 |
|---|
Imagining a Church in the
Spirit
Ben Campbell Johnson & Glen McDonald
Wm.B.Eerdmans Publishing Co. 1999 160p
Review by Ray Hoekzema
The authors come from the perspective of congregations in mainline
churches that have suffered long-term introversion, self-preoccupation
and loss of vision for its mission. Without a compelling vision, a
church lacks direction or movement, they say. A vision that involves
passion initiates movement and energises the congregation. For the
Church to function as the body of Christ, we have to note the urgency of
a vision of the Church as Christ’s “earthly form of existence”.
It is important to see that the church is something more than an
institution – a community inhabited by the Spirit of the risen Lord. A
dynamic community depends upon the presence of Christ in ways that are
personal and experiential. A church that discerns its mission, in
contrast with the church that plans a program, will become one of the
marks of the Church in the Spirit. Discernment of call will force the
church to deal directly with the risen Lord.
Johnson, a professor of Christian Spirituality, lays out the theological
foundation for imagining a church in the Spirit in such crucial areas of
ministry as community, initiation, prayer, mission, preaching,
inclusivity, leadership and teaching. McDonald closes off each chapter
with a “corroborative witness” from his own experience as a pastor in
the Zionsville Presbyterian Church, Indianapolis.
In discipling individuals or families who have no church pedigree,
McDonald says we need to set before the congregation the ideal of six
marks of the disciple. These include a heart for Christ alone, a mind
transformed by the Word, arms of love, knees for prayer, a voice to
speak good news, and a spirit of sacrifice. If we bring into the church
persons who do not know Christ and have no instruction in the life of
the Spirit, we dilute the membership. Therefore, we need to get those
who are mature in the faith in contact with those who wish to grow in
the faith, for the Christian faith is sooner caught than taught.
Important also is the fact that the six marks of a disciple are the
behaviours that alone are able to move a mission statement from the face
of the Bulletin to one’s calendar, purse and thought-life.
The task of developing new leaders cannot be set aside, except at our
peril. When we begin to select and equip leaders who are growing in
their faith and developing clearer discernment, the church will be
transformed for Christ’s mission. However, God is ultimately responsible
for calling members of the body into ministry – He will do so and equip
them.
Throughout the book, the authors, dealing with the various aspects of
being a church in the Spirit, keep looking at Jesus and His practices.
He is our ultimate role model. They also emphasise the importance of
prayer, suggesting that prayer gives life to the church and constitutes
the core of ministry. Yet they ask, why do so many ministers have a hard
time praying? The church in the Spirit will be a community of profound
prayer.
There are excellent chapters with valuable pointers on preaching to and
teaching in a church in the Spirit. Leading a church in the Spirit is a
ministry with a vision and an incomparable experience; it is the
difference between doing church work and participating in the ministry
of Christ.
The book contains valuable teaching and is designed for study by
leadership and Bible study groups, each chapter ending with four or five
leading and relevant questions. Recommended!
Books
Music
Movies
Return to top of page
All material on this site © 2004 Trowel & Sword