Our attitude towards the unchurched

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 5:12 says “What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?”

Are we really a welcoming community? It is my deeply held belief that God did not instruct the church to force the rest of the world to have the appearance of the church and to act like Christians.

The church is called to illuminate a path for earnest seekers to pursue the light of God, and provide a place of solace where the Lord’s call can find a response in their hearts. Instead, we have often crowded that path with protesters and picket signs, and drowned out the sound of God’s knocking on people's hearts with our shouting. 

Do we really believe in the transforming power of the gospel of Jesus Christ  or will we seek to legislate holiness. The church ought to be immersed in the business of transforming lives through teaching, compassion and care, instead of trying to govern lives through legislative force.

Christians need to model themselves after Jesus Christ rather than Robert De Nero in Taxi Driver.

Rick Warren tweeted this week, "Preachers who insist that only guilt leads to repentance deny Romans 2:4 "It is God's KINDNESS that leads us to repentance"

It seems in recent years there have come into mainline Christianity the hater! They hate - they hate GAYS, they hate MUSLIMS, they hate left wing politics - they hate Obama - they hate Justin Beiber - they even hate HARRY POTTER!

Their goal is to shame people into Heaven. Shame on them!!

I’m tired of the church being defined by what it is AGAINST rather than what it stands FOR! You can have your opinions of what you like or dislike – cool! Hey there is even a buttons of Facebook to help with that as well – but there is no need to slag people off – or to criticise them, to make them feel guilty or ashamed.

Jesus came to save people not condemn people - Jesus said we're here to bring out the God colours and the God flavours in the world around us - we've been called to be "a city on a Hill!" We were meant to become an aroma of God's love in our community not a bad smell and a stink!

Luke 10: 25 - 28, "On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. Teacher, he asked, what must I do to inherit eternal life? What is written in the Law? he replied. How do you read it? He answered: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' You have answered correctly, Jesus replied. Do this and you will live."

Love God with all your heart, soul, strength and MIND!!! Do this and you will LIVE!! You'll live with passion, you'll live with a fire of devoted living deep within your heart. You'll live with a passion to see people connecting with Jesus Christ and recieve the new life He promised.

It does us good to remind ourselves that as servants of God we are separated, called and supernaturally anointed to serve Him; it’s good to be reminded of the supernatural nature of the messenger – YOU!

Not only are we are spiritual being – we are a spirit, we have a soul and live in a body (1 Thessalonians 5:23 How often we turn that around with a body consciousness and a worldly perspective) but we have a supernatural appointment by the very hands of the Lord Jesus Himself. (Ephesians 4:11)

To describe our spiritual nature 1 Peter 2:2-5 says “...we crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in our salvation – we are like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

Note the words used – “spiritual milk,” “grow up into our salvation”, “we are living stone,” “built into a spiritual house” all these term denote a spiritual power and reality. As God’s messenger, as God witnesses Jesus said we have received “power” as the Holy Spirit comes upon us. (Acts 1:8)

As God’s witness we receive the Holy Spirit and holy fire so we can declare the message of salvation! Paul declared that supernatural power when he said in 1 Corinthians 2:4-5, “… my preaching was … with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might rest on God's power.”

As a messenger sent from God we are simply supernatural and need to grow in our understanding of being Holy Spirit empowered!

Jesus read the scroll of Isaiah and it is recorded in Luke 4:18-19, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me...” We need to develop that anointing – move in that anointing – demonstrate the power of the Holy Spirit in all that we do – as messengers we are inherently supernatural.

“Our message is empowered by the Spirit”

Just a timely reminder that our message is good news and is inherently a supernatural message of power.

The gospel is according to Romans 1:16, “... the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” This is the message we are called to preach.

Inherent in the message of salvation, [sozo – Greek] is the concepts of healing, new life, forgiveness and deliverance from the power and authority of Satan. Our message is the “power of God unto salvation.”

The gospel we preach is simply supernatural! It has hidden within it the power of God all we need to do to release that power is to preach it, communicate it or to proclaim it in word and deed; demonstrate it.

Jesus announced in Luke 4:18-19, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour.”

He says that He is anointed by the Holy Spirit to preach this good news – if Jesus needed the Holy Spirit’s empowering how much more do we? Communicating the message requires God power so we can deliver a message that embodies this very same power to bring salvation.

Paul said he had determined to know nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified he declared in 1 Corinthians 2:4-5, that his “... message and preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.”

Note His message and preaching was with a “demonstration of the Spirit’s power.” We need the Holy Spirit’s power when we declare Jesus is Lord. We need an anointing from God when we communicate this message of Good News! It is imperative that we know the empowering of the Holy Spirit as we declare the gospel.

The very message is inherently supernatural – the telling and the re-telling of this story can bring new life to everyone who dares to believe. From a child of 5 years old to person reaching 100+ who so ever believes will be saved.

This supernatural transformation is the release of power that silences the most ardent atheist for who can argue with an experience like that? The release of power during salvation can only be compared to the power of the Holy Spirit raising Jesus Christ from the dead.

Because this message is supernatural we can trust Him who empowers it to set the captive free, bring sight to the blind and even raise the dead. The power embodied in the message is the power of God that delivers us from Satan’s control and sets us free from the grip of every evil spirit.

This message set us free from the power of sin and causes us to become living witness of the power of His resurrection. The reason many churches lack power is they don’t preach the gospel. The reason some church lack the manifest power of God is they don’t believe in how far reaching this message is. The reason many Christian are always “fighting the devil” is they have not yet comprehended the scope and the scale of the message.

The gospel IS the power of God unto salvation. Our responsibility is to preach it and prepare our lives and our hearts to experience this Spirit’s power.

“… my message and my preaching were with the Holy Spirit’s power so that your faith would rest on God’s power.”

Tom Rawls

Lead Pastor - Proclaimers

Norwich, England

What we believe is vital because we will build according to our firmly held convictions. Even if we say we believe something but deep down hold another deeply entrenched opinion we will build according to what we really believe! (Check out chapter 5 in my book Relentless for a further dealing with this subject: www.relentlessbook.com )

Our theology is vital at this point: what we hold deeply is very important and will form the foundations of what we will build.

• Our theology will form our practices
• What we believe is what we will do
• Our beliefs will inform our practices
• Our Christology forms the foundation for our ecclesiology.

We need to make sure we believe the right stuff. Not just intellectually but emotionally believe it – we need to examine our most deeply held beliefs. 2 Corinthians 4:13, “It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak.” What you believe becomes your practice – what you believe you will accomplish.

What you truly believe is spoken by you!

