Faithfulness or Relevance, more thoughts

Wouldn't you know it -- Detrich Bonhoeffer says something that relates to this subject.  I have been re-reading Bonhoeffer's Life Together.  There is much in this book that shows Bonhoeffer's faith in the objective finished work of Jesus for us upon the cross -- and there is much that is a direct rebuke and hedge to the pursuit of relevance.

I think faithfulness with the Gospel in any time is to be expressed by speaking the whole truth in a way that make sense to the hearer -- in their language and metaphors (more on that in the next post).  But it does not mean catering to their agenda.  The Gospel counters the agenda of the human heart.

So, as I was reading Bonhoeffer this morning on the consecutive reading of Scripture, I noted this theme (my paraphrase): The reason we read consecutively through the Scriptures rather than read it to find a devotional text is simply this -- it does not matter how you feel -- what matters is what God had done.  If the value of the Bible is determined by whether I find it meaningful, then I am no longer subject to it -- I am lording it over the text. 

He goes on to point out that the value of churches reading Scripture together and singing together and praying together is simply this: it rebukes our tendency to want everything to be meaningful to us.  It pushes us into the world of the objective, external work of God for us in salvation.

Whoa!  Did you hear that?  In our day, which is endlessly me-focused and me-aware, this is powerful.  If my quest to be relevant takes me down a road of catering to the demands of people to "get something meaningful to me" from every sermon, then I may actually compromise the text.  I compromise it because I kiss the idol of "I must feel good and this must be helpful to me to have any meaning."  That idol is a contradiction to the purpose of God in the Gospel.

And this idol rules at times -- in seeking music or sermons that are relevant, the final measure of relevance is "does it make me feel closer to God?" I have heard people say, "Until I worshipped to rock-n-roll I never knew how wonderful worship could be."  Who evaluates our worship -- God or us?

Rather, the most relevant thing I can do is communicate the Gospel in a way that helps the typical American see that the best medicine for their souls is to cease this endless feel-good, self-preoccupation and bring their attention to the truth of God and the Savior Jesus.  When people say to me after the sermon, "Pastor, that was not very relevant to me" -- my reply should be, "What do you mean by relevant?  If being reminded of the Savior's substiution for us all as sinners -- rescuing us from everlasting wrath is not relevant, then we must have the wrong definition.  Let's talk about this."

The challenge is to do this in a way that helps them see that the test of their soul's well-being is NOT how they feel -- it is the objective work of Christ for us.  I can "rail at and damn" the idol, but I am called to lead them to see why this is so. 

I think we can take our therapuetically obsessed culture and use those very realities to point them to the Savior . . .  more on that in the next post.

Comments

[Erin Ball]

Hi Mark, Just thought I'd let you know that I stop by often and really enjoy reading your posts. Thanks for taking the time to do this. We've been helped so many times by your wisdom and teaching.