REVIEW - Organic Church, how long will it last?

Neil Cole has just published 'Long Live the Organic Church: A Response', a short article in Christianity Today. It's well worth reading. (And see also a fine post by Bill Heroman.)

In particular, Neil reminds us that we shouldn't 'live for success, but to follow Christ every day'. We need to be planting seeds that will grow and bear fruit for the future, not building structures that look alive but are not. A fossilised seed might look pretty much the same as a living seed, but plant them both, water them in, and wait... eventually you will see the difference!

Father's purpose and plan for each of us is a living seed, bursting with potential. This is what it means to have a heart of flesh. My own personal purpose and plan would be a mere fossil, a heart of stone. He has given me a heart of flesh in place of my original one of stone. Now I must use it in loving obedience - his plan not mine.

Neil quotes Bob Logan who said, 'Success is finding out what God wants you to do and doing it.'

Here's an extract from Neil's article. If you like what you see click through and read the whole thing, it's only two pages. It's also worth reading Mark Galli's earlier article to which Neil Cole is responding.

If we truly saturate our society with vital followers of Christ capable of making disciples, the world will change. I believe that simply connecting God's children to their spiritual Father in such a way that they listen to his voice and courageously follow his lead will transform society in broader, more holistic, and longer lasting ways than anything else we try.

The change, however, will not be for every generation. In fact, it could very well be that our most serious problems are caused by thinking the decisions we make today will be permanent. We end up establishing methods without the people hearing from God themselves and making their own choices. The result is a lifeless religious institution.

Homer Simpson once said, "I guess people never really change; or, they quickly change and then quickly change back again." In a real sense, all transformation is only momentary. There is a reason for this: We are called to live in the moment. Love is the fulfillment of all righteousness and it is always a choice. We are to love God with our whole being … every day. Who you are is really a lifetime of decisions made in specific moments, which make up the person you see in the mirror. God wants us to choose him every moment of every day, not just once at a middle-school retreat campfire.

Each generation must face its own tests and make its own choices. Our children do not become Christians because we choose to follow Christ, but because they do. If they are only living out the choices of their parents, their faith is not true and will remain fruitless religious conformity. This is also true for religious organizations.

John 4 - Jacob's Well

< John 3 | Index | John 5 >

John 4 contains some extraordinary details!

From time to time people realised who Yahshua truly is. He's not just a wise teacher, a generous judge, or a great prophet (though he is all of those things). But he is the Messiah, the Son of the Most High, the Promised One sent from Heaven by the Almighty himself! He is an awesome person, the One the ages have been waiting for, the very turning point of history.

But in Galilee or Judaea, almost every time someone realised the truth Yahshua told them to keep quiet about it, to tell no-one. And rarely, if ever, did he volunteer the information. But here, in Samaria of all places, to a woman, without the presence of the twelve, to a person living a sinful life - he actually spells it out. Doesn't that seem a little strange?

He spills his great and most precious secret to the lowest kind of person (in legalistic Jewish eyes). Even the disciples are puzzled, just think what the Scribes and Pharisees would have made of this!

Why did he do it?

Perhaps the simple truth is that Yahshua is not looking for holy people. He is not looking for achievement, but for obedience. And he knows what is in a person's heart.

Picture the scene. It was the sixth hour, in other words midday. The sun was at its highest and hottest, shade was hard to find, the road was dusty, they've been travelling since dawn and are tired, thirsty, and hungry. The twelve have gone to find something to eat and drink. Yahshua sits here in the dusty heat alone beside the well, Jacob's Well. Perhaps he's thinking about the passage in Genesis where his ancestor Jacob is at a similar well in another foreign land at around midday. The sheep couldn't be watered until they were all gathered and the heavy covering stone was rolled away from the mouth of the well.

That he thought about this is speculation of course, but it's possible. Perhaps it's even quite likely.

Here he is in a foreign (and despised) land. The people who live here are also distant relatives sharing the same ancestors. Yahshua has come for the gathering of his own flocks, and like Jacob he has come to roll away the stone that blocks the mouth of the well so that the sheep can be watered. And here comes a woman to draw water much as Rachel must have done all those centuries before.

So he asks her for a drink, knowing already that this is a conversation the Father wants him to have. And in the conversation about living and eternal water, a heavy metaphorical stone is partly rolled away in the Samaritan woman's heart. He finally tells her who he is, the stone falls aside, her understanding becomes clear, and she leaves her jar to run back to town to tell everyone. She tells them all, they spend some time with the Master, and many of them believe.

