Thoughts From Chris

Many people have a lot of different opinions and definitions on leadership.  I have had my share of thoughts over the years as well.  Over the last several years, however, I have landed on a perspective that I believe is consistent with what I read repeatedly in Scripture.  I define leadership as the stewardship of godly influence.  In other words, God has commissioned his followers to influence people toward him (both believers and unbelievers), and we have a responsibility to make an impact in their lives toward God. 

Not only have I landed on this definition, I have also landed on the perspective that God wants all of his followers to be leaders. While some people have specific gifts, skills, and abilities to lead larger groups of people, everyone has been commissioned to lead and influence at least those around them (friends, neighbors, workmates, family members, etc.).

One of the passages I find fascinating on this subject is that Jesus finds some ordinary fisherman who are not only untrained and unschooled in the area of leadership, but who had not even heard the gospel.  Jesus gives them a very basic call to the gospel, “come follow me,” and then issues these potentially new converts a call to a life of leadership – influencing others toward God.   Notice the passage:

“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.”Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”At once they left their nets and followed him.  (Mark 1:15-18)

As followers of Jesus we are called to follow him, and we are also called to help others follow him (fisher of men).  Helping others follow him is called leadership.  This kind of leadership does not have much to do about skill and nothing to do about title and position.  The best way to help people follow Jesus is by modeling that life and looking for opportunities to explain why you live that way (from Scripture).  The beauty of this is that everyone can do this.  Therefore, everyone CAN be a leader and is CALLED to be a leader in the world. 

Acts 4:13 emphasizes this as well:

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.”

People witnessed their character and the power they had in Christ (they had been with Jesus). How are you stewarding this responsibility with those around you?  Are you leading and influencing them by how you live? Are you explaining to both believers and unbelievers why you live and follow Jesus during unique windows of opportunities God gives?

Just some thoughts as you ponder the leadership influence God has given you.  It is certainly humbling as we will all one day give an account of our leadership.

There are two official offices in the church: overseer and deacon.  God also gives the church the use of many different spiritual gifts by those in the body.  Several passages list examples of those kinds of gifts (e.g. gift of helps, administration, healing, faith, mercy, encouragement, etc.). 

Ephesians 4:11 gives a list of equipping gifts: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.  Maybe you know someone who has one of these or another gift.

I Corinthians 12 emphasizes the importance of all the gifts working together and the need for them all to contribute to the whole (i.e. one is not more important than another).  ”Those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor.” (I Cor. 12:22-23)

However, when you look at the contemporary church today, this doesn’t seem to be the way we operate.  There is one gift in the church that seems to be elevated above all the others. It is the pastoral gift.  We do this in various ways:

• We point across the room and say, “there is THE pastor.”  We never say, “there is the encourager, the apostle, the evangelist, the mercy leader, etc.”
• We talk about a “pastoral staff.” We never talk about a “faith staff, healing staff, prophetic staff, etc.”
• We say, “I would like you to meet Pastor Tom.”  We never say, “I would like you to meet Giver John, Faith Frank, or Diligent governor Tim.”
• We pay “the pastor” but we don’t pay the encourager, the mercy person, the evangelist, etc.
• A newcomer today asks, “who is the pastor of the church?”  Would this question even compute during NT times?  Pastor isn’t a position of authority in the church, it is a gift that some in the body have.
• How many times do we listen to leaders on Sunday morning who are called “pastors’ but clearly do not have the pastoral gift?  Why would they be called by a gift they don’t have?

Why has the contemporary church falsely elevated the pastoral gift above all other gifts (particularly when Scripture says not to do this)?   Why has the church made the pastoral gift an official position/office of authority?

I am not suggesting that some will not exercise their gifts in more public ways than others or that all gifts will have the same level of influence in the church.  Clearly this is not the case.  However, somehow we have taken one of many gifts in Scripture, and over the years, we have made it into something bigger than all the rest. 

Personally, my primary gifts are probably leadership, apostolic, and teaching.  However, I am called to practice all the other gifts (evangelism, pastoring, serving, giving, mercy, faith, etc.)  While I understand culturally when people occasionally call me “Pastor Chris” or someone introduces me as “the pastor” or even “one of the pastors,” I think it is so ingrained in our culture, I don’t know if we can really change it. 

