Here is Part Three

Seeking First the Kingdom – Part Three

In the first article of the series, I talked about Matthew 6:33 and its personal application. The second article dealt with making application for the local church setting. In this third and final of the series, I want to address current threats to the church and how our obedience to this command of Jesus can address those threats.
Did you see the recent article noting the increased percentages of people who claim no religious preference? This survey affirms my long held belief that we are becoming more and more secular. Any general cultural “preference” for religion, and particularly in our regions, Protestant expressions of Christianity, has diminished greatly. Persons in these past surveys, even though they might not have been Christ followers, or church members, generally expressed a preference for the term “evangelical” or “Christian.” That is no longer true for larger and larger numbers of people.
Is this a bad thing? Obviously it weakens the “perception” of strength of evangelical Christianity, but maybe it is time for us to stop taking adherence to our common “Christian” values for granted. We all knew those who expressed a preference for calling themselves “Christians” or “Evangelicals” did not express a true faith in Jesus Christ. The church of Jesus Christ is not better off because people identify themselves in a survey as “Christian”. The church is better off when people are expressing their personal faith in Christ by being obedient to His commands and allowing Him to direct their lives.
It is also obvious that in these days that churches face some serious economic threats. Shortfalls in giving threaten our missions programs, our church program activities, our staffing, our buildings, and our way of doing church. But let me ask this question. Even if our church can no longer exist in its present form, are we not better off to seek the Kingdom first? Jesus answered that with his life. He laid down his life for his sheep. Did he not call on us to die to self? Does that command not also apply to the church? Maybe our churches are not dying to self because our leadership (I am starting with me) has not modeled their obedience to this command of Jesus. Stewardship of life and life’s resources (both are gifts from God), is one of the critical issues we face in the 21st Century.
Obviously I cannot address all the threats to the church in such a short article, but one other serious threat is holding a consumer attitude toward church and faith. This mentality picks and chooses what one wants; much like a shopper picks and chooses among merchandise in a store or from menu items in a restaurant. We need to be reminded that Biblical faith is not a matter of choosing what we want to obey or do. Christ followers are called to lives of faithfulness and sacrifice. No one would choose this life for himself. We are called into this life through faith in Jesus Christ. Bonhoffer said, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die…” not to pick and choose, but to live obediently under His Lordship.
I am praying for your life in Christ to be fruitful for the Kingdom’s sake.

Seeking First the Kingdom - Part Two

In the last post, I looked at how an individual applies the truth of Matthew 6:33, “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” In this portion, part two of a three part series; I want to apply those truths mentioned in the last article to the local church situation. We often are quick to make personal or individual application of the truths of scripture, but we are much slower at applying the truths of scripture in the corporate context. Perhaps it is because we live in such an individualistic culture. While our Western culture has stressed the individual for centuries, the scriptures were written with a tribal, village or family/group context. I am convinced that practically every scripture that we have individualized probably also needs to be interpreted and applied in the corporate focus of the congregation of God’s people.
So, to put this gospel truth into congregational context, I might ask the local church, “What are you worried about?” Or, as I learned in Healthy Congregations training, “What raises the anxiety level of the local congregation?
What are we worried about in our churches? I would say the two most likely answers would be “money” and “people,”--- “money” to meet the budget (i.e. keep the utilities open and pay the staff) and “people” to keep the church system running (teachers for classes, deacons to serve, people to attend). When we are worried or obsessed with these issues, we are not focusing on the Kingdom of God, we are focusing on us. This is just like those people in Matthew 6 focusing on what they had to eat or to wear.
When have you seen a church obsessed with ministry in the community in Jesus name? When have you see a church obsessed with evangelistic fervor, dying to reach the people in their community? I dare say you have not seen these. Yet, ministering to the community in Jesus name and reaching the lost in our community are Kingdom issues. Paying the bills and keeping the church system running are not. A key part of our mistake has been equating church activities with Kingdom work, and sadly to say, they are not the same. When our focus is turned inward, we worry about our programs and our buildings. We worry about our staff and about our ability to sustain our level of activities. Yet Jesus commanded us to seek FIRST the Kingdom of God. I am convinced that when we do that as the first order of business, He will take care of the other things. And, I am not so sure that we wouldn’t be better off without so many of our busy activities of church life that wear people out without providing spiritual sustenance they need to be Kingdom citizens. Yet, who will give us permission to stop doing all these things. Guess what. I hereby grant you permission to reorder your church life to focus on the things that really matter (not that my permissions is necessary) and make a Kingdom difference.

