are we mature or immature?

This is an email I sent to our congregation wide listserv this morning...

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

A couple of different conversations I have had or I have heard of have led to the comments I share here. I think each one of these reflect a portion ofhow the "church" has become less spiritual and more secular and materialistically oriented. And they reflect how that is changing here atFairlawn-West which is why some folks are expressing frustration. When folks have become accustomed to the "church' in the more secular and materialistic fashion, it is hard to shift back to the spiritually focused organization!

1. "We are united in striving to know the will of God as taught in the HolyScriptures, ..."

This is the first line of the Covenant that all members say with all the other members who are present and with God when they "join" this church. It is article IV of our constitution. What we have bred, though, is more reliance on democratic process and Robert's Rules of Order than on scripture. Our folks don't know the scriptures!!!! Many are taking "remedial classes"thru cell groups and study groups, but many, many more aren't. Yet, they presume that due to "their right" to speak (to be listened to by the rest ofus) and vote, that that will trump what we have covenanted to as members. And the rest of us have had NO accountability with our "members" over this. As long as we defer to the weakest among us in spiritual life in the way we run the church, then the church will move down to that level even though individuals among us are seeking to grow spiritually stronger. That means those of us growing stronger will eventually move on while the organization defers in its functioning life to the more immature spiritually. This is what the apostle Paul is writing about in his letters. There is a difference between ministry to the weak, and deferring the functional life ofthe church to the weakest among us.

What does scripture tell us about our experience here since it is at the beginning of our Covenant (which is the traditional Congregational Church covenant) of what we have agreed to in our common life?

2. Some folks have said they can't come to worship here any more since the pews were removed from the sanctuary. That is a very materialistic expression. As I said a few years ago, the way folks are lifting up the importance of pews, maybe we should remove the cross at the front of the sanctuary and hang a pew instead! If not having pews keeps people from coming to worship, then our worship life was based on a perversion that says that worship is all about us. The removal of the pews now allows for more versatile worship styles to be able to host a variety of worship experiences.It reaches out wider rather than to a narrower and diminishing number of traditional "church" cultured folks.

We who are the long time disciples and spiritually mature should be willing and able to give up all of the "material" of church life, if necessary, to be able to worship God in spirit and truth and to be willing to reach out to novices and infants in the faith. What material is your stumbling block...you are holding on to...in the worship of God?

3. "I've been a member here for ___ years." "I'm a long time member of this church." So? Jesus and Paul challenge those in scripture who claim length of time or ancestral priority in being deferred to in the life of the church. Paul gets very upset with those who hang around the church for years expecting that length of time around the church to give them prerogative. He tells those folks to grow up, quit being like nursing infants at the breast and start to grow and mature spiritually. 1 Cor 3:1-4. Jesus challenges those who claim the length of time they have been in the tradition as making them to be better than or to deserve more attention and deference . Mt 3:8-10 - It's your life that must change, not your skin! And don't think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as father. Being a descendant of Abraham is neither here nor there. Descendants of Abraham are a dime a dozen. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it's deadwood, it goes on the fire. (don't count length of time around the church as giving you rank. is your life changing? that's the priority.)

4. "I have my right to speak up in a business meeting, to be heard and to vote." (or "Its all about me. My first identity is not as a baptized child of God, a humble servant of Christ, but as a member of this church where my priveleges as a member trump everything else.") The holy grail becomes my rights as a member rather than the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

And this becomes laughable when you look at our present constitution and what is the basic requirement for membership - the 1 penny, 1 Sunday rule. Within a year that you have given an "offering" to the benevolences of the church and you have worshiped and communed 1 time. 1 penny and 1 Sunday. That's all it takes to be considered an active member of this church! And we have people complaining that we expect too much of them and that they have their"rights" as a member to be heard and to vote!!!! This is a major indication at how secular the American church is. If I belonged to the Boy Scouts or to the Kiwanis, there is more expectation of me as a member than at this church! If I join the country club or the swim club or whatever, I am expected to pay higher "dues" than what was the average giving of the members of this church until a year ago. This church clearly had the highest per capita income of any church I have served. Yet, it had the lowest per capita giving of any church I had served. That is changing. And that is a sign of the maturing spiritually of the leaders of this church and of the church as a whole. But it also means that those who were accustomed for years or came to assume that the church would defer to them are upset because they have not been challenged at this level in their spiritual journey before. Fairlawn-West had very low expectations for those who were part of it. That culture is no longer present. Ministry is to all people. It is not dependent on membership. But membership/discipleship/leadership has high expectations.

Well, that's it. That I am able to share this with you as blunt as it is is an indication of our growth. The sad part is, all of this is based on scripture, but I have been afraid to share it because of the reactions that I would get. That shows my spiritual leadership immaturity. I am grateful for the deep mature faith that our leaders have. And by leaders I don't necessarily mean those who are elected. Rather, those who lead because they know God has called them to offer their spiritual gifts.

Thanks be to God,
David