“It is one of the remarkable features of contemporary church life that so many are attempting to heal the church by tinkering with its structures, its services, its public face.
This is clear evidence that modernity has successfully palmed off one of its great deceits on us, convincing us that God Himself is secondary to organization and image, that the church’s health lies in its flow charts, its convenience, and its offerings rather than in its inner life, its spiritual authenticity, the toughness of its moral intentions, its understanding of what it means to have God’s Word in this world. Those who do not see this are out of touch with the deep realities of life, mistaking changes on the surface for changes in the deep waters which flow beneath. An inspired group of marketers might find a way of reviving a flagging business by modifying its image and offerings, but the matters of the heart, the matters of God, are not susceptible to such cosmetic alteration. The world’s business and God’s business are two different things.
Davis Wells, God in the Wasteland
3 comments:
It is a good quote, but I think it flies in the face of some of your earlier bogs. Isn’t changing the public face part of being culturally relevant? I understand that these changes are superficial and do not change the “deep waters which flow below” but isn’t that the point. We should not change the deep water. We must change the surface water, the look of the organization, as opposed to the soul of the organism. “Tinkering with its structures, its services, its public face” are often needed to bring health to the church.
I don't think Wells comments fly in the face of my earlier posts (see pts. 1& 2 on the responsibility the church bears in the growth of the church from Faithfulness and Fruitfulness). Wells point is that we have made God "secondary to organization and image". I believe elsewhere he has described God as becoming inconsequential to church life. The main point is not that we don't need to any surface changes but rather we ought not deceive ourselves into thinking that the power and health of the church lies is primarily determined by its public face.
Here's how I would summarize Wells' awesome quote. Rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic may address an existent issue, but it will not address the fundamental issue that needs to be addressed.
Jeff
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