Nothing in the Bible is there by mistake. This despised, foreign, sinful woman has a place in John's Gospel for a reason. She is there to inspire us and encourage us. Yahshua's gift of life and his promise of an endless supply of living water is for all people of any status in any land. It's for those leading sinful lives. It's for those who are despised. It is for you and for me - HalleluYah!

< John 3 | Index | John 5 >

John 3 - you must be born again

< John 2 | Index | John 4 >

How do people come to believe in Yahshua (Jesus)? What is the process? John 3 provides an example and Yahshua's unexpected response.

Nicodemus was a Jewish leader, a member of the Governing Council (the Sanhedrin), the ultimate religious and civil power under the Romans themselves. To bring this into perspective, imagine Nicodemus as an archbishop and a cabinet minister rolled into one. This religious and political heavyweight came to see Yahshua already convinced that he came from the Almighty. Not every member of the Sanhedrin would have agreed, but for Nicodemus the miracles were sufficient evidence. He knew this man was sent, perhaps a great prophet, maybe even the Messiah, but he wasn't yet thinking in terms of the Son of the Most High. This would have been a very difficult concept and wouldn't have occured to Nicodemus.

So what did Yahshua say to him? 'You must be born again. This time not of water, but of the Spirit.' Nicodemus must have thought, 'Uh?'

So the Lord explained in more detail. An outpouring of water from the womb is part of the process of natural birth by which a person enters this world. But there's a second birth and part of that process is an outpouring of the Spirit. In neither case are we talking about a negligible amount. In both cases there's a sudden flow where before there had been nothing.

Without this 'second birth', it's not possible even to see the Almighty's Kingdom.

Of course Nicodemus still doesn't get it, Yahshua is speaking mysteries here. Until the time of Pentecost it will remain a mystery even to the twelve disciples. Nonetheless, Nicodemus believed this Yahshua was someone special, a great teacher. He became a follower (see John 7:45-53 and John 19:38-42).

'How can this be?' he asks again.

Yahshua replies, 'You're Israel's Teacher, don't you understand these things?'

This hints at Nicodemus' status, perhaps he had a special responsibility for interpreting and teaching the ancient scriptures. If he can't understand, nobody can!

And then Yahshua points him to a scriptural analogy that Nicodemus does understand. Read Numbers 21:4-9, then John 3:13-21. Do you see the parallel? This would have made some sense to Nicodemus and he surely would have remembered it later after the crucifixion and resurrection.

What was the key for the bronze snake to be effective to save life? The poisoned person must look at the snake, must see the snake. And so with the Messiah, if he is to be effective you must look at him, you must see him, you must understand who he truly is and know that in seeing and believing you have recieved eternal life.

< John 2 | Index | John 4 >

Colworth (CU) - The Good Samaritan

Nothing had been arranged for today's meeting, so we met and chatted for a while. We talked about the way we feel when we see something wrong - a car in the ditch, somebody lying on the ground. Normally we slow down, but we may be past the incident before we have decided what to do. If there are other people already helping we may just continue on our way, especially if there are official helpers present - the police, an ambulance etc.

But if we're first on the scene, how do we react? Obviously we need to investigate and offer help if we can. But what if we see a beggar asking for money, or a man hitting a child? We know what we should do, but what would we actually do?

This led us on to read the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) which we discussed before finishing with prayer.

John 2 - at the right time

< John 1 | Index | John 3 >

Everyone knows of the wedding in the village of Cana near the Sea of Galilee and the water into wine event. There's not much left at Cana now, just some remains of walls in a field at best (even the precise location is uncertain).

There's a great deal in this rich chapter (John 2) that we could discuss, but for me one of the significant features is hidden away in this business of water and wine. Notice in verse 4 how Yahshua tells his mother, rather brusquely, 'What's it got to do with me, woman? My time hasn't come yet'. Yet just a short time later he's telling the servants what to do and the water they draw is wine when it is poured out.

What's going on? Why does he say one thing but do another? This is not the only example. When his brothers were going to the feast in Jerusalem and invited him to join them he told them, 'No, my time has not come'. But as soon as they had left, he too set out for the city! (John 7:1-10) Why?

Perhaps the answer is that Yahshua, when he was here in the world in a human body, did literally what he later explained to his critics, 'I only do what I see the Father do' (John 5:19). So look at it like this...

Mary - 'They're going to be embarrassed, they've run out of wine.'

The Father - 'It's not your time yet, Son.'

Yahshua - 'It's not my problem, my time hasn't come yet.'

Mary (to the servants) - 'Just do whatever he tells you.'

The Father - 'Now is the time, my Son.'

Yahshua - 'Go and fill those pitchers with water. Then draw some out and take it to the MC.'