Jesus said, “I will build my church!” Matthew 16:18 As far as I can see this building is primarily a supernatural action. I know there is the science of church planting, church growth and church management but at the core at the heart the building of the church is a supernatural act and possess a supernatural dynamic. Let me explain:

• The church of Jesus Christ is inherently a supernatural organism. The spiritual life of the church flows from Christ. Jesus Christ is God; He moves in His church by His Spirit, He is building His Church!
• Jesus is the head over all things to the church (Ephesians 1:22) He is central to everything! He is the priority; if He is lifted up He will draw all people to Him. Jesus adds to the church regularly. He is the head of the body – in itself a fully functioning supernatural act!
• Ephesians 3:10-11, “His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” This PURPOSE and INTENT is one of communicating to heavenly realms – don’t want to become too “spooky” but when we declare the purpose and intent of God through Christ we are performing an inherently supernatural task.
• Revelation states He walks amongst the church (Revelation 2:1) He comes in and eats with us and we have fellowship with Him (Revelation 3:20) Whether we are out in a community or gathered in corporate worship HE is there because we are the church.

I get really concerned with certain kinds of people who say “I don’t feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in this meeting.” What they are saying is that they walk by sense not by faith. They are saying they don’t believe in the inherent supernatural presence of Christ in the church.

Many of these people are demonstrating their spiritual immaturity saying they need to feel the presence of God or He’s NOT there. They are errant theologians!

Jesus walks amongst us when we gather corporately and when we are scattered over our city – He is within us by the Holy Spirit and He promises to never leave us or forsake us! Hebrews 13:5

Let us take time to examine our most cherished beliefs. The church at it’s core is a supernatural entity!

Feel free to comment on this blog - I am interested in your thoughts

Tom Rawls - Lead Pastor

Proclaimers, Norwich England

On my visit to Gilead Church in Gothenburg Sweden in 2010 this question hit my mind. What makes a great church? 

It’s not the size of the church – small churches can be great churches. But a great church won't stay small either – the very nature of a great church is expansion, growth and increase. 

To name a few ingredients of a great church:

• Externally focused; more concerned with how outsiders see the church than how the “faithful” see things.
• A great culture; passionate, professional, pursuing excellence, contemporary music, welcoming for visitors. You know 1^st impressions are lasting impressions. 
• The whole experience of church is accessible to 21^st century people. You walk in and “feel at home;” there are elements of church which you recognise and relate too.
• Developing leaders with a sense of mission. I love seeing leaders who know where they are going and what they are doing – they are the answer to the church not just problem indicators they come with solutions.
• A senior leader with a sense of destiny! Anders and Camilla impress me as leaders with destiny running through their blood veins! They have a vision and the drive to see it fulfilled.

I loved being at Gilead! One of Sweden’s great churches! They have started a second service and seeing over 350 people every weekend! People are connecting with Christ each and every week! This is developing to become one of Europe’s outstanding churches.

A hero

Jesus Christ is a hero, here is a real man of steel; He is a man of courage, strength and passion.

Here are real bad guys trying to kill a real good guy. If ever you doubted Jesus was able to save you, if ever you wondered is He strong enough to help you in your darkness – doubt no more!

May I present to you Jesus the Son of God, a hero for all ages.

But why did He die? The religious rulers got him didn’t they – they succeeded in destroying Him – they crucified Him, hanging Him on a Roman cross – they hurled abuse at Him, they spat at Him, they pulled out the hair of His beard they clothed in a robe of purple and made fun of Him – they viciously placed a crown of thorns upon his head – they nailed His hands to the cross, they nailed His feet into the wood.

Why didn’t he save Himself??

The crowd asked the same question. Mark 15:29-32, “Those who passed by hurled insults at Him, shaking their heads and saying, "… come down from the cross and save yourself!" In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked Him among themselves. "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe." Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

But Jesus endured the cross, the insults, the torture and the humiliating experience – He even endured death – not because He was incapable of stopping it all. The bible says He could have called 12 legions of Angels to come and rescue Him. No Jesus was following a plan laid down from the beginning of time.

He was playing out a role designed for him; it was a plan created from before the foundations of the earth. He had come to die as the ultimate sacrifice for all mankind, He was dying not for His own sins for He was pure, holy and utterly without sin. He would never cut this plan short, He would never seek for a short cut, He would never try to short circuit this plan to simply save Himself. Instead he endured the cross with great courage, with conviction with strength and with purpose!

He rose again!

If ever you have wondered is Jesus able to save you – this is your time to consider what great a salvation He bought for us! For he died and because sin could not hold Him He rose again from death – victorious, triumphant and conquering! He rose again from death as the first fruit of those who would be saved – He arose the victor from the dark domain of hell and Death – never to die again – He rose again from death with such power, strength and victory that the weakest of us as we connect with Him will see this victory in our lives!

This is no weak, effeminate and emaciated Jesus just barely able to crawl from His grave the victim of a badly blotched crucifixion. This is no religious myth designed to make you cry and feel sorry for Jesus – this is no mamby pamby invitation to connect with some weak, feeble, frail, weedy and pathetic saviour who you will regard as a crutch for the rest of your life – no way.

I present Jesus – powerful and strong – bold and ancient – able to deliver and able to care for you – a Jesus who is aware of your destiny and desires to work with you to achieve greatness in this life and the one to follow – this is a Jesus who is able to forgive you of your sins, wash you clean and keep you clean – A Jesus who is able to make you stand in His grace and walk under His favour!

This is vintage Jesus – strong, robust, unafraid of demons and spirit, powerful in the face of opposition. He is solid, durable and tough – no one can stand against Him and it has been said that even the weakest saint upon his knee will make the powers of darkness shudder and shake with fear.

It is this Vintage Jesus who said, Matthew 16:18, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” It will be a church expansive with energy, passionate, vibrant, creative, innovative and original – fresh and relevant – a church for today!

Matthew 21: 12 – 17 – Read this passage. 

Jesus enters the Temple

This story follows on from Jesus entering into the city of Jerusalem – He entered the city seated upon a young donkey – large crowds gathered and began to spread out their cloaks and coats on the road and others still cut down palm tree branches and covered the road for him as He entered the city – almost like a king or a celebrity would walk the red carpets of the Academy Awards.

The crowd were excited. Vocal, loud and very passionate – they shouted praise and other sought to get His attention. It was a crazy day! The scripture says that the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?” In the same way a lot of people are enquiring today about Jesus and asking the same question – “Who is this man?”

