Ok so I just posted this on http://www.emergentvillage.com
Why didn’t Jesus send out his disciples as synagogue-planters?
Could it be because Jesus sent them out as people in relationship with the Divine, to bear witness to the Kin-dom of that which is already present? To draw attention to the work of God that is already present and to name it (as Paul did on Mars Hill, in Athens)?
If you go out as a synagogue/church-planter you already have an image of what you will create. And depending how type-A you are, will determine how successfully you execute your vision. However, if you are incarnationally living with open eyes and ears (semiotically speaking), then you will be you may spot the kingdom of God in your affective community (your unique time and space) and draw a truly indigenous people together in Christ.
If it’s about the kin-dom of God, then local faith expressions support, bear witness, point out, tries to embody the kin-dom, and most importantly join the already present work of God within their context. The church does all this very poorly, in constant tension. But it is precisely this tension that can reveal the kin-dom of God. As local churches learn to embrace their limitations, particularity, and even their death; as we learn to carry our cross, to admit “we don’t know, but…”, to love and “walk with” rather than fight against we will be becoming a kin-dom people.
Jesus never preached “the church,” Christ’s imagination is so much larger.
Peace, dwight
