Reflective Ruminations

A Generous Response...

I have not posted in quite some time. This is due to many factors, not the least of which is, quite simply, the lack of time. But there are times when certain conversations, things I have read, or comments to some previous posts compel me to post a response. This is one of those occasions. For a long time I have heard people say that the purpose of the Church is relationships - the building of community and the necessity of positive relationships. This is especially true with a lot of student pastors who believe the purpose of student ministry is to facilitate positive relationships among the students within their ministry. In other words, relationships are the purpose for Church and ministry.

With that said, I am responding in this post to the idea that the chief end of ministry is the building of relationships. I am the first to say that as a Minister to Students, I am all about building relationships with students and fostering an environment that makes it possible for the students to build relationships among themselves. With that said, however, I do not believe that the purpose of the ministry that God has entrusted to me is to foster relationships. This idea of "community" is more frequently put forth by those who do not place a very high value on doctrinal integrity, God-honoring worship, and the preaching of the Word in a systematic, expository fashion. To those pushing the "community/relational/experiential" agenda, it is all about being "generous" in their orthodoxy. Authors and books that have recently become mainstream and that put forth this doctrinally dangerous position are "Generous Orthodoxy" by Brian McClaren, "Blue Like Jazz" and "Searching for God Knows What" by Donald Miller, and "Velvet Elvis" by Rob Bell. Each of these authors questions the sole authority of Scripture, questions the total inerrancy and infallibility of the Bible, and places the role of community and personal experience above the role of doctrinal integrity and Scriptural faithfulness within the Church.

My job as a student pastor is not to foster relationships that make people feel better about themselves! My job, my calling, and my responsibility is to lead students toward a proper and glorifying view of God that will ultimately lead them to surrender their lives to Him and the furthering of His Kingdom. I stand by the Westminster Catechism that states the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Hence, my highest calling is to lead students to be followers of God who will glorify God with their lives and enjoy Him forever. They will simply not be able to do that if they do not know God in a proper way!

This leads me to my second point. I cannot lead students to Christ and teach them a proper view of God if I do not hold fast to Biblical doctrine and Scriptural principles. What does this mean? It mean that it DOES matter how you interpret the Scriptures. So many people today believe that it simply does not matter what "label" you have as long as you have good relationships in your life. For instance, it's OK if you are Roman Catholic and hold true to the doctrine of the RC Church, just as long as you have good friends that you met at mass. Or, it doesn't matter if you go to a church that follows the doctrine of baptismal regeneration. Or, it doesn't matter if you go to a Jehovah's Witness congregation, so long as those you meet there make you feel good about yourself and give you good advice and counsel. Here is the problem with all of these: Doctrinal integrity and Scriptural authority. If you hold to Roman Catholic doctrine through and through, you are basing your soul's salvation on what you yourself can accomplish in reaching for God. If you believe in baptismal regeneration, you are holding that Christ's death on the cross is not enough to save you of your sins - but it also must include something of your own doing, namely baptism. One can carry this out even further in applying the principle to Jehovah's Witness, Mormon, etc. If fellowship is all that matters, then we can throw the Bible out the window.

We are told, most comprehensively in 1 John, that we are to love our brothers. In 1 John 3:14, John says that "whoever does not love abides in death" (ESV). This verse is used quite prominently, but often out of context. This verse is saying that those whose lives are characterized by hate have never experienced the new birth of salvation. It is not saying that relationships are the focal point of ministry. We are also told in 1 John that we are to love our brothers, for by doing so we show that we love God. Again, this is often taken out of context and made to imply that "love equals compromise." In reality, this verse is about obedience. We are to love others precisely because God loved us first and gave Himself up for us.

The purpose of the church is to instill within God's people a love for God, His Word, His principles, and His Kingdom. That is "God's Dream" - to have people wholly devoted to Him and His Kingdom. Friendships, fellowship, and community will naturally come about as those who are seeking the face of God come together to glorify Him, enjoy Him, worship Him, and follow Him as a corporate body, both literally and figuratively as the invisible body of Christ.

More to come...

posted by Tim Morrison @ 3:31 PM