Charlie Wear’s Notes

I should probably start holding seminars on "What is the Emerging Church?" I could categorize and compare the various "expressions" of the emerging church. I could describe the major areas of non-orthodox exploration. I could point out the leading practitioners, theologians and gadflies. Do you think I could charge $129 per person for a full day? Would more than one participant sign up?

Is the emerging church a fad? What does it mean? As a pastor, what should I be doing about it? Is D.A. Carson right? What about Chuck Smith, Sr.? Is the emerging church a sign of the end? Is it a forerunner of last days apostacy? Has Slice sliced it correctly? Has Pyro burnt it appropriately? Is Mark Driscoll the poster child for the EC, or is Spencer Burke?

Recently I attended a national pastors gathering of one of the movements that came out of the Jesus Movement revival of the 70s. At this stage the gathering looked a lot like me, a bunch of middle-aged guys in Hawaiian shirts and bermuda shorts and sandals (at least those of us from California). In a panel discussion on the first day, the national director was insistent that he had the "correct" numbers on the number of movement pastors age 35 and under and it was 30 (out of 500, wink, wink), not 20, he would have you know, by Golly. He went on to say that he just didn’t want others to say that we are irrelevant. (He must not be a regular subscriber to Relevant Magazine!).

On the third day of the conference a young (35 yrs. of age) pastor spoke on the emerging church. His definition? The emerging church is "Churches that are trying to reach young people." He then started his categorizing and comparing and I had to get up and leave! You see he was trying to make sense of something that defies categorization and comparison. And he was trying to speak to an audience of pastors who want to know if the EC is a passing fad, or how they should react when a beret-wearing, goatee-sporting, graduate student approaches him and asks him if he is "missional."

Let me address some of these, uh, burning issues: The emerging church is not an "it." It is not Emergent or Allelon, or Forge, Catalyst or ReImagine! It is not neo-monastic, or universalist, for that matter. It is not a bunch of Birkenstock-wearing, granola-crunching, Yoga-practicing midwest urban folks. It is not a "church within a church," gen-x service, candles and worship installations, liturgy practicing, hours prayers. It is not daily blogging with cool names and ipod loaded teaching. It is not a fad, anymore than Methodism, Presbyterianism, Anglicanism, Catholicism, Lutheranism, uh, you get the idea, were passing fads. It is no more a fad than the Calvary Chapels or the Vineyards. It has no more apostacy than the rest of the apostacy that passes for Christianity today. And by the way, it is not Rob Bell, Mark Driscoll, Doug Pagitt, Brian McLaren, Leonard Sweet, Spencer Burke, uh, did I leave anyone out, uh, yes, of course I did!

And yet, it is all of the above and so much more. It is what God is raising up to reach the rising culture and the rising generations.

Pastors, if you think you are prepared to deal with today’s cultural atmosphere, go watch the currently playing film, Juno. Then ask yourself this question: What is my congregation doing to make Jesus real to the Junos in our community?

I love to see what God is doing. I especially like to meet young leaders who are innovative as they are pioneering new works for God. I got to spend a little bit of time with one of those kinds of folks yesterday. His name is David Trotter. He is the lead pastor (and founding pastor) of Revolution Church in Long Beach.

David co-founded The Ooze with Spencer Burke. He is doing some really interesting stuff. Including a discipleship "course" based on his book, I Will. His mission is to start a movement of revolutionaries. Wow! When my wife and I were going through a difficult season a few years ago we enjoyed attending David’s church. Revolution is coming up on its fifth anniversary this year.

I have been enjoying reading Seth Godin lately. The Purple Cow, Red Fez, Meatball Sundae-making marketing guru and author is frequently profound. In a recent lengthy article he wrote about the death of the "music business."

If you are part of a denominational leadership, or church planting movement, there is something profound lurking in the Godin observations about the music business. He makes ten big points that are clearly applicable to any sort of "business."

Here is the basic premise I have extrapolated: It is quite possible that in a digital age, the way we have done church (even in the "contemporary" expression) is "over." If this is true then we can expect more of the same of what we have seen over the last twenty years, declining participation, declining attendance, declining contributions (per capita), and declining involvement of younger people. If you see the common thread, it is the word "declining."

Nobody is giving seminars on "How to open a Drive-in Theater." Seminars on "How to start a Church," should take into consideration that there may not be a need for another "contemporary" church service for ‘authentic, real people’ to come and get free coffee and donuts, free wireless, listen and maybe sing along with some "contemporary" praise and worship songs, fill out a connect card and listen to a fill-in the blank topical sermon. If this is true, then what is the new thing look like?

I like to read all kinds of books on business, management and leadership. One of the authors who does a great job on his blog and in his books is Seth Godin, the marketing master. In a recent post he makes this point: Make promises and keep them.

This seems to be the problem with Christians and the Church in North America. We have failed to deliver on our "promise." You see, most everyone knows what we are supposed to be about: Doing unto others, turning the other cheek, being merciful, giving, blessing, all that Sermon on the Mount stuff. Someone else made our promises 2000 years ago, and we really haven’t lived up to them, have we? However, like the bunch of Pharisees we are, we keep saying to God, "Thank you that I am not like them." Well guess what, we are exactly like "them."

