Hirsch and Frost #2

Today we started out by buying (admitting) the problem the Western church finds itself in currently. With the world church growing (the fast growing religion in the world), the western church is presently the fast shrinking church in religion.

Knowing this we can see that something is wrong. Somehow the western church has gotten off track and lost its way.

Something has to change or the western church will soon find itself completely silent in our world. More of the same will not change anything or make any progress for the church. As of right now we are perfectly designed to achieve what we are achieving…impotence, shrinkage and irrelevance.

To affect change the church needs to change the story its telling. The church has to veer off the course it has been traveling for centuries. If we don’t tell a different story, we won’t change anything. We need to change the paradigm, the system story, the underlining foundation of why we do what we do, not the expression of paradigm (that would simply miss the point). In short we have to reorder the sequence of our groundwork. Without this lasting change will not be sustained.

To rectify the problem, Alan Hirsch proposes the adoption of “simplex” (simple/complex) 3 word worldview: “Jesus is Lord.” This kind of monotheistic theology is an integrated allegiance to God who is over all aspects of life. Thus worship/mission/discipleship is offering our world back to God. This does not allow for a sacred secular divide (Deut. 6:5). God claims everything completely. Anything that leads us away from God is evil and any that leads us to God is good.

Hirsch thinks the most primal, potent and sweetest form of the church is not the institutional church, but the church as a “movement.” A movement that is active, decentralize and organic.

The way to return Christianity to its movement roots, the way to refound the church is to return to Jesus. Hirsch would say the church’s Christology (its beliefs and view of Jesus the Christ) reveal its Missiology (its purpose) which in turn informs its Ecclesiology (its form). We have to understand the church does not have mission, but the mission of God has church. The church needs to reintegrate back into Jesus the Christ to understand the mission and expression of the church. We can’t continue allowing ecclesiology to wag the dog of Christology/theology and missiology. We have to remember the way(s) of Jesus.

From this simplex theology comes:

• Apostolic Environment- recovering the apostolic ministry of catalytic change.
• Organic Systems- organization as a living organism to reflect how God has structured life itself.
• Discipline Making- generate authentic followers of Jesus
• Communitas- the bonding together of people through ordeal, risk and threat.
• Missional Incarnation Impulse- the practical out working of the mission of God (the sending God).

All of which contribute to “Apostolic Genius.” 

Quote of the day: “Sex is worship, so bonk away brothers and sisters to the glory of the Lord!”