I think that really is how the Lord lived his life day by day. He did and said what his Father showed him and told him, moment by moment. And that is how he wants us to live too. He sent the Holy Spirit (the Spirit of Christ) as a permanent advocate and comforter for all his people. If we are listening we will hear, if we are looking we will see.

There was a short time when the Father stopped speaking to Yahshua, and he cried out in a loud and desperate voice, 'Eloi, Eloi, why have you forsaken me?' (Mark 15:33-34) But that was a unique occasion. He has not (and never will) forsake his followers on the earth today.

< John 1 | Index | John 3 >

John 1 - the Word

< No earlier chapters | Index | John 2 >

River Church in St Neots is studying a chapter of John's Gospel each day beginning today, January 10th. As John has twenty-one chapters the process will finish on the last day of January. Rob McFarlane is planning to post a blog entry every day with some thoughts on the chapter. I thought I'd like to do the same thing because it's a really great idea.

Here's Rob's post on John 1. And here's mine...

First, a general comment. John's Gospel (and indeed every book in the Bible) is rich with depths of meaning. There are superficial things that everyone will see right away, and there are also deep things that are more difficult to dig out. But we each have our own personal approach to the book too, so to some degree each reader has a unique understanding of the content. What follows is just a note on what stood out as I read today - nothing more and nothing less.

I was deeply struck by the reminder that Yahshua (Jesus) is the voice of the Almighty. He is not his own voice, he is his Father's voice. He is the Word and was there right at the start (verse 1-2). Once, in discussion with some Pharisees about the washing of cups, Yahshua said that it's not what goes into a person's mouth that makes them unclean, but what comes out. It's not whether we drink from ritually clean cups or not, it's what comes out, what we say, because the source behind the words is contained in our hearts (Mark 7:1-23).

Yahshua is the Word spoken into the world by the Almighty. And the Father's heart is clean and holy, therefore so is the Word that he speaks. And 'the Word became human and lived among us' (John 1:14).

This is so awesome that we struggle to grasp the significance of it! Imagine if the Queen came to live in your home for the rest of her life; left Buckingham Palace, rang your doorbell, and came in to share your family home. How would you feel about that?

The King of the Universe came to live amongst us! How awesome is that! One of the first things he did on arrival here was to call people to follow him. He still does that. He still wants us to follow. But first we need to understand who he really is. If you want to know more about all of that read the rest of John 1.

< No earlier chapters | Index | John 2 >

St Neots - lunch at Barretts

Today we met for coffee and lunch at Barretts in St Neots. It was refreshingly different to sit together at a table surrounded by the buzz of shoppers stopping for a cuppa or a quick lunch before dashing back to the bargains again. We were in no such rush, Paul and I arrived first and then Roger joined us. We had a leisurely coffee followed by an equally leisurely light lunch, and then stayed at our table to talk and pray.

We shared news about the many friends we regularly pray for and we also tried out something else. Paul and I are already doing Church of Two (CO2) together daily, but this time we were able to include Roger as well.

This was a good experience as always, it helps us to express things that otherwise might remain unsaid. Not that we would deliberately hide our feelings from one another, but just because the simple VIRKLER process gives us a good set of hooks to hang things on.

Brampton - Heal Our Land

It was wonderful to meet with Jim and Sean again after a bit of a break. This time we met at Sean's which worked out really well.

Jim told us about The Awakening, a period of 21 days during which the plan is to read John's Gospel and spend time in prayer. He also mentioned that Rob McFarlane of River Church is posting his thoughts on John daily.

I talked again about Church of Two (CO2) and we gave it a try there and then, maybe we'll do this on Thursdays for a while and see whether it's useful in this form. I enjoyed our first trial and imagine it will help us grow deeper in relationship as well as helping us hear the Spirit's direction for our lives week by week.

Sean wondered what would be the next thing to hit the UK. We're currently struggling with a difficult winter, we had the recession, there seem to have been a string of problems in recent years, society is damaged or broken in so many ways. Sean senses there may be trouble ahead and that something big is coming, perhaps something oppressive and perhaps especially so for the church. I think he may be right.

Jim reminded us of the 'Heal our Land' event taking place in the UK during 2010. It's using a version of Jimmy and Carole Owens' musical 'Heal Our Land' as a way of focusing the church's attention and prayer on the current state of Britain and reaching out to those around us with the gospel message of hope and love. As he was sharing these thoughts, Jim had a picture of a flashy,, polished Mercedes. Inside were two people who appeared almost dead. They had the trappings of a good life but were withered. We need to look away from the world and look instead towards eternity.