How some see Jesus Christ:

Some continue to see Him as weak, effeminate and emaciated – others see Him as a door mat of the religious rulers of His day. Others still see Him as mysterious, hard to imagine and inaccessible. Some see Him as gullible, naive and easy to fool. I mean He was supposed to be the Son of God – Messiah. But the rabble succeeded in crucifying Him and at first glance it appears that Jesus just let it all happen. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

After Jesus entered into Jerusalem he went into the Temple complex – it’s called the Temple or the House of God – it was where people had been going for centuries to offer their sacrifices and worship God. It was the place where they brought their tithes and their offering. According to Chronicles 7 it was the place where God said “I have stamped my name upon it and my eye is on it and my heart is in it always!”

When Jesus got there it appears he was transformed like the Incredible Hulk. He made a whip of cords and ransacked the temple foregrounds. He drove out the merchants, the money changers and those selling sacrificial animals. He scattered their coins and overturned the tables – in short he cause absolute chaos! It was now a shambles – not only did He upset the merchants there but He engendered great strife towards Himself with the religious rulers because they were making a profit from the sales of animals.

It was reported that His disciples in John 2:17 that, “His disciples remembered that it is written: "Zeal for your house will consume me.” Jesus was filled with a fire from heaven – zeal from God – Jesus moved with power, authority and great passion!

To put it bluntly, Jesus was angry! It was a godly and righteous anger too – It’s the sort of anger you have when your best friend died from a heroin overdose, it’s the sort of angry you feel when a friends of your is sexually assaulted, the sort of angry you feel when a drunk driver smashes into another car killing someone you know.

Jesus said to these merchants in Matthew 21:13, “It is written," he said to them, "'My house will be called a house of prayer,' but you are making it a 'den of robbers'.”

I love these words of Jesus – he said My Father’s house is a house of prayer – many people think church is boring or that prayer is just a monologue with us trying to get God’s attention – some think church is predictable and that prayer is just reading words from a book – or maybe prayer is just something religious people do – but in fact prayer is a connection formed with God – it’s when you talk with God and God speaks back to us. Prayer is a connection!

What Jesus was saying was that His house is a house of connection – it is a place where people can connect with God – a house of salvation, a house of deliverance, a house of healing and house of power – a place where God turns up!  It is supposed to be a place of worship of sacrifice, a place where destiny is forged and promise fulfilled – it is a house of innovation, creativity and a house of passion a house of compassion. A place that seeks to deliver justice, honesty and integrity. Our picture of Jesus will influence our picture of the church.

These religious people had made God's House something it wasn’t supposed to be – they made it a den of thieves and robbers. What the merchants were doing, with the religious rulers in agreement, was to sell animals to those who had travelled far to be in Jerusalem for worship – but the animals were sick, diseased and weak – many were lame, blind and feeble.

The guys who were doing the money exchange were charging exorbitant rates for the service ripping people off big time. The whole thing was a massive rip off. They were taking advantage of people’s needs. They were villains – but nowhere near as cool as the Joker!

Jesus got sick of this shambles and cleaned out the temple – drove these men and their animals out of the temple – He over turned tables, that would have been exciting – He must have been really fierce, authoritive and ferocious because people got out quick.

Jesus then restored the temple to be a place where God connected with people again. It is recorded in Matthew 21:14, “The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them.”

It says in the bible that the religious were so upset with him they sought ways to kill him but it is recorded in Luke 19:47-48, “Every day he was teaching at the temple. But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him. Yet they could not find any way to do it, because all the people hung on his words.”

Here is a hero, here is a man of steel, and here is a man of courage, strength and passion. Here are real bad guys trying to kill a real good guy. If ever you doubted Jesus was able to save you, if ever you wondered is He strong enough to help you in your darkness – doubt no more!

May I present to you Jesus the Son of God, a hero for all ages.

Our 21^st Century picture of Jesus needs to change – to many He looks to be weak, frightened and emaciated – to others he is inaccessible, distant, unrelated to their everyday life. But our culture appears to be quite fascinated by Heroes; the TV series as well as people we regard as people of bravery, courage or just sheer guts!

What about The Batman, maybe James Bond, or the courageous Ellen Ripley from the Alien movies, or maybe Matt Damon as Jason Bourne. For me its Arnie in Predator, or Peter Petrelli in Heroes.

But would anyone today regard Jesus as a hero? Can any of you see Jesus Christ as brave, daring and man of steal? Would anyone see gentle Jesus meek and mild rising up as a gutsy, spirited and audacious individual – could anyone imagine Jesus staring in the smash hit TV series called 24?

Most would say a resounding NO! But I beg to disagree. I believe that mostly unknown and unawares to people Jesus represents the most powerful and courageous person we will ever meet. As Craig Detweiler expressed in his book “A Matrix of Meaning,” “We believe a bold, ancient, radical Christ stands on the sidelines of the culture wars, waiting with arms wide open, eager to engage our hearts, our minds and our culture!”

Jesus is greater than any super hero you could ever imagine and His love is strong! His love is the strongest love you will ever experience in your life.

Romans 8:35-39, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? … No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

This is no namby pamby kind of love here – but strong, tough even heavy-duty! Let me tell you a story about this powerful, strong and courageous Jesus – a story that shows His character and integrity – a glimpse of Jesus in full swing!

..... to be continued!

No matter what size our churches we are so often tempted to spend the bulk of our time working IN the church. Instead of developing leaders and creating teams we find ourselves doing the busy work of the church. This is not the biblical principle we should work to.

Paul when writing to the church in Ephesus made it clear what the roles should be for those who have been called to lead should be; Ephesians 4:11-13, “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” 

If you are a “gift ministry” of Christ, then your work is to “prepare” God’s people for works of service. To prepare, to place them in the right place, to see their gifts and talents and arrange them so as to see them fulfilling the potential within each of them.

To prepare them is to give appropriate training, add skill sets, and develop them into great servants of God; to build these people into teams and motivate them to work for the glory of God. To prepare these people to carry the responsibility of leadership so they can in turn do the work of ministry.

To accomplish this we need perspective enough to see people’s potential and release them. This is work ON the church. I know this sounds simple but I stand amazed at how busy pastors and leaders are these days. Success in ministry is not measured by how many hours you work, how much sweat you give off nor is it how tired you feel at the end of a day.

Our success is in building teams, developing people and creating leaders who can lead. Our success is creating a culture of leadership that produces momentum.

Mark 2: 1 – 5

People make extra ordinary moves to connect with God; most of the time they don't know its God they need. What motivates them is this internal and eternal drive for purpose, satisfaction and fulfilment.

Some find this sense of fulfilment for a moment when they peak on their drug of choice or at the moment of an intense sexual event; other find it at the peak of a party or during a drinking session with friends. The problem is this feeling is transient, fleeting, passing and short-lived. It meets the moment but doesn’t satisfy for long.

With a generation going to extraordinary lengths to connect with God surely there is a church willing to go extraordinary lengths to connect with these people.

To be a people motivated by the cause of Christ requires us to be as radical as Christ – touch the untouchable, love the unlovable and go further than any organisation to connect desperate people with a God desperate to meet them.

My goal is to get these desperate people into the same room as a desperate God who loves them. I will go to extraordinary lengths to achieve this. 

Inspiring,

energetic,

charismatic,

visionary,

pioneer,

man of faith!

These are some of the things that come to mind when I think of Tom Rawls.

I have known Tom for many years and he has always been an inspiration to me. I have seen him succeed in many areas of ministry. He has overcome difficulties and challenges and leads people into break through and blessing where ever he goes.

Tom Rawls is a man of outstanding ability and his book carries the spirit of faith that marks him as one of Gods leaders of influence.

Alun Davies is Senior Pastor of Faith! Church in Melbourne Victoria and serves as Vice President of the Australian Christian Churches as well as the current President of the ACC International the world missions arm of the ACC.

Brian Houston

Tom’s broad life-experiences, coupled with his service to the Church have given him a unique perspective and understanding. This is a courageous and honest assessment of the Church in a Biblical, historical and eternal context.  I believe those who venture into these pages will see the Church from a more vibrant perspective - as profoundly powerful and vastly underestimated.  These are strategic days in the history of the church and we should do all we can to position her to fulfil her call and awaken the beauty within.

Brian Houston, Senior Pastor, Hillsong Church

Joe Champion (what a name!! I’d love a last name like CHAMPION) Tweets on 25^th August 2010, “Submission is just a word until there is a difference of opinion or view. When faced w/ a difference of opinion or view, can we submit?”

Today most people feel they have the right to express their opinion. “This is what I think!” Surely it is a divine right to make clear our thoughts, views or position on a subject.

But how do we navigate the waters where there is a divergent view or a different opinion? When is it now “right” to state my opinion? When do I take a stand or not take a stand based on my opinion?

Let’s start with a proverb; “Opinions are like belly buttons and everyone has one and they are all full of lint.” Now the literary source for this proverb is a bit obscure but most people will laugh and then agree. Everyone when asked would have an opinion.

The bible word submission is surrounded with suspicion in our 21^st Century politically correct world; especially for newly wedding women who don’t want to say they will submit to their new husbands. But the word is clearly IN the Bible. So what do we make of it?

Let me start with a good scripture we can all agree on. Ephesians 5:21 says, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” 

1. Firstly, this verb tense in the original language is present continuous. That means the act of submitting to one another is a thing I am doing now and continuously.
 
2. “... One another,” speaks of a mutual acting with each other – you do it and I do it too. We are mutually submitting to each other – in my church Proclaimers we shorten this message by using a phrase “learning to flow together.” I think flowing together captures the meaning of the word submit. Let me explain further.
 

3. Submit: Greek - hupotasso (hoop-ot-as'-so); being reflexive and responsive.Its other meanings are to subordinate yourself to another and believe me it’s a good idea to do what the boss says if you want to stay employed, it’s good to do what your teacher says if you want to pass the subject, wisdom says if you want to live you should obey your mother, she brought you into this world she can take you out! Be afraid be very afraid. (For those of you with no sense of humour this is intended as a joke and you should laugh right about here.)

In the contexts, outside of clear lines of authority, like with church, with other leaders around you and with say the teams your part of there is a such a need for this spirit this attitude of just being responsive and reflexive being willing to maybe surrender your cherished opinion for what your leader is saying or directing. Sure if you feel you have a point of view that REALLY needs to be heard then politely share your view; but if it is rejected then respond be reflexive and make your stance one that shows a willingness to “flow together” with your leader, your pastor, your team and those around you.

Things can get heated when it comes to opinion. Make sure you don’t fan the flame. Take care to follow the other biblical principles of reasonable interaction instead of hanging on to your “inalienable right” to state your opinion.

Learn what this scripture encourages us to do in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13, “Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.”

One last comment; people submit to you; you can’t force someone to do that! The day of the harsh leader is over. We cannot abide a mean spirit, “bull-in-a-chine-shop” approach to God’s people. People won't take it and it’s not in the spirit of Christ’s leadership.

Look at that scripture in Hebrews 13:17, “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.”

The word “obey” is a broad word used here and it means to agree with, assure, believe, have confidence in, make friend with, trust and yield to; big difference from just blinding doing what you’re told.

The word “submit” here comes from another Greek word but has the same root word as the Ephesians scripture and means to yield to, or surrender to their leadership. Again this is NOT mindless following but being inspired to follow someone who is following Christ.

Remember submission is not submission until you disagree and have to surrender your opinion!

Acts 17:22-23, “Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus [Mars Hill] and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.”

What was Paul doing in Athens anyway? Let me explain; he had been run out of the last town he was speaking in and was waiting for his mates to come and get him. In the mean time he was out and about walking the city, tourist map in one hand and a digital camera in the other.

He was waiting for his friends and in the process he was out finding coffee shops, wine bars and restaurants for lunch. He was doing the tourist thing in Athens! Paul was taking the time to get out a bit more. And just by the way found himself at Mar’s Hill engaging a group of philosophers about the “Unknown God!”

So many of us stay home or hang out with other Christians. When we do get it out it’s on the way to work or school and we try so hard to be invisible. We’ve been taught to keep your religious views to yourself or that we need to become flaming evangelists armed with tract about God, hell and eternal flames.

The more we disengage from the world around us the more our passion for the lost is blunted. When we limit our exposure to the world around us our zeal to see people connect with eternity is dulled and our fervour to reach people is reduced and our voice to the world becomes muted! We need to get out more if we want God’s love of people to characterise our lives. 

I love people watching. I sit in cafes, train station and airports and just look. But we’ll need to do more than that; we need to get out more and see people walking around. We need to start conversations with people and connect with them. People need to see and hear that we are different and are of a different spirit. I don’t mean we need to be out spoken, verging on the fanatic; but we do need to let people know there is something different about us; we have a living relationship with God.

I admit that communication in a 21^st Century context is elaborate, if we seek to truly touch our world we will need to understand the world we live in so we can speak to it. Some couldn’t be bothered to learn or to connect with today.

Our First Impressions team are awesome! I love to talk about them everywhere I go because they do such a great job. These are the guys who drive the minibuses, serve teas and coffees, serve as parking attendants and host on our front doors. This week I have asked our team leader, Rebekah Loades, to share some insights for us in growing such a great team.

The BIG ask! People are just waiting to be asked to serve on team.

