It is clear through scripture that the primary method of Jesus’ plan for ministry is
through churches. We see clearly that Jesus established an initial church and from
there, the Apostles went out planting churches. Indeed, a large majority of the New
Testament writings are letters to the churches and it is to churches not individuals who
Jesus writes letters in Revelation. In the past six weeks, one of the books I read was
Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Removing Cultural Blinders to Better
Understand the Bible by E. Randolph Richards and Brandon J. O’Brien. This book
helped me reflect deeper on my own cultural blinders and how that affects the methods
of my ministry. As I reflect on my culture and upbringing, I am really aware of the
individual nature of my culture and often faith. I grew up in a non-denominational,
Christian church with a Baptist background. Like many, our church was heavily
impacted by ministries and resources like AWANA, Bible Study Fellowship, Campus
Crusade for Christ, and Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Church. These are excellent
resources that prioritize personal Bible study and spiritual discipline.
From a young age, I understood that I should read my Bible every day, even though I didn’t, and that spiritual discipline was something between me and God. As a homeschooled student, I was also taught that it is not the church’s job to educate me about God but that should be done at home with the church as an extra support. Bible study and scripture memorization was included in my school curriculum every year. To be clear, I do not think any of this was wrong and I gained a wonderful foundation because of my
upbringing. Yet, I need to acknowledge the individual nature of most of what I was
taught about spiritual life. I understood that studying God’s word was my job and going
to church was sort of an extra part of being a Christian. We were supposed to serve at
church, which we did all the time, because it was what we were “supposed” to do.
Again, all of these mindsets are true but they did not lead me to understand the
communal nature that God intended for Christians. I understood that the church needed
me but I did not understand how much I needed the Church.
In addition, I reflect on my family, state, and American culture and see that it is full of individualism. We celebrate those who “pick themselves up from their bootstraps” and “defeat all the odds.” We are constantly taught that “people need to learn lessons for themselves” and the most important value is freedom. The ideals of rights and freedom are celebrated, memorialized, and idolatrized constantly. We believe that America does not need anyone else and everyone needs us.
I am reminded of a line from Tim Allen’s Last Man Standing, “as humans, we are at the top of the food chain, and since we’re Americans, we’re at the very top.” My parents valued “taking responsibility for your actions” above most else and as long as you did your induvial part/chore/responsibility, you did not have to worry about what you sibling did or did not do. This individualistic mindset has definitely impacted my methods of ministry but I continue to grow in this area. I have been blessed to live in both Western and Eastern cultures which began the process of retraining my individualistic mindsets to better match the biblical model for church.
The church is described as a body which cannot operate without each part. 1 Corinthians12:15-16 says, “Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body”. This is how God designed the church and it goes against the Western mindset because you cannot just exclude your spiritual life from the lives of others. Richards and O’Brien discuss the difference in our understanding of the singular and plural you. From my cultural background, when I heard verses saying “you are the body of Christ” or “you are the temple of the Holy Spirit,” I often applied those to myself alone. I understood that I had a responsibility to do my part in the body. But that “you” is most often plural not singular. It is not written to individuals but to the group.
As we would say in Oklahoma, “Y’all are the body of Christ.” When we understand this meaning of scripture, our methods shift from being individualistic to communal. An example of this change in my life is I have shifted the way that I asked questions in discussion groups. I used to consistently ask, “How should you apply this to your life?” I now ask, “How should we apply this to our lives?” While the application may end of being very similar, the mindset changes. No longer is scripture just for me but for us. No longer is my spiritual health and growth solely tied to my personal discipline but to my connection with the body its overall health and growth. Jesus’ method was never designed to be an individual journey but a mission to be carried out together.
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