Grace Gathering Video – Pastor John Davis (Part Four)

Part Three here.

Why Start Another Church?

Why plant new churches?

This question is commonly asked by those both inside and outside of the Christian faith. There are many misconceptions about church planting and the need to engage in this activity.

The following quotations from Tim Keller and J. Allen Thompson’s Church Planter Manual may clarify the absolute necessity of planting new churches.

Why plant new churches? Because it is really the only way of fully obeying the Great Commission:

Virtually all the great evangelistic challenges of the New Testament are basically calls to plant churches, not simply to share the faith. The “Great Commission” (Matt. 28:18-20) is not just a call to “make disciples” but to “baptize.” In Acts and elsewhere, it is clear that baptism means incorporation into a worshipping community with accountability and boundaries (cf. Acts 2:41-47).

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The Unfreezing of the Christian Church

Unfreezing is an aspect of Kurt Lewin’s force field analysis model. This is a model of “systemwide change that helps change agents diagnose the forces that drive and restrain proposed organizational change” (McShane and Von Glinow, 2009, p. 488). Unfreezing refers to the “first part of the change process whereby the change agent produces disequilibrium between the driving and restraining forces” (p. 489).

Systemic organizational change is rarely, if ever, achieved without conflict. This is true in churches and it is true in business. This process of change has been shown to have identifiable agents that participate in organizational movement from the status quo to a desired condition or state of affairs. The preeminent model that describes systemic change is Kurt Lewin’s “force field analysis.” This model assists in diagnosing “the forces that drive and restrain proposed organizational change” (McShane and Von Glinow, 2008, p. 488).

On the one side of this model, there are “driving forces” that are pushing “organizations toward a new state of affairs” (p. 488). On the other side, resisting the change, there are “restraining forces” that are striving gallantly to maintain the status quo. Carol Bartz (2009), the new chief executive officer of Yahoo, Inc. has witnessed this firsthand. She has correctly observed that organizations frequently can “get in the way of innovation” (“Question of Management”). Often the restraining forces are fearful of change, and automatically assume a hostile stance toward anything new or different. This hostility drives behavior that ends up restraining, or attempting to restrain, the winds of change.  

Within organizational settings, change cannot occur without an “unfreezing” of the status quo. A distortion must be introduced into the organization in order for an unfreezing to occur. The unfreezing process begins as (1) the driving forces for change become more prevalent, (2) when restraining forces are diminished, or (3) as a result of a combination of both of these occurrences (McShane and Von Glinow, 2008, p. 489).

For instance, driving forces for change become more pronounced when someone new is inserted into a key point within the structure of the organization. In a church setting, this can occur when a new pastor or elder is called to serve the congregation. This person may, knowingly or not, begin an unfreezing process that moves the organization in a new direction. “Change rarely occurs by increasing driving forces alone, however, because the restraining forces often adjust to counterbalance the driving forces” (p. 492).

Restraining forces can be diminished when key leaders or managers within an organization relocate, retire, or pass away. If a person was influential within the organization, these types of events can easily begin to move the group in a new direction. If restraining forces are declining as driving forces for change are increasing, then movement from the status quo to a new condition is probably inevitable. Thus, the process of unfreezing begins.

The unfreezing process can create great tension and disharmony within the organization. The disequilibrium that results can generate a considerable amount of stress for those who desire no movement from the existing state of affairs. Those in positions of authority must handle this instability with great care and gracious understanding for those who are uncomfortable with the movement to a new condition. Disgruntled and disenchanted people, even if in the minority, can be a great hindrance to the growth of any organization. Effective resistance to change can take many forms that undermine the goals of the leaders who are trying to move the organization to a better position in order to accomplish their mission.

Rather than resenting the reality of resistance, leaders and managers would do well to consider the brute fact that many people oppose change simply because they fear the process of change itself. The following six items are forces that resist organizational change, adapted from McShane and Von Glinow (2008). These forces are manifest to some degree in all organizational settings, even, regrettably, in churches:

(1)  Direct costs. People tend to block actions that they perceive will cost them something. This cost is weighed socially, economically, or psychologically.