Jim went on to remind us of Hosea's story. He fell in love with a beautiful young woman and they were married. She later left him and became a prostitute. One day, when he was in the town market, Hosea saw his wife on sale as a slave. He paid a heavy price for her and took her back home. This is how the Lord feels about his people, he was prepared to pay a heavy price to get us back. He has shown how much he cares about us.

We all went on to discuss a little more about the course of history and where we are now headed. Where is history taking us? And more importantly, where is Yahweh taking us?

We also considered Esther who was 'here for a time such as this'. She had a particular function and responsibility in the Almighty's plan. So do we. We, too, are 'here for a time such as this'. We need to fulfill that purpose as the Lord unfolds it for us.

Colworth (CU) - Our calling

Steph Whitney led the meeting today. She had prepared some material on various aspects of our personal calling. She explained that she and Ron are part of a small group that meets regularly at home, for prayer, Bible study, and to be led and guided by the Holy Spirit. Steph based today's session around a series of Bible verses and short extracts.

Hebrews 3:1, Ephesians 1:18, 2 Timothy 1:9, and 2 Thessalonians 1:11 explain that our calling is something that we need to discover. I believe this is true, and for me these verses speak powerfully about the fact that we have been called out of darkness into Jesus who is the light of the world.

We thought about the fact that we need to be faithful to the Lord, we need to be worthy and fulfill all that he has for us. Our hearts need enlightening. There are practical aspects to this as well, for example finding a framework for Bible study that is right for us.

1 Peter 2:9 shows us that it's about sharing in a group, not just an individual matter. We are part of a priesthood, we are part of a holy nation. And it's not merely up to us (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24, 2 Peter 1:1-11).

ANNOUNCEMENT - Moggerhanger Meeting - 7th February 2010

Hi everyone, here's a date for your diaries - 7th February 2010 for a regional gathering at Moggerhanger near Bedford. Come and join us for fun, a shared lunch, invited speakers, and more.

We plan to meet at 13:30 for a snowdrop walk in the woodlands at Moggerhanger Park followed at 14:00 with a light but warming lunch in the old house. It will be something like jacket potatoes and a choice of fillings, more details nearer the time.

After lunch we have some invited guests who will share about events in a wider context. These will be short sessions of no more than 20 minutes each.

• Peter Farmer from Nottingham has been invited to speak about organic church networks and church planting movements in the UK.
• Someone from South-West England may be coming to tell us about church planting and growth in that region.
• I will describe our experiences with the Church of Two (CO2) concept in and around St Neots.
• We hope to hear about the work of X-treme Youth Camps in north-Bedfordshire. 

There will also be an open time for prayer, praise, and body ministry, as well as an opportunity for open discussion and a Q and A session with the invited guests.

There is no charge for attending, but to help with catering please let me know if you are coming, how many adults and children are in your party, and whether any of you have special dietary needs. There will be an opportunity to donate to the work of Moggerhanger Park if you wish to do so.

More details in mid January,

Grace, peace and joy to you all in the new year,

Chris Jefferies
chris@scilla.org.uk

124 St Neots Road
Eaton Ford
St Neots
Cambs
PE19 7AL

Eaton Ford (day) - Church of Two

Paul and I met and shared information about the people we have been praying for. We also made a first trial of Church of Two (CO2), I explained how useful Sean and I have found it, ran through a brief description of the VIRKLER and SASHET components, and then we simply made a start.

Afterwards we both felt it had been a useful exercise and we will certainly try to run through it again, daily if we can.

Church of Two (CO2)

At the House2House Conference in Dallas in September, John White demonstrated Church of Two (CO2). We all had a chance to try an aspect of it for ourselves, there and then. I was immediately convinced of the value of CO2 itself and of its constituent parts, SASHET and VIRKLER. Read more about CO2, SASHET, and VIRKLER on the CO2 Flyer.

In early December I began CO2 with a house church friend, Sean. After the first week we were clear that we very much wanted to continue, and after three weeks we both agree that our relationship with one another and our relationships with the Lord are deepening noticeably.

Because we can't meet face-to-face every day we decided to use Google Wave as our primary CO2 channel and I can tell you it works very well indeed. It's much better for this purpose than email. We create a new wave each day and we use clickable links to connect the days together, with an overall index to keep things organised. If we both happen to be online at the same time we can each see the other typing right on the screen. And when we're online at different times we can both add comments and make additions. Google Wave is a bit like email, instant messaging, and a wiki all rolled into one - but better than any of them alone.

