Rethinking The Church

Church Planting: Brad Brisco
Monday, November 1, 2004

Over the past few months, I have been sharing with you excerpts from a book written by James Emery White entitled Rethinking The Church: A Challenge to Creative Redesign in an Age of Transition. The premise of the book is that we must rethink six fundamental areas of church life if we truly desire to turn the tide of the decline of the American church. So far we have discussed evangelism, discipleship, and ministry. The next crucial area is the topic of community.

When it comes to rethinking community within the church, there are two important tasks at hand. First we must begin with a long, honest look in the mirror to assess if the people in our church are experiencing real community. Second, we must develop a clear understanding of what real community involves.

In regard to the first issue, White believes there are three "telltale" signs of a lack of real community. The first sign that all may not be well in the area of community has to do with the absence of authenticity. The Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica, "We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well," (1 Thess. 2:8). The word we translate as life is the Greek word psuche, which means soul. It refers to the very essence of a person. But within the church, are people sharing their "souls" with one another? Or is the interaction between members only superficial?

The second sign of a lack of real community is the presence, and acceptance of, broken relationships. We must make an honest assessment of the relationships within the church. Is there division in the church? Are there strained and broken relationships; and is the division seen as "normal?"

The third sign is a spirit of exclusion. Again the Apostle Paul wrote, "May . . . God . . . give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus . . . Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you," (Rm. 15:5, 7). White writes, "Real acceptance involves looking at people, differences and all, and accepting them for who they are and how God made them. It doesn't matter if they are white or black, male or female, rich or poor."

So what does real community look like? The second chapter of Acts presents a clear representation of the dynamics of community:

"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people." Acts 2:42-47

In this portrait, White contends, "We find that true community is where we can love and be loved, know and be known, serve and be served, and celebrate and be celebrated." He then elaborates on what it would look like in the church if everyone truly had the opportunity to live out this portrait.

Lastly, White emphasizes that for real community to take place in the church, we must value community and work hard at maintaining relational health. White states, "Something that is valued is celebrated, heralded, or applauded. When community-building attitudes and practices are rewarded and community-destroying mind-sets and actions are not, community takes hold and spreads. It is well known that what gets rewarded is what gets done. It is equally true that what gets honored is that which becomes pursued."