Transforming Church

Every time God would say to them, “You have to let me do that; you cannot,” they would reply, “No, just tell us what we have to do to get back into your good graces (whatever) and we’ll do it (ourselves).” God would come back with, “No, you cannot do it; you have to let me do it for you. You are the creature. You are imperfect. And you can’t lift yourself up by your own bootstraps.” Even giving them the Ten Commandments as an approximation (the number ten) of His Will was to smack them between the eyes to get their attention. They eventually manipulated the Commandments.

The role of the prophet was to get the people back on track. Prophets were neither fortunetellers nor crystal ball gazers. They were astute students of history, able to discern where things started, how they got to where they are now, and where they will end up if nothing changes. They would spend over ninety percent of their message berating unfaithfulness, describing God’s judgment upon where they were headed. The remaining less than ten percent was spent on the alternative, beginning with repentance on their part, getting back in line with God, which would then result in God repenting of His judgment and the Israelites again being blessed. The message was, “Repent, change, try harder, be more faithful, turn things around and you will be blessed by God.”

What we of the new covenant since the days of the New Testament have subtly gleaned out of that is that if we only try harder, sacrifice more, love others more deeply, be more concerned about others, we can turn this thing around and the world will then get better and better.

That’s unfortunate, because nowhere does the New Testament even imply that we can collectively turn things around or that they will get better and better. We live in a fallen and imperfect world where the most our best effort can do is somewhat hold back the slide. Prophetic in its original format is not going cut it. Repent does not lead to things getting better and better.

Ask the Christians in the last decade of the First Century about their experience. When they didn’t know with the terrorist Roman Empire if they were even going to be here tomorrow, they needed to anchor their hope in an apocalyptic rather than prophetic perspective.

With absolutely no hope that things could get better in this life, they had to refocus their hope in God’s victory that He would claim in the life to come. Suddenly, in a more cosmic perspective, whether I live or die in this life, I am in God’s hands with the victory He has already won. More battles will come and go; they will be won and lost, but the outcome of the war, the victory, is already in God’s hands in the life to come. This is being apocalyptic in contrast to prophetic, and this is where the church today needs to redirect its focus as well. Much of society’s discontent with Christianity today is a rejection of what they perceive to be a Pollyanna Christian hope that will not cut it. Oh, that they could see where real hope is vested.

One of the biggest mistakes made about the Book of Revelation is that apocalyptic means that it deals in end times, the last days. End times and last days is eschatological, not apocalyptic. Apocalyptic is focused in the present time, similar to prophetic, but it addresses implications all the way to the end of time and beyond. Initially the Book of Revelation was a message of hope for those Christians in the last decade of the First Century we just identified. It is also rapidly becoming a message of hope we are desperate for.

It is becoming ever more critical we realize and understand that ever since Easter we have been living in the Chaordic Age. As we have all tried to put our minds around a Messianic Age already here but still coming, chaordic addresses a creation that is still good (since God created it) but imperfect (because of what has been done to it). It also means we can live most effectively when we realize that we are in a seam between chaos and order (see both words in the word chaordic). The whole issue of being a saint and sinner at the same time is definitely related to this as well.

Take a moment to think about when and where you have witnessed the greatest changes in people’s lives. Is it not when there was some kind of upheaval in their life: crisis in health to be adjusted to, the death of a loved one, a divorce (another form of loss), or a variety of others? Before offering explanations or otherwise dismissing these experiences, appreciate the significance of the chaordic experience. It is when we are extremely conscious of being in that seam between chaos and order, even feeling significantly helpless, that the Holy Spirit is able to do His best work. This is where transformation takes place.

When we are seeking transformation by the Holy Spirit of an entire congregation, what is necessary to bring about the chaordic experience is intervention. Already accepted as an effective treatment approach to someone trapped in substance abuse, a chaordic intervention with a congregation can bring about corporate consciousness regarding membership abuse as it hinders Christ’s mission. A predictable life and death cycle for congregations that refuse the Holy Spirit’s influence, or the realization of holding Him at arm’s length in favor of personal preference, can ignite the chaordic experience.

Other than maybe congregations that are in areas of such dramatic growth that even a trickle percentage of those actually joining looks impressive, other congregations that experience multiplication of disciples in contrast to adding a few new members have transformation as part of their DNA and are able to appreciate the chaordic experience for Christ’s church. Take a look and you will see that where these congregations are also doing their best ministry is in the chaordic seam.