Ever tried to get someone to try the first piece of a freshly baked cake? What about asking someone to test drive a Nissan 350z? I’m sure most of us wouldn’t find it difficult to ask people to do either of those things!

How about asking someone to serve on your team? Does that bring out hives or make you sweat big time? Why? Do you think that they might say no or that it isn’t very exciting what you’re asking them to do?

Well either way people are often afraid to ask if it’s okay to serve on team! A lot of the time they don’t want to be an inconvenience to you or they don’t think that there is a need - you seem to be coping okay on your own and don’t need any more help.

Why did you get involved in the first place? Most people want to be a part of something bigger than them and feel like they are making a difference in our world - being involved in team is the way that they can achieve this.

Make it easy for people to be involved in what you are doing and start by doing the ASKING!

Some points to consider when doing the BIG Ask:

1.       How do you talk about your team? How you talk about the team will say a lot. Are you enthusiastic and passionate when you talk about it or do you say things like ‘I know it’s not the most interesting thing to do’ or ‘It is a really messy job but someone has to do it I guess’. This kind of language will turn people off straight away before you even ask if they want to be involved! So talk about some of the effects of your team tell them some great stories  – ‘It was worth getting up early to make all the tea and coffee because when I served one lady last week she spoke to me about the miracles that God has been doing in her life – that’s why I love doing what I do’.

2.       Does your team look like its having fun? If your team all look bored and grumpy or like they all woke up on the wrong side of the bed then people won’t want to join it! Inject some fun and create an environment that people want to be a part of. Have Fun! 

3.       Is it easy to be part of your team? What have you done to open up your team for people to join and be a part of? People want to feel included and like they will fit in. Do all of your team wear matching t-shirts? Well what if someone doesn’t feel comfortable in a T-Shirt as they always wear a smart shirt and tie or they are too big to fit into the sizes available? What have you done to allow them to still feel a part of the team, to still feel needed and to still be a part of something bigger than them?

The Role of an Executive Pastor

The use of the title or term Executive Pastor at Proclaimers:

The term Executive Pastor has been in use in the church for many decades and is used to describe the role of a person appointed to assist the senior pastor. It is a term used in large church contexts to describe the role of a specific person designated to free the Senior Pastor from the many day to day administrative duties in church life as the church grows.

Every church is led by a Pastor. The Pastor's role is to shepherd the flock, however, it is not possible for one person to shepherd a large and growing number of people and to do so effectively. There has to be some delegation of work and function. Spreading out roles and responsibilities reduces the burden on the Pastor's shoulders so they are free to fulfil their primary responsibility in teaching, vision casting, directing the church, coaching and developing leaders, creating culture and caring for people.

The Executive Pastor is appointed to shoulder many of the day to day responsibilities in the church freeing the senior pastor to do what he’s been called to do. The Executive Pastor is there to help the Senior Pastor to get the work of the church done effectively, efficiently and quickly. Their role is to make sure that every aspect of the church’s ministry impacts effectively and according to design.

In a large and growing church every person counts and it is the vision of our church to see that every person is cared for well. To achieve this goal the role of the Executive Pastor is crucial.

Job Description for the Executive Pastor

Vision Implementation
Under the direction of the Senior Pastor, the Executive Pastor is to co-ordinate and organise the programs of the church, in line with the established goals of the church.

Overseeing Daily Activities
The Executive Pastor leads all the day-to-day activities, thereby allowing the Senior Pastor to concentrate on the overall spiritual growth of the church.

Administrative Activities
Under the Senior Pastor's guidance, and in consultation with appropriate committees and staff, the Executive Pastor has to prepare the church budget and manage it. He/She is tasked to relate to others on staff to ensure they operate effectively in their roles and according to their stated goals.

Disciplining and Nurturing
The Executive Pastor's duty also includes coaching individuals and developing their capacity as leaders and disciples of Jesus Christ. He/She is to train and motivate the team, so that the church sends effective leaders into the world to carry forward the message of Christ and His church.

Helping with General Pastoral Duties
Often times the Executive Pastor will handle areas of general pastoral care which may include counselling and general advice offered to members; he/she would perform this ministry alongside others in the church who have as a responsibility for the care of others. His/her role is crucial in allowing the senior pastor to be able to carry out his role of pastoring in a large and growing church.

Facilitate Short-term Ministry Projects
The Executive Pastor is to manage teams of people for short-term ministry projects such as building programs, special church events or community involvements.

In a large and growing church the role of an Executive pastor is crucial if a Senior Pastor is to function effectively. I thank God for the role that Pastor Owen Morgan plays in our church here in Norwich.

Tom Rawls
Senior Minister ¦ Proclaimers

_{I want to acknowledge help on this articel from Priya Johnson at Buzzle.com and Owen Morgan who functions as Executive Pastor at Proclaimers}

It concerns me when all Christians can do is criticise others. Our criticism starts with people in the world and we end up being critics of the church as well. Criticism is a dangerous disease. In turn we condemn others by our judgements.

I heard a quote once from a guy called John Haggai and he said, "It don't take much size to criticise." I know it sounds cheesy but it also holds a profound truth; critics are small minded people.

Why is it when faced with a woman caught in the very act of adultery we want to pick up rocks and kill her. Not only is this action motivated by law but it reflects a religious spirit that is cruel, calouse and cares little for people.

Jesus said we were to be salt to the earth, to add flavour, be an influence and by our very presence seek to preserve the goodness and kindness of God in the earth.

Jesus said, "I don't condemn you." Why can't we look past our own personal preferences and see people? Why cant we look past the sin and see the person? Why does someones lifestyle offend us, threaten us or make us angry? Sinners sin because they are sinners; get over it.

In today's world we will see the horror of sin and stand face to face with the consequences of immorality in the people around us. But we can never forget the words of Jesus found in John 3:17, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." NIV

It's time we put down our stones of criticism and start to focus our energies on reaching out to a people "caught in the act ..." To love them not condemn them to engage with people not judge them and to connect with them and not try and kill them.

Romans 5:20, "But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." KJV

Would love to hear your comments. TR 

Matthew 9:13 (The Message): "Jesus, overhearing, shot back, "Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? Go figure out what this Scripture means: 'I'm after mercy, not religion.' I'm here to invite outsider, not to coddle insiders."

I find it interesting the Christian mindset of "us and them." Jesus calls them outsiders only to differentiate the focus of His mission. It's not a put down to anyone. He is certainly not judging those he calls outsiders.

If anything Jesus is having a shot at the religious leaders of His day for making their focus the insiders! Jesus is making it clear what His focus is and in so doing makes it clear what our focus should be as well.

We must as a church look outwards - we must be externally focused not internally focused. We have to spend more time thinking in terms of how to reach our world not how to keep Christians from straying away from the fold.

