In preparing for my community group this week, I came across this paragraph in John Piper’s Desiring God that was quite troubling to me:

“In Paul’s radically different viewpoint I saw an almost unbelievable indictment of Western Christianity. Am I overstating this? Judge for yourself. How many Christians do you know who could say, “The lifestyle I have chosen as a Christian would be utterly foolish and pitiable if there is no resurrection”? How many Christians are there who could say, “The suffering I have freely chosen to embrace for the cause of Christ would be a pitiable life if there is no resurrection”? As I see it, these are shocking questions.”

In this quote, he is referencing I Corinthians 15:12-28, part of which reads: “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain…If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” In this passage, Paul is not questioning the resurrection, as is seen in the closing verses of that section, rather, he is establishing that our faith is based solidly on the resurrection of Jesus. Without this, there is no hope for the follower of Christ, and no point in the life of the believer.

In the above quote though, Piper is not questioning the resurrection either. He is rather, questioning the effect of the resurrection on the lives of those who claim to believe in it. The reason that the resurrection, and what Paul has to say about it throughout the New Testament is such an indictment on Western Christianity (especially inside of the construct of what is seen as the American Dream) is because of the lifestyle of those within Western Christianity. The question is, why are we to be pitied if the resurrection is not true? Does believing in the risen Christ have such an effect on us that it causes us to live a lifestyle that would make no sense otherwise?

I can almost imagine that countless people would hear such a question in a sermon and nod in agreement. But do you have any idea as to what you are agreeing too? If you agree with such a statement, then you agree that to the one who does not believe in the resurrection, the life you live and the choices that you make would not make any sense to that person. The fact is though, that for most of the church, our lifestyle looks no different than those who do not believe. Therefore, if the resurrection were not true, then life would not be a pity.

If we truly believe in the resurrection, then our life should mirror that reality. That should cause us all to be troubled by this paragraph, and to spend a great deal of time meditating on the reality of I Corinthians 15.

This Sunday at 10 am at Swift Creek Elementary School Village Church at Midlothian will launch its first weekly worship experience. Months of preparation have gone into this launch. From begging God to bless us as we seek to bring Him glory through our worship to the laying down of logistics to how to pull off the most quality experience that we can for the community around us. We have prayed, worked, sweated (is that a word?), and learned valuable lessons of what to do and not to do. Finally though, God has brought us here, to this weekend. We are excited and anticipating what God will use the Village to do as He turns the page to the next chapter of His church.

We will be launching a new teaching series as well this Sunday. The title of this series is “No Perfect People Allowed.” That title may surprise you coming from a church, but it is true and it is even what Jesus Himself taught while He was on earth. This series will be all about the fact that in the church of Jesus, there are no perfect people allowed. We will spend five weeks looking at what Jesus Himself has to say about perfect people and just exactly who is perfect. The answers that He gives may shock you and cause you to look at church in a whole new way.

We invite everyone to join us this Sunday at 10 am at Swift Creek Elementary School as we begin this series with the topic, “Jesus vs. Religion.”

The Numbers Are Staggering…

When discussing church planting with people, both Christian and non-Christian, there is a common thought, “Don’t we have enough churches?” The simple answer from most people is, “Yes,” but the answer isn’t that simple. This is a tough issue that requires us to think outside of how we usually tackle the topic of church. First, let’s cover this from a general view of church effectiveness.

Win Arn, who is an expert on church growth, gives us these staggering numbers: “Today, of the approximately 350,000 churches in America, four out of five are either plateaued or declining… Many churches begin a plateau or slow decline about their fifteenth to eighteenth year. 80-85% of the churches in America are on the downside of this cycle. Of the 15 percent that are growing, 14 percent are growing from transfer, rather than conversion growth.” This leads us to the understanding that only 1 percent of the churches in the United States that are actually growing (remember that only 15 percent of churches are even growing) are seeing any growth from new conversions. The other minority of churches that are growing are growing by people that are, for one reason or another, leaving another church to go to a new one.

There is a problem in the mission of the church in the United States. The number of people who simply attend church are dropping yearly, along with the number of converts and baptisms. The church in the United States is quickly becoming completely irrelevant in modern culture. Research shows that there are 195 million unchurched people in America making America the third largest unchurched nation in the world. The term “unchurched” simply means that person is completely unconnected to any church. In 1988 44 percent of Americans were unchurched. Currently it is closer to 65 percent. During the last ten years combined membership of all Protestand denominations declined by 9.5 percent (4,498,242), while the national population increased by 11.4 percent (24,153,000). The reason this combination is so staggering is that the current population boom that has taken place has not affected the growth of the church. In other words, if the mission of Jesus were having the impact on culture that it should, then churches should be growing along with the population, but in stark contrast, the church in America is decreasing in number as the population is increasing in number. The numbers indicate that there is a problem in the church and people are simply giving up on it or never even giving it a chance.

