The Fifth Church

This is the another installment of my reimagining of the Revelation to John.  These short pieces draw from Revelation 2-3, and I’ll post once for each of the 7 churches.  These installments really helped me to see how provocative John’s letter would’ve been in its original context.  I’d love to know what you think.

To the angel of the Baptist churches write: These are the words of the one who has the seven flaming doves and the seven stars:

I know what you’re doing. You have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what’s left and is at death’s door, because I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember everything you’ve been given, and everything you’ve learned. Obey it and repent! If you don’t wake up, I will come like a thief and you won’t know when I’ll strike. There are a few of you Baptists who haven’t gotten caught up in all the mud-slinging and are still clean. They’re going to walk with me, dressed in white graduation robes, because they’re worthy. If the rest of you conquer, you will also be dressed in white graduation robes, and I won’t erase your names form the book of life. In fact, quite the opposite, I’ll read it loud and proud in front of my Father and all the angels. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.

The Fourth Church

This is the next installment of my reimagining of the Revelation to John.  You can catch the first piece here.  These short pieces draw from Revelation 2-3, and I’ll post once for each of the 7 churches.  These installments really helped me to see how provocative John’s letter would’ve been in its original context.  I’d love to know what you think.

To the angel of the Mainline Protestant churches write: These are the words of the Son of God, who has eyes that burn with intelligence and tough, sturdy steel-toed work boots on his feet:

I know what you’ve done – your love, faith, service and patience. I know that you’re doing things now that are greater than anything you’ve ever done. But I have this against you: you tolerate the likes of Ahab and Jezebel, who call themselves prophets and teachers and who are duping my servants to welcome and even celebrate fornication. I’ve given them time to repent, but they refuse to repent of their perversion. Watch out: I’m going to throw them onto a bed, and anyone who commits adultery with them I’m going to throw on the bed of suffering too (unless they repent!). I’m going to kill the children of her adultery. And all the churches will know that I am the one who explores your minds and hearts, and I’ll give each person and church what your works deserve. But to the rest of you Mainline Protestants who don’t hold to these teachings, who haven’t learned what some call ‘the open mind’ of Satan, I’m not going to burden you with anything else. Just hold on to the faith and works you have until I come. To everyone who conquers and continues to do my works until the end, I will offer the invitation,

Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet,

since it is my Father’s party. To the one who conquers I will also give the whitest wedding dress ever. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.

The Third Church

This is another installment of my reimagining of the Revelation to John.  These short pieces  (this 3 of 7) draw from Revelation 2-3, and I’ll post once for each of the 7 churches.  These installments really helped me to see how provocative John’s letter would’ve been in its original context.  I’d love to know what you think.

To the angel of the Black churches write: These are the words of the one who has the platinum gavel:

I know your struggles, what you face every day, right in the heart of where Satan seems to be working the most, your struggles that don’t have an end in sight. Even still, you’re holding tightly to my name, and you didn’t turn your back on your faith in me even in the days of Martin Luther King, Jr., my faithful witness who was killed among you – clearly Satan’s work. But here’s my problem: some of you are listening who Achan, whose lust for wealth brought destruction on all of God’s people. And others among you have embraced the Universalists’ teachings. So repent! If you don’t, I will come soon, and when I do, I’ll crush you with the gavel of my mouth. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers, I’ll show the hidden doors to my treasury vault, and I’ll give you a megaphone that has a battery that will never run out and that no one can find.

The Second Church

This is the next installment of my reimagining of the Revelation to John.  These short pieces draw from Revelation 2-3, and I’ll post once for each of the 7 churches.  These installments really helped me to see how provocative John’s letter would’ve been in its original context.  I’d love to know what you think.

And to the angel of the Arab churches write: These are the words of the first and last, who was dead and came to life, the ultimate immigrant:

I know your suffering, poverty and rejection (even though you’re actually rich). I hear the slander coming from those who say they are God’s chosen nation and are not – they’re actually a Satan’s nation. Don’t be afraid of what you’re about to suffer. Get ready: the devil is about to put you through the wringer – he’s testing you, and it’s not going to be pretty. Or short. Stay strong. Stay faithful even if it means death and I’ll give you the gold medal in Life. Let anyone who has ears listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. Whoever conquers won’t be caught in the second death.

The First Church

This is the second installment of my reimagining of the Revelation to John.  The next few pieces will pull from Revelation 2-3, for each of the 7 churches.  These installments really helped me to see how provocative John’s letter would’ve been in its original context.  I’d love to know what you think.