Shame on Christians who needed to be coddled - these incredibly high maintenance people who seem to love their problems more than they love Jesus, who exaggerate how huge their need is but spend little to no time exaggerating how great God grace is.

If we look at the simple breakdown of the scripture we see Jesus talking about MERCY for OUTSIDERS and merely RELIGON for INSIDERS.

So ... listen closely; how do we become insiders who move in MERCY and not religion? The answer is by keeping an eye out for outsiders and showing mercy but at the same time resist the temptation to coddle those in the church encouraging them rather to maturity.

Coddling people doesn't prepare them for real life, where as mercy causes people to open up to the Saviour. Pastor shepherd the sheep, lead the sheep and feed the sheep. We nurse those who are sick and labour until Christ is formed in them. As Christian leader though we must resist the temptation to coddle.

Coddle: Dictionary.com says, "... to baby, to indulge, to treat indulgently, to pamper, to spoil." Coddling people keeps them immature and unformed. Coddling spoils people and we become indulgent leaders while keeping the flock childish, juvenile and under developed.

Paul encourages something quite different:

Ephesians 4: 14 - 16, "No prolonged infancies among us, please. We'll not tolerate babes in the woods, small children who are an easy mark for impostors. God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love."

Indicative of Christian maturity is an eye to the outsider. Mature people don't or shouldn't need coddling, we need to desire the mercy and grace to reach out to our world with the message of God's good news.  

Colossians 4:5-6, "Be wise in the way you act towards outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone."

Our churches as well as our conversation should be externally focused. The great misdirection of the church has been to concentrate upon itself. We some times feel we must be judge and jury to the world around us and we use people and their lifestyles to justify our speech.

The Message Bible says it this way, "Use your heads as you live and work among outsiders. Don't miss a trick. Make the most of every opportunity. Be gracious in your speech. The goal is to bring out the best in others in a conversation, not put them down, not cut them out."

A compliment would go so much further than criticism. Being gracious in our speech is the encouragement of scripture. We cannot thunder forth the "word of the Lord" to a nation and its people who no longer recognise the voice of the Lord. We need to be Jesus to them and speak in a way that "... brings out the best in others."

Being connected with today is being connected with people. 

It’s easy to connect with today when it’s all about people.

The heart of God is all about people and His relationship with them. For those of us who are the redeemed it’s all about others – it’s all about people – it’s all about loving God and loving people – it’s all about learning to connect with God and then connecting God with people.

It’s all about people and being generous with your time, your attention (some people are just soooooo busy!) your affirmation, your resources and your faith.

Our mission in life is reach people and to introduce them to Christ and get them connected with His church. Sounds simple but people connect people. I mean how can you win people to Christ when you don’t even know them. We just have to develop relationship and rapport with those around us and stop waiting for the "divine connections."

One of the most integral parts of church and its culture is belonging. People want to belong to something, they want a relationship with God and friends and they want to be part of a great family. They want to be a part of a vision bigger than themselves and work together with others of like mind and purpose.

People need people (sorry Barbara!). People need to belong; people were not meant to be isolated and alone.

God says in His word Psalms 68:6, “God sets the lonely in families” and we are that family. Open up your hearts, Jesus says in Matthew 5, “Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.”

Get out more, make more time to connect with others, realise that others are our priority. Connect with people today.

Being connected with God’s today is being motivated by His cause.

The cause of Christ is the Matrix upon which all we do in church must flow. A matrix is something that constitutes the place or point from which something else originates, takes form, or develops.

I believe a church validates its reason for existing by fulfilling this great cause. If we ignore it we too will be ignored. If we seek to fulfill other agendas and make them a priority then we too will be relegated by others agendas.

In Matthew 9:12-13 Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

It means that everything we do as church must flow from this one cause. The cause of Christ – to seek and saved that which is lost – to testify to the truth (John 18:37).

I love that scripture in Acts 20: 24, “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me – the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.”

Imagine a church totally motivated by this cause of Christ. Imagine the areas a church like this will touch. A city, a Nation - all of Europe; maybe even the world!

Luke 19:9-10, "Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

We thank God for the past as we declare vision for today.

We thank Him for the good seed planted, we honour past hero’s of the faith, we speak well of those who have gone before us and we thank God for their visionary leadership.

But we are not called to live with their ghosts! We must declare a vision for today, we must be active to build a culture current with today and we must live and move in what we call today!

Isaiah 43:18-19, "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."

Matthew 13:52, "He said to them, "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old."

The church is not about yesterday.

Psalms 118:24, “This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

The church is not a relic nor is it an artifact to be commented on in a blasé fashion; the church is not a tourist attraction, it’s not about the past, old ways or old thinking.

How dare the church allow the world to relegate this awesome church to the past. How can we allow the church to be relegated to a place of irrelevance.

The church is about right now. We are a light to the world and salt to the earth. We need to be a people who are on the front pages of papers – we need to go public with this.

The church is about living in today, acting inside today and more than that it’s about creating tomorrow and being prophetic, building a future, and creating a future for our church and city.

Ephesians 3:10-11 says, "His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Have your say...

Rick Warren said, “God has not promised to bless your agenda; He invites you to join Him in His agenda. God's agenda is the church. It's not anything else, it's the church.”

I don't know how people can get it so wrong. God's agenda is the church, the bride of Christ, the body which He both acts and speaks! Its the church.

Jesus is building a church that thinks like Him, feels like Him and acts like Him in reaching out to the lost. Jesus is building a church that speaks like Him, sounds like him and loves the lost like Him.

Jesus is extending His energies to build this kind of church – He has promised to build this kind of church in an atmosphere of war and the Hell’s gates will not prevail. Jesus is building a 21^st century Church with a heart for the lost.

Ephesians 1:23 says it all; “The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ's body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence.”

His church was always meant to be a contemporary outwardly focused church – it was always meant to be externally focused on the needs of the world. As Christians we need to embark on the mission of Christ, serve the purposes of God and join Him in His journey through this world and in the process we need to learn how to resource ourselves and live in maturity. 

We need to get out more:
What was Paul doing in Athens anyway? He had been run out of the last town he was speaking in and was waiting for his mates to come and get him. In the mean time he was out walking the city, tourist map in one hand and a digital camera in the other. He was waiting for his friends and in the process he was out finding coffee shops, wine bars and restaurants for lunch. He was doing the tourist thing in Athens!

So many of us stay home or hang out with other Christians, the more we do this the more our passion for the lost is blunted. Our zeal to see people connect with eternity is dulled and our fervor to reach the lost is reduced and our voice to the world becomes muted!

