So, it will probably take me a few days to finish the write-ups on Mosaic and Saddleback, so in the meantime, here’s something I’ve been thinking about a good bit lately, and I want to go ahead and throw it out there to see if I can get some conversation started on the subject. This is an idea that I’ve been kicking around ever since Resurrection, but my visit to Saddleback this evening cemented it, and on the late-night drive back to Glendale (following two services and a much-needed skype conversation), I realized that I really needed to go ahead and write about it, so here goes nothing, and I'll warn you in advance that I may start preaching . . .
It’s nothing new for people to recommend churches for me to visit. In fact, that’s one of the reasons that I added the “Possible Fall Destinations” section on this blog. There are thousands of churches and Christian communities with fascinating stories to tell, some of them inspirational and some of them tragic, but all of them merit thorough examination and reflection. We can acquire wisdom from every church’s failings and successes-- no matter how you might define success. Still, I’ve developed a policy where I usually decline to visit a church that is advertised to me with the following sales pitch:
“You should check out ________ if you want to see what real ministry looks like.”
If your jaw dropped because that statement is so horrendously snide and offensive, then I’m right there with you. On the other hand, if your jaw dropped because you've recently made that comment yourself, then you should probably feel a little ashamed, but at least take comfort in the knowledge that plenty of others have fallen prey to that mindset as well. I’ve heard the claim of “real ministry” far too many times at this point, and not to generalize, but it’s usually deployed when describing settings of extreme poverty. The work those groups are doing is nothing short of amazing, but it doesn’t somehow negate the ministries of other churches and religious nonprofits. To call a ministry “real” is to imply that someone else’s ministry is fake, and frankly, that’s arrogant. In fact, it’s sinful. Even though some ministries deserve all the accolades and support that we can throw their way, we should never forget that pride is a sin, and we must guard ourselves against it at all times. No one is more unbearable to be around than a person who is proud of their humility. If I’ve learned anything from C.S. Lewis, it’s that our virtues can become vices (and vice versa) as simply as you might flip a coin, so to become conceited in the work of a ministry is an incredible and unfortunate irony, but it’s all too common, and we must resist that mentality at all times.
Of course, the Bible does call us to pay special attention to the poor and disenfranchised, the widow, the orphan, and the prisoner, but we can’t do so to the neglect of others. John 3 tells us that Christ came and dwelt among us out of love for the whole world, not just the poor. Do outcasts deserve an extra helping hand and a place of honor in the church? James 2 says they absolutely do. Will they reap additional blessings at some point? The Beatitudes certainly hint at it. Are there special punishments for those who ignore people in need? Matthew 25 says yes. Still, that doesn’t change the fact that Jesus makes himself accessible to everyone. I was particularly struck by this one day in my Popular Revivals class when my friend and classmate Emily Stecher summed it up perfectly with the simple statement, “Kids in the suburbs need Jesus too.” Having money doesn’t automatically make your problems go away. Often, it just makes the underlying issues that much more obvious, and just like a doctor must take an oath to help all who are sick, a minister answers a calling to help all who are in need. Churches must work to help all who are hungry --whether that hunger is physical or spiritual--, and ministers are called to a variety of settings and specialties when responding to the world’s many needs. With such a variety of needs in the world, we need a variety of pastors. We need Adam Hamiltons and Pastor Thurmans and Coach Gordons and Rob Bells and Mark Driscolls and Rick Warrens and every other type of minister; none of their ministries are any more “real” than the others.
In full disclosure, one of the reasons I bring this up is because I feel like I’ve fallen into this trap numerous times myself, and I hope that talking about it at length will encourage my friends who read this blog to hold me accountable. I’ve worked for a nonprofit before, and I befriended quite a few homeless folks in the process, so I can speak with a little bit of experience on issues of homelessness. Still, just because I want to work with that demographic in a church setting (possibly even as a church plant), that doesn’t mean that my ministry is any more real than anyone else’s. I don’t feel called to work in a socioeconomically-diverse urban setting because that’s somehow better or more holy or more valid than other ministry settings. It’s not. I want to work in that setting because it’s where I feel called and where I hope my skill set will be the most useful. Urban ministry is not somehow superior. It’s not like God is somehow more present in those settings. God is present everywhere and at all times. God is working just as hard in the suburbs as in the inner city. Do people who have been continually beaten down by social and economic hardship need special attention from the church? Absolutely, but you can find those folks in the suburban megachurches just like you can find them in the inner city safe havens. That’s why Resurrection had programs to reach out to people in downtown Kansas City, but it also had programs to help recently unemployed members out in Leawood, and that sent a powerful message that the church must seek to help any who seek assistance, and people everywhere need help of some kind.
Ministry may be carried out in many different styles and in many different settings, but that doesn’t make one ministry any more real than another. Personally, I know of two really great ways to inoculate yourself against this kind of thinking: (1) Participate in a wide variety of worship and ministry settings (big, small, wealthy, poor, etc.), and (2) make sure your circle of acquaintances includes people from all walks of life. Knowledge is a great weapon against pride, and it can be a beautifully humbling experience just to see the wide range of ministry styles that are already out there. Whether you’re working with people at the top of the socioeconomic ladder or at the bottom, we all run the risk of thinking that our ministries are the only ones that matter, the only ones that make a difference, the only ones that are real, and that’s simply not the case. We must fight that mentality of pride. It is counterproductive and unchristian. We can't delude ourselves into thinking that we have a monopoly on real ministry when Christ is at work in so many people and so many churches. It is in Christ that we find ultimate reality, and so long as He is with us in any ministry, it is real.
Peace and Blessings,
Tom
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