Real Power
No, this is not me. 🙂“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him (enthroned) at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to
come.” Ephesians 1:18-21
In the 1st chapter of Ephesians there is a remarkable passage that talks about power. In
particular, it refers to the type of power that Christian’s possess as a result of their union with Jesus. I guess the question for me is what is that power? What does it look like? The text is emphatic; it is spectacular. As a matter of fact, Paul uses four different words, synonyms, to describe how dynamic that power is. What it is compared to in the text is the power that raised Christ from the dead and enthroned Him as King. That’s significant power (as I wrote that last sentence, my voice unsurprisingly deepened and got louder like Moses in the movie, “The Ten Commandments”)!!!
Going to the Margins of the Church – Nouwen
The below is a quote from Henri Nouwen. Click "like" if you resonant with his vision of the church.
Those who are marginal in the world are central in the Church, and that is how it is supposed to be! Thus we are called as members of the Church to keep going to the margins of our society. The homeless, the starving, parentless children, people with AIDS, our emotionally disturbed brothers and sisters – they require our first attention.
Loving the Church – Nouwen
I find the thinking and spirit (attitude) of Henri Nouwen some of the most refreshing of all writers. Here are some of his thoughts about the church.
Loving the Church does not require romantic emotions. It requires the will to see the living Christ among his people and to love them as we want to love Christ himself. This is true not only for the "little" people – the poor, the oppressed, the forgotten – but also for the "big" people who exercise authority in the Church.
Marks of a Missional Community of Faith (Church)
What
does it mean to be a missional community of faith? There is much talk about what that is, what it looks like
and how it works. Newbigin (one of
the true forerunners of the current movement) identifies six characteristics of
a missional community:
- It practices corporate praise, thanksgiving, gratitude,
and grace; - It declares truth that challenges the reigning
plausibility structure - It establishes relationships within a local
neighborhood - It encourages mutual service in the priesthood
of all believers - It expects mutual responsibility rather than
individualism - It nurtures hope and a re-imagined vision of
the future
I
love these.
Wealth and the Great Divide between Jesus & America
The Church’s One Foundation
Holy Rebels
We see throughout the Bible that God chooses to use the Church to partner with Him in his great missional and redemptive work. The Church is made up of fallen humans so we cannot expect it to be perfect, but it is also included in the holistic restorative work of God and can continue to become more Christ-like. While the Church around the world continues to grow at a fast pace, I believe the Church in North America needs to wake up to the importance of its calling and ultimately of its identity. Mission is what the Church is called to do, in following Jesus’ example of teaching, preaching and healing.
As I am learning more about the ways in which the Church has been impacted by Christendom, I am reminded even more of the necessity of the Church’s self-evaluation and openness to change. I believe the Church needs to take the time to re-evaluate the ways in which it aims to live out its mission and identity in a changing world that calls for true faith in action, proclaiming the Kingdom of God that was and is and is to come. In the words of Alan Hirsch, we need to be like the first apostles, “…holy rebels who constantly attempted to throw off encumbering ideologies, structures, codes, and traditions that limited the freedom of God’s people and restricted the gospel message that they are mandated to pass on.”
Pegs and Holes
A One Word Description of the Church
I started teaching my Missional Church class at Whitworth University again this week. This is the 4th year that I have taught the course. If I teach it again it will morph into a course entitled, "A Church for the World." One of my introductory exercises I use is asking them to give a one word description of the church and why. Here are their responses (some were duplicates – 19 in the class):
Transforming, Alive, Colorful
On Those Who Abandon the Church
I am reading Todd Hunter’s short book entitled, The Accidental Anglican about his journey from Jesus People to Anglicanism. I am particularly interested because both of us started out in the same place. In the first part of the book he lends a quote from James Lloyd Breck, Anglican leader from the 1800’s. It is important to me because I run into so many “Jesus yes, the church is superfluous (that is a positive spin on their view of the church)" people.
Here's the quote: