The Frightening Circularity of Christian Ministry

Each and every week a Christian pastor reads his Bible and studies commentaries to prepare for his weekly sermon. During the week he will typically meet with and spend some time with other pastors and some congregants. Now as he does this week in and week out he will be reading his Bible and asking questions that he and the others that he has been spending time with this week would ask. Come Sunday morning he then preaches a message that only he and others like him care about.

Whether or not the message was good or bad is not really the point, but instead lets focus on the fact that it is an 'overtly Christian' message. It is a message born out of reading the Bible while only asking questions that Christians would ask, and only answering questions that Christians care about.

Now his congregation comes week in and week out and they listen diligently to each message, and they are ministered to because it answers the same questions that they are asking as Christians. They then in turn apply the message to their lives, and throughout the next week they in turn only read their Bibles asking similar questions and they too only get Christian answers.

Are you with me so far? Maybe even some of you are thinking, "What's wrong with this guy, isn't this what we are supposed to be doing? Well, let's consider this ...

If they continue on this path eventually they lose all touch with the 'outside world' because they are completely unable to relate to the world and the world is completely unable to relate to them. This causes them to spend even less time in the general public because they have even less in common with them than they did before, and instead they are spending far more time retreating to the safety of their church services, Bible studies, home groups etc.

As this cycle progresses they become so sheltered that anything not 'overtly Christian' becomes utterly offensive to them. In some cases they even get to the place of pinpointing a very specific 'style' of Christianity that becomes the only thing that doesn't 'stumble' them. The circle goes round and round and with each pass it gets tighter and tighter until they are a part of a very elusive club.

Is this sounding familiar? This is what I am calling "The Frightening Circularity of Christian Ministry."

Now please understand I am not saying that this is ALWAYS the case, but just maybe you have been in, or are now caught in a cycle like this. I know at times I have been in this cycle and I didn't even realize it. The question is, "Is this the way that it was supposed to be?"

I firmly believe that this cycle is a far cry from the ministry that Jesus demonstrated for us and calls us to. Jesus said in Matthew 5:14-16 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light so shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."

It seems to me that instead of putting a basket over our lamps we have become very adept and running from our homes to the car, then in and out of the grocery stores and malls as quickly as we can so that we can spend most of our time in the safety of the church or other Christian events. Here we could insert a silly statement, "Well the church sign is lit up, that's like being a light to the world right?" (Forgive me a little sarcasm)

Please understand that I fully realize that my example above is the worst case scenario of this cycle being played out in a believers life. But even if this is only partially true it would seem that we have a huge problem, especially considering that it is the glory of God that is at stake. Jesus said that we are to be a light to the world so that they would SEE our good works and then turn and glorify the Father who is in heaven.

How can they see us if we are always wearing Christian camouflage? What I mean is that if we are so out of touch with the questions that people in the world are asking how can we ever hope to reach them? If we only read our Bibles seeking answers to Christian questions how can we ever hope to have a meaningful conversation or relationship with someone who is not a Christian?

Some of the more fundamental readers might be saying, "But Romans 12:2 says, 'Do not be conformed to the world...!?'"

The point is not that we become like the world, but that we at least recognize that there is a world of people out there that have questions that the Bible can answer. The problem is that if we don't have enough contact with non-Christians to figure out what questions they are asking then we will never be able to point them to the One who has the solution.

I am seeing many non-Christians that clearly see so many things that are wrong with the world, but they are responding in different ways. Some are responding by fighting the system, some are just confused and hoping that something will change, and some are just utterly hopeless that anything good can come from our worlds present situation.

For each group the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the answer they need! But we can't just throw it at them like it is a 'one size fits all band aid' and ignore the questions that they are asking. Instead we need to show them how the gospel addresses and offers the solution to each one of their concerns.

But if we never escape from our holy huddles and we never take the time to discover what questions they are asking, then we will never be able to show them the glorious hope we have in the risen Savior who is coming back to make all things new.

Revelation 21:5 And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true."

Christians are to be Christ-followers. Jesus didn't come to simply hide out in the synagogues, He came down to the earth and met the lost where they lived and worked. Jesus dined with those that the Jews thought of as the most vile sinners. Remember His words from Mark 2:17, "And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, 'Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.'"

Are we really following Jesus and reaching out to the lost and broken? Or have we slipped into the Frightening Circularity of Christian Ministry?