Our experiences are similar to those reported by others commenting on 'Stories from the Revolution'. I had expected CO2 to be good, but it was trying it out for myself over a period of days that really convinced me. It's sometimes been difficult to keep going on a daily basis, but it is so worth the effort. My advice - don't give up, keep on keeping on and you will benefit.

Even if you don't have a partner for CO2, I would recommend doing the VIRKLER and SASHET exercises on your own each day. You will still see some useful benefit. But working in pairs or small groups will amplify the value greatly.

VIRKLER (particularly the hearing and journaling aspects) has deepened my awareness of the Lord's constant presence in my life.

SASHET has brought us closer to one another in mutual understanding, respect and trust.

As we pray with and for one another in the light of hearing the Lord's direction to each of us, I'm fully convinced we'll be led into church life and sharing the gospel in ways we could hardly have imagined at first.

In mid December I shared the idea of CO2 with the Christian Union at work and this is likely to lead to at least one more pair. Then this morning I did a first CO2 session with Paul, a friend from a different local gathering, and we'll try it for a week. I also expect to demonstrate CO2 to a group of friends some miles further west. And finally there's an opportunity opening up to begin sharing CO2 with a friend in the USA.

CO2 is not an end in itself. It is, however, a really useful framework for hearing from the Lord and at the same time developing broader and deeper relationships between individuals. In this way it stimulates spiritual growth and can act as both a building block for church and a platform for sharing the gospel. What a versatile tool!

Note: For a more recent update on CO2 see my article at 'All About Jesus'.

Movements - Long term success

There have been many movements in the world's long history. Political movements - philosophical, art, and literature movements - scientific and technological movements - and not least, religious movements. Almost all of these have failed after a few decades or centuries, many are forgotten, consigned at best to dusty tomes on library shelves.

Every organisation created by human ingenuity and effort has a lifespan and runs its course. Consider Communism, the idea that the Earth is flat, the Roman Empire, ancient Greek culture in what is now Turkey, the Gaulish language once spoken in Europe, the British Empire, Woolworths, or Real Tennis. All gone!

Some of these movements depended on repression, terrorism, crushing military might, or technological superiority for their spread and survival. Communism, Islam, and the Roman Empire are movements of this kind. Others have depended on ideas or beliefs that have been accepted freely, and paramount among these is the church. The first disciples followed Jesus by choice; he called them and they decided freely to follow him. And although the church sometimes depended wrongly on abuse of military or political power (as with the Crusades or the Inquisition) these were temporary and clearly contradicted Jesus' teachings about love.

Even within the church there have been monastic, doctrinal, denominational, and revival movements to mention just a few. Again, most of these have failed sooner or later. Consider some of the great Catholic and Anglican monastic orders. Most of these still exist, but as mere shadows of their former selves.

So what distinguishes successful and failed movements? It seems to me that coercion sooner or later fails, and fails absolutely. But the teachings of Jesus remain as powerful today as they were 2000 years ago. They are still seized upon eagerly by those who understand that he is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He was, is and will always be a success in the hearts of ordinary people because of his love and compassion. Alone among the originators of the world's religions, Jesus is an entirely attractive character who harmed no-one and called his followers to do the same. And his movement is alive and well today.

Where it has been complicated by methods and organisations it has failed again and again. But always the ideas and teachings of Jesus have moved on, leaving the methods and organisations behind and growing again in fresh pastures.

So let's be very careful to avoid any kind of worldly power, control, or system of management. And let's get right back to the roots of our faith - loving the Almighty with everything we have and everything we are, loving one another and our neighbours with the love we apply to ourselves, and yes - even loving our enemies. Those are the hallmarks of a movement that will know no failure or premature end!

Jesus alone is the one who leads us, our role is always to follow. He speaks clearly to his people, individually, day by day, guiding and encouraging. We must die to self in order to truly live. In poverty we are rich, the humble are lifted up, the powerful are brought low, it's an upside down Kingdom. But it works! And it lasts!

But all human ingenuity, system, power, and organisation will eventually fail - within the church and outside it. For only the Almighty can prevail, and he is love.

Colworth (CU) - Love languages

Andy took today's meeting, basing it on 1 Corinthians 13 and parts of Gary Chapman's book 'The Five Love Languages'. Andy used the audio book version and played a couple of sections to us.

According to Gary the five love languages are quality time, words of affirmation, gifts, acts of service, and physical touch. Each of us will major in one of these, showing love mainly in this particular way and looking for it to be returned in the same way. When we and our partner have different primary love languages we may both have difficulty feeling loved. We need to learn to 'speak one another's language'.

Kevin explained that he and his wife run a marriage preparation course at their church and have used the five love language principles very effectively with many young people.