It is obvious that the churches that currently exist in America are having a few problems, which would lead us to believe that the solution should be to go into them and fix them. This IS the solution, but the method of bringing that about is where contention will arise. Consider this, data collected researchers Thomas Clegg and Warren Bird show that in 1820 there was 1 church for every 875 Americans, whereas in 1996 there were 11 churches for every 10,000 Americans. Considering that the average size of a church in America’s largest denomination is 80, even if all Americans decided to go to church next Sunday there wouldn’t be room for them all.

The way in which to attempt to solve our issues is to focus on multiplication. If the DNA of a human being ceases to multiply itself, then that person quickly begins to die. The same understanding needs to be had among the church of Jesus. In His mission, He commanded His followers to “Go, make disciples…” He was literally telling them to go and multiply. For the church to survive its current decline, then the answer is multiplication on a level that is far above individuals. Rather, the answer is in multiplying the number of churches that currently exist. For the members of churches to catch a vision of personal multiplication, then the church itself must first be willing to multiply into new churches. This will maximize the impact and bring about the growth that is desired. This is clearly seen in that churches under three years of age see an average of 10 people coming to faith in Jesus per year versus churches over fifteen years of age only seeing three people coming to Christ. Multiplication breeds multiplication. The numbers do not lie.

Let’s think local for just one moment though. The Village Church at Midlothian is starting in Midlothian, VA. The current population of this suburb of Richmond is around 80,000. The census bureau estimates though, that by 2011 that number will balloon to over 100,000 people. Research also indicates that in this area alone, over 80 percent of the people fit the definition of unchurched. That shows that on any given Sunday less than 16,000 of the people in Midlothian are involved in any church, even in an area that many consider to be part of the “Bible Belt.” As the numbers in population grow though, so will the number of unchurched people as already indicated. Part of the solution is new churches focused on living the mission of Jesus.

More on that later…

Reason 2: The Mission of Jesus

In my first post on this topic, I listed the glory of God as the first reason to plant a church. At the end of that post I noted the task of disciples of Jesus is to make other disciples of Jesus worldwide according to what He said in Matthew 28:19-20. This has commonly been referred to as “the Great Commission.” Those of us who are planting Village Church at Midlothian have come to refer to this commonly as the Mission of Jesus.

It is our belief, that this is the entire reason that He came to earth, God becoming man. If you look back to the post on the glory of God, you will see indicators throughout Scripture, that Jesus is actually the climax of all history. That all of history leads up to His coming, and the rest of history is based on the fact that He came, died for the sins of humanity, and rose from the dead. If this is true, and I submit that it is the single most important and life-changing event in all of history. It is also significant to realize that this is what God deemed necessary to bring Himself the most glory, namely, that He send His Son in the form of man to die for the sins of man and rise from the dead victoriously in order that man could be redeemed through this sacrifice.

It all starts with that redemption through Jesus, but sadly, that is also where many seem to act as if it stops. This redemption finds it’s promise and trust in verse 18 of Matthew 28: “And Jesus came and said to them, “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” In this statement he is declaring his absolute deity and authority over all of creation. We find more in this declaration though, than the fact that He is God and He has authority over us. It is the type of authority that we often don’t worry about. It is one thing to agree with Jesus, but it is quite another thing to humble yourself under that authority and give in to it with your life.

Maybe what He is doing in this statement is preparing them for the demand that He is about to make of them. Maybe He is declaring His absolute authority over them (and us) because he is getting ready to make the most important demand that He ever has and ever will make of them. What He says next encompasses everything He ever has and ever will demand from His people. His next words are basically, “Because I have authority, Go and make disciples of all nations…”

His mission was to come and bring about redemption for all mankind, and right before He leaves, He demands that His people take this mission to the entire world. The fact of the matter is, they begin the Church and immediately begin taking the message of reconciliation with God through Jesus to the entire world building communities of people to live the mission of Jesus in their culture called churches. This is the mission of Jesus, and this is what Jesus was calling His people to. Jesus supplied and still supplies redemption and in return demands authority that He has always and will always have.

