Recently at my church we had a Sunday of good old fashioned Gospel music and Mardi Gras fun. We sang traditional spirituals and gave some glory hallelujahs some time out of the religious closet. The children's choir even did a great rendition of the gospel classic, "Ticket To The Promised Land" complete with train whistle.
Everyone had a good time. Some more than others. I heard comments afterwards. "They just don't understand that we're much more intellectual here in San Francisco. We like High Church. We're more sophisticated than some of those suburban churches." Now, don't get me wrong. I love my gospel. But I also love my Mozart. And I know that in the past I've balked at some of the hillbilly changes proposed for our church like modern music and electric guitar praise band because I've considered those methods of praise to be beneath a church like mine. We're much better than that.
It got me to thinking about the gospels. They are so different, one from the other, and in some ways portay Jesus in a different light as well. I'm currently rereading the book of John and I find that the theology of John is very sophisticated compared to the "simpler" gospels of Matthew and Mark. I'm finding that I like John the most this time around. But, in putting the two thoughts together, I came across a revelation that seems to cut across the four gospels.
Everyone in the gosples that has their s*** together is screwed! Every single guy that society would have portrayed as being respectable, sophisticated, and above the rabble is, in fact, way too worldly for Heaven. Or, to put it another way, if you ain't broke, you ain't getting saved.
Wow. I think we've all overachieved. We live in a world that praises us for being useful, respectable, sophisticated, and above the rabble. If Jesus were to happen today, most of us would miss the boat entirely. Not only would we not know Jesus, we wouldn't even know He existed. He'd be off talking to the really screwed up folks - the folks that even Jerry Springer won't have on the show - and healing them. He'd be telling us that everything we think we know about God is wrong. He'd be going into our sanctuaries and turning over our money making ventures. He'd be walking through the bad parts of town as one of them. And the people who knew Him would be praising Him in whatever way they could manage, and telling their friends. And what would we want to do to Him. We'd want to see this trouble maker dead, of course, for bucking the system and for challenging us to do His work.
Its all well and good to want Jesus to return because we picture Him arriving in a golden cloud and fixing all the troubles of the world with a glance. But just like the father who comes home and takes out the trash that you were supposed to but forgot about, you'd better be prepared for a whooping.
Being together. Being unbroken. Being responsible. Being sophisticated. Being respectable. Being quiet and polite. These are all well and good. But let's not use them as walls between us and God.
3 comments:
Whoa.
And we wonder why your church, the church I once grew up in, a church that is located on perhaps the busiest, most highly trafficked boulevard in San Francisco, has faltered from 500 members to under 200 (based on data from the Presbytery website), while some of its suburban counterparts attract hundreds (if not thousands) of worshippers each Sunday.
I have changed my perception of music in church in recent months and have no problem with folks who prefer more traditional "high church" (for lack of a better term) vs. contemporary praise band music - it isn't the type of music as it is about praising God regardless of what century the music was written in. But that kind of attitude can kill a church...it is exactly the kind of attitude that Screwtape wants us to have.
I have seen it come from the opposite direction, from those who prefer contemporary music who thumb their noses at traditional hymns, and it is just as destructive.
ALL OF US ARE BROKEN! NONE OF US ARE PERFECT! NONE!!!!!
When we start thinking we're better than the other guy, that's when God slaps us upside the head.
(BTW, I can picture who in your congregation likely said what you stated above...)
As an aside, what is different about each Gospel is that each was written for a different audience. Matthew for Jews; Mark for Romans; Luke for Greeks; and John for Christians.
I'll try to find the reference for the above assertion and get it to you.
Cheers.
Andy - There are many reasons why a church's numbers dwindle. In a big city, especially, where the number of families with children has dwindled to almost nothing, its hard to attract the kind of family oriented congregants we used to get. While change is good, if you change too much, then you're no longer the church you were nor do you really belong in the church you've become. Lakeside could be a much better church if we had another 300 members. But it probably doesn't do us any good to get 300 new members if they are so radically different that the church is no longer recognizable. Then all you've done is gain 300 new members at the expense of 200 old members. Hardly a good strategy. And the other approach allows you to have both worlds, but worlds that are as divided as Lakeside and the Indonesian church that shares the building with us. We're not in the same church, just tenants of the same building.
If building churches were easy, we'd all be doing it. Only God can build a church. So we'll continue to seek His will.
Randall - at first I read that as Luke wrote his gospel for the Geeks. I was silently jumping for joy. Then I realized you wrote Greeks. Not nearly as fun.
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