Friday, October 19, 2007

• Modern American "Church" Jesus Fans, or Jesus Followers?

  Currently Reading Soul Graffiti: Making a Life in the Way of Jesus By Mark Scandrette see related

  Here it is... Part one (out of who knows how many) of the post I've been meaning to write... Thoughts triggered by early chapters of book you see above (in other words, full credit for what's written here starts with what was written by Scandrette)
  
  First, a warning: It's been a week since these thoughts first hit me, so it's completely possible that this post may seem incoherent, as I'm sure to have forgotten some things since then.  On to it...
  
  Jesus has been domesticated within the context of our culture.  He's a bobble head doll, a regular cameo in films and TV (usually for humor's sake), and the subject for a slew of bumper stickers spanning a wide varitey of topics.  He's everybody's "Homeboy," the butt of many jokes, and a great subject for Suzy-homemaker's living room wall or the back window of a pick-up truck: right under the illegible letters "Gonzalez" (more a simple fact than a racially charged statement). He's become the theme around which many country-clubesque churches have been formed.
  
  And he's no longer significant for the reasons he should be.
  
  Jesus was revolutionary, rebellious even--not simply against a particular institution or authority, but against the mantras, values, practices and culture of a society lost and confused.  His words offended and infuriated those around him, and his teachings were harder than rocks to chew.  And the ironic part is that he did all of those things in defense of the very values which those people and cultures claimed to uphold.
  
  Now, because his words still ring true, the majority of us should still be just as offended and frustrated because we continue to hold onto the exact same principles and ideals that Jesus' contemporaries did--perhaps we even hold onto them more.  However, we aren't bothered when we hear the words "If someone strikes, you stand there and take it" because it's so familiar to us (Most of you know it as "Turn the other cheek." I chose to use the wording from The Message because it's not so familiar, and thus I feel carries more the meaning I'm trying to convey here).  We simply twist those words into a pithy little saying that actually validates our messed up values, such as "Kill 'em with kindness": a saying which still carries with it the desire for revenge (but with the added arrogance of saying essentially, "I'm better than you because I chose to be kind when you didn't").
  
  We've become so comfortable with the idea of "Love you neighbor" that intent of the statement is completely lost on us.  We translate it into, "I'll mow the yard of the guy next door, so he thinks I'm nice and will want to join my country clu---err... church." Sure, this is a nice gesture, but we do nice things like this all day, everyday, without actually loving the person.  Or "I'll drop off my clothes to Goodwill or the Salvation Army for those less fortunate, because I want to 'love my neighbor' without having to talk to him or smell him."--again, another nice action on the surface, but it cuts out the necessary part of actually loving the people you're offering to help.
  
  I'm sorry,  I don't care who you are--what Jesus says bugs me.  It really frustrates me... Because it's true.  It's true, and it's hard.  I don't know that I could ever live up to it. And I'm pretty darned sure that most of the people that walk through the church doors have become so numb to the message that they don't even recognize that in trying to follow it, they're actually ignoring it.
  
  Why do you think he was always saying, "He who has ears, let him hear."  Maybe it's because everyone seemed to think they "Had ears" and understood, but the reality was that most of them really didn't--especially those who thought they did.
  
  There's a juxtaposition that Scandrette points out in his book--one that really makes sense to me, as I visited my first professional game earlier this spring.
  
  At a professional ball game, there's all kinds of people who show up.  They know all sorts of ins and outs of the game, the history of the players on the field, the current stats of the team, and the stats of the competition.  They show up with their matching outfits proclaiming their team, coolers of more beer than one should drink in a week, and they shout at the field the game-plan or the calls that the coaches, players, and umpires should follow (because those guys obviously don't know as much as the spectators who are too fat and drunk to have ever played ball themselves).
  
  These people are called fans.
  
  Then there are the few who have been called out of the bleachers to put on the team uniform, and get in the game themselves.  These few have the skill required to play the game and fight hard.  These are the players.
  
  While Jesus was on Earth, he wasn't looking for fans--he had plenty of those.  He was looking for followers--people who had the guts to step out and take on the risk, the challenge.
  
  We show up in churches to sit in the pews or chairs (set-up an awful lot like they are at the stadium), wearing our matching outfits proclaiming our team (for some it's dress clothes, for others now it's jeans and t-shirts... "And they will know that you are my disciples by your Christian t-shirts"... sorry), and sing the seventh-inning stretch (seven words-eleven times) in worship of the one we're big fans of.  We meet in our small groups to discuss and debate how the game is played, who's in what position and what their stats are, and tell the coach how it should be.  We make great fans...
  
  But there are some who've been called out by God.  They get to throw off their stupid spectator hats and foam fingers for the real deal and play hard.  And the amazing thing is that they aren't even the people you'd expect.  They're the ones who suck at the game, and don't fit into all your etiquette guide rules.  But they're also the ones with ears who hear... These are the followers.  And as you've probably guessed, there aren't as many of these as there are fans... Jesus called this one ahead of time when he said, "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." (Matt. 7:13-14).
  
  I think the fans may be too preoccupied with yelling what they thought they knew to actually hear what they really should know...  Much less live it.
  

  • 2:43 PM
  • 12 eprops
  • 7 comments