Re-Imagining the Church

Implications of Being a People in the World

Suderman

• Publisher: Wipf and Stock
• Year: 2016
• eBook ISBN: 9781498290944
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Religion

The church. What has it become? What was it meant to be? Does it pave the way or get in the way? Are we suspicious of the institutionalization of church bureaucracy? Or thrilled with the relevant impact of its presence?Robert J. Suderman writes about the church as a practitioner. His inspiration emerges out of the crossroads of biblical vision and human sincerity always tempered with frailty. Years of ministry, never a stranger to complexity, only serve to sharpen the vision of possibility. His imagination of what can be is never divorced from the realities of what is. He does not bow to the common assumption that "you can't get there from here." "Here" is the only possible point of origin for us.In his succinct, easy to understand writing style, Suderman provides insightful and thought-provoking perspectives to what it means to be the church. To be a people "called out" to participate together in God's activity in the world, and to create programs and structures needed for effective ministry are two sides of the same coin. This book is for dreamers and bureaucrats alike; indeed, it assumes that the two are indispensable pieces of God's coming presence.Introduction by: Tom Yoder Neufeld

part one

The Nature and Being of the Church

1

Jesus and the Church1

“Gospel” is often understood as separate than “church.” Rarely do we hear how “the church” is seen or understood as “the gospel” proclaimed. We concede sometimes that the church is a vehicle of gospel proclamation. But rarely are we willing to draw a direct correlation between the two.

And yet, in this paper, Suderman does exactly this. Suderman explores the meaning of “gospel” as proclaimed by Jesus and sees how this relates to an intentional community that seeks to live out God’s counter-cultural kingdom. “The church,” notes Suderman, “is meant to be an alternative community, subverting the values of our dominant society with kingdom of God priorities. It is to be radical, counter-cultural, and prophetic. It is to be a mobile and portable reservoir of kingdom-living that can be present and contextualized everywhere.” When this happens, the gospel is proclaimed.

The church is a tough sell in the Western world. Good words are used to talk about Jesus—radical, revolutionary, counter-cultural, subversive, prophetic, alternative. Not so good words are used to talk about the church—institutional, bureaucratic, self-serving, conservative, slow, irrelevant, limiting, calcified, resistant to change, out-of-date.

In Canada, where I am writing from, a large majority (80%) of our population identifies itself as “Christian,” but a declining minority (16%) says that it is connected to the “church”. In other words, 64% of Canadians prefer Christianity without the church. This is serious. It could be described as a mutiny against the church by Christians themselves.

Yet, there is enormous interest in spiritual matters in our society. Evidence for the search and yearning for spiritualities fill the shelves and the screens. Our Western societies are not entirely secular; nor are they atheistic. If anything, there is a rejuvenated sense of the sacred and an increased conviction that there are powers beyond what is visible and knowable. There is a sense of the transcendent nature of life. There is an understanding that there is more to life than the temporal, the visible, and the tangible. Science has not managed to de-mystify our human experience. We continue to be deeply spiritual people.

The Core Questions

Can Christianity address this deep spiritual longing without reference to the church? Is Christianity without the church still Christian? Is there a necessary connection between Jesus and the church? Is “church” an essential or optional part of the gospel of Jesus? We want to explore these questions in this chapter.

A Step Closer

The New Testament was first written in the Greek language. The Greek word that is translated as “church” is ekklesia. Scholars have often pointed to the fact that Jesus doesn’t use that word much. Indeed, there are only three times in the four gospels that the word ekklesia is used at all (Matthew 16:18 and twice in Matthew 18:17). This is striking when we think of the stature to which the church has risen since the time of Jesus.

The near absence of this word on Jesus’ lips is interesting given it is used often in the rest of the New Testament (111 times), especially by Paul in his letters (64 times). Scholars have often pondered this significant shift of the use of ekklesia in the biblical text. There is another term that Jesus does use a lot, indeed it seems to be a favorite word/symbol. It is the word kingdom (basilea in Greek—used 124 in the Gospels). It is striking that this favored word of Jesus is used less by other New Testament writers, especially Paul (only 14 of 38 uses). This too has been noticed by New Testament scholars. It has led some authors to observe that although Jesus proclaimed the kingdom, he got the church. They assume that there is a fundamental contradiction between Jesus’ concept of the coming kingdom and Paul’s commitment to forming the church.