To the angel of the Reformed churches write: These are the words of the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden pulpits:

“I know what you’re doing, how hard you work and your faithfulness. I know that you can’t stand false teachers; you have tested those who claim to represent God but don’t, and you’ve found them to be false. I also know that you’re working hard in my name, that you’re not giving up or getting tired. But I have this against you: you have abandoned the love you had at first. Look back and see where your system has tripped you up; repent and let what you do now look more like what you did at first. If you don’t, I will come to you and remove your pulpit from its place (unless you repent!). I’ll give you this: you hate the teachings of Universalists, which I also hate. Let anyone who has an ear hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers, I will give permission to eat from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God.”

CEO Jesus

Since last week I took on a Jesus I’m not too big on, I figured I’d balance everything out by exploring a Jesus who is nearer and dearer to my heart than I really enjoy admitting.  So without any further ado, may I present to you

CEO Jesus (a.k.a. Corporate Jesus, Business Model Jesus)

CEO Jesus loves to ADMINSTER sacraments. Or ordinances.  Whichever you prefer.  He'll take a poll and get back to you on what we're going to call them.

This is a Jesus who’s been growing in popularity in the Church since the 1970s, and we can probably attribute both the seeker movement and the megachurch to his activity.  It was around that time leaders in the church really began to look to corporate America for guidance and inspiration.  So we began to see churches with Mission Statements (and later Vision and Process and a host of other flavors of statements) and Core Values.  We began to hire according to skill sets, even creating positions like Administrative Pastor.  Malcolm Gladwell and Seth Godin have joined Max Lucado and Rick Warren as must-reads for any church leader (and when the heck is Mitch Joel going to get on that list?  Come on, people!).

This hasn’t been all bad; indeed, it may have been inevitable.  Given that our culture is so shaped by the culture of Corporate America, we should have expected some degree of syncretism.  And leaders like Bill Hybles and Andy Stanley are shining examples of faithful incarnation of the Gospel in corporate culture.

But Corporate Jesus is really all about making you a better person.  He has worship services and encourages us to church shop until we find a place that meets our needs.  He wants us to worry about whether or not we like the music or how well the sermon feeds us.  This body of CEO Christ creates rockstar senior pastors and pop-perfect worship bands.

A good friend of mine recently interviewed at such a church, and during their Sunday gathering, his wife commented that he probably wasn’t cool enough to be a part of their leadership.  She was only partially joking.

The CEO Jesus is slowly working his way down the corporate church ladder: more and more churches are embracing strengths-based ministry, in which a person is profiled and then invited to serve where their unique combination of gifts and talents will best benefit both them and the larger church corporation ::ahem:: excuse me, larger church body.

Here’s my problem with CEO Jesus: I love him.

I love this model of church.  The reason we borrow so heavily from business is because their models work. Really well.  I have become a much better minister thanks to Marcus Buckingham and Tim Sanders’ mentoring.  Made to Stick and Communicating for a Change pretty much revolutionized my preaching.

And I really do believe that we love God best when we are good stewards of all the gifts we’ve been given, including our strengths and talents.

But what about the fact that the Gospel is not primarily about me?  What about the fact that I’m called to die with Jesus, not promote myself or my company (dang it, I mean church!)?  What about the fact that his strength is enough for me, that his strength is made perfect in my weakness, not my top 5? (that’s a Strengthsfinder reference for the uninitiated)

This is a tension the Body of Christ must take seriously.

Right. There's a limit. I get it.
Right. There’s a limit. I get it.

We walk a tight rope and falling to either side is deadly.  On one hand, we have the consumer church culture and rockstar, too-cool-for-school church leaders.  We run the danger of becoming a cheap, plastic generic Church made not in China (maybe we’d be better off taking a lead from Chinese churches?) but in focus groups and opinion polls.  On the other side, however, we run the risk of becoming ineffective.  I know that word is unpopular; we’re not supposed to measure God’s work because it’s somehow unfaithful.

In response to this problem Andy Stanley once said,

One time Jesus fed 5,000 men plus women and children.  How did they know how many people there were?  They counted them!

We should always be asking ourselves if we’re doing the most we can with the resources and energies we have.  If our vision is really God’s vision.  If it’s a BHAG (pronounced bee-hag, from Jim CollinsBig Hairy Audacious Goal).  If it’s something we can do on our own – the way CEO Jesus would want us to, or if we’re actually going to have to step out in faith and trust the real Jesus, who promised that we’d do even greater things than he, who promised never to leave us or forsake us and in whose name we will not rest until the whole world has been reconciled.

How much have you interacted with the CEO Jesus?  Do you see corporate culture in your church?  Do you like it or not?