Seeking First the Kingdom - Part One

In the Matthew 6:33, we find a verse that is familiar to most Christians, “But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Most of us understand the context of this verse. Jesus discerned the thought processes of the people of his day. He knew their concerns. He lived among them. When you spend time with a person or a group of people, you come to know their concerns. He recognized the people of his day were focused on what they would eat or what they would wear, simple projections of the basic human needs. But, the times in Jesus day were difficult for the Jews. They lived in occupied territory. There was hardship all around. These were legitimate concerns. You and I recognize that the issues confronting people in our day are not much different from those mentioned in this passage. Often we clothe this passage in the context of simple “worry.” In reality, I think it is much deeper than that. It’s not just about worry, though Jesus uses that word. It is about the thought processes that dominate our minds and our moods.
Today’s news shows are dominated with talk about our economy. What occupies your mind most of the time? I confess, I watch TV programs to see who can explain the economic mess we are in, without much success. I doubt I am any better off for it.
But in these days of economic uncertainty, what occupies your mind?
Jesus’ challenge to those hearers and to us was to focus primarily on the Kingdom of God. Instead of seeking after wealth or personal security, he challenged us to seek the Kingdom (rule and reign) of God. What does that mean? I think it simply means to live in a relationship of complete reliance upon God, seeking to fulfill God’s will for our lives. It means that God sets the agenda for my life, not me. Uh oh! Do you fall into that trap like I often do of not allowing God to set the direction? I confess! If you pair this verse with Luke 9:23, you understand that “denying self and taking up the cross” means getting off our agenda and getting on God’s agenda.
What is Jesus’ promise that follows this command? It is a promise that we will have those things (basic needs of life) added to us (by Him). In other words, what we were concerned about – i.e. the basic needs of life – food and clothing, He will provide when we first seek His Will.
If I am concerned about my retirement fund, what I am looking for is long-term security after I retire from full-time work. That is why I have for the last 32 years put money into my retirement fund. But, the truth is, that if I trust God, He will provide for what I need, even if my retirement fund is not there when I retire. What I have to do now it to get busy seeking His Kingdom.

Who Get's It? It's About the Kingdom of God

In my work with 57 churches in our association, I am able to gain quite a different perspective than when I was a pastor or campus minister. All of these churches face challenges in today's world. Many, if not all, have a number of committed Christ followers. However, the power of the institutional system we have created at times tends to clearly overshadow any real Kingdom focus. What do I mean by that? We (that's us Baptists and evangelicals in general)developed a very strong and powerful church system. It is organized, structured, and managed much like a business. When we adopt that business management style, we become producers and consumers of religious services and activities. As religious consumers we focus on what we want and what we want for our families instead of focusing on what Jesus would have us do and how Jesus would have us live. That means that those churches with the best programs and the most entertaining "worship" tend to attract the most "consumers."
We lose sight of what it means to be disciples of Jesus and makers of disciples. We lose our missional focus. We learned very well how to "do" church but we have not learned as well how to "be" the church.

Here is how that is fleshed out. Church members focus on whether or not they have good programs and activities, interesting and lively worship services, and whether or not they are growing, that is, getting larger in attendance, membership, and contributions. With these "nickels and noses" ideas, if things are not growing, we fall into "survival" mode, doing whatever we can to insure the "survival" of our church. As you have probably noticed, I mentioned nothing about being missionally focused. Few members are focused on doing the mission, that is, making Jesus followers.

