Doing Church Differently (continued)
In yesterday’s post, I mentioned Bellview Methodist Church in Pensacola. Sherri and I joined Bellview and were blessed by Pastor Nancy’s leadership. Her husband, Jim, is a recovering alcoholic who recently received recognition for his role in evangelism in the area. He is an egregious guy, who never meets a stranger, and is loved by all.
I never attended the Friday evening “Celebrate Recovery” meetings at Bellview, but from what I heard, these weekend meetings were worship events extraordinaire! Some said the Sunday morning worship services (both traditional and contemporary) paled in comparison to these Friday festivals celebrating God’s presence, power, and grace.
I can’t say that the Celebrate Recovery meetings at Bellview influenced our “no members” approach to church at Embrace Church. I can, however, tell you that when our leaders informed me that we didn’t have official membership, something clicked within me.
Early in my Church on the Edge posts, I received an email from a dear friend and member of our church in Seoul. “What about the homosexual issue?” she asked. “How do we approach that elephant in the church?” Actually, those weren’t her exact words, and there is no homosexual elephant in the church. And the reason for this is obvious - homosexual persons do not feel welcome in the overwhelming majority of churches, especially evangelical churches.
Anyway, I answered her, saying that I believed we needed to remove the barriers keeping LGBTQ people from attending and feeling welcome in our churches. One way to do this, I said, was by establishing churches that weren’t focused on official membership.
I had no idea at the time that Embrace would be that kind of church. Frankly, I don’t think the people at Embrace thought about it, either. They were just trying to break free of the bondage and lack of freedom found in churches they had once belonged to. And they went so long without a pastor; membership was the least of their worries. Survival was paramount. Several involved in the start-up began to question whether or not the church would survive.
And then I showed up. At least, my resume did.
“Why are you interested in our church?” was the first question I received from Embrace. They looked at my “high powered resume” (which is dung compared to knowing and serving Christ; Philippians 3:8) and thought, “What gives?”
Little did they know that I was, in fact, one of them. The freedom I experienced serving an international, multi-denominational church in Korea changed me forever. And it changed my understanding of God’s Kingdom and the ministry of Jesus. A ministry, I might add, that alienated our Lord from the religious movers and shakers in his day, who branded him “a friend of sinners.” Not exactly meant as a complement.
But for those who have experienced the grace of God, and come to understand the scandal of that grace, there is no going back. It is certainly possible to know Jesus and to experience His power and presence even in Egypt, but there is so much more than leeks and onions to dine on in the Kingdom!
Let me ask you a question - Is there a place for people, all people, whatever their background, whatever their lifestyles, whatever their politics, WHATEVER, in the church? Is there a place where people can come just as they are, and hear God’s Word, experience His presence, and taste His goodness and grace?
There needs to be.
Rarely a week goes by at Embrace when I don’t make the statement that Christ accepts us as we are, where we are, and seeks to lead us to where he is calling us to be.
And I’m going to be brutally honest. Not for the sake of being brutal, but for the need to be honest: There is a multitude of church members who haven’t budged an inch since mouthing the “sinners prayer” and joining the church. As Amy Grant sang years ago, they’re just “fat, fat, fat, fat little babies.”
And my experience in traditional, established churches is that the elders (that’s old people, like me), who should be the most grace-filled, Spirit-led, and loving disciples, are often the most cynical, mean-spirited, and anti-Kingdom people. I know what I’m talking about, and I’ve got the scars to prove it!
These are the kinds of things I told the leaders at Embrace when they asked why I would ever be interested in a little church like theirs.
“Doing Church Differently” is the title I’ve given to this week’s posts, and at Embrace, we are seeking to do just that.
We are growing. For the last couple of months, a young white man and his Hispanic girlfriend have been attending with their little son. They are loved by our people! And they are growing and will continue to grow in their commitment to Jesus and his teachings.
Two weeks ago, an unwed mother attended our church with her young daughter. She is a precious young Black woman with a little girl. She has some health issues and is worried about her unborn baby. Last week her boyfriend attended church with her. We’re giving them a baby shower at the end of the month.
What a hodgepodge of people we have at Embrace. And oh, how my heart longs to see more.
Tomorrow, I’m going to continue with this issue of LGBTQ persons and the barriers that they and many others experience when it comes to seeking a relationship with Jesus in our churches. Yes, it’s possible to know Christ apart from church, but that is not ultimately God’s plan. We need each other. All of us. So, let’s confront the issues, and let’s work together to see the words of Jesus fulfilled concerning people from the North, South, East, and West coming to the feast in God’s Kingdom.
Oh, and by the way, when Jesus speaks of the North, South, East, and West, he’s not so much referring to geography as he is to the multitude of differences found among God’s people.
In Christ,
Dan
Check out my podcasts from Church on the Edge and my books on Kindle.
You can listen to my weekly messages at Embrace Church, High Point.