From Representative to Participatory

Keeping the pace with times you’ve noticed that things now days are getting more and more interactive. Long gone times when people were O.K. with others making decisions for them. What people around us expect today is availability of choices, from multiple choice exams to hundred of choices in programming on TV, and hundreds of choices on groceries shelves. In fact a representative system is perceived as a lack of trust to people being able to invest wisely their resources and time, to decide on their own freedom.
From wedding receptions where cameras are scattered at tables inviting guests to take pictures, to do-it-yourself funerals; from an electric toothbrush that turns you into your own dentist, to QuickTax software that makes you an expert accountant; from interactive web-churches where you chose sermons at your own time convenience, to interactive web hosting where you make your own world-wide broadcast – the world is moving to total participation.
Yet, it is not something really new. Christian faith followed Christ’s invitation into priesthood of all believers, away from a selected representative to total participation of all who believe.
It is interesting to look at John’s vision in the Book of Revelation where he is given a measuring rod to size-up the Temple, the Holy Place (from Greek NAOS) where only one Priest could enter, and then see John being told to measure ALL WHO WORSHIP THERE. We all are invited to participate with Christ in Spiritual ministry. Scary thing is that those who choose not to participate, and simply hang out in the outer court, assuming or expecting representation by proxy – they get measured out, or simply put (from Greek EKBALLO) kicked out. (Revelation 11:1-2)
Last week we talked about move from Rational to Experiential. It is our intention in this church to seek Experiencing God, to seek His Presence. We recognize that our programs, our seminars, our mighty doing things is not enough to motivate people into participating. It is God’s Spirit, God’s Presence, His Might that we all need, that will engage our total participation. There is not such a thing as Experiencing God by proxy. A representative is not enough! We want to touch the helm of his Robe, we want to encounter His Righteousness in our lives, we want to participate daily in His Glory.
Lets keep on getting involved in more experiences together, becoming more involved in each other lives, participating in each other joys and trials, as we all live boldly with God.

From Rational to Experiential

While the world is transitioning from modern era into post-modernity – the church seems to be stuck in yesterday’s reality.
The church would rather choose to talk about heaven, to have a discussion class about God, than engage in the Kingdom of Heaven and experience God first hand.
Modernism was all about questioning, discussing, doubting and reasoning. Thinking about food does not make one stuffed. Talking about water does not make one drenched and satisfied. God is orchestrating a new turn in human history when hungry and thirsty people crave an experience with God.
It is shocking to read results of recent poll where church-goers admit that 32% have never experienced God’s presence in worship. 44% have not experienced God’s presence for the whole year.
Yet the Biblical counsel stands ever true: faithful overcome the evil by “the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony!” (Rev.12:11) It is our personal experience, our personal encounter with God, made possible through the Blood of Jesus that makes us victorious, that makes us significant and worthy in this life-and-death battle.
As we move forward into this Postmodern Turn our church has to meet the “WOW” standard! Our preachers must stop “writing” sermons and begin to create total experiences. And in doing so we are recovering our ancient traditions. Apostle Paul once described the real church as a place where any new visitors would experience God in worship through testimony of believers, where God’s presence would be beyond questioning, where a newcomer would fall on his face and cry out “Truly God is among you!” (1st Corinthians 14:24-25)
So, let’s get out from the modern freezer governed by gods of reason and observation and let’s be warmed up by God’s Revelation and the Holy Spirit. Instead of figuring out what life’s all about – let’s experience what life is.
Expect our church’s Worship Experience to be the Real Experience. For our hope is not a theory, our love is not an assumption, and our faith is not a guess. We have Real Hope that burns within our hearts, Real Love that transforms our lives, Real Faith that reveals the unseen.

Wishing you an E.P.I.C New Year!

Sometimes I wonder if we think that the Church is here for us, forgetting that we are the Church, and we are here for the world. Here we are, entering the 7th year of the New Millennium. It is a whole new world out there. Some churches act with the following spirit: “Stop the world, the church wants to get on.” But the world refuses to stop.
Instead we must realize that our God does not play “catch up” with the world around. He is always ahead. It’s time the church speeds up, gets ahead, and let the world get on and get in to be reached.
In any transition there are 5 mechanisms of dealing with change:
Hold out.
Keep out.
Move out.
Close out.
Reach out.
Regardless which turn the culture takes the only option we have is to reach out. And to reach out we must know where this world is.
So, let’s get up to speed in this New Year. The culture around us can be defined in 4 realities:
Experiential Participatory Image-driven Connecting
Case in point would be the TV mega-hit show “Who wants to be a Millionaire?” where viewers and participants are invited to share experience together, where “lifelines” connect studio and TV audience with contestants for direct participation, where an image of a Million bucks, and the lifestyle of a millionaire is well known and appealing, where even lone individual on the center stage is connected with the audience community rooting for him/her.
Living such an E.P.I.C. life our Church would be Biblically Absolute and Culturally Relevant. As I reflect on these four characteristics of the postmodern world I am encouraged to see that our Ministry in the 21st century has more in common with the passion of the 1st century Apostolic Church, than with the modern secular world collapsing all around us.
As we move into the future – let us encourage each other about Our Lord Jesus Who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8) and His timeless truths are always timely. His Ancient Words are ever true - changing me, and changing you.
I wish you all an E.P.I.C. New Year!