The Babylonian Captivity of the American Church: A Wake Up Call From A Seasoned Pastor
“I am inviting you to join me in a new kind of hope, a hope that is not found in the policies of the left, the middle or the right. (Once again, I am not calling you to withdraw from society or public life, as some will suggest.) I am very happy to be a citizen of the United States and realize that I have a responsibility to my earthly home. But here is where we get easily confused. Our last and best hope is not the United States, for all the good that our land represents in its unique experiment in democracy. As followers of the Son of God, our hope must in the Lord Jesus Christ alone!”
John H. Armstrong of the Act3 Network
http://johnharmstrong.com/?p=3794
John Armstrong is one of my mentors, in an informal sense, but also in an intentional sense. I agree with his assessments of our day. Not because I am some great scholar like him, nor because I am also a well-trained pastor, but because in all of my readings through the years, and my own experiences within the American Church, I have come to similar general conclusions. He validates what I have come to see, and does it in a very well thought out way.
John has been controversial at times. Not because he likes to be but because he is an honest questioner of the status quo. When you challenge the status quo, you usually run into opposition in places. The status quo needs to be called into question at times because when people settle into patterns of behavior, it often is formed by misguided views. The Church is lucky to have gifted iconoclasts in her midst, so icons do not become the norm and supplant the true image that only Jesus gives the Church.
I encourage you, no, I implore you to read his careful and heartfelt words so that you can be informed and awakened to the realities of our day. Then you can seek the Lord of the Church to see what he is commissioning you to be in bringing light to this dark world.
Questions: Do you feel the same darkness being cast over the American Church today? What do you think is contributing to it in your opinion? Do you agree with John Armstrong’s assessment? Why?
The pall cast over the American church is heavy and heartbreaking. In my meditations lately I’ve been thinking very deeply about what is required of me from my Lord. I’ve been hearing the same thing over and over again and that is ‘the law of love’. How do we fulfill this ‘law of love’? By having less of self and more of others. It seems that it is harder to show this ‘love’ to other believers than it is to unbelievers but God’s Word says that they will know we are followers of Christ by our love for each other. Recently I was excoriated by another believer for speaking truth in a very difficult situation. Instead of being thankful, I was called names. I’ve never had anything hurt like this. Especially when it was love that compelled me to speak. I felt a very tiny fraction of what Jesus must have felt when he was unjustly accused. Our Savior died for love. Brothers and sisters let us love one another in truth and walk humbly with our Savior.
That is very heartfelt Stephanie. I’m sorry you experienced this from inside the church. I’m sure you know this, the Church is filled with weeds and flowers. And even some flowers have thorns. It helps me to expect raw life, even among those I will likely spend eternity with. It may be what ‘iron sharpening iron’ is all about. Suffering is a norm of faithful Christian living, disappointment is going to happen, and God will always shine brighter than our darkest moment. Thanks for sharing and praying for love to cover all sins.