Written by:jkrabach
8/26/2008 11:50 AM

I have just started reading Tangible Kingdom by Hugh Halter and Matt Smay.  The book was given to me by Greg Getz recently when he came out to Washington for a visit.  When Greg came the conversation was mostly centered around what I now see as my jaded perscpetive of the church (mostly the institutionalized church).  During our conversation I think this became evidently clear to Greg that in order for me to move forward I needed to deal with this lense of jadedness.  He suggest a six month leave from the institutional church in order to "detox". As I began to read Tangible Kingdom I realized that I am in the same place as many others who feel jaded by the institutional church.  My conversations with others has confirmed that there are many out there who seem to love God and Christ but struggle with the way we do church.  The way we gather and even live our lives as Christians seems counter productive to the faith development of others.  So they go all rogue and leave the institutional church and forsake the gathering.  I find myself in that position now and it is killing me.  Not gathering with like minded beleivers is not my ideal nor is it God's ideal.  However, at present I find that I am more jaded about the institutional church than I ever realized.  Of course others have seen it in me for some time.   A mentor of my brother (and a little bit to me) was quite shocked when I accepted a senior pastor position in a church.  He said that when he first met me he saw a young man who rebelled against the present system that I was now about to go into.  Over the last six or seven years I have been increasingly engaged in conversations that have steered me away from being complacently comfortable with the Sunday morning routine.  Even as I type this blog I see my jadedness coming out.  I may not be as sarcastic as others, but I might have a level of tact that others miss.  But I am jaded.  Tangible Kingdom has helped me to see this.  It has also helped me to see others who contend for the gospel in light of their passion for the lost.  In Tangible Kingdom there is a chapter on moving forward and at one point they speak of how we need to see pastors of the present church system with compassion.  They use a bridge analogy.  There is a river that needs to be crossed (many would agree we are not sure exactly what this river it just that it needs crossed) and in order to do so we must build a bridge.  Now there are going to be those on the one side of the bank who form the base or pillar of the bridge and there will be others who are out there in the middle attempting to connect the two sides.  I would suppose then that there are those who are already on the other side who have formed a base over there (like Frank Viola from Pagan Christianity).  The point is that all are needed.  I remember one day at Redeemer Missionary Church I had a conversation with a friend about the necessity of meeting in a church building (see I am a trouble maker, kind of).  My end thought was this, that I feel that church is doable without sustaining a building through tithes (this money would be better used to help the poor and needy, a whole different discussion), however I also realized that many people are not ready to make that leap to change and to ask them to do so is just dumb really.  People don't like change, that is what they tell us all the time.  When we bust in and tell them that their system is wrong and they need to change it rarely goes over well.  This is especially true if you are like me and do not know what the next step is for that change.  Where do we take all these people?  And if we do not know where to go do we expect them all to blindly step out in faith that there is something else?  How dumb are we to demand this?  And if they are still where they are won't there need to be some who minister to them and help them to grow?  To help them to step out to the center of the bridge?  And won't some never really make it?  They might move a little out in the water but they won't go the full way. Is that ok for us to accept (that is those who are farther)?  So I have learned that I am jaded but I am learning to love again.  I am learning to see my brothers and sisters who are trapped in the institutional church with compassion.  I know many of them love God and want to see His kingdom expand but are so burnt out and tired that they just want to be still and know that God is God.  I think I will stop trying to change that and see what God does.  I constantly look to what Gamliel said (paraphrased), "If this is of man it will fail on its own.  But, if this is of God then no one can stop it."  So for those who read this who are jaded, lets move from the criticisms we launch out to cooperation.  Yeah many of our fellow Christ followers won't get us but they get the mission, to love God and love others and to get others to these two (thanks Derek!).  Enjoy your day.

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