Because of this, we do not have the option to bring the mission of Jesus into our lives, but rather, He demands that we bring our lives into the mission of Jesus. That first option does not require complete submission, but instead only what where we give it the right to. The second option though, requires our full surrender and submission. It is the life that fully confesses the authority that Jesus has as the God who redeemed us from our sin. It is tangible evidence of the effect that Jesus being God has over us, and shows that we truly believe. It is humility under the hand of an awesome God that calls us to a willingness to allow God to deconstruct every aspect of our lives and rebuild it in accordance to His will in the Mission of Jesus.

It brings about a willingness to examine the Scriptures for what life is to be lived for under the authority of Jesus. When we do this, we begin to see the practices of the early church, and how they developed communities of people on mission. It makes us examine every part of life under the microscope of His mission to see if it accomplishes it and furthers it in our culture and beyond. It really makes you ask the question, “What is the most effective way of making disciples in this culture?”

More on that later…

This has been a year of BIG things happening in my life. At the beginning of the year, I knew of one of the big things that was going to happen. I knew that Village Church would be launching before years end, and have spent most of my year laying the tracks down for that to happen. Then came spring and the news that my wife and I were expecting our first child. This has caused me to have 2 huge things to plan, and anticipate before year’s end.

Needless to say, before the end of the year, I will be a father. This is a game changer. Not so much that it has or is going to change me (I realize that the common response of, “you just wait” just possibly entered your mind. Boy, I’m not sick of hearing that yet.), but it has forced me to rearrange some of the more practical aspects of my life more than anything. For example, I bought baby clothes this past weekend. I have never even imagined that I would shop for baby clothes. I definitely didn’t imagine enjoying something of that nature, but when you are shopping for your own child, it becomes a special event.

We now have to upgrade from an apartment to a house with a yard, because, well, walking dogs with a leash is a bit harder with a baby on board. Even the simple things are cool. There is something that forces you to worry what your child’s nursery looks like way more than you care what your own bedroom looks like. This involves crib, bedding, wall colors and art, mobiles, etc., etc.

Suffice it to say, having a child on the way definitely changes you. It is more practical than anything else though so far. To hear some people say it, your entire DNA structure is supposed to change the moment your wife gets pregnant. So far, that hasn’t happened to me. Maybe at the moment of birth, who knows, but thus far, still the same guy. Sorry world.

“I am a Church Planter.” For the past year or so, these are the words that I have used to describe what I do. I actually love saying this phrase, because it typically leads to an interesting conversation in which I have the opportunity to tell people about our church, and Jesus. The reason for this is mostly because no one really knows what a “Church planter” is. That is not a common phrase or profession. One curious person even asked my father if that meant I worked in a greenhouse, and what type of flower or plant was a church?

I have come to find out that many people don’t know that people still start churches. This is another part of the subculture of the Christianity. We know that people start churches, but others outside of the church have no idea that such ventures exist. The ones that do are shocked to find out that we are not a group of people who have split from another church. They are shocked to find out that a group of relatively young people is starting a church from scratch with zero axes to grind against the other local churches.

The question then becomes, “Why are you starting a church?” This is one of those questions that take a long time to answer if you give them every reason that you have. Because of that, I thought I would spend a few blogs talking about that issue. I will attempt to answer that question. It will be more like, “Why am I planting a church?” because this is a look at my personal reasons for planting a church. I realize that many people have many different reasons for planting, some good and some bad.

Reason 1: The Glory of God

I thought I would start with more of a foundational look at church planting, and explain the biggest reason for this venture, and then narrow it down to the more practical reasons. In 1646 a group of wise, Jesus loving church leaders got together and wrote a document entitled dubbed, “The Westminster Confession of Faith.” In it’s shortened version, the first question is, “What is the chief end of man?” The answer was put this way. “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” For the past few years, I have attempted to use this statement as a type of guide in my decisions. This statement seems to be the totality of what Scripture shows the world as going towards, and what I want to line my life up with.

The question then becomes, “what brings God glory?” or, even better yet, “what brings God the most glory?” I think that Revelation 7:9,10 helps me begin to answer that question. In this passage, John is given a glimpse at the consummation of all things. This is what he sees: “After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” This verse helps me to see where God is bringing his people. People from all over the world, gathered before His throne, worshipping, extolling Him and giving Him complete credit for the salvation of His people. This is a glimpse of God’s desires and the direction that He points our lives toward when we become Christ followers. Because of this, I need to rewind in the story and ask, “How do we get there?” The answer isn’t as complicated as we may think. The answer is Jesus. Through His death and resurrection, we can trust completely in Him for what is to come.