My preference, however, is that the word “pastor” would not precede my name or describe my role in the church because in my mind it is not a position in the church, nor is it even my gift.  All the gifts, including the pastoral gift, are so amazing when people in the body all work together and serve one another with the gifts God has given them. 

If nothing else, perhaps the best and truest title one could give to me would be to refer to me as “Triathlete Chris.”  (now there is something I can live up to!)

I would like to begin a three part post on the nature of truth.  Many Christians claim that truth is only found in the Bible.  Is this accurate?  There is no doubt in my mind that the Bible is a book written by man and authored by God’s Spirit.  In other words, God’s Spirit guided the authors in such a way that while God used their historical setting, personality, and unique style, the exact words and message were guided perfectly by God.  Because of this, there are no errors, inconsistencies, and the Bible provides God’s unmistakable voice and truth to all generations (2 Peter 1:20-21, 2 Tim. 3:16-17).

However, while it is accurate to say that the Bible is God’s truth to us, it is not the only source of God’s truth in our world. 

I cannot live without water.  Water is a combination of h2O.  This is not found in the Bible, but is true.

The laws of gravity explain why a football that is thrown up into the air (preferably by Peyton Manning intended for Reggie Wayne) will eventually come down.  This law of gravity is not found in the Bible, but it is true.

In math we learn at an early age that two plus two equals four.  This is not found in the Bible, but it is true.

We learn in accounting that when liabilities are higher than assets, a business or organization is working from an indebted position.  We don’t learn this in the Bible, but it is true.

All the above examples are principles in life that are as true as the truth contained in Scripture.  And because they are true, they belong to God.  He is the author of all truth, therefore, anything that is true in the world comes from him. 

The point to be made here is that God’s truth is permeated in so many different ways in the world, and often we fail to acknowledge that it all comes from God. We have a tendency to rejoice only in the truth of the Bible (and certainly we should), but we are missing so much of what God has offered us if we do not rejoice in all the ways God reveals his truth to us in other ways as well. 

Right now I am teaching a class at IPFW called, “Foundations for Success.”  I am teaching life skills such as setting goals, time management, working with teams, self-motivation, self-evaluation, how to prioritize tasks, self-discipline, the power of right decisions, etc.  I have never used a Bible verse in the class, but I am teaching so many principles that are simply true and right.  And if they are true and right, then they have one source, and that source is God. 

It is amazing how vast and broad God’s truth is in our world!

Let’s retain a high view of Scripture, but let’s not overstate a message that says God’s truth is not found outside of Scripture as well. 

During part two I would like to address a common complaint against the contemporary church today which suggest the church is run too much like a business.  I think there is some truth to this statement, but it might not be for the reasons most would give to support this claim.  Those typical arguments usually given I think miss the very point of this post:  all truth is God’s truth (even truth we find in the business world).   Should be an interesting point of discussion.

Look all around you, acknowledge the many different streams of truth that come into your life at your job, in your relationships, in your school studies,  in your recreation, through the Bible, and in many different ways.  Spend time rejoicing in God’s truth, giving him the ultimate glory!

So God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are all conversing up in heaven.  God the Father then says, “Listen, I am going to adopt, as my very own children, countless people on the earth (men, women, boys, girls, rich, poor, every ethnicity, etc.).  I am going to become their heavenly dad, and I am going to love them forever.”

God the Son responds by saying, “I love the idea.  I was thinking the same thing myself.”

God the Spirit also follows by saying, “I think this is a great idea also, and I too, was thinking the same thing.”

With a half-smile on his face, God the Father says, “Hey, it’s almost like we are all of the same mind.”  The Father then looks at the Son and says, “In order to make this possible, I need to ask you to come to earth, become a human, and take on my punishment of sin on their behalf.”

Jesus looked at the Father, paused for a moment, and said, “I would love to die for those adopted children.  It would be my honor to take on their punishment for the forgiveness of their sins.”

The Father said, “I knew you would say that. When you go down to earth, I want you to show them what it means to live the life I intended them to live on the earth.  Give them the perfect example of living for me.”

“I will do whatever you ask and show me to do,”  Jesus said. 

Then the Father looked at the Spirit and said, “I want you to fill these people whom I have chosen.  I want you to convict them of sin, bring them to repentance, fill them, encourage them, remind them of truth, lead them, prompt them, equip them, and teach them everything I have in mind for them to do.  I want you to live in them.”