Do you wonder who gets it? How does the one who gets it live out his or her calling while staying engaged in the church institution? I don't all have the answers, but I do have a suggestion or two. First of all, we can't wait until everybody "gets it" because everybody won't "get it." So, we have to encourage and empower those who "get it" to be involved in fulfilling their God-given mission, and we have to try to expand their influence within the existing church system. Hopefully we can surround them in prayer and support. Secondly, we have to share the light, tell the story, proclaim the good news about those who are actively involved in the missional enterprise. Thirdly, we must honor the command of Jesus who said "Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into His harvest." Become earnest in prayer for the missional task. Prayer changes things, but more than that, it changes us.

Corts, Fuller Deaths are a Loss for All of Us

Last week two very influential men left this earthly life rather suddenly. Both died of apparent heart attacks. I was privileged to have met and had interactions with each of them. The first to die was Millard Fuller. A very limited part of Millard's (and his wife Linda's)story has been told widely and most people recognize them as the founders of Habitat for Humanity, a Christian housing ministry. I would encourage each reader to get The Cotton Patch Evidence, by Dallas Lee, as a background, and then to read each of Millard's books (Love in the Mortar Joints, The Theology of the Hammer, etc.) to begin to get the full impact. The goal of Habitat is to provide lost cost affordable housing to God's people in need. These homes are sold to the homeowner with no interest loans. Costs are kept low through donated volunteer labor and "sweat equity" work by the new homeowner. If you have never visited a Habitat home, or a Habitat neighborhood, that would be a start. But better yet, work on a Habitat home alongside the prospective homeowner. Due to a disagreement with the board of directors, the Fullers left Habitat a few years ago and began the Fuller Center for Housing, Inc.

Back in the mid 1980's I took a group of Alabama students to Americus, Ga. to do a week's work with Habitat. In fact, one of those students, a local newspaper writer, was the first person to notify me of Millard's death. While we were there, we had a chance to sit down to dinner with Millard and Linda at Amigo House for a potluck supper. I also had opportunity to have a personal conversation with Millard and to know something of his heart. Each morning while we were there, we met with Habitat families, children, volunteers, and staff for a daily devotional. Several of the Habitat families continued to meet with the group long beyond any obligation they had.
The highlight of that week came when working on a framed-up house. A little boy rode up on his bicycle and showing me a space in that house said "This is my room."
Later that day as I hung off the rafters of that house, I received the famous one finger salute from some driver and passengers as they honked their horn. It's hard for me to understand why some people don't want others to do well.
When we were living in Troy, Alabama, I was privileged to serve on the steering committee that got Troy/Pike Habitat started, and later served on that board for several years before moving away. Each Habitat chapter is encouraged to tithe their income to Habitat International, that builds housing in countries across the globe.

Millard was a magnificent witness of personal commitment, forsaking his fortune in worldly goods to build homes for people on earth and treasures in heaven. He clearly demonstrated the biblical truth that love requires action. Millard was active. I count it a privilege to have known Millard, to have been a campus ministry colleague with his son Chris, and to have been impacted my his life and ministry.

The second untimely death was that of retired Samford University President, Dr. Thomas Corts. Dr. Corts gave tremendous leadership to Samford across the many years he served. He was a superb spokesman for Christian higher education in Alabama and across the nation. I was privileged to serve on the Board of Ministerial Mentors for Samford while Dr. Corts was President. Our daughter attended Samford and graduated while Dr. Corts was at the helm. She also graduated from Beeson Divinity School, a school founded under Dr. Corts' leadership.
Dr. Corts was an outspoken leader in the effort to update or replace Alabama's repressive and cumbersome state constitution, and I pray all those who have joined that battle will not rest until we see the job completed. He served as the leader of that effort, and after his retirement, served a term as the chancellor for post-secondary education in Alabama. He brought impeccable credential to that task, but his leadership was not fully appreciated by our provincial acting State Board of Education. Dr. Corts got us going in the right direction to clean up the mess of nepotism, cronyism, and mismanagement in many of our community colleges. Most recently Dr. Corts served President Bush and our nation in Washington with an education initiative.