Jesus’ Definition of “Gospel”

We can test whether the church plays a significant role in Jesus’ vision by asking how Jesus understands what is good about the news that he has come to live and proclaim. Fortunately, we have such a statement, and it is succinct and clear. These are the very first public words spoken by Jesus, according to Mark’s Gospel. As such, we need to pay very close attention to them.

After John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:14–15, italics added).2

The word “gospel” appears twice in this short passage. In the Greek language, the word “gospel” is euaggelion. It is actually made up of two words—eu, which is the Greek way of making something normal into something very good and positive, and aggelion which simply means a message. So Jesus is delivering a “positive message” from God. What he is saying is “good news,” and the word is often translated that way.

This positive, inaugural message proclaimed by Jesus has two elements:

The time (kairos) is fulfilled,

The kingdom of God is at hand.

Nothing more. God’s time is here (time is kairos in Greek). God’s kingdom is at hand; it has arrived. This is it. According to Jesus, the gospel is that in God’s timing, God’s kingdom has become accessible. The rest of Mark’s gospel attempts to flesh out this good news.

Jesus’ definition of gospel is only nine words in Greek. Because it is so brief, it is often tempting to make it more complex than it is. We should not. This is the core of what the good news of God is. The time of God has been fulfilled; and God’s kingdom is coming into our midst.

Because the statement is so succinct, it also invites the reader/listener to flesh it out more. The first century hearer would have made immediate connections to common understandings of God’s time and kingdom. But they did not find it easy to move beyond their immediate impulses and assumptions. The rest of Mark’s gospel shows that although Jesus was saying some of the expected things, he meant some things that were quite different from what was commonly assumed. They needed to flesh out what this meant in their lives, and so do we.

Gospel is about Kingdom Presence

Jesus’ gospel is that the kingdom of God is present among us. It presumes that there is a ruler, there is authority, and that people are being governed. This kingdom points to authority rather than geography. The kingdom arriving means that although God’s authority is accessible and active everywhere, it is only recognized and accepted by some circles of people. Some people are willing to live according to God’s authority and will for their lives. Others are not yet willing to do so. That’s why we often say that while the kingdom is already here, it is not yet completely here. The presence of the kingdom is not limited to those who consciously re-orient their lives to it. But God hopes that all will live kingdom lives.

What does the world look like when the kingdom of God approaches and becomes real in our communities? This topic is big enough to fill this entire chapter, book, and lifetime. But let’s at least think about this in broad strokes.

The gospels and Jesus’ parables, teaching, and actions try to paint pictures of what this looks like. Demons no longer rule the lives of people. Sick persons are healed. Lepers are liberated. Fisher folk form kingdom communities. The rich folks share their wealth. The powerful are merciful and compassionate. The violent ones opt for peace. The revolutionary commits to non-violent strategies. The hungry are fed. The naked are clothed. The prisoners are set free. Debts are forgiven. Land is distributed. Slaves are freed. Women are treated as equals. Samaritans become heroes. Children are held up as models. Leaders are re-defined as servants. People die for rather than kill each other. Forgiveness rather than revenge is practiced. Justice is the new norm. Oppression is eliminated. God is worshipped.

In other words, there is a new way to be and to live. Values and ethics are redefined. Strategies are transformed. Honesty and truth replace corruption and lying. Enemies are loved rather than hated. Money is shared rather than hoarded. The change is comprehensive. It impacts politics, economics, religion, culture, family and marriage, social structures, and military reliance.

When God’s kingdom comes into a community and God’s authority is accepted, life is not the same. And this transformation of life is good news. It is a positive message. It is a desired outcome, unless, of course, you benefit from corruption and violence, hoarding and revenge. Then things may become uncomfortable for you. And you may think of this presence as an enemy. And you might wish to shut it down and drive it away. You may even think of killing all the babies under the age of two to make sure this idea doesn’t catch on. This was King Herod’s response to the arrival of a new king and a new kingdom. Or you may believe that it is best to crucify the one who promotes such thinking. This is what the religious and political authorities did with Jesus.

But it’s not enough to focus only on the social transformation that happens when the kingdom comes. The most important ingredient of the coming kingdom is that people can actually change their behaviours, habits, and self-understanding. They are given the power to do so. We don’t fully understand this power in our lives, but we see and feel it transforming us and others around us.

The New Testament says it is the power of the resurrection at work in our lives. The power that was mighty enough to raise Jesus from the dead is now available to change our lives t...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Foreword
• Introduction
• Acknowledgments
• Part One: The Nature and Being of the Church
• Part Two: A People in the World
• Bibliography