We need to get out more and see people walking around; we need to start conversations with people and connect with them. [Random acts of generosity to show Jesus is alive]

We somehow feel that religious convictions are a personal issue and never to be shared in public. We’ve been taught it’s not polite talk if we mention our faith or our relationship with Jesus. How demonic is that?

Many in the church live in another world, another time and another century. They speak another language, dress in a fashion that no longer relates. I am not talking about a “trendier than thou church” but the church has remained helplessly immobile because they have failed to shift it communications paradigms and as a result has been made redundant to the predominance of society today; they are relegated to the past, boring, irrelevant, meaningless and extraneous to today!

I admit that communication in a 21^st Century context is elaborate, if we seek to truly touch our world we will need to understand the world we live in so we can speak to them.

Craig Detweiler and Barry Taylor wrote in their new book “A matrix of meaning: Finding God in Popular Culture,” these startling words;

“We embrace pop culturebecause we believe it offers a refreshing, alternative route to a Jesus who for many has been domesticated, declawed, and kept under wraps. As the Christian church has often adopted the role of moral policeman, pop culture has assumed the role of spiritual revolutionary, subverting and frustrating those religious authorities who desperately cling to black-and-white answers in an increasingly gray world…We believe a bold, ancient, radical Christ stands on the sidelines of the culture wars, waiting "with arms wide open," eager to engage our hearts, our minds, and our culture.”
[A Matrix of Meanings: Finding God in Popular Culture]

I believe that you can’t reach a world whose culture you hate, abhor  and separate yourself from it – Richard Leonard is a Jesuit priest with a PhD in Film and Theology and he writes in his book, “Movies that Matter: Reading Film Through the Lens of Faith”:

"Given the power of media, becoming conversant with its mixed messages is an essential tool for Christian life. This involves the process of enculturation—discovering where Christ is already active within a given culture. Enculturation has traditionally been about uncovering Christian resonances in faraway places and exotic rituals. Yet the risen Christ sends us out to our media-saturated culture [of the 21^st Century] as well, and in it we labor with Christ to expose the signs of God’s saving love already present there.”

He continues; “We cannot speak to a culture we do not know or one we despise… [or one we are afraid of] we have to learn its language and discover how Christ has already gone ahead of us, enculturated in some of media’s values, stories and style."

Here is the crux of the 21^st Century church; Jesus has already gone ahead of us into the world and there are many signs of His presence there. There are present in this world tens of thousands of indications He has gone before us preparing hearts to respond to the message of salvation.

He is the same yesterday today and forever. 

His intent is that NOW through the church the wisdom and love of God should be made known!

Paul picked out a statue dedicated to “The Unknown God” and begins to preach.

Paul was able to spot the Christian resonance in the midst of all the idolatry, he was insightful enough to see that God had gone before him and prepared an intelligent platform from which to speak about God the maker of Heaven and Earth.

The world around us is full of such resonance; we just need to find it. I believe that Christ has gone before us into all the world and we just need to hear Him and see Him. Yet many Christians and churches have retreated from today’s culture. Instead of incarnating themselves into the this exciting world they become defensive and hurl abuse, get angry at people, picket institutions or worse still go into hiding, have prayer meetings and keep separate from the vulgar herd. They spend more time rebuking the Devil than they do exalting Christ in the midst of popular culture.

Many simply lose the ability to relate to people around us. Others feel intimidated by people and don’t know what to do much less what to say. The challenge is to not only ACT like Christians but to REACT like Christians becoming Christ to our modern 21st Century world.

A shocking reality is that this retreat from TODAY has led to the stagnation of churches so much so that many of them have lost their relevance and appeal to a world in desperate need for a Savior! Their Jesus is scared of the big bad world. Their brand of religion has no answers for the world today; this church has become silent, sullen, reactionary and angry.

Remember pop culture is indisputably the most extensive and influential theological training system in the world today! Engage with TODAY, Jesus promised to be with us even until the end of the ages. Believe to see His presence, search for His resonance and check out His finger prints all over today's culture.

Find the "unknown god" in the midst of your world, communicate and engage with people; start a conversation. Jesus is there and simply needs to be found by us so we can lead others to HIM!

Paul was asked to speak to everyone assembled on Mars Hill. He began with absolute brilliance; Acts 17:22-23, “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.”

As Paul addressed the Athenians he didn’t begin with criticism, he wasn’t judgmental, he didn’t stand and berate them for being idol worshippers, no personal attacks, he didn’t mock them, there were no picket lines, he didn’t appear angry at them. He wasn’t telling them to repent or they would burn in Hell.

He began by complementing them! This was no clever trick used by a savvy public speaker to get people on board either. It’s all about the grace of God! The same grace of God extended to us is also extended to the world around us! Did you get that? God’s grace is extended to all because all have sinned! It is not right for us then to condemn the world because of its sin!  I have a proving text from scripture too!

John 3:17-18, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.”

God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world because of its sin! This comes as such a shock to many! He came into the world so He could save the world! He came with grace and truth. The world stands condemned already why? Because they have not believed in the name of the God’s Son Jesus.

Jesus came to save. This is our mission too; not to bring condemnation and criticize their way of life or to make judgmental remarks! I know this will take some by surprise but it is true.

Jesus came to save not condemn!

Why, why & why?
Why do Christians appear to be so angry, negative, and so full of rules?
Why do so many regard the church as self righteous and hypocritical?
Why is the church almost always known by what it is against?
Why is the church portrayed as people with so many rules and regulations? 
Why is the church always taking an nonconstructive stance against issues, people and their sin?

Because we’ve lost sight of Jesus and forget God’s great love for people. Joseph Prince calls this the “scandal of GRACE!” I agree and believe the 21st Century Church in Europe is operating out of this scandelous grace. The practice of this grace is radical, impacting and powerful; just like Jesus was.

Film, TV and music are powerful forces that have created the 21^st Century. 21^st century Christians believe that God who invades both time and space has also gone before us and has prepared the hearts of people to receive the good news about Christ.

Rather than fearing modern culture – instead of taking a steady retreat from pop-culture should we not become the timeless church of the 21^st Century of today and see that modern thoughts and philosophies present an opportunity for us to speak of Jesus Christ?

Allow me to quote Terry Mattingly from his book Pop Goes Religion... “If you study the statistics, the typical modern [European] is much more likely to be exposed to a new religious insight or doctrine at the mall or the movie multiplex than in a traditional sanctuary. This is how modern [Europeans] spend their time, spend their money and make their decisions. Day by day, they have evolved into mass-media disciples.”

Should we not feel comfortable walking the malls and movie theatres invading today and bring grace and truth? As we walk our cities should we not have a sense that Christ has gone before us? Should we not actually be searching for those moments of divine connection?