The Spirit said, “I will follow your lead and the Son’s lead, and I will show them the way and give them the power to follow that way. ”  The Spirit then looks at the Son and says, “I will even fill you in your humanity and give you power, showing the people what is possible for them as well by my power.”

The Father, Son, and Spirit were of one mind and were the perfect team together.  They had different roles and they went out and filled their roles powerfully.  What we see on the earth today is the reality of their ministry: sinful people coming to Jesus, being adopted as God’s children, and in the power of the Spirit, following Jesus’ teaching and the Father’s will. 

Now obviously, the above conversation is fictitious.  We have no record in Scripture of any such interchange.   However, we do see in Scripture different roles each member of the Trinity fills, we see interaction and even prayer/conversation between the different members of the Trinity, and we see their perfect unity and oneness.

Doctrinally we need to avoid two extremes or errors:  1) that somehow we serve three gods, or 2) that somehow Jesus and the Spirit are not actually the eternal God and are creations or forces of God. 

God is three in one; a mystery that finite minds will never comprehend.

The point I want to make, however, is that their team unity and community is a model for team unity and community within the church.  One of the reasons that God wants his children working together and partnering together to advance his kingdom on the earth (as opposed to doing it simply individually) is because community and team togetherness is derived from the Godhead himself. 

We all need to be working as a team with other brothers and sisters in Christ.  If we are not a part of a community and team, we are missing something that not only God desires for us but something inherent in who he is. 

Spend a little time and ask yourself, am I partnering with other Jesus-followers to advance his kingdom on the earth?  If you are, you are mimicking the eternal nature of God. 

What an exciting and powerful calling the Triune God has given us!

This past Sunday we addressed the three most controversial spiritual gifts in the church at large today: divine healing, speaking in tongues, and prophecy.  It was not the easiest message to give, I was more nervous than usual, but it was a message that became very personal for me. 

I think there was a divine collision between very personal things God has been teaching me and the reality that I have come to the passage in the book of Corinthians that is the most controversial and potentially divisive passage in the letter:  three full chapters on the role of spiritual gifts in the church. 

That divine collision came out this past Sunday as I shared some personal ways God has been stretching me in the area of living by his Spirit.   It was a humbling experience as I shared, but it was extremely encouraging. 

I have also made it known publicly on a few occasions that God has given me a vision for my family in the arena of living by the Spirit that I have never had before (it is a major part of what God is doing in me personally).  I did share a personal story of something we did as a family this past Saturday.  Many people since then have asked me very practical questions about that experience, so I have decided to give the details here so that others who wondered can here some of the answers as well.

Our family has spent the last couple months seeking God in prayer like never before.  Two or three times a week we come together in our living room, talk about how God has been prompting us and teaching us by his Spirit, and then getting prostrate on the ground we spend time praising God and praying to him.   It has been catalytic in many ways. 

As we have read and talked about Scripture together, we have noticed that Jesus and his disciples often laid hands on people and prayed for them.  From those observations I decided that we would begin doing this as a family for other people, and last Saturday was our first tangible experience. 

I talked to our kids ahead of time (their ages are 5, 7, and 8), and coached them on how to pray for people when they give a specific prayer request.  On Saturday afternoon, we went to downtown Fort Wayne and hung out at the bus station on the corner of Clinton and Superior (by Frieman Square and Headwaters Park). 

We had a big cooler of bottled waters.  We handed out the waters to people for free and often we would ask people as we gave it to them if they would like prayer for anything (probably about half said yes and half said no).   For those who said, yes, we asked what we could pray for, and then we laid hands on them and prayed for them.  Sometimes I would ask one of my kids to pray and sometimes I would ask two or three of them to pray. 

After we hung out at the bus station for a while, we then went to Headwaters Park and gave away the water there and prayed for people.  Toward the end my kids were starting to feel a little more comfortable, and they were able to walk up to people on their own.  At one point my oldest went to a group of 8-10 adults who were having a picnic and ended up leading a prayer with all of them. 

Before we started we all spent time as family praying silently and asking God to give us impressions of situations or people we might encounter while we were downtown, and all three of my kids shared impressions they had.  We did not see any of them specifically come to pass, but we will continue to develop that potentially prophetic gift.

It was an amazing experience both for myself and our family.  We were all nervous, we had never done anything like this before, we did not really know what to expect, but it was incredible.   We plan on doing this kind of thing on a more regular basis as we try to step out in faith and learn what it means to be led by God’s Spirit and be a blessing to others.

