Attention all you nay-sayers and critics of my faith outlet(s).
I went to a church this morning.
No, it's not the seventh sign of the apocalypse. My dad is in town and as a family courtesy, I joined him in church attendance this rainy Sunday morning.
So, dad and I attend the coc mega church that several within the agent network have ties to. And I like going there because it's so big that I can slip in and out of the back and nobody notices. Except I always run into someone from my college days 15 years ago.
There was a guest speaker this morning from Atlanta. And although his message was nothing eye-opening, it was amazing to hear it from a church building. Plus...this guy just put it in simple words that I've never thought of before.
The gist of his entire message (that was within a series called "The church has left the building"...which sounds great, but I somehow still doubt that's true) was this:
In reference on bringing truth to the lost...
...it's not about how do we REACH them.
It should be about how do we TREAT them.
Oh baby. Yeah!
This verbiage (reach vs. treat) completely dismantles the us vs. them mentality of believers and non-believers. It humbles the believer and elevates the non-believer.
I love it. How do we TREAT them?
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4 comments:
man that is right on.
of course the heavy lifting is to teach people how they should treat the lost.
This makes so much sense! I actually turned off the xtian radio in my car out of disgust when I heard a song that gave slight condemnation to christians for not doing fly-by evangelism. the chorus was saying that you may be that person's 15th hit and that could make eternal difference if you ask to pray for them while in line somewhere. I know if the spirit of God shows you to reach someone that way, it will work, but for the most part I think it makes people feel uncomfortable and looked down upon. The Christian has it all together and can pray for all these miserable people. There wasn't anything in the song about relationship, about loving the person, about walking with them through struggles. People need friends, they need help, sometimes food, a place to stray and yes, prayer, but I would much rather have a friend pray for me than some stranger accost me or tell me that I should come see them at their church Sunday- 'cause that's when they meet. What if my problem is all week and not just during meeting times? And will meeting times help me with my problems? Jesus did give us the great commission, but I think we like to charge without doing it in the greater framework, the only framework that will make any of it relevant and that is love.
I meant a place to STAY, but maybe people need straying places to, like a place of refuge to get away.
I heard someone say recently that ministry, no matter who the recipient of it is, is 1) treating people with dignity, and 2) helping them find their God-given vocation.
I think it is nigh to impossible to play a part in either of those if we don't know God or the person we want to . . . "reach".
It's almost like we were in "church" together B!
Jason
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