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September 26, 2011
Skye Jethani: Recipe for Church-365 (Part 2)
Reaffirming a theology of vocation and cultural flourishing in the church.
Read part 1 of "Recipe for Church365.
Ingredient Two: Cultural Flourishing
As I discussed in my first book, The Divine Commodity, when church institutionalism grows out of control, we come to believe that programs rather than people are the vessels of God’s Spirit and mission in the world. When this occurs we begin to honor people for their involvement in, or service for, the church. But what they do with the remainder of their time gets little attention. When this assumption is reinforced over decades, a hierarchy of importance is established with church leaders (pastors and missionaries) at the top. Others are then only celebrated when they behave like pastors or missionaries, or when they leave their “worldly” professions to devote themselves to “full-time Christian service.”
What I’m describing is the contemporary Western church’s abandonment of a theology of vocation. During the Reformation church leaders began to apply the term “vocation” (Latin for “calling”) to all believers and not simply the clergy. It was understood that all callings were valid before God, and each glorified him and provided a critical service in the world. In other words, the life of the painter, politician, or podiatrist is just as God-honoring as that of the priest when done in communion with Christ and for the benefit of others.
Effort has been underway to recapture this theology for the American church. Andy Crouch’s book Culture Making has helped us re-engage the cultural mandate in Genesis 1, and Gabe Lyons’ has articulated the “7 channels of cultural influence” through the Q Gatherings and website. But what would this look like if embraced by a local church?
It would mean embracing the conviction that the Gospel is about God redeeming all things through Jesus Christ. While the redemption of people is of paramount importance, too often this is all the church values when Scripture reveals a God interested in the entirety of his creation. As John Stott so wonderfully put it in the Lausanne Covenant, it’s about “the whole church, taking the whole gospel, to the whole world.” It’s about revealing the reign of Jesus Christ as a present reality over all parts of the cosmos.
In this spirit, Church365 would honor each person’s calling no matter which sector of the culture he or she is engaged in. And it would reinforce the idea that we are the church 365 days a year in each part of the community. Rather than cajoling people out of the culture to participate more in weekly church activities, and thereby establishing an implicit competition between the church and other sectors of the culture for a person’s time and energy, Church365 would see it’s role as convening people from each cultural sector once a week to share about God’s good work in the world and find encouragement, equipping, and edification.
It would also mean ordaining believers for the good work God has called them to in business, education, government, arts & entertainment, media, the social sector, or the household. And celebrating the good things they produce in each of these areas–not simply when they behave like a pastor or missionary in them. By blessing and equipping the saints to God’s work, (remember God is in the universe business, not just the church business), and affirming his particular calling for each of them, the people of Church365 would be seeking the flourishing of the entire community by deconstructing the clergy-laity hierarchy evangelicalism has rebuilt since the Reformation.
Stay tuned for ingredient three of Skye's recipe for Church365
Comments
Skye,
Thanks for this series. I feel like my church currently does an okay job of this. But, inevitably, there's a need for people to serve the church: childcare, hospitality, etc. And the more the church tries to do in the community as a body, the more activities there are to call the church members to participate in. In your perfect church, how would this tension be solved?
Posted By: Monica Selby | September 26, 2011 8:05 AM
"...in this spirit, Church365 would honor each person’s calling no matter which sector of the culture he or she is engaged in."
Wow. That's fresh and sweet to hear.
At my church, on labor day, I was disappointed there was not much mention of 'labor'....there was the Old Testament verse 'Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death." (which went over very well with my new-to-church liberal son-in-law I had managed to bring that day). And about not overworking and neglecting your family...well and good, but...
Thomas Merton wrote, "If you write for God, you will reach many men and bring them joy". I would add that no matter your vocation - factory, field, office - artist, writer, minister or doctor or ditch digger,
if you do it for God, you 'will reach many men and bring them joy'.
Posted By: steve w. | September 26, 2011 9:13 AM
"...Rather than cajoling people out of the culture to participate more in weekly church activities, and thereby establishing an implicit competition between the church and other sectors of the culture..."
Well, now, this is an unexpected turn I didn't see coming.
Very interesting, Skye, very interesting indeed.
