exclusive
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Exclusive
The insider-outsider mentality making the church seem exclusive to those who are seen as not belonging.
Exclusion
The accepting of all beliefs, even if the beliefs do not match.
Tolerance
Church◦ Look for
opportunities to split when conflict arises
Youth◦ Looking for common
ground between groups of people
Agreement vs. Disagreement
Church◦ Focus has been on
the individual Seeking personal
responsibility on a set standard.
Youth◦ Moral and Spiritual
compass has shifted to their peers
◦ More willing to give away a service to their friends if they see it as fair
Peer Responsibility vs. Individuality
Church◦ Set standards of
right and wrong from the Bible.
Youth◦ Tendency to judge
whether an action was right or wrong by how fair, reasonable, or assessable the choice is.
Fairness vs. Rightness
Church◦ Tends to have
prerequisites before a person can belong Statement of faith Membership course
Youth◦ Want to be included in
activities and dislike feeling as outsiders.
◦ Tendency to want everyone to be included in what they are doing.
Participation vs. Exclusion
Exclusion vs. Tolerance
When we choose exclusion over tolerance, the church “circles the wagons” and becomes a fortified city under siege.
Exclusion
Exclusion vs. Tolerance
Tolerance
When the church chooses tolerance over exclusion, the church “chickens” out on sharing the good news of Christ's love.
Exclusion vs. Tolerance
Exclusion Tolerance
People can have a meaningful life without accepting Jesus as their Savior
Christians and Muslims worship the same God The Bible, the Koran, and the Book of Mormon
are all different expressions of the same spiritual truths
It does not matter what religion you follow because they all teach the same lessons
Agreement in Rejection of…
The context!
Younger Generations are “doing theology” in an environment where not everyone within the community connects with the historic faith’s truth claims
Beginning to rethink (especially exiles)◦ Evangelism◦ Denominations◦ The “other”
What’s different?
“Youth are taking cues from a culture that has made it unpopular to make bold statements about faith or be aggressively evangelistic.”
Youth believe that evangelism cannot exist without actions to go with it.◦ Kinnaman worries that they will focus on deeds so
much that the gospel will get lost in the process.
Rethink: Evangelism
Duane Litfin◦ Word vs. Deed◦ Nowhere in scripture
does it say that we are to use deeds alone Always has some sort
of verbal communication to go with it
Rethink: Evangelism
Denominations are declining in importance when it comes to youth.
Kinnaman strongly shows his support for denominations, yet sees the trend that denominations stress the differences between them, while youth are wanting to find common ground.
Rethink: Denominations
Youth less likely to join a church or social club, they are staying in one spot for shorter amounts of time and communicate through social networks rather than institutions.
Less likely than their parents to attend on a regular basis, unless married and have kids.◦ More likely to church shop or hop
Rethink: Denominations
Despite this, many churches are still approaching membership the way they did in the 60’s◦ New people encouraged to take a class to learn
the basic theology and history of the church Expected to join the church at the end of the class
◦ Church Covenant Basic beliefs and guidelines for Christian living
Rethink: Denominations
Basecamp◦ Smaller communities where population is
declining, church becomes a place for nourishment, basic supplies and encouragement
◦ Church focusing on those that stay and thus turning “basecamp” into a “permanent residence”
◦ Churches don’t have to change the message, but they do have to embrace the fact they may only get one shot at giving someone the gospel.
Rethink: Denominations
Dismembership◦ Idea by House of Mercy in St Paul Minnesota
1996 founded with no real membership roster Joined the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church of
America), denomination required a membership roster.
“membership” does not fit with the church goal of keeping open doors, windows, and minds open to all
Gives pastor different way of talking about membership.
Rethink: Denominations
Lifeway study found about half of American churches claim to be nondemoniational
2 of the 3 largest churches are nondenominational◦ Willow Creek (South Barrington, IL)◦ Lakewood Church (Houston, TX)
Rethink: Denominations
Rethink: Exclusion vs. Tolerance
Exclusion Tolerance
Both sides are a loss for the church.
Christ did not exclude those who rejected Him nor does he tolerate our sins.
Rethink: Exclusion vs. Tolerance
Exclusion Tolerance
Instead we need to embrace the “other”◦ Scripture◦ Practice◦ Empathy
Rethink: Exclusion vs. Tolerance
Volf’s “Drama of Embrace”◦ Act 1 “opening arms”
Shows a code of desire for someone else Allows for the other person to be excluded at the
cost of losing the self Signal to others that we have created space for them We must not be self indulgent otherwise we lose the
genuineness of the action An invitation for the other person
The Embrace
Volf’s “Drama of Embrace”◦ Act 2 “waiting”
Must be done patiently and not forced The other may not be at a stage in which to accept
“If the Embrace takes place, it will always be because the has desired to embrace the one giving the invitation.
The Embrace
Volf’s “Drama of Embrace”◦ Act 3 “closing the arms”
The ultimate goal of the embrace Properly carried out when there are no strings
attached to either side Do Not Squeeze
It then becomes an act of control and then exclusion
The Embrace
Volf’s “Drama of Embrace”◦ Act 4 “releasing the arms”
Releasing each other and returning to your personal identity
Brings us back to the beginning, ready for the next embrace which may occur moments or years later
The Embrace
Embrace: Scripture Scriptures that deal with the “other.”
◦ The Wedding Banquet Luke 14:15-24
◦ The Lost Sheep Luke 15:1-7
◦ The Prodigal’s Son Luke 15:11-32
Three questions to evaluate the importance of word vs deed◦ 1) What are the needs of this person?
Emotional Physical Intellectual Spiritual Social
Embrace: Scripture
Three questions to evaluate the importance of word vs deed◦ 2) What are the person’s “most important”
needs? Spiritual always at the top!! Yet always linked with one of the other 4
Embrace: Scripture
Three questions to evaluate the importance of word vs deed◦ 3) What are the person’s “most urgent” needs?
Spiritual still at the top Others will reorder themselves as to how we can best
serve them.
Embrace: Scripture
Missions◦ Interdenominational information sharing
Example Pastor has a “revolutionary” idea to connect local
congregations to those overseas for the purpose of local missions Would do well to learn from the Wesleyan Church who
have been doing this very well for a long time
Embrace: Practices
“Empathy is the ability to see a situation, an emotion, an action through Christ’s eyes and through the other person’s heart. When I have empathy, I begin to understand the love Christ has for the hurting and see the situation from their point of view. It is a way of humbling yourself and putting other’s needs and emotions before your own.”
Embrace: Empathy
Television◦ We make time each week to join in with our favorite
characters as we watch their lives unfold through flashback, flash forward or sideways.
◦ We become attuned to these characters and they may change our views on the people they represent.
◦ However these feelings may not translate to real life.
Embrace: Empathy
Missions◦ Sevice projects to give direct contact with the
“other”
Small Groups◦ Allows for students to form empathy for each
other through conversations in a positive peer culture
Embrace: Empathy
The next generation is opening its arms inviting the church to rethink different aspects of church.
After embracing youth and their ideas we may find the need to change what we are doing in order to better reach the next generation for Jesus
Conclusion
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