Urban Reformation

I started to write a blog based upon this and found out that after doing a google search there was something very very similar to what I was about to write already out there in cyber-space.  I understand, no thought I have is my own, and there is nothing new under the sun, but I was excited to see two things, that this brother is established with folks here in KC, and that he captured the heart of what I was about to say.  You can find this blog post here on Black and Reformed Ministries.

I too have shifted away from the “Drive by Evangelism Method” and like my brother am not wanting to discourage any type of evangelism if this is your calling, however I don’t see this type of “methodology” lived out in the book of Acts or scripture in general.   Granted it was a different time, and the gospel message is the same, what I think we have often tried to do is divorce the message from the messenger.  I believe that God is sovereign over salvation, and does not need us to save anyone but God chooses based upon His choice to use men, yet God has commanded for all believers to make disciples.   Both of these truths are true and neither one negates the other.   I want to be clear over this aspect of soteriology.

Often with good theology modern techniques in sharing Christ fall short in their genuine sincerity. In our delivery methods, where our society is built on capitalism, advertisements, and gimmicks, the delivery of the message comes off very disingenuous and is often related to these sales tactics.  The truth of the matter is we often deliver the message out of a sense of Christian duty as opposed to a love for the lost.  Or let me put it this way, somehow in our Christianity we have determined that even though it’s not said out loud, our ‘discipleship making‘ is to be done by those who ‘work‘ at church or the professionals.  I don’t believe many believers would articulate it this way, but IF and I mean even IF we get to the point of doing one of the methodologies of today, ie door to door, or street preaching, or servant evangelism (which falls short of the words of truth often) but our general thought is, if we can ‘invite‘ only we have done Matthew 28, and our part in teaching men to observe all that Christ has commanded.

I do believe there should be a sense of Christian duty or obedience but not derived from the motive of earning or getting, but giving as Christ did His life four our ransom.  In other words as best we can discern, it should be Christ’s motive and not our own.  Please don’t hear what I’m not saying, there is the fact that God does say in Matthew 28 commanding his disciples to go and make more disciples, teaching them to observe ALL Christ has commanded.  However, somehow someway our marketing ideas and ‘Ways’ have come into our churches and it’s more about getting people dedicated to a church and getting them to the professional pastor than the individual spending time with them in an individual discipleship relationship.

“Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart” – 1 Peter 1:22

This brings me to my second point, pastor laity distinctions.   Obviously there are roles which elders and deacons are to carry out.  Most of the time the roles in churches are not always clear, or even adhered to in today’s churches.  Unintentionally people have busy lives and have relegated difficult work with people to the clergy, and have abdicated their own sense of responsibility in Christian life to someone else with more time, talent, or maturity level.  It’s not either the pastor’s responsibility or the Christian’s responsibility to carry on but it is both the Pastor as he leads by his example, and the Christian as they carry out the word preached, which brings together life and doctrine.

For some, doctrine has people resting in their deep understanding of the doctrine of Justification, and their rest in Christ.  This is valid and completely true if understood rightly.  Somehow we get confused about this doctrine in our praxis, a disconnect occurs which removes our need to be busy about the Lord’s work.  Or perhaps we feel that the Lord’s work is only or for one or two compartments of our life.  No need to be intentionally making disciples, or exhorting, encouraging that’s the business of “the Church.”  We forget we are the church.

Other churches have a real ignorance of the doctrine of Justification, but here it is our apathy about the things of God due to our lack of understanding about the Gospel and Christ, or a true understanding of our Christian responsibility out of who Christ is and what He has completed on the cross.

We must realize that it is Christ alone and belief in Christ which saves men.  We are saved by Grace through faith and not of ourselves, but this “Real” faith as I’ve called it in a recent blog, is the fruit of an authentic Christian life.  Often we would like put forth our need to focus on one area over another.  If we are doers, others say we are missing the fact that we can not “DO” anything to earn our salvation.  ( People judging motives to ease their own conscience of not Doing) (In some cases it may be true) – or for example (The preaching of the word / high emphasis on doctrine . )  Where some would say that this can lead to white washed tombs, or puffed up knowledge, again ( People judging motives to ease their own conscience of not being good students of the word or having a passion for preaching, )  What people don’t realize is that it’s not an either or scenario.  There is the narrow road of truth we must walk down.

In evangelism we need both the word of truth and the demonstration of Christian life before men, a both and, verses an either or proposition.

We need both the preaching of the word at it’s highest level of excellency as well as we are called to live a holy life which we can not attain either on our own.  In each of these, it must be God, but we are to strive towards His standards not rest in our own standards often governed by our flesh, laziness, apathy.  It is both the doctrines of justification as well as the doctrine of sanctification.  We trust that God has finished the work on the cross, yet we are admonished to “work out our salvation in fear and trembling” indicating we have something to do.  It is being both a hearer which is how God saves men and and a doer of the word which demonstrates that true fact of His finished work on the cross.

So I’m not knocking, “The Way of the Master” evangelism, great content, a little heavy on the gimmick.   I still stand on the fact that God can use anything He desires to save men especially His law.  My argument along side the use of those things would be a ‘both and’ approach, both the truth of the Gospel preached  in evangelism and a sincere attempt to incorporate, bring along side of yourself people you know who need to know Christ more.  Both word and deed, not word or deed. This is real love, real faith, real discipleship.  Not simply passing out tracks or servant evangelism, but gospel words, with gospel life, thus the “Total Discipleship” approach, not the partial, or the easy, or the convenient.

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