(2)  Saving face. Some resist change as a political strategy in order to enhance their personal reputation within the organization.

(3)  Fear of the unknown. People resist change out of worry that they will not be able to properly adjust and acclimate themselves to the new environment.

(4)  Breaking routines. People are creatures of habit. They like to stay within their comfort zones by continuing routine role patterns that make life predictable. Changes within their workplace or place of worship are viewed with as much gravitas as changes that take place within their own living rooms. Also, people simply do not wish to invest the time and energy necessary in order to learn new role patterns.

(5)  Incongruent organizational systems. Social and psychological rewards accompany certain role patterns within any organization. People do not wish to alter such well-known unspoken social structures.

(6)  Incongruent team dynamics. Groups develop and enforce conformity to a set of norms that guide behavior. However, conformity to existing team/group norms may discourage people from accepting organizational change. In the eyes of those who resist change, new norms that conflict with the status quo must be eliminated (p. 490-91).

Progressive-minded leaders within the organization must create a climate that cultivates change. For this to occur, the leaders must lay a foundation of instruction that teaches people about the necessity of change in a world of constant movement. If the people don’t see the need for change, increased resistance will overwhelm any purposeful increase in driving forces and a continuance of the status quo will be the end result.

The visionary leader is one who can anticipate cultural forces and see the need for the organization to adapt to face the new challenges that lie ahead. In churches, such leaders must, through their teaching, counseling, and personal interaction with the people in their congregation, create a sense of crisis and urgency for change. This must be done carefully and over time, but it must be done if the church is to stay properly contextualized and relevant to the culture it is attempting to reach for the cause of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

This does not mean that the church must become “of” the world in order to reach it (cf. John 15:18; 17:16), for the Gospel message possesses universal relevance and, by its very nature as God-given propositional truth, unchanging. However, church leadership must recognize that the church is to be “in” the world (cf. John 17:11, 18) in the sense that we are still here on earth (for we were not instantly translated into the presence of the Lord when we were saved) so that we may carry out our task as ambassadors of the King until He returns to inaugurate His reign in all of its fullness. Being “in” the world as ambassadors necessarily implies that we are to be constantly reaching out to communicate the Gospel in ways that are understandable and meaningful to the culture around us.

For the church to remain static in its outreach and methods of communicating with the culture is to stubbornly stand opposed the effective advancement of the Gospel of our Lord. Paul’s charge to “not be conformed to this world” (Romans 12:2) simply does not apply to the effective, relevant communication of the Gospel by Holy Spirit-empowered and –sensitive saints who are pursuing what is good and eschewing the wicked elements within culture. Paul’s own preaching on Mars Hill in Acts 17 displays a willingness to confront the world with the Gospel on its own turf, utilizing fleeting and changing elements of localized culture (which is itself shaped by those who are created in the image of God) as touchstones for the unchanging truth of the Gospel. Therefore, culturally relevant evangelism cannot be what the Holy Spirit is forbidding in Romans 12:2.

The church never needs to change (its message) but always needs to change (the form that the message takes). Christian leaders must refuse to be defeated by the familiar rhythms of the church’s existence. This merely condemns the church to continue down the same failed path as our most recent predecessors. [1] The solution cannot be to simply shout the message louder. We must change the way we are delivering the message. It is the task of the men whom God has called to pastor our churches to constantly and consistently lay the foundation for effective change within their respective congregations.

McShane and Von Glinow (2008) point out that “effective change occurs by unfreezing the current situation, moving to a desired condition, and then refreezing the system so that it remains in this desired state” (p. 489). In light of what has been said above, any refreezing that occurs should be understood as contingent and temporary.

The church needs to recognize that we are sojourners and pilgrims in this world (1 Peter 2:11). As such, we need to stop building immutable, permanent edifices that testify to the methodologies and religion of past generations. We need to stop sitting around pining about the supposed glory days of Christian yore and whining that the culture has moved on from Churchianity to something else. We need to stop practicing a dead Nostaligianity [2] and embrace a living, vibrant, New Testament Christianity.