What does that have to do with church planting though? Well, it has everything to do with it. Romans 10 is a section of Scripture often used to show that “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” This is helpful, but it’s not the whole story. The following verses give us some keen observation into what Paul is really talking about. “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” The way that people call on God and receive this salvation is through someone telling them the why and the what of what they are actually calling on. The why and the what are spelled out in the “good news” which is what the word “Gospel” actually means.

Jesus puts it this way as He is leaving earth, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Jesus came to earth, God becoming man, in order to bring salvation from sin and death to man by his death and resurrection. He was completely victorious, and then as He is leaving earth, He tells His disciples that since salvation has been secured, the mission is now to take the message of it to the world in order that they can hear it and believe it, which brings about that trust and salvation in their lives. The task is still the same for all disciples of Jesus worldwide. This is the way in which God has chosen to receive the most glory: The gathering of people through the trust in the Gospel, which creates a worshipper of God.

Tomorrow at Village Church we are continuing our series on Ephesians with 6:10-18.  As I’ve been studying and writing, I’ve been thinking about how wrong we have had it for so long. There are many things within the current construct of American Christianity that I struggle with, but how many are applying this passage to everyday life is so discouraging.

This passage does not exist to encourage us or to simply keep us from discouragement in our daily life.  It exists to be a battle cry at the end of possibly the most Christ, mission, and church centered book of the entire New Testament.  We often read a passage like this and find ourselves looking for spaces in our lives that we need to apply the message to, and that is exactly where we go wrong.  If you find yourself doing that, then the reality is that this message does NOT apply ANYWHERE in your life.

Years ago, I heard David Nassar and he began the series of meetings with the sentence, “God wants to ruin your life.”  This is an offensive statement to most of us because of how we view God, and His blessings.  If you stand back though, and view all of Scripture, that statement could not be truer.  God does want to ruin your life, because your life is sinful, worthless, meaningless, vein, and completely unworthy in comparison to His life.

God desires to deconstruct everything about your life and how you are setting it up.  The fact is that if you take Ephesians 6:10-18 by itself, you are not at all getting what Paul is talking about.  For the real message you must return to Ephesians 1:1 and read through to the end.  This is a book about God’s plan for His people in His church.  It is about what God wants to build and how He has set up a plan to accomplish His mission.  God wants to take our death and turn it into His life, but that can only happen when we stop looking for where He fits in our lives.  It can only happen when we are willing to lose absolutely everything that we are and replace it with what He wants to give us.  Because then we aren’t looking to where things fit, but rather living it out in who we are.

Is it possible that dogs can be possessed by demons?

Last week I came home to a troubling revelation.  My 7 month old puppy had attacked my ESV thinline Bible This isn’t the specific thing that troubled me though. What troubled me was just which part of the Bible she had shredded.

My launch team and I have been making our way through the book of Ephesians. Minerva, which is my dog’s name, shredded the book of Ephesians. Nothing else had been touched at all. The Bible had been left on the kitchen table, and in what I can only guess was an amazing acrobatic and life risking jump, she had pulled a place mat and the Bible off of the table while my wife was in the other room.

You may ask: “was the ribbon marker in Ephesians?” The answer to that is, “no.” It was actually in the book of 2 Timothy. Now, I’m sure there is a study in physics that can be done to show how the Bible simply opened to the book of Ephesians because of page density or wear from my constantly turning there, but trust me, I’m going to sleep with one eye open for a while as I don’t trust my dog’s spiritual condition at this point.

An article from CNN shows that America is becoming less and less Christian. Many people, especially those within the church, may read this and think that this is a commentary on the US and the decline of American Values.

I think though, that we should take a step back for a moment and ask instead, what this says about those of us who are followers of Christ. What is causing our numbers to decline across the board? Many may chalk it up to a “sign of the times” and say that the world is just going to continue to get worse until Christ returns, but I’m not convinced that should be our mindset. It just doesn’t seem to mesh well with Matthew 28:19-20 and Acts 1:8.

What is so unattractive about the church? I don’t think it’s a commentary on those outside of the church as it is on those inside the church. You may think that it is the offense of the cross that is so unattractive to the masses, and that may be. The question that troubles me though is that of whether or not the Jesus is becoming offensive for all the wrong reasons. Maybe we aren’t representing Him well, and that is the problem. I’m just going to think about this one for a few moments, and taking some personal inventory.

While perusing Ben Arment’s blog, I found this quote.  What do you think?

“A big idea will change you. Your friends may love you, but they don’t want you to change. If you change, then their dynamic with you also changes. They like things the way they are; that’s how they love you – the way you are, not the way you become… Good ideas alter the power balance in relationships. That is why good ideas are always initially resisted.” ~ Hugh Macleod