Written by Dawn Rutan
The thought process started when I read this article on the missional church: http://www.vergenetwork.org/2011/09/14/mike-breen-why-the-missional-movement-will-fail/ I confess that although I’ve heard the term before, I had no idea what it meant. According to Wikipedia:
“The movement seeks to rethink and redefine the nature of the church and create a new paradigm in which churches are seen as missional in nature, instead of attractional in nature. Leaders in the movement argue that instead of churches attempting to attract people to churches through church programs, churches should instead take the gospel outside of the church and engage society with the gospel, often by being involved not only in missions and evangelism but also in social justice movements.”
Coincidentally, I then picked up Jen Hatmaker’s book Interrupted: When Jesus Wrecks Your Comfortable Christianity, which shares her journey into the missional movement. I fully support Christians getting motivated to look beyond the walls of their church and living out their faith in every part of life. However, I think there are some problems with the way missional living is often communicated. (I had similar concerns when reading books by Hugh Halter.) Here is one example from Hatmaker.
In talking about the parables in Matthew 25 and Jesus’ judgment “Depart from me, you cursed… for I was hungry and you gave Me no food…” (ESV) she states:
“Be like the wise, watchful servant, not the wicked, abusive one. Emulate the five wise virgins, not the foolish, sleepy ones… Act like the servant with five invested talents, not the scaredy servant with one buried talent. And as Jesus built His case and the disciples began to gauge what counted and what wouldn’t, He hit them with the grand finale: It will matter only if you’re a sheep or a goat. The blessed and the lost will be separated based on one principle: the care of the oppressed. The end” (103).
Wait a minute—that’s the one principle?! Before jumping to that conclusion, it would be good to go back a few chapters to Jesus’ terrifying words in Matthew 7:22-23: “On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not… do many mighty works in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.’” He said in verse 20, “Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.” Outward actions are not the factor that determines our salvation, but they are evidence of it. Paul makes this clear in Ephesians 2:8-10:
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Not by works, but for good works… Yes, we should feed and clothe those in need and share the Gospel with them, but not so we can feel assured that we are sheep and not goats. I have no doubt there will be many good, socially active people who find out their works did not put their names in the Book of Life.
The other difficulty I have with many in the missional church movement is the implication that it is an either/or choice—either missional or attractional. I see no reason why both cannot exist within the universal Church and within local churches. The Christian mission and calling is not a one-size-fits-all outfit. God’s Kingdom has room for big churches, small churches, house churches, parachurch organizations, high church, low church, cross cultural missionaries, indigenous missionaries, street evangelists, homeless shelters, AIDS orphanages, and a myriad of other shapes and sizes. God uses all kinds of people, methods, and activities to reach the lost.
“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:4-7).
(By the way, although “missional” is a new word it is not a new idea. The Salvation Army is just one example from history. http://www.salvationarmy.org/ihq/about)
© 2016 Dawn Rutan. The views stated may or may not reflect the beliefs of the pastor or leadership of Dulin’s Grove Church.