Our post-church culture has moved so far beyond these older forms of the expression of the Christian faith that it no longer understands or even values them. My prayer is that church leaders of all ages would recognize the value and necessity of moving their congregations in directions where we can make the Gospel make sense again in our culture. My prayer is for a great “unfreezing” to occur in our churches. It is my conviction that unless such an unfreezing takes place, we will not see Gospel revival again in our lifetimes.

References:

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. (2006). Version 2.1. Accordance Bible Software, Version 8.2.3, 2009. 

Lindsey, B. (2009). Nostalgianomics: Liberal economists pine for days no liberal should want to revisit. The Wall Street Journal. Available: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124508075585515437.html [24 June 2009].

McShane, S. L. & Von Glinow, M. A. (2008). Organizational Behavior: Emerging Realities for the Workplace Revolution. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

A Question of Mangement: Carol Bartz on how Yahoo’s organizational structure got in the way of innovation. (2009). The Wall Street Journal. Available: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203431004574196080698220124.html [24 June 2009].

Shalit, W. (2009). Delighting in dust bunnies: The elusive quest for domestic order. The Wall Street Journal. Available: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204482304574217822376214350.html [24 June 2009].

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[1] I owe the structure and wording of this and the previous sentence to a portion of Wendy Shalit’s “Delighting in Dust Bunnies: The elusive quest for domestic order.”

[2] I came up with the term “Nostalgianity” after reading Brink Lindsey’s “Nostalgianomics: Liberal economists pine for days no liberal should want to revisit.”

Note: Illustrations are from McShane and Von Glinow’s Organizational Behavior.

Suburbolationism and American Christianity

 

There exists today an epic crisis in America’s urban areas. This crisis of crime, impoverishment, and anomie has been exacerbated and facilitated over the last several decades by the mass exodus of middle-class Christians from the city to the suburbs. This exodus has left a vacuum of resources both economic and spiritual. While they may exhibit some short-term external benefits, social and political solutions to this crisis can never suffice to bring about a full resolution of the structural problems within our cities. It is only the mighty power of the everlasting Gospel that can transform the heart and life of those within the city. The American Church must turn its eyes back to the city as a place teeming with the very people that Jesus has called us to love and serve: the poor and the outcast.

            The problems in America’s cities are multitudinous: anomie, poverty, homelessness, crime, desolation (spiritual, moral, and physical), decay, addiction, and so on. Unfortunately, the Christian Church has behaved in a way that facilitated the downward spiral of the American cityscape into this state of crisis. Over the last few generations, evangelical Christians have fled the city for the relative peace and safety of the suburbs, and in so doing, have all but abandoned the city as a place to be avoided and even despised. More importantly, Christians have not only abandoned the city, but have abandoned the people who live in the city, both believers and unbelievers alike. Largely as a result of this flight, “The city…remains the repository of the poor and powerless” (Henslin, 2008, p. 409).

            Evangelical flight from our nation’s cities was and is a powerful indicator of a larger-scale, ongoing cultural disengagement by the middle class. The departure of the middle class has left the city devoid of resources, both material and personal. For decades, white Christians with money have fled the city for the suburbs and left behind a “mostly brown and black population that was often bereft of resources” (Byassee, 2008, p. 22). Without these spiritual and physical resources it is terribly difficult, if not impossible, for the city to be renewed in righteousness. Unless and until the Church repents from its neo-monastic stance and behavior and turns its eyes upon our nation’s urban areas, wickedness will continue to reign in our cities and we can expect no real lasting spiritual and cultural change to occur in these areas.

            Government and social programs can assist to alleviate suffering and chaos only in the short run; long-term solutions can only be realized as a result of deep-rooted, spiritual-structural change. Such transformation can only be found in the Gospel. Urban regeneration and renewal must begin with and focus on individual people as holistic beings made up of physical, mental, and spiritual components.

The main purpose of regeneration in urban (or indeed any other) areas must always be the promotion and encouragement of all that will enable human beings to flourish. In this sense, one of the failings, from a Christian perspective, of many statements about [urban] regeneration is that they fail to offer an understanding of what it means to be human…. My argument is that one of the things that Christian theology can offer to urban regeneration…is a strong reminder that regeneration is about enabling everyone to flourish, in every sense (Knights, 2008, p. 220, emphasis in original).

            In order for the city to experience renewal there must first be a renewal and regeneration of individual human hearts within the city. [1] This type of transformation can only be wrought by the power of God through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. While we cannot and should not disparage the impact of social programs that are enacted to combat the various social problems within the city, we must keep these human constructions in a proper context. These institutional arrangements can never bring ultimate or lasting renewal to the city. It is only the grace of God through Jesus Christ that has the power to transform a landscape of chaos, brokenness, and dependency into an environment of love, wholeness, and sustainability.

            It is important to note that this environment of grace will, in all probability, manifest itself incrementally. While God can act swiftly and bring social-spiritual transformation in the blink of an eye, often in this dispensation of grace He acts in an incremental fashion throughout society. [2] Even in periods of great spiritual revival, one can sense order in the process, rather than wide scale upheaval and instant social transformation. [3] Perhaps it is that the Lord works in this fashion in order to soothe our anxieties, as humans are wont to abjure change rather than embrace it, even if the change is for the good. An understanding of this dynamic reality can help to prevent Christian workers in urban areas from becoming too quickly discouraged or burnt out. It can assist Christians in keeping their focus on the task at hand, their hands to the plow (Luke 9:62), working and serving diligently for the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31). 

The Importance of the City

            The city is “a place of shelter for the weak and different” (Keller & Thompson, 2002, p. 45). It is a place that the poor and the outcast flee to for refuge. The city is a place of mercy for those who would not be able to survive in other settings: “The city is always a more merciful place for minorities of all kinds. The dominant majorities often dislike cities, but the weak and powerless need them. They cannot survive in suburbs and small towns” (Keller & Thompson, 2002, 45).

            As a place where the poor and needy congregate, one would expect it to be a place to which the followers of Jesus Christ would flock. You know, the same Jesus who taught us how to be merciful unto those in need, as in the parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37); the same One who taught us to freely minister to “the least of these” in society (Matt. 25:45)’ this same Jesus who taught His followers to heartily serve those who are unable to repay them such as “the poor, the crippled, the lame” (Luke 14:13-14, 21). Unfortunately, it seems that many suburban evangelical ministries have rendered themselves urban-crippled and metro-lame through the dogged pursuit of things belonging to the kingdom of this world. The sectarian political agenda of the Republican Party and the quest to secure the comforts and conveniences of the mirage of a suburban/rural utopia appear to be two areas where suburban Christianity devotes much of its energy and attention.

            The kinds of Christians bred in twentieth and early-twenty-first century evangelical churches simply do not seem to take well to the teachings of Jesus with respect to the spread of the gospel in the cities and the care of the poor who congregate there. Mercy ministries as a whole are looked upon with suspicion in many churches. A neo-docetic [4] view of humanity has comfortably nestled down into our midst. Instead of viewing people in a holistic fashion, Christians seem to be obsessed with the spiritual needs of others to the total neglect of their physical needs. Perhaps the Church is in need of a reminder that human beings are composed of bodies, minds, souls, and spirits: “not as discrete compartments, but as overlapping facets, and all need to be attended to” (Knights, 2008, p. 221, emphasis added).

            American Christians seem to pour most, if not all, of their resources back into their existing congregations in a frantic attempt to create a womb-like subculture that is insulated from the ravages experienced in urban areas. Pouring energy and resources into people that exist outside of the Christian community simply does not appear to be an option in many ministries. Such ministries may devote a percentage of their tithes and offerings to missions and church planting. But these efforts, to the extent that any of this allotment is invested in the city, goes mainly toward creating “Christ-against-the-city” clone communities that then proceed to gather and isolate new groups of Christians within the safety of their freshly-built walls. At other times, the city may be engaged in a “hit-and-run” fashion whereby Christians run into the city in small groups to accomplish a specific ministry task, such as a homeless outreach, only to leave and return intermittently, if ever again.

