As you know, we are in the last stages of the negotiations for Discovery to purchase the property that is currently home to another congregation. This congregation is facing the difficult decision of disbanding and selling the property to us at a fraction of the value.
This is a hard choice and many of the older congregation have questions. I thought I'd share one of those congregant's concerns and my reply. Hopefully, it'll help you see why we do church the way we do...
"...I have some questions in light of the the above and in light of the books - John MacArthur (editor): Fool's Gold: Discerning Truth in an Age of Error, and The Truth War - Fighting for Certainty in the Age of Deception:
What seems lacking, according to MacArthur, in the
that Christ's shedding of blood, being a true satisfaction to God for His justice, paid in full for the debt we owe to him as our Creator and loving God (who also sent his Willing Son as "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world)."
In other words, how would Randy acknowledge the dilemma of shunning worldliness and shunning the conforming our thoughts to the very evil ways of the world, while at the same time seeking that 70% of necessary "cross-cultural knowledge" to be able to communicate well to our own culture - or any culture we wish to know well and deal with. Paul graciously tried to do that - but he did it biblically ("to the Jew I became a Jew, to the Greeks, a Greek, etc.") There is apparently some real neglect, perhaps even leading to duplicity in the way Christ is possibly presented in some Purpose Driven Churches - Does Randy see the need for combating these things mentioned here as valid criticisms/suggestions - and would he endeavor to tackle them?
I think these are very fair questions from someone who is not well acquainted with a purpose driven church and is only getting one side of the issue from a guy like MacArthur - who obviously is not that acquainted with Purpose Driven Churches either (smile).
In any case, here is my answer,
"Thank you for your questions. Most of what you asked has been answered in an article I posted on our website at http://www.discoverychurchnj.com/seeker.htm. I encourage you to read the article - it will answer many of your questions.
Just in case you don't have the time to visit the site, there are a few main thoughts I'd like to convey.
First, being what John MacArthur calls "seeker sensitive" does NOT mean compromising the message - it just means you communicate it in words that non-believers understand! Jesus drew enormous crowds ("multitudes") without compromising the message. He was just clear, practical, and loving.
Second, being seeker-sensitive doesn't mean the preaching is shallow. I challenge the people of Discovery to invest in the lives of those far from Christ. We need to have dinner with them, play golf, and spend our lunch hours with them. When we do, and if we really listen to lost people, we'll discover that their felt needs are quite deep. They have the need for meaning; the need for purpose; the need for forgiveness; the need for love. They want to know how to make right decisions, how to protect their family, how to handle suffering, and how to have hope in our world. These are deep issues. What's really interesting is that these deep issues are just as real for Christ-followers. These are the issues we address. By the way, we are moving a way from the "seeker sensitive or obsessed" term. We like to say we are a family expecting guests.
I think the real issue here is one of selflessness and balance. If we are to reach our worlds, the church must have spiritually mature members who are unselfish. We'll never be able to start an evangelistic movement that grows into a discipleship lifestyle until we are willing to limit their own preferences and worship style in order to reach lost people for Christ.
We must also be balanced - that’s the message Acts 2 is really teaching. In the early church worship, teaching, discipleship, spiritual gifts, evangelism and even stewardship were balanced against each other to produce a vibrant, growing ministry in Acts 2. Balance should be our objective.
So how does balance apply to our discussion about "guest sensitive" churches? For some reason, authors like John MacArthur neglect to get outside the Sunday morning service. There is more than just "Sunday." Simply put, there is more to a properly balanced church than just the Sunday service. Besides hosting services on Sunday morning or on Saturday evening, the balanced "guest sensitive" church goes to great lengths to have times of extended worship, bible study, discipleship, small groups and growth seminars at other times during the week. They just don’t do those things on Sunday morning!
A balanced guest sensitive church strives to maintain the equality of the purposes of the church that the Acts 2 church exhibited. A balanced guest sensitive church wants to follow the balance that Jesus commanded when He left this planet, "Go into all the world and make disciples." There's a balance there - one every church (regardless of their orientation) should work hard to keep.
A biblical church balances the different purposes of church - grace (outreach), growth (worship, prayer, bible study), groups (fellowship, discipleship, community), gifts (service) and good stewardship - against each other so that the ministry does not become known for it's accomplishment in one particular area ... but rather for it's commitment to all five! As a result, the leadership of a guest sensitive church strives to keep a balance in maintaining the purposes of the church as a goal in every activity, event or decision.
Christ told us to reach and teach, go and grow! If a guest sensitive church neglects to keep the balance and it forgets or neglects to disciple and train Christ followers, it will become shallow. At the same time, if too much emphasis is placed on the believers, the church can become self-absorbed - uninviting or alien to the unchurched, even closed. We must keep a biblical balance in ministry and if a biblical balance is kept - if irreligious people are being turned into devoted followers of Christ - the guest sensitive church can’t help but grow and change its world!
God's best!
randy
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