Godin makes the point that great organizations "overdeliver." My suggestion for all of us for 2008? Under-promise and Over-deliver. Tell others: We don’t have everything figured out, but here is what we do have figured out: we want to love God with all we’ve got and love our neighbors at least as well as we love ourselves. Let’s be nice to each other, especially our family members and then spread that circle out to include our co-workers and everyone we come in contact with daily.

Once in a while I am overwhelmed by the courage I see displayed in someone. This can happen at a film or when reading an article, or simply when I am listening to someone tell a story. I just finished reading a long post by one of my favorite blogger-authors, Jordon Cooper. You can read the post here.

I guess it is the context of that post that has tears leaking from my eyes. You see Jordon Cooper is one of my heroes. A young leader who is following Jesus’ call on his life, Jordon works in an inner city mission. He actually enjoys going to work and has been rewarded with a stolen bicycle and numerous death threats. The most recent one apparently scared him because the targets of the threat had expanded beyond Jordon himself to his family.

I remember clearly a breakfast I had with Jordon at a Denny’s in Orange County near LA. He was there as a visiting "professor." As we talked the call of God on Jordon’s life became to clear me. In the aftermath Jordon has embraced his calling and helped found Resonate in Canada.

I don’t always agree with Jordon’s take on life, politics and the spiritual pursuit, but I greatly respect his authentic expression of discipleship as he writes about the trials and struggles of following Jesus in his Canadian city.

As I was reacting to Jordon’s recent posts and the one I referenced I was reminded of the opening phrases of an old Steve Camp song:

Some people want to live
within the sound of chapel bells,
But I want to run a mission
a yard from the gates of hell.

And with everyone you meet
I’ll take them the gospel and share it well
And look around you as you hesitate
for another soul just fell

Let’s run to the battle,
Run to the battle.

Jordon is living his life on the front lines of the battle that is raging in his city. And his courage moves me.

I hate to even provide a link to this website, Pyromaniacs. The baby boomer in me loves their graphics! But then I read Phil Johnson’s October 25, 2006 post entitled "Fed Up.

In that post he flays both Rob Bell and Mark Driscoll, identifying them as from the emerging church "movement." The interesting thing is that both Rev. Bell and Driscoll pastor large churches. Bell’s church, Mars Hill Bible Church was planted in 1999. Driscoll’s Mars Hill Church started in Seattle in 1996. Both of these young ministers are pastoring churches that are ministering to their peers.

When I talk about their peers, I am talking about "young adults," you know the group that is nearly missing in action from the baby boomer churches? And yet baby boomer Johnson doesn’t wait long to label these preachers as follows:

"Bell’s message is not only unbiblical; it’s anti-Christian." "…The result is not merely trivial: it’s flat-out heretical. And in more ways than I care to enumerate."

…Driscoll’s smutty language and preoccupation with all things lowbrow are inappropriate, unbecoming, and dishonoring to Christ."

Here’s what I have to say to you Mr. Johnson, who died and made you the arbiter of heresy, bibicity, anti-Christianity, etc? Here’s a biblical quotation for you:

1Judge not, that ye be not judged.2For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

3And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Matt. 7:1-3 KJV via Biblegateway.com

I have some bad news for you Mr. Johnson, the people who attend the Mars Hills that you have criticized in your post won’t ever attend John MacArthur’s church. They would not be able to relate to his teaching or his theology. Should they, therefore, never hear the bible taught and be encouraged to follow Jesus? For I can guarantee you that Rev. Bell and Rev. Driscoll are teaching the bible, to the best of their ability and with all of their flaws, and they are encouraging their listeners to follow after Jesus.

You know how I define the emerging church? It is the church that will be around after you, Mr. Johnson, and I are dead and gone. Our generation will pass from the scene and we will have to answer to God for how we communicated his loving gospel to our own peers. These young men, Bell and Driscoll, will come along, maybe 25-30 years later and will give their own account. From where I sit, they aren’t doing too badly.

Everyone should have a friend like Bill Dahl. I mentioned to him the other day that I hadn’t read Jim Palmer’s Divine Nobodies and he had somebody at Thomas Nelson send me a copy.

So, I just took a break from reading the last Harry Potter book (I am sure that Harry has to die, if not, then I will have to kill him for taking so long, to move the plot forward), and I read the "pseudo" introduction to Divine Nobodies. Boy, was it good! I get sent a lot of books to read and review for Next-Wave. It is hard to know which ones are worth reading, and I don’t have time to read them all (remember I have to read the Harry Potters and the Brad Thors, and the Vince Flynns, James Pattersons, you get the idea, right?). But this Palmer, guy, I have to read his stuff.

He commends his readers at the end of the "first" introduction:

"If I haven’t scared you off by now with the vision of me sitting in an old recliner in my garage watching Mr. Holland’s Opus on my little fuzzy-screen TV, fighting off the tears, then you may actually get somethng out of the rest of this. But I’m not promising anything."

Via Jordon Cooper, this is just outstanding: