Every wonder why the gospel is growing so fast in developing nations?
A conversation in staff meeting gave me a new insight. We were discussing the loss of a couple of families who find our church not “scholarly” enough in its teaching.
Granted we aren’t very scholarly—used to be but gave it up for a more relational approach. I quit teaching “expository” sermons and now take a “textual” approach. That is I let the text speak for itself, supplying lots of stories but parsing few Greek verbs.
Our discussion was sad in that we genuinely liked the families that left. But it was positive in that we talk to so many people who have moved to the mainland only to have trouble finding a satisfying church.
The problem with people who move away from our church is that they often can’t find a fellowship that is as warm and relational as the one they left—on both the horizontal and vertical plane. We hear complaints that churches “feel more like school than family.”
I think a church should feel more like a family than anything else. Which gets me to the core of all this.
The Bible was written to be digested by semi-literate people several thousand years ago. Much of it appears as letters. Whoever spent 40 minutes discussing a single verb in a letter from a friend?
I think you catch my drift as to scholarship. We need scholars, but we need them to back up preachers talking to common folk. And, this pretty well describes what goes on in countries where the gospel is growing the fastest. Scholarship exists, but not at the front line.
On the front lines of evangelism and church growth around the world there are lots of parables drawn from local culture.
“Out there,” the Bible is cherished as a book of promises made by a loving God, promises that will get you through a drought or help you survive a violent world. It contains instructions for restoring lost relationships and it presents the power to get over your drinking problem. It is a book of healing and a family album to the new family you met when you were born again.
All in all, the Word of God is presented in far simpler terms in places where church is growing fastest. That could be a clue for the rest of us.
7 responses so far ↓
1 Lee Dixson // Jan 6, 2010 at 8:01 pm
My wife and I are one of the families that have moved to the mainland and have not been able to find a satisfying church. It’s been six years now and we still listen to Pastor Ralph online. Sad but true. The main reason, it think, is because we can relate to so much that he says. He makes easily digestable and we find that we are able to apply it to our lives right away. Pastor Ralph is the best, in that way.
2 Joseph Mabe // Jan 7, 2010 at 3:49 am
Great Blog, Ralph. Very true and insightful. In our church we continually lose new people looking for a “School Experience”, but don’t want deep and personal relationships. The scary part is that it is far too easy to adjust to the new people’s desires and not pursue honest community. Community is much harder to foster than a good expository sermon on ancient cultural history. Expecially if you have any Bible College or Seminary training.
3 Doug Jones // Jan 7, 2010 at 6:31 am
Nancy and I attended Hope Chapel Kaneohe Bay from 1984 - 1987 in it’s infancy. It has always felt like family because Pastor Ralph presents the Word as a love letter from God. I have always felt like God is sitting in the room with me, using Ralph as His vessel, bringing me Words from the very heart of God. That’s why I have listened to every message from Hope Chapel for the last 23 years via tapes/CD’s/podcasts. I have my own, loving church home here in California, but I will always be connected to Hope Chapel Kaneohe Bay. Thanks, as always, for your ministry. You’re doing it right!
4 Jim McConnell // Jan 7, 2010 at 11:29 am
Thank you Ralph,
This is one of the reasons I started coming to Hope Chapel. I had been in a “scholarly” church.
5 Noah // Jan 11, 2010 at 5:49 am
Interesting blog, I have always felt that Pastor Ralph couldn’t escape “scholarly” elements in his relational teachings simply because he knows alot of background information to the story or parable in the text. I usually walk way from his sermons knowing a little bit more “scholarly” information then expected.
6 Noel Diotte // Jan 14, 2010 at 7:20 am
Remember that Jesus used parables to paint the story of the message, not exposition.
7 Loyd Flaherty // Jan 14, 2010 at 3:41 pm
“I think a church should feel more like a family than anything else.” Pastor Ralph, that sentence was an eye opener to me and to how I have felt in my heart but didn’t know how to say it. I know that “scholarly” teaching is something that a few would like to hear. In thinking over what you wrote, I feel that we need to be scholars at home. We have many ways to study at our finger tips. Church is the family getting together. That’s good.
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