FOUNDATIONAL DYSFUNCTION?

From My Perspective - - -

For quite a while, we have been subjected to the hew and cry regarding the separation of Church and State. It surfaces regularly regarding the celebration of Easter or Christmas, or whenever a public religious display or expression is forthcoming. While the Pledge of Allegiance still retains the words, “one nation, under God”, and while our coins and currency continue to indicate, “In God We Trust”, nevertheless there is an ongoing effort to eliminate any reference to God or Christ – in public – in our nation.

Michael Spencer is a writer and communicator. He has recently written: “The Coming Evangelical Collapse”, in which he states: “Evangelicalism needs a ‘rescue mission’ from the world Christian community… Some will continue to see conservatism and Christianity through one lens and will engage the culture war much as before – a status quo the media will be all too happy to perpetuate. A significant number, however, may give up political engagement for a discipleship of deeper impact. Is all of this a bad thing? Evangelicalism doesn't need a bailout. Much of it needs a funeral. But what about what remains? Is it a good thing that denominations are going to become largely irrelevant? Only if the networks that replace them are able to marshal resources, training, and vision to the mission field and into the planting and equipping of churches. Is it a good thing that many marginal believers will depart? Possibly, if churches begin and continue the work of renewing serious church membership. We must change the conversation from the maintenance of traditional churches to developing new and culturally appropriate ones..”

Michael Spencer continues:”…Will the coming collapse get Evangelicals past the pragmatism and shallowness that has brought about the loss of substance and power? Probably not. The purveyors of the evangelical circus will be in fine form, selling their wares as the promised solution to every church's problems. I expect the landscape of mega-church vacuity to be around for a very long time. Will it shake lose the prosperity Gospel from its parasitical place on the evangelical body of Christ? Evidence from similar periods is not encouraging. American Christians seldom seem to be able to separate their theology from an overall idea of personal affluence and success…We can rejoice that in the ruins, new forms of Christian vitality and ministry will be born. I expect to see a vital and growing house church movement. This cannot help but be good for an evangelicalism that has made buildings, numbers, and paid staff its drugs for half a century. We need new evangelicalism that learns from the past and listens more carefully to what God says about being His people in the midst of a powerful, idolatrous culture…”

Consider these things with me - - - There are basic eternal truths that should not be ignored as Spencer’s thoughts are pondered and ruminated. The first truth pertains to what Jesus taught regarding the wheat and the weeds – Matthew 13:24-30, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds? He said to them, An enemy has done this. So the servants said to him, Then do you want us to go and gather them? But he said, No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn. The second truth pertains to the Lord’s declaration in Matthew 16:18, “…I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it…” The Lord has an eternal plan and we see parts of it gradually unfolding. It should not cause one any panic or undue fear because the Lord has determined a precise time and an exact moment when all of the absurdity and confusion of mankind will arrive at His Termination Point. Until then, in the ebb and flow of Christianity (so-called), one will realize disappointments and disillusionment. We must remind ourselves that positionally we (and The Church) are safe and secure in the hollow of our Lord’s Hand – and – nothing – ever – shall be able to remove us from His Grip or separate us from His Love!