For every complaint that comes my way, there are perhaps four or more others that go unvoiced. The Oikos Church article generated some pushback that requires both explanation and clarification. Therefore, this writeup is an attempt to do both as quickly as possible and provide a tiny preview of what's ahead.
Stop inviting people to church
The section title above is what was read and related to me by more than one person. Admittedly, I sometimes read things and then emotionally trigger. This leads me into incomplete and careless reading, because my emotions have overridden my reason. Consequently, I have learned (and exercising) that doing so is a very dangerous thing for me to do. It gets me in trouble.
I also sometimes write things emotionally and do not back up from them and think: What will the reader think? How will they respond? Am I being clear enough? Did I leave something out? Did I make a mistake? In the rush to press, I can be sloppy. Apologies!
So—with that in mind, allow me to quote myself more fully. The point of doing so is to re-emphasize and then clarify.
The point ought to be very clear by now. The Lord is still interested in the OIKOS! Brick and mortar was never His thing. Sure, He can use it, but there is a danger lurking in it—that danger is that the Gospel is being held in a place where sinners don't go. And instead of taking Jesus and His message to sinners where they are, we literally cut them off from access to the Lord by "going to church" where they are not.
Sure—we go to the building, but by doing so, we isolate the Spirit of Christ in us from sinners. Even worse—when we do meet sinners where they are, we shut up. We clam up. We close up. We behave like them. We're not Christ among them. We are hardly different than they. So—what's the solution?
I want to suggest to you that the solution is to both obey the Word of the Lord and also the very actions of the Lord as He demonstrated how He reaches people with Himself—BY GOING TO THEM and ministering the Kingdom of Heaven in Word and demonstrations of His power directly where they live! Stop "inviting them to `church'" in some out-of-oikos place and environment. Take the Light into the darkness. Take Healing into [sic] the sick. Take the Word of God to where it presently is not. Stop believing that sinners need to come to you. GO TO THEM! Or rather—take Jesus in you to them!
First—I know you can see how much text comes before. Allow me to summarize using ChatGPT-4 as quick-and-dirty tool:
The author argues that the traditional practice of going to church buildings isolates the message of the Gospel from sinners who do not attend. Instead, the author suggests that believers should take the message of Jesus [and Jesus in them] directly to sinners where they are, ministering to them and demonstrating the power of God in their lives. The solution, according to the author, is to obey the Word of the Lord and follow the example of Jesus by bringing the light, healing, and Word of God to those who need it, rather than [simply] inviting them to church. The emphasis is on actively reaching out and taking Jesus to sinners [both in word and a demonstration of power, love, service, and compassion].
This is almost right. The summarization almost captures what I was trying to communicate. Perhaps I still need a little more. Allow me to start with: Buildings are not evil and they do have a place in the grand scheme. However, what I really want you to see is the juxtaposition of Jesus (and later the disciples) ministering largely without buildings; instead, going directly to where sinners live, work, eat, play, and otherwise congregate and hang out.
Synagogues and the Temple
Invariably, the argument comes: "But Jesus went to local synagogues all the time!" Yes—He did, but the details of what He did and where is much bigger than just a simplistic statement of a single place. Scripture tells us where Jesus went both directly and indirectly by both reading and deduction from scripture.
Based on the majority of the types of people that Jesus ministered to and befriended, we can deduce some [not all] of the places where he went:
1. Towns and villages: Jesus ministered to common people in various towns and villages. He formed relationships with fishermen like Peter, James, and John, who were from towns such as Capernaum (Matthew 4:18-22).
2. Gatherings and events: Jesus engaged with crowds and multitudes during public gatherings and events. He taught and performed miracles in these settings. For example, he preached to large crowds during his Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and fed the multitude in an open field (Mark 6:30-44).
3. Homes: Jesus often frequented the homes of various individuals, including his disciples and others he wanted to reach. He dined with tax collectors and sinners in their houses, such as Levi/Matthew (Luke 5:27-32).
4. Synagogues: Jesus regularly visited synagogues to teach and interact with people. He engaged with Pharisees and religious leaders in these religious gathering places (Mark 1:21; Mark 3:1-6).
5. Public spaces: Jesus encountered people in public spaces like marketplaces, streets, and along seashores. He had encounters with people in cities like Jericho (Mark 10:46-52) and encountered the Samaritan woman at a well (John 4:1-42).
6. Temple and Jerusalem: Jesus visited the temple in Jerusalem during religious festivals, engaging with people and challenging religious authorities (John 2:13-22). He also taught in the temple during different occasions (John 7:14).
Based on the majority of the people Jesus ministered to and befriended, it is clear that he went to various towns, villages, homes, public spaces, synagogues, and the temple in Jerusalem to reach and interact with people.
Read the above closely and carefully. Let the reality of the list sink in. Synagogues are one of six basic places Jesus went to put Himself face-to-face with people. That was His goal—especially Jewish people, but also Samaritans and even Gentiles. Let's take up one more thought and then leave it alone, because I think you get the point.
Learn to think abstractly
My wife and I went to downtown Savannah a few days ago. As we walked, I wanted to illustrate what abstraction is so we would be on the same page in our discussion. So, I pointed at a line of cars parked along the street. There was a white Honda, a red Chevy, a blue Ford, and finally a white Toyota. "Abstraction" I said, "is like this line of cars. Abstractly, they are all cars. Specifically, they are instances of the abstract notion of "car" as a white Honda, red Chevy, blue Ford, and a white Toyota."
