Lights, Camera, Action... Praxis
As I told you yesterday, I went to the Praxis Conference in Tulsa last weekend.
It was a soul changing moment for me.
Today I want to reflect on something that Stephen Proctor said when he was describing the state of the evangelical church in America.
He said, "We have given them 'Lights! Camera! and Action!' instead of Father, Son and Holy Spirit."
Mercy!
That hit me so hard.
I mean, thats so true! The church has traded in the actual things that Jesus himself and the early church fathers instructed us to do...things the church held as a vital part of our tradition for over a thousand years, do become more like the culture.
I heard a pastor say the other day, "In an effort to influence the world, we became like the world."
I believe that's right.
There are many reasons why this has happened, and I really do not have the time to go into all of it here.
But I will share one observation.
I sense there is a restlessness within the American church. There has been a desire among many evangelical, Protestant leaders to "recover" true Christianity (whatever that means). Many pastors are desperately trying to find the roots of the church and are trying to be more faithful to the history and to the scriptures. I think ALL of that is good! It is needed! However, for some reason, many of my evangelical friends have not gone back far enough!
Many leaders are stopping at the Reformation in the 1500's for the birthplace of the church. So, while there is a hunger to 'go back,' I would submit we need to go back further!
The Reformation was a good thing in many ways, but it also created a lot of hatred toward the ancient church. And when followers of Luther and Calvin and others, took up their mantle we divorced ourselves from our history.
Now, in the 2000's the American church is feeling just how anemic and impotent we are. And there is a "resurgence" in american churches. But our starting point is flawed. The church did not start with Luther and the reformers...it started with Christ!
There is a rich history to the church. And if we do not go back a lot further than 1500 we will never be satisfied. And our churches will always feel like they lack something, and we will settle to give the culture what it wants - "Lights! Camera! Action!" instead of what it desperately needs, "Father, Son, Holy Spirit!"