I do think this is coming at the problem from a unique direction, and one that is sane.
Posted By: sheerahkahn | September 26, 2011 10:53 AM
What if people don't have a "vocation"? They may have a "job," but they live for the weekend. Or the job is just to get them through school. Or they work at Starbucks just to get health insurance, but they want out as soon as something else opens up.
What's the church do with that? Seems to me there are two approaches: (1) Teach them that their job IS their vocation, at least for now. Or (2) invite them to invest in something eternal--and their vocation is supporting the ministry and mission of the church.
How's your approach different from either of those?
Posted By: Jarrod | September 27, 2011 10:59 AM
Wow! I pray for this reality for the clergy/laity churches I have been a part of in the past.
"...by deconstructing the clergy-laity hierarchy evangelicalism has rebuilt since the Reformation."
There is a lot of scripture that is twisted and warped by our "scholars" and "Bible teachers" to claim the clergy thing is all godly. Can we start with Romans 1:1 "..set apart for the gospel of God." Does not this mean elevating your spiritual status, separating yourself from working a marketplace job and taking all of your needs out of an offering plate, and only doing Bible things?
Posted By: Tim | September 27, 2011 3:21 PM
Skye-
An aside: I read this article earlier in the day (along with your previous article) and as I rolled the ideas around in my head I found myself amazed at how quickly we can commoditize ideas these days.
I say this as self-examination, because I immediately began to think about the "Ch-365" brand (complete with Periodic icon included in the article above) and how it could be used in our community and/or church. This left me a bit discouraged...are we doomed to continually think so consumeristically? I'm not sure we can escape our own expertise, or desire to be the best "Church" we can be. May God intervene.
Posted By: bil_ | September 28, 2011 10:39 AM
What an important topic! This is an area where the church can be a context for spiritual transformation, where we can learn to put on new eyes when it comes to our work. The Christian's understanding of "vocation" can run completely counter-cultural, while still being immerse in the world.
Let me unpack that: We so often introduce ourselves by what we do for employment. We ask about it at parties. Why? Because so much of our life is spent doing that. But in our culture, employment has become a place of idolatry--we rely on our job to give us our self-worth, or we see the job as a means to security and self-sufficiency.
In Christ, we don't discard our employment as meaningless, and trivial. That's a dualistic spiritual vs. material dichotomy that is counter to the gospel. But Jesus in Lord, not our jobs; we work as unto the Lord. Regardless of our pay or the social status of our job, it is a place of witness.
In my own life, this has led to both a more diligent and honest effort in jobs I'm not naturally enthusiastic about, but also opportunities to show my employers that I the ultimate authority at work is larger than company policy.
Where does this fit into the life of the gathered church? Well, I think most of our worship practice largely ignores the life we have Monday-Saturday. Instead, we ought to bring that work-life with us--through symbols, words, song, picture, prayer--as an offering to God, asking for him to sanctify it, to dwell among our weekly work in the manner of Jesus' incarnation.
The offering seems a wonderful place to expand worship in this dimension, but too often it is just a "half-time," an incidental intermission.
Posted By: Nate | September 29, 2011 12:33 PM
Good words. I am enjoying this series.
Oddly, I am/was a pastor who is now taking a deeper look at my own vocation.
I have had to do some deconstructing of my personal view of church/kingdom participation in order to listen to God's prompts in my own life. Perhaps this also what we are seeing with some of the mega-pastors leaving their posts?
Posted By: Jarrod | October 6, 2011 11:53 AM
Skye, I have started sharing some of these thoughts 10 years ago, so I feel what you are saying, I pastor a church, but back then we had 1000 people and 50 acres of land to build on, we sold it all and bought a run down swim tennis facility that is a vibrant community center, instead of holding services we serve and live in the rhythm of the peoples lives, I am now what they call Bi-vocational which I take offense. The Lord told Adam and Eve to live in the garden and eat from any tree but one. In other words work in any tree you want just do with a kingdom mindset. I will add this we lay hands on every one that goes into "full time" ministry but when is the last time we laid hands on someone getting a new job at walmart.
Jack
Posted By: Jack | October 16, 2011 6:05 PM
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