            Of the churches that do engage in the planting of new churches, these new ministries are, overwhelmingly, planted in areas similar to the originating church’s own suburban and rural environment. Rare is the conservative evangelical church that catches a vision to plant a vibrant, passionate, Christ-loving ministry in the city. Not only has the local church abandoned the city, but many within the church also refuse to lift a finger to invest in the lives and future of those who live in the city.

            Church planter Tim Keller teaches that, throughout the ages, God’s people have been called to live in and love the city:

When Nebuchadnezzar sacked Jerusalem, he brought thousands of Jewish exiles to live in the pagan mega-city of Babylon. At first the exiles refused to move into the wicked city, settling outside in their own enclave, but God spoke to them through Jeremiah and gave them a startling mandate. First, he spoke to them of their actions toward the city. He told them to move in, settle down, raise their families there, and invest in the economy of the city (Jer. 29:5-6). Second, he spoke to them of their attitude toward the city. He said, “Seek the shalom of the city” (v.7). The word ‘shalom’ meant full flourishing-economically, culturally, spiritually. And most amazing of all, God [in v. 7] said, “Pray to the Lord for it, for if it prospers, you prosper” (Keller, 2005, emphasis in original).  

            While God does not call all Christians to relocate to the city, it does seem clear that, given its great lack of the love, mercy, and compassion of God, more Christians should begin to sense the urgency of bringing the Gospel and love of Christ to these places of greatest need.

Impacting the Broader Culture Through City Renewal

            Suburbolationist Christians [5] frequently decry the moral decay of our nation and culture. However, they refuse to go into the very places where they can have the greatest impact on our nation and culture: the city. “If the Christian church wants to really change the country and culture, it must go into the cities themselves, not just into the suburbs or even the exurbs” (Keller & Thompson, 2002, p. 46).

            Many of today’s suburban church planters appear to have overlooked the fact that Paul’s ministry was carried out almost exclusively in urban areas. While many pious Christian leaders are overheard frequently decrying the pagan-ness of our society, it is interesting to note that the early church was urban, while the surrounding countryside was pagan. As a matter of fact, the word “pagan” is derived from paganus, which means “country-man” (Keller & Thompson, 2002, p. 46). Perhaps today’s Christian leaders and moralistic preachers should embrace the complete topographical reversal that has taken place since the early church and begin calling non-believers “urbans” instead of “pagans.” Certainly, this would be more etymologically appropriate and linguistically honest.

            Keller and Thompson state, “While there are millions of born-again Christians, they seem to be having no impact on the culture. The reasons given are usually complex and unconvincing. Nobody notices that Evangelicals are totally non-urban…. This is a recipe for complete cultural irrelevance” (2002, p. 48). Elsewhere, Keller states, “The modern U.S. church is fast losing cultural and economic force because it avoids the city” (2005).

            It appears clear that if Christians are serious about “reclaiming the culture for Christ,” they have to get serious about urban missions and renewal. Christians need to eschew the “privacy, safety, homogeneity, sentimentality, space, order and control” of their predominantly non-urban, middle class backgrounds (Keller, 2005) and begin to embrace the city with the love of Christ while it is still day, for the “night is coming, when no one can work” (John 9:4).

The Blessing of Urban Renewal

            The crisis in urban America will never ultimately be solved by political or social programs, no matter how well intentioned such efforts may be. The problems in our cities, to a great extent fueled by the mass exodus of middle-class Christians, can only be properly addressed and solved by the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the ministry of the Church. May our Lord grant a burden for the city to the present and future generations of the Church in order that we may fulfill our Christian responsibility to love our neighbors from the same heart into which Christ first poured His own love by the Holy Spirit of God (Rom. 5:5).

            In closing I would like to include a short poem by Sarah Brownsberger on the challenge and blessing of urban renewal:

            It wasn’t where we wanted to live

            but you have to put down roots to thrive.

            Daily we bore the shock of forbearance –

            our own and our neighbors’: the noise, the smell!

            Be fruitful! We tried. Soil of lead arsenate,

            cadmium. We added our detritus,

            peel and core: redemption. And now

            our mineral prison blooms in this,

            the year of our departure: now at last

            the berries fruit in blue abundance.