Dr. Corts was a committed Christ follower and a superb leader for Alabama Baptists. His leadership will be sorelly missed.

A Call to Spiritual Renewal

I promised in the last post that I would address the issue of spiritual renewal that I sermonized a week or so ago. The text for that message was Revelation 2:4-5, 7a
Of course the entire letter to the church at Ephesus is appropriate, I just did not want to get bogged down in the other portions.
Two or three factors came to mind as the Holy Spirit led me to develop this message. The are: 1) For the past 50-60 years Southern Baptists have devised and developed every kind of program, event, learning kit, book, booklet,or magazine aimed all at helping Christians live the Christ-like life. These seem to be built upon the strong supposition that we fail to live that life because we lack the right information. Our people are trained to the gills with all kinds of awards and certificates, but we are not impacting our world. 2)The city where I reside, Montgomery, Alabama, is more "lost," to use standard SBC lingo, that it was 20,30, or 40 years ago, despite all our programs and activities. A smaller percentage of the population is classified as "born again" or "evangelical" that during the earlier decades. 3) We have become self-focused consumers of religious activity rather than disciples of Jesus. What we truly need is spiritual renewal.

The problem with calling for spiritual renewal is that we have heard that call before, only in most cases those issuing the call could describe what the renewal would look like (Sounds somewhat presumptuous toward God, doesn't it?). Let me give a disclaimer here. I do not pretend to know what it would look like, except to say that it would be in keeping with the character of God and what is revealed in Scripture.

Here are the points of the message I delivered:
1. The road to renewal begins with repentance. The church at Ephesus is called to repentance. We are called to acknowledge that our ways have failed, and that our self-focus had led us off course. We must turn away from these selfish ways and toward Christ.

2) The second step is self-denial. Oops, there is a second scripture here, Luke 9:23 where Jesus said, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."
Have you seen churches practicing self-denial? I must admit it is not a common trait. My Illinois friend says it is because so few pastor's are practicing self-denial. Rick Warren said it best in the opening to his best selling The Purpose Driven Life when he said, "It's not about you!
3) The Third step is to follow Christ. That means getting off my agenda and getting on his. What is his agenda? Helping people.
4) We must practice listening to God. Too often our prayer lives have focused on telling God what we need. "Anyone who has ears to hear should listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.

What's wrong with the Church

Just over a week ago, I had the opportunity to preach in one of our local churches. I always look forward to that experience each time I get the invitation, but I must admit that since I no longer serve as a pastor, the practice of sermon preparation has suffered. I do miss that weekly discipline, but I love what I am doing.
What is unusual is that the last time I filled the pulpit in this church I wrote what I thought was one of my better sermons. Unlike most of my sermons that focus on a text and the exposition of that text, this one had three texts, and of course, three points! There was no poem at the end, however. The points were: 1)the Church in the West today has lost its cultural relevance -most of society is not interested in what we are doing as long as we don't bother them. They are not necessarily against us and are willing for us to have church for us; they are just not interested. (scripture- Paul's statement "I become all things to all men that I might by all means save some." 2) We have lost our relevance because we have lost our mission. We thought our mission was to get people to come to church. No, our mission is to connect people with Christ. Getting them to come to church is too much about us and not enough about Jesus.(scriptures -pick one II Cor 5:19, Mt. 28:19-20, Acts 1:8, John 20:22)and 3)We have lost our mission because we have lost our first love. (Revelation 2:4) We have ignored the relationship aspect of salvation in favor of the performance. We have forgotten how to love Jesus more each day because we have neglected our relationship with him.

I had the opportunity to tweak this message and preach it four or five other times.
One time I used Jesus experience with the woman at the well in John 4, to talk about our mission and cultural relevance. It is my conviction that when we serve others (outside the church) in Jesus' name, seeking to improve their lives, we will not be irrelevant.

This most recent message, I followed up on the Revelation 2 passage, to talk about spiritual renewal. That will be my topic in the nest post.