In this case, we have a list of specific or concrete places where Jesus went to meet people. The abstraction is "places" and each item on the list is a specific "place" where Jesus went and ministered. It is not a small list.
- Towns/villages
- Gatherings/events (e.g., weddings)
- Beaches/seashores
- Marketplaces
- Streets
- Wells
- Synagogues
- Jerusalem Temple (Gentile court, outer courts, judicial courts)
- Mountains
- Gardens
- Hillsides
- Roads/paths
- Fields
- Vineyards
- Groves
- Bars/taverns (indirectly implied)
Now—can you put on your abstract thinking cap and come up with words that describe all these places in various levels of abstractions? Can you see that synagogues are not the primary place where Jesus went to meet people? He went to places where people were and where He had open access to them. He did not favor one or another. Favoritism of a place was not His goal.
Let's rearrange our place list in various groups and give the groups an abstract name. This is not an exhaustive list, but illustrates the point. Here's the list:
1. Community:
- Towns
- Villages
- Marketplaces
- Streets
- Synagogues
2. Celebration:
- Gatherings/events (e.g., weddings)
3. Serene places:
- Beaches
- Seashores
- Gardens
- Hillsides
4. Commerce:
- Marketplaces
- Streets
5. Necessity:
- Wells
6. Worship:
- Synagogues
- Jerusalem Temple (Gentile court, outer courts, judicial courts)
7. Sacredness:
- Jerusalem Temple (Gentile, outer, and judicial courts)
- Mountains
8. Journeys:
- Roads
- Paths
Go over this list a little. Sit with it. Understand something about it. This is a list of places where Jesus went to connect with people. Why? Because people were in these places and He wanted to connect with them, first and foremost. He did not depend on them to come to Him first. Moreover—and more importantly—He first gave them reasons to break their personal habits and then come to Him (e.g., casting out demons and healing all forms of disease and sickness) after going to them first.
I love Jesus because He first loved me. He came to me. I did not come to Him. He sought me out. I did not seek Him. I was lost, blind, and doing my own thing as I was taken and enticed by my flesh, lusts, and passions—while I was engaged by demons-I-could-not-see and demon-thinking-I-could-not-discern. Consequently, I remember the pit from where I was dug.
Jesus did not demand that people come to where He was on mere flimsy words. Jesus didn't put up posters and purchase mailing lists. Instead, He went to them—proclaiming the Kingdom of Heaven, and then working miracles in service, love, and compassion for their benefit. This (in turn) excited them, causing them change their routines and habits, coming from where they were to seek Him. That's a matter of recorded history and is a repeating theme in the four gospels. It is clear and plain.
Conclusion
Please—go back to my first quote of myself and read it again. I am NOT saying not to invite people to Jesus. Andrew excitedly invited (and even begged) his brother Peter to come with him to meet Jesus. The Samaritan woman excitedly begged her fellow citizens to come and "meet a man who told me everything I ever did!" Why? Because Jesus went to each of them first, proclaimed the Kingdom, and then worked miracles of love, service, and compassion as the Son of God, which resulted in a flame of excitement in them—causing them to respond to Him.
QUESTIONS:
- - Did Andrew invite Peter, his brother, to come to synagogue to meet Jesus?
- - If the synagogue was so critical, crucial, and important in the time of Jesus, why didn't Andrew insist that Peter come with him to a synagogue that he knew Jesus would be at?
- - When Jesus talks about John the Baptist, is John hanging out in synagogues baptizing in Mikvehs'?
- - Where is John?
- - If John is preparing the way of Jesus and Jesus is all about synagogues, why isn't John in a synagogue?
- - How would John (or Jesus for that matter) choose one synagogue over another?
- - Would John and Jesus then have to give equal time to every synagogue in Judea?
- - When Jesus has the apostle John write to the seven churches of Asia minor, is Jesus addressing a single brick-and-mortar building filled with people in each city?
So many questions! Right? Sit with these. Ponder them. Then—read on.
I hope what I am saying is patently clear: Take Jesus to sinners where they are! Get out of your church (building) as though Jesus has chosen one abstraction of where church is, and take Jesus-in-you to them. Love them (Him in and through you). Serve them (same). Expect Jesus-in-you to bring the proclamation of the Kingdom of Heaven and then validation of that reality by the casting out of demons and healing of their diseases, feeding them, and helping them.
The same Jesus then is the same Jesus-in-you now: The Spirit of Christ in you. And Jesus-in-you will do through us exactly what it did for Jesus and the disciples: It will generate an excitement in people for Jesus. They will want to meet Jesus-in-you wherever you go—including your brick-and-mortar building, if that's what you have and choose. Simply, do NOT limit your meeting places to your brick-and-mortar church building.
Finally, in the next article, I am going to relate to you even more reasons to hold your church building at arms length and question its proper and appropriate value in the economy of Christ. I am going to present to you a case that brick-and-mortar church buildings are suboptimal in the mission of Christ. Moreover, I am going to argue from history—the first three hundred years of Christianity Vs the last 1,700 years of "Christianity". My hope is that you will see it for yourself from both scripture and history.
Stay tuned!