            Which goes to show our acts are not our own;

            what we make does not belong to us.

            At best we fade softly as timothy,

            and leave our harvest to the next people (2006, p. 8).

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References:

Brownsberger, S. M. (2006). Urban Renewal. Christian Century, 123, p. 8. 

Byassee, J. (2008). The Church Downtown: Strategies for Urban Ministry. Christian Century, 125, p. 22-27, 29. 

Henslin, J. M. (2008). Social Problems: A Down-to-Earth Approach. Boston: Pearson/Allyn-Bacon.

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. (2006). Version 2.1. Accordance Bible Software, Version 8.2.3, 2009. 

Keller, T. (2005). The City: Why We Are Here. The Gospel Coalition. Available: http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/resources/a/The-City—Why-We-Are-Here [22 June 2009].

Keller, T. J. & Thompson, J. A. (2002). Church Planter Manual. New York: Redeemer Church Planting Center.  

Knights, C. H. (2008). Urban Regeneration: A Theological Perspective from the West End of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Expository Times, 119, p. 217-225. 

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[1] I speak here of a “renewal” in the hearts of Christians living within the city and a “regeneration” of the hearts of unbelievers through the new birth.

[2] Cf. Matthew 13:33: “He told them another parable. ‘The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.’” This speaks of transformation as a process that is not instantaneous, but rather orderly, organic, and dynamic in nature.

[3] It is only in the future that the Lord will work in an instantaneous way to “remove the iniquity of this land in a single day” (Zech. 3:9, emphasis added).

[4] Docetism was a heresy of the early Church. Adherents believed that Christ’s body was not truly human, but a phantasm of some sort. 

[5] “Suburbolationist Christians” are believers who are churched in the suburbs or exurbs, have created their own walled-off church subcultures, and take a militant, aggressive stance toward American culture. They basically ignore urban social concerns.

Clearing Away the Congestion of Groupthink

One of the myriad ways in which a local church can stifle the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the midst of their congregation and in their community is to engage in groupthink. As Satterlee points out, the more that symptoms of groupthink are manifested within an organization, the worse the quality of the decisions will be that are made (2009, p. 154).

How does groupthink occur in churches? Following Satterlee (p. 154-155), here are eight ways that groupthink can manifest in your local assembly:

1. The church has an illusion of invulnerability based upon religious traditions and norms. The motto is, “This is how we have ‘always’ done it. We will continue to do it this way. We will not change.”

2. There is an unquestioned belief in the group’s inherent righteousness. Group members doggedly believe in the “rightness” of their particular norm of ministry philosophy and ignore any other philosophies, even ones that are clearly supported by Scripture. 

3. There is a collective effort to restrain alternative norms and philosophies of ministry. No one dares introduce information that may go against the group’s rationalizing efforts because they may be ostracized as a result. 

4. The church collectively stereotypes the “opposition.” Church members, following the leadership, may look down upon those outside of the preferred group because they are providing information contrary to the beliefs held by the group. 

5. Self-censorship is alive and well within the group. Church members may offer mere opinions rather than make strong recommendations for change. 

6. There is a shared illusion of unanimity. Silence within the congregation on a given topic is interpreted to mean agreement. 

7. The application of direct pressure on any member who expresses strong disagreement. It is believed that dissent would never come from a loyal group member. 

8. Self-appointed mind-guards are hard at work. These people are the ones who work to prevent anyone within the group from hearing information that may disrupt the group’s complacency and statisticity. 

Church leaders and members must be vigilant to ensure that symptoms of groupthink are quickly identified and addressed before they solidify and become harmful. If this occurs, not only will the spiritual growth of the local congregation suffer, but the mission of God that He has given to the church to go and make disciples will suffer as well. 

Does your local church suffer from groupthink? If so, gently work to clear away some of the spiritual congestion that is hampering the fullness of the Holy Spirit from manifesting in your midst. 

See also “Groupthink and Functional Conflict.” 

Reference:

Satterlee, A. (2009). Organizational Management and Leadership: A Christian Perspective. Roanoake, VA: Synergistics.