The last practical thing I will say is that my kids really didn’t want to go at first, but we went anyway.  In fact, I had to break up an argument on the way there (after all they are kids).  As we were leaving at the end, however, all three of them were chiming in that they really liked helping people and they were glad we went.  I think the ice cream treat on the way home was the icing on the cake as well!

I would love to hear from you regarding this idea, something pertaining to that difficult sermon from Sunday, or an idea you and your family have experienced along these lines.  Most of you receive this letter via e-mail, but if you click on my blog itself at www.thoughtsfromchris.com  you can post a response or thought yourself that everyone else can read to any individual post I send.  Just click the word “comment” at the end of the post.  I would appreciate hearing from you.

Lastly, Scott Jester will bring the message this Sunday, and then the following two Sundays will be completely lead by our teens.  We will then move back into chapter 13 and look at what is commonly called the love chapter of the Bible.

May God teach us to live by his Spirit and express the gifts of his Spirit with all humility and love!

On Sunday we hit chapters 12, 13, and 14 of I Corinthians head on. As we read these three chapters and then as we look at the contemporary church today, there seems to be a stark disparity. I mentioned on Sunday that I have never been a part of a church that lives out all the spiritual gifts in a healthy and balanced way. I know there are many churches out there that do practice them in a biblical way, but I have never experienced it.

Why does this seem to be true for most of us as well? Why does the expression and fulfillment of what these three chapters teach seem to be so hard to find? I gave a very in-depth answer on Sunday: “I don’t know why.”

This is something I have wondered my entire Christian life. I have heard and studied all the supposed “biblical” arguments as to why we don’t see all the gifts of the Spirit manifested today, but the arguments have never seemed biblically convincing to me.

When Scott Jester and I were in England 7 weeks ago, we witnessed the expression of the gifts in the most balanced way I had ever seen. It was a powerful expression of the church.

This Sunday I am going to address the three most controversial gifts: healing, speaking in tongues, and prophecy. Should be scary - I mean interesting.

I presented a lot of information this past Sunday to lay a foundation for the issues. There are four views within the Christian church that people have with regard to the spiritual gifts. This is taken from Wayne Grudem’s book called, “Are Miraculous Gifts for Today.” Grace Gathering does not have an official position on any of the four views but allows people to believe any of the four.

Our predominant desire is that people base their beliefs and practices based on their study of Scripture. Therefore, we put the onus of responsibility on the people to form their view; rather, than simply telling them what view they should have. We do this with most secondary doctrines of Scripture (issues of which solid believers differ).

As promised, I am including the PowerPoint slides used during the message here as I went through this material too quickly for everyone to write their own notes.

Hope this is helpful as you study Scripture and seek God’s will for your life. 

This Sunday we will do something in our corporate service that we have never done before.  We will participate in what is called an agape (love) feast.   This was an event the early church regularly celebrated. It is commonly called Communion, the Eucharist, or the Lord’s Supper.

The focus of the celebration is the proclamation of Jesus’ death until he returns again.  It was commonly practiced in the context of sharing a meal together in the bond of fellowship.  The sharing of a meal (which was a practice common in Old and New Testament) often was a spiritual experience.   The agape feast combined the meal and the remembrance elements of cup (blood) and bread (body). 

Here is what Bible scholar Merrill Unger says about it: 

“It would appear that the celebration of the Lord’s Supper by the first disciples occurred daily in private houses (Acts 2:46), in connection with the agape, or love feast, to indicate that its purpose was the expression of brotherly love.  The offering of thanks and praise (1 Cor. 10:16; 11:24) was probably followed with the holy kiss (Rom. 16:16; 1 Cor. 16:20).  It was of a somewhat festive character, judging from the excesses that Paul reproved (1 Cor. 11:20), and was associated with an ordinary meal, at the close of which the bread and wine were distributed as a memorial of Christ’s similar distribution to the disciples.  From the accounts in Acts (2:42, 46) and from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians (11:20-21) it is safely inferred that the disciples each contributed a share of the food necessary for the meal, thus showing a community of love and fellowship.  To this unifying power of the Eucharist Paul evidently refers (10:16-17).”

This Sunday we will share a meal together around tables and share the bread and cup together.   We are asking everyone, if possible, to bring a breakfast dish to pass.