Let me quote George Barna & Mark Hatch in their book Boiling Point... “The world of entertainment and mass communications through television, radio, contemporary music, movies, magazines, art, video games and pop literature is indisputably the most extensive and influential theological training system in the world.”

Should we not see the multifaceted world of communications as our world and isn’t it time we stepped up to the plate and become the story tellers of our day – the translators of our day? Rather than retreating from this world should we not seek to become the articulators of truth and theology – should we not see the resonance and boldly convey God’s truth?

Christ has gone before us. If we closely look around us we will see that there is Christian resonance. There are distinct signs that Christ has prepared a platform for us to communicate – if we are going to touch our 21^st Century world as a 21^st Century Church we must recognize where Christ has gone before us – we need to see the signs of His presence.

The 21^st Century church in Europe is no longer a snapshot of black and white on paper, it’s not even a buy one get one print free deal. The 21^st Century Church is a cinematic extravaganza that blows people’s minds away just like it did on the day of Pentecost.

The 21st Century Church is not mono chrome its techno color, its 3D, full graphic 128 bit color. 21^st Century church is extreme sports not golf, its MTV not Songs of Praise.

The 21st Century church in Europe is visual, ocular, explicit, and more than realistic. It’s no longer the pulpit or the alter in the sanctuary it is now the catwalk, the big screen and the main stages of society. The church is no longer hidden in obscurity but now out and shining, going public on the front pages of the press.

The 21^st century church is no longer liturgical and ritualistic but overflowing with creativity, innovation and passion! The 21st Century church is alive, adaptable, edible, touchable and flexible! It is original, imaginative, inspiring, artistic, inventive and resourceful. It is ingenious, clever and resourceful. It is relentless in hearing the heartbeat of a culture and doing all it can to touch that world.

The 21^st Century Church is loud, dynamic, vibrant and full of vocal passion, it not just stereo but defined, Spirit enabled, spirit impacting vivid Dolby digital surround sound with heart thrumming THX technology.

The 21^st Century church is not a devotional, internally looking community with monastic

tendency desperately afraid or suspicious of today’s culture but an incredible externally focused agency seeking and finding Christian resonance in the most remarkable of places.

I close with this, Paul the Apostle was an expert at touching his world and he said these words; 1 Corinthians 9:22-23, “To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel that I may share in its blessings.”

The church in Europe is alive an well. The church in Europe is growing; numerically, in influence and is beginning to impact culture, business, the arts and education.

The church in Europe is alive! I can hear the sound of a generation rising!

Europe 2010

A new decade is almost upon us filled with new hope, new possibilities and new ventures and new dreams. The challenge of Europe is palatable and powerful. As Europe enters this new decade remember this; there are over 250,000 cities, towns and villages in Europe today with no evangelical church presence. What a marvelous challenge for the church today.

Europe once the hotbed of revivals that spanned the globe has now become to the New China – the New Africa – the New India! Europe has become the greatest mission field in the world today! 

Europe is the most secular, the most progressive, and the most godless of any country blocks in the world today! The people of Europe are awesome; they are post –modern, urbane, sophisticated, and trendy. Paris Milan and Rome are some of the capitals of fashion around the world. The people are open, ready to receive, facinated with Jesus and searching for purpose, meaning and destiny.

Europe needs a church in tune and in touch with TODAY's Europeans. The good news is were already here! Ready to go; ready to expand; ready to reach out and be the tangible presence of God upon the earth. We are fresh, exciting, passionate and willing to be touched by the needs of Europeans; we are attentive, annointed and motived by the cause of Christ; we are relevant, original and not perifieral to the world around us.

Welcome to the 21st century Church thriving in Europe!

The Timeless Church:

Ephesians 3:10-11, “His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

It is through the agency of His church that we become His hands and feet. It is through the church he both acts and speaks. It is through the church that He invades every generation and is incarnate through His church to every time.

We know that Jesus has the ability to meet a person in time – in the present continuum of time which is called today. He does this because His presence is unremitting through the activity of the Holy Spirit. His church is a timeless church called to always be connected to today.

And God has created this agency called the church to fulfil His purpose in the world. The church is a vehicle that is called to keep pace with Him as He invades today. He is looking for His church to shine as a bride, to stay close to Him, to live devoted to Him so they can touch the lives of people. The church is the agency of God on earth; called to stay fresh, relevant, contemporary, accessible, touchable and to not only keep pace with a world but to invade every second of every new day. The church is timeless.

Jesus said, “I am the Alpha and Omega – WHO IS, and was and is to come! I am the First and the Last; I am the beginning and the end!” He dwells outside time, was the creator of time and now through His church has embedded Himself into every new day.

21^st Century Church: Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

This new blog is designed to stimulate our thought on being the kind of people Christ so needs us to be in the world today! For us to be the effective people of God in a rapidly changing world! To recognize that being a 21^st Century Church is not a model of church but is what the church is constantly being called to be!

I am challenged by what I hear about Hillsong Church London – they meet in the Dominion Theatre – one of London’s most prominent stages. They are on the Broadway of London in the show district of Soho filling the Dominion four times on a Sunday! Accomplishing something that is quite unthinkable on a Sunday – and they are doing church! They are doing it “Main Stage” – they are right where the church should be – highlighting Jesus Christ – lifting Him up in the Centre of one of Europe’s greatest cities!

The Message of Jesus rings in my ears – “Let me tell you why you’re! You’re here to shine like a city on a Hill!” Paul writing to the Ephesians church said this, “The church you see is not peripheral to the world but the world is peripheral to the church."

The church is the central, pivotal, strategic and most dynamic plan of God for all the ages! It is the church where Jesus both acts and speaks!” It is the church; we are the people of God who attract people to Christ. Every one of us should have that Heavenly quality that attracts people – it’s Jesus that calls us to be “fishers of men”

The message of Jesus Christ has never changed! In fact Jesus has never changed. He is still the good news of God coming to earth like a man and living and dying as the ultimate sacrifice for all mankind! This message is still the message of transformation, forgiveness and salvation! It is a story about the grace and mercy of God being poured out upon a people so undeserving.

Paul put it this way, Romans 1:16, says “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” This message remains constant – it is the same message the early church preached 2,000 years ago and every day 1,000’s are still being transformed by its power! It is the power of God!

Though this message has never changed – the packaging this message comes in has got to change for each successive generation, for every culture and people group! The way we package this timeless message needs to be memorable, vital and powerful; it needs to be unpredictable, surprising, and fresh. It must be fast paced recruiting the language of the day! It needs to have resonance and personal significance as it interacts with today.

This world needs a 21st Century church.