D17 P11: All the way to the least

Last Saturday, we attended the fundraiser for Bridge of Hope Church in the urban core of KCK. Many of you are very familiar with BoH and Pastor Luther - I would love to introduce the rest of you to them sometime.

Luther asked me that while I was acknowledging their partners if I would be willing to share some thoughts about why we support their ministry. For me, it's a Gospel question, expressed in three statements:

1. You don’t get the Gospel until you extend it to the “least of these.”
2. You don’t get the Gospel until you put the “least of these” first.
3. You don’t get the Gospel until you surrender to the reality that we really are equal in Christ.

First, until you are personally extending the Gospel to those who don't rank high in the world's twisted value system, you don't fully comprehend the reach of the Gospel. You don't personally experience in the marrow of your bones how far the Gospel goes until your bones are being used to bring the Gospel to society's marginalized and forgotten. If you think the Gospel stops short of anyone (or live like the Gospel stops short of anyone), you don't get it fully, yet. If the Gospel extends to the "least," then it extends to everyone.

Second, until you put these "least ones" first, you don't see how completely the Gospel reverses the human condition. On a few occasions, people asked Jesus to distinguish who was greatest among them, and he responded with the enigmatic, "In the Kingdom of God, the first shall be last, and the last, first; he who is greatest among you shall be the servant of all." If that's what the Kingdom of God is like, then I don't get it or the Gospel (the Good News of the Kingdom of God) until I live it, until I personally put the last first and become the servant of all.

Third, until you give into the idea in Gal 3:28 that in Christ no one is above another, you don't get this Gospel. Speaking into a society with strict categories elevating one group over another, the Gospel demanded that those with privilege surrender to the equality with all others in Christ. When we personally throw up our hands in total surrender that we have no spiritual advantage over anyone in Christ, then we comprehend a key aspect of the Gospel.

That is why we are involved with Bridge of Hope, who specializes in ministry to the "least" - those who are my equals in Christ.

From this, we derive the 11th truth about discipleship in our "D17" series (17 truths about discipleship):

Discipleship is going to be others-focused, especially the least of these.

To be disciplemakers is to be focused on the spiritual growth of others. That's the orientation of disciplemaking. But in order to really get the Gospel, we must pay particular attention to those who don't rank high in the world's twisted value system. That's the reach of disciplemaking. We must point in the right direction and reach to the fullest extend in order to "get" the Gospel and personally experience the richness of being one of Jesus' disciplemakers.

Who in your neighborhood or place of employment is considered by the group to be the "least"? What would be communicated about the Gospel of Jesus Christ if you paid particular attention to that one, with a heart to influence him or her even a little in the direction of the Kingdom of God?

Why Swap Pulpits?

Last Sunday, Grace Fellowship Church and Bridge of Hope Church had another "pulpit swap." Pastor Luther of BoH came to Grace to teach here, and I went to BoH to teach there. A suburban church and an urban core church being taught by pastors who are easily identified with their sending churches.

Why do we do this? It interrupts the flow and makes it a little more difficult for the worship teams and the administrative staff. So, why go through the trouble?

First, perspective. Every pastor, no matter how experienced, has blind spots. I have them, Luther has them, every pastor I've ever known has them. A congregation that hears only from one pastor is going to hear very little from those areas occluded by the pastor's blind spots. No matter how good or how varied a pastor's teaching is, his blind spots will inadvertently keep his congregation from certain, important teaching and perspective. A pulpit swap brings in someone with different blind spots, giving the congregation a broader perspective of biblical theology and discipleship. Furthermore, the pastor's perspective broadens because he is faced with a new set of challenges and needs.

Second, partnership. Bridge of Hope and Grace Fellowship have been developing a very strong partnership in many areas - youth group, outreach events, small groups, retreats, and ministry. A pulpit swap helps forges that partnership, so that each congregation gets to know the partner church's pastor more deeply. We get to understand each other better, we develop better personal relationships, and we get more of the heartbeat of each church. As a result, our partnership works more effectively.

Third, proving that the pastor is replaceable. We don't want any church to have an unhealthy dependency on the pastor. The pastor should be a strong factor in the church, but a healthy church should be able to thrive without him or when someone else is fulfilling the responsibilities. Furthermore, the pastor should never feel like he's irreplaceable. A pulpit swap proves to both the congregations and the pastors that it's not about the pastor. The church can go on just fine with a different man in the pulpit. The church is about Jesus Christ, not about the pastor.

Fourth, the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Getting out of our routines and exploring new avenues of ministry create openings for the work of the Holy Spirit. We can get into ruts, and ruts can become substitutes for the Spirit's work. Shaking it up makes for fresh opportunities for the Spirit. Last Sunday, I saw the Spirit at work in some amazing ways, and I heard that He also was busily at work through Luther's ministry here. The artificial props are removed, we are more apt to rely on the Spirit, and we see Him move in refreshing ways.

Pastor Luther and I plan on making this a periodic habit. I pray that we will continue to see fruit produced through serving one another's congregation.

Thanks to all of you who make him feel so welcome when he comes. I feel the same from the church family at Bridge of Hope.

Innercity and Innercity

Yesterday, I had lunch with Pastor Luther Eatman of Bridge of Hope Church in downtown KCK. Next week, I'm having lunch with Pastor Bill Gorman of Christ Community Downtown Church in KCMO. Both men are good friends to have; both are serving in downtown churches; both are building churches from the ground up. But their experiences are quite different. (And the difference is not related to which side of the state line they are on, but "Go Tigers!" nonetheless.)

Bridge of Hope is in a rough, older neighborhood. This congregation is comprised primarily of lower-income folks, many of whom will freely tell you of their pasts in drug addiction, crime, incarceration, prostitution, and violence. In fact, Pastor Luther will tell you about many of those same things in his own past. The congregation cannot afford to support a pastor, and many cannot afford rent, utilities, and three meals a day. Many are brand new believers, and are pouring their lives into getting their lives on a good, strong path.

Christ Community Downtown is in the revitalized North end, where new lofts have been going in. This congregation is mostly comprised of middle- to upper-income professionals. There may still be histories of drug abuse, crime, or promiscuity, but from a worldly perspective, their external lives are well put together. The congregation can afford their pastor (they are small in numbers now, but as they grow, a pastor's salary will not be their problem). They pay high rents and have disposable income for travel and entertainment. Although there are brand new believers, Pastor Bill has a core group of believers to help him get this congregation launched.

They have different situations, and the types of problems they face will have a lot of differences on the surface. But most of what they will be facing is exactly the same: getting a congregation started and achieving momentum, broken lives that have been empty without Christ, anxiety, insecurity, false pursuits, priorities out of alignment, doubts, pressure to go along with the world's way of thinking, marital stress, and so on.

They have the same basic solutions, too: pursuing the Kingdom of God first, trusting while in the midst of adversity, drawing strength from the community of believers, and drawing strength from God's Spirit and from His Word.

Both ministries are hard. They have different situations, but both are hard. Ministry here in the 'burbs is hard, too. The money is tighter in the urban core, but people are also much more willing to acknowledge their brokenness. Which is harder to minister to - people without many resources or people who are less likely to admit they don't have it all put together? Ministry is just hard, no matter the circumstances.

Both churches are part of our denomination, the Evangelical Free Church of America. Both have the same core doctrine. Both need your prayer and support. Both would welcome any assistance you'd like to provide. Both pastors have my utmost respect. Please add both churches to your prayer list.