If you are a Grace attender, click here to find out what to bring based on last name.

We will also encourage everyone to sit at a table with people you don’t know at all or don’t know very well.   It will be a meaningful time of Christian love and community. 

While we have been encouraging house churches to practice the agape feast on a regular basis, this will be a great opportunity for everyone to experience an uncommon tradition of the faith (that we hope will become more common within the community at Grace). 

Looking forward to a unique experience!

We have just spent the last three weeks dealing with one of the most complex, controversial, and sensitive passages in the entire book of I Corinthians.  The first half of chapter 11 addresses public worship, leadership gifts, and gender.  At first read, it simply leads you to scratch your head (no pun intended). 

We have spent most of our time these last three weeks addressing the macro issues of the passage and the universal principles taught.  Separating the timeless principles from the cultural applications, relevant for a specific culture and timeframe, is no easy task (but is essential when interpreting Scripture). 

For example, we are told in I Cor. 16:20 that we are to greet one another with a holy kiss.  The timeless principle taught there is that when we come together as the body of Christ, we are to be hospitable, warm, and friendly.  The application to the Greek culture in 50 A.D. was by a kiss (in some cultures this is still true).  In 21^st Century U.S., the cultural application most relevant is a friendly smile, a handshake, or possibly a hug. 

In the same way, I Cor. 11 has a universal and timeless principle (male headship in the home and church – which meant ultimate accountability and was predominantly fleshed out as servant-leadership), and the cultural application of that principle was a head covering by women (or in some cases long hair).  However, in our culture head coverings do not symbolize what they did in that culture, therefore, the cultural application is not the same (however, the principle of male headship still must be preserved).

What we addressed yesterday, however, is that while God has given ultimate accountability in the home to the husband and in the church with the elders, God has given men and women (as well as children) various gifts to serve and help lead the church.  It is common for churches who believe in male headship to suggest that God only wants men leading the church or the husband leading the family.  (Men certainly must step up and fulfill the role God has given them to be servant leaders, but that is a lesson for a different day).   It is just as true, though, that when God gifts people in the church, his gifts are not gender specific.  

In I Cor. 11, one of the gifts mentioned there was the gift of prophecy.  This is an upfront, public, leadership type gift – and it is given to men and women.  It is one of the equipping gifts taught in Ephesians 4:11. 

This idea is similar to the fact that God equips wives and even children to help lead the family (not just the husband).  Sometimes my wife or children have more faith than I do in an area, or they may have a greater passion than I do in an area, and they end up leading me.  I love it.  It doesn’t mean I am not fulfilling my role as the leader of the family (although I do need to make sure I am), but it does empower them to lead with me.

For example, my two girls have been on me for about two years for our family to recycle.  I simply have not wanted to do it because it takes extra time.  God created the earth and calls his people to take care of it and steward it.   Recycling is a way of taking care of the environment, and because this is a stewardship issue, it is a spiritual and God-honoring practice.  Last month we have now become a recycling family.  It took me two years, and the reason we are doing it today is because God used my seven and eight year old girls to lead our family.  I praise God for their leadership.

In the same spirit, God gifts women in our churches (and even children) to help lead the church.  Under the guidance of male headship from the elders, God raises up men, women, and children to publicly lead the church based on the gifts he has given. 

We spent some time yesterday in the message distinguishing between position (husband or elders) and gifts (prophecy, leadership, faith, administration, evangelist, etc.).   Often, we blur the difference between position (which carries authority or ultimate accountability) and giftedness. 

Many times women have been gifted by God’s Spirit, but because position and giftedness get blurred, women are held back from utilizing their gifts, particularly if they are leadership and upfront kind of gifts.  What we noted yesterday is that women should not feel hindered or tentative to use their gifts as long as male headship is still acknowledged.

In light of the message, we had a couple women lead worship, a woman lead in the offering prayer, all the ushers were women, and I even had my wife come up and close my message in a corporate prayer.   It was a tremendous blessing to see our women lead.

In this same spirit, we will hand over two corporate services in August to our teens, and they will lead the rest of us (adults).   They understand they are under the headship of their parents, but that does not mean they can’t lead their parents and the rest of us in various ways corporately in our services.  I believe God has gifted many of them not to be leaders of the church in the future, but leaders of the church today. 

May God be praised as we seek to release the potential God has given his people to serve and lead his church.