Here are a couple of things I think will be the topics of discussion in coming years. Feel free in the comments to agree, disagree, or add your own.
Evangelism of the unchurched rather than reaching those in denominations. There will be a shift from debating those from different Christian groups to reaching people who have never been to church a day in their lives. As our country becomes more and more religiously diverse and increasingly post-Christian we will find that the way we approach evangelism will have to shift. You can no longer assume people have a basic knowledge of the Bible, a belief that God exists, or a respect for the authority of scripture. Because of that our Bible studies will look a lot different than having a study with someone who is from another Christian group.
We will need a renewed commitment in bringing people to Christ rather than bringing people to this church or that church. Our conversions will be more Christ-centered and less doctrinal centered. Doctrines are important and should be taught but first things need to be kept first and other things can be taught as people mature and grow in their faith.
This also means we will have to get back to the basics. People aren’t going to seek out fine tuned doctrines. They are going to seek out Jesus and we have to be ready to have a conversation with them about the story of the Gospel and how their life can plug in to that story.
A need for narrative over deductive logic and reasoning. As post-modernism increases people will need to connect with the story (as mentioned above). We will have to re-familiarize ourselves with the story and be able to tell the story of how God has been working to save his people from the beginning of time until today. Too often we go from Genesis straight to Jesus and miss out on how unified the Bible really is in the ongoing telling of the story.
Worship will take on increased importance and a re-centering on giving God praise. People are becoming more and more experiential and we will begin seeing more variety in how we express our worship to God. There is already a renewed interest in the psalms and a higher frequency of praise songs today than in recent years. Worship is central to the lives of our young people and as they age and become leaders in the church I think we will be in for some interesting time when it comes to worship. Sunday mornings are moving from the “buffer system” of using songs to space out the scripture reading, prayers, sermon, and Lord’s supper. The songs will be seen with renewed significance for what they have to offer God through worship. This may result in the death of four part harmony (sorry Keith!) for many but the most important thing is not the style of the singing but the motivation of the heart.
Leadership will become less and less centrally defined. With the explosion of the small group movement and the pastoral care that is taking place in group fellowship we will find our leadership base becoming broader. This is not diminshing the role of elders as shepherds. It is a both/and situation where people start taking on more of a personal accountability for the well-being of other Christians. Why? Because as the world becomes less and less Christian we are going to understand our need for one another once again.
I think we are heading into a world that resembles the first century in many ways – Christians in the minority, Christians persecuted for their faith, Christians that are misunderstood and stand out from the world…because of that I think the words of the New Testament are going to be read and appreciated with new ears as our situation more and more closely resembles theirs. It is hard to read books like 1 Peter or Revelation in the proper context when 95% of the people around are Christians. It is quite another thing to read it when you feel like you are undergoing persecution yourself.
What would you add?
0 Responses
Good post! I like a lot of what you’ve written, and it’s been well thought through. You talk about “evangelism of the unchurched”…There will always be a necessity for evangelism among those still attending religious services, many of whom understand either Scripture or tradition well and distort both through a narrow experiential view of “tradition”, or by over-literalism of the Bible, or by a “cafeteria” attitude toward their faith, where people, even the “churched”, pick and choose which doctrines they believe in.
Also it will be important to spell out what is doctrine (say, in Catholicism, the ordination of men only to the priesthood) and what is disciplinary and has exceptions (say, in Latin Rite Catholicism, priestly celibacy under most conditions). Thus, catechesis, especially of of the “churched”, along with evangelism, of both the “churched and unchurched” go hand in hand. Also, all must be done within a climate of hope and of love. The Church, despite human sin and division, is still beautiful, because Christ made her His bride. As per Genesis, what God makes is invariably very good. God Bless,
Warren
p.s. I also really like what you said about the importance of small groups.
Great post. I really like your vision and hope to see it come to fruition. Thanks for pointing out that the signifigance of elders should and will not be diminished.
Hello!
I know this is an old post but I read it and was very interested in what you had to say. These are my thoughts, exactly. I have a few things to add.
You don’t have to be a prophet to realize the direction that the churches of Christ are going. I would add that as a result of the persecution and challenges ahead, Christians will not have time to be arguing about doctrines as much and they will likely be more united behind the truth. Thus, Christians will probably be more doctrinally sound and aware of what the Bible teaches rather than relying on the preacher or elders for their answers.
Brethren will look forward to worship services rather than seeing it as a burden. They will be more pious and dedicated to one another and to the Lord. This may seem overly optimistic but just wait and see.
Notice also, according to history, that heresy did not become as common until after Constantine. When things got easy for Christians they were lax in doctrine and without conviction. This will reverse when we face trials and when it costs us something to stand up for something true.
These are my ideas. Thanks for the thought-provoking post.
Mike Hildreth
Thanks for the thought-provoking response!