friends), it seems as though that Mark Driscoll has put very little faith into the power and work of the Holy Spirit in a church like Chan's or even his own, and instead attributed the "success" of these mega-churches (much like his own) to the charismatic and rhetorical prowess (again, much like how he views himself) of the founding pastor and/or planter of these various "big-bertha" churches. To me, it seems like Driscoll believes the Church exists as a means to its own ends and exists only for itself, rather than God gracefully electing to use the Church as an instrument in His (not ours) greater mission.
TWO – Around minute 4:40, Driscoll asks a rather loaded and almost rhetorical question (I say "rhetorical" because judging from Driscoll's tone and body language, it seems like he is more interested in making Chan look silly than actually listening to his answer) along the lines of, "How long do you think it will take for you to become frustrated and feel discontent and unsatisfied with your decision to leave?" If I were Chan, I would've answered his question with another question; "Should we ever be satisfied or content with the state of the Church and the world that we live in?" In my mind, if we are honest with ourselves, I think we can never be satisfied or content with the state of the church without compromising or neutering the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I say that not out of cynicism of our sinful state, but actually out of hope and belief in the return of Christ. Yes God includes us in his mission, but the attendance, popularity, or financial success of our churches should not satisfy an almost insatiable mission. If we could complete the work by our own efforts, what then would be our need of Jesus?
THREE – I will keep this short because I just realized I am WAY over the 350 word limit for these blog posts…I find it very interesting that almost every time throughout the entirety of the video, after Chan gives a heartfelt, emotive, convicting, and almost prophetic response that clearly challenges the way Driscoll and Harris do "business," they always deflect it with sarcasm and corny pastor jokes. (Which by the way, are a close second to the worst type of jokes: corny professor jokes. Not directed towards you Rob I swear.)
To end this run on sentence of a blogpost, I commend Chan for his courage to do the "unthinkable," in spite of such opposition from his contemporaries. I think Chan is onto something, definitely in congruence with Scripture and missional church theology.
– jessemac
Jesse, you never fail to provide both entertainment and insight. Regardless of Driscoll’s intent in his question at 4:40, I feel like Chan’s response is markedly descriptive of the human condition. Although Driscoll offers some wisdom in his point that Chan’s decision doesn’t guarantee he will feel less restless, his insinuation that Chan should come back once he is cured of his unrest is challenged by Chan’s response that we don’t really know what will come of our choices.
Sometimes I wonder if it’s not only the pastors but members as well who maybe should leave these larger mega-churches. I’ve found from experience that it’s very easy for even a dedicated Christian to become lost in such a huge environment and lazy in terms of their faith.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your concern, but I still believe that analyzing, critiquing, and assessing the motives and beliefs of those who lead us is absolutely essential for “growth and reflection.” There will be nothing to grow from if we do not know what we are trying to fix. In doing so, I do not think that we compromise the Christian brotherhood we share with these men. It would be detrimental to the already waning health of the church if we – the Body of Christ – do not hold each other accountable through the norming norm of scripture, including those who lead us.
Hi Jess, I share your discomfort with how the others respond to Francis Chan in this video. How great an example of embodied belief in Jesus he has given us!
We may be missing an opportunity for growth and reflection if/as we get caught up in analyzing the motives and theology of these men. All three of these men are our brothers.
Thanks Jesse. To be totally frank, I couldn’t get through the whole interview. I think I blogged about it when it came out. I share your thoughts…except for the corny professor jokes. I repent.
Hmmm…this interview was clearly staged, and it looks like to me the questions asked were intended to help clarify things ahead of the wave of criticism and possible shake-up at Chan’s church, once reality settles in. In other words, they were asking the hard questions ahead of “the public.”
I don’t follow megachurch personality’s much, or really much of anyone in the evangelical movement these days, so I’m really not one to be giving opinions. The things I’ve had ministry friends share about Chan in the past year or so were encouraging.
Good, no, great post and I couldn’t agree more. I felt good about Chan after reading his book “Crazy Love,” but even more so now. We need more Francis Chan’s and fewer Mark Driscoll’s, IMHO. It will be interesting to follow his journey and even more interesting to hear reaction to it.