paradigm shift: introduction

until we change the culture inside, we will never change the culture outside -bill faulkner

i have been thinking about this statement alot this week. i have been thinking how we must change the culture of the church back, back to one that is biblical and not traditional. because what we must remember is that traditional and biblical are not equivalent. you see the bible can never be tradition because it is ever changing the way that we live our lives. it never changes itself but it should always be changing us as we learn to become more like Christ using scripture. i am convinced that unless we start this shift we will continue to see churches dying and this "christian sub-culture" become more and more unbiblical.

9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth,
and he said to him, "Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. 10 And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
matthew 9:9-13 esv

this is a great example here of Jesus shifting the paradigm in his Rabbinical Jewish culture. he was not supposed to do this. he was supposed to condemn these people and play the game of "who is more religious" with the Pharisees, but he did not. and as always he offered beautiful commentary on the whole thing. we have to remember that we are not here to boast our large religious egos rather in all humbleness we are to preach a saving message to a dying world. church services should look like rebuke sessions and training centers and not ego-stroke sessions. we need to be priming our congregations to venture out into the world that they are in everyday, living their life with no question of who they are living for and then ready to answer when they are asked what is different. we cannot expect sinners to come to us. just like Jesus we must be willing to go to the table with them.

i know this is scary for most of us. "what will i say, how will i act, what will they think of me, do they bite?" these are all questions that run through are head. here is the deal: with the word in our hearts and on our lips and the sensitivity of the Spirit in our heads, we will be fine. we must remember that this is not about us, for us, or because of us. that is a great pressure reliever. we are just simply to go and disciple. that is our call. we must begin to examine the culture of the local church and the global church. we must see the things that need to change and the way we do that is to use scripture as our measuring stick. if it does not measure up to scripture, we change. i am not talking about be a bull in a china shop, but i am talking about instigating and facilitating true, honest, God centered and fueled change.

i am going to explore this in a number of posts to come. i am going to unpack some scripture and some practical steps that have been passed on to me. on a micro setting we must take this statement and change the culture inside our heart so that others can be change as we encounter them. i want to see change in the name and for the sake of the Gospel. who is with me?