Becoming a Christian, Part 3

"When we examine the broad spectrum of Christian proclamation and practice, we see that the only thing made essential on the right wing of theology is forgiveness of the individual's sins. On the left it is remove of social or structural evils. The current gospel then becomes a 'gospel of sin management.' Transformation of life and character is no part of the redemptive message. Moment-to-moment human reality in its depths is not the arena of faith and eternal living." - Dallas Willard

What is our theology of salvation? What do we believe salvation really is? Consider the aforementioned bridge analogy popularized in the 4 Spiritual Laws evangelistic presentations (see Part 1). Here the problem of sin is that it separates us from God. The solution to the problem is God bridging the gap through Christ and the cross. We receive salvation, then, by receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, which is done by following the suggested prayer formula.

While I don't disagree that sin separates us from God or that Christ can be viewed metaphorically as the bridge between God and humanity, this presentation of salvation seems to be one-dimensional as well as truncated or incomplete. Consider some of the New Testament metaphors for the saving work of God in Christ. Similar to the bridge analogy, some deal directly with our relationship with God: In Christ we are 'reconciled' (Rom. 5:10; 2 Cor. 5:18-19), 'forgiven' (Mt. 26:28; 1 Jn. 1:9), 'redeemed' (Gal. 3:13), 'ransomed" (Eph. 1:7, 14), and 'freed' (Rom. 6:18). Some salvation metaphors deal with the transformation of our life and character: In Christ we are 'born again" (1 Pe. 1:3), 'purified' (Jn. 17:19; Eph. 5:26), 'made alive' (Eph. 2:5; Col. 2:13), and made 'new creations' (Gal. 6:15; 2 Cor. 5:17). Similarly and related to these, still other metaphors deal with our relationships with others: In Christ with others we receive 'adoption' (Eph. 1:5; Gal. 4:5), become 'children of God' (Jn. 1:12; Rom. 8:17) and a part of 'Christ's body' (1 Cor. 12:13) in which we have 'fellowship' with one another (1 Jn. 1:3, 7). And this list is by no means exhaustive!

Is there a way to capture some of these ideas in presenting the Gospel to others? Something to ruminate on next time.

Becoming a Christian, Part 2

"The moment of decision or the decision of faith must be understood not simply as one decision but as a life decision. The experience of salvation is not merely one specific experience in the life of the Christian; rather, it consists in an abiding with Christ that is strengthened and deepened through life. Faith entails not simply the acceptance of Christ but daily repentance and obedience....It is not a single experience of conversion but a life of conversion that is decisive for our salvation." - Donald Bloesch

Perhaps the reason why I react negatively to the purely transactional models of "becoming a Christian" is rooted in my own experience as a child and adolescent. Numerous times I heard a preacher or speaker give the invitation to "ask Jesus into your heart," and numerous times I responded. Unfortunately, I also believed that once I asked Jesus "in" He was free to leave and head "out" whenever He wanted, most likely in response to my unfaithfulness (which was common), and without any need to give 2 weeks notice. Consequently, I prayed the "sinner's prayer" and "received Christ" repeatedly, unsure if it had worked the last time I had completed the transaction. (This is why I hate the question, "When did you become a Christian?"--I still don't have a good answer! Perhaps it's also why I'm still unsettled by Jesus' question, "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I say?" But I'll save that for another post!)

The end result was feeling like this salvation I'd received was incomplete. If the sweet-sounding amazing grace had saved me, why did I still feel like a wretch? I've heard similar stories from enough other people that I don't think this result is uncommon. Some feel like their salvation prayer was a one-hit wonder -- that one might have worked wonders, but the rest now seem to fall flat. Others find themselves stuck in habitual patterns of sin that they can't seem to break. And regrettably, the Church seems to provide little or no real help. After all, we're the ones who've set up these unmet expectations that once you "become a Christian" the important work is done.

I've written elsewhere: "Intentionally communicated or not, the message heard by many churchgoers today is one of 'instant salvation' or 'instant Christianity,' a message that is attractive to Americans who are preconditioned to instant gratification by our rapid cultural changes, our ever-increasing technological innovations, and our furious pace of life. We have become accustomed to time-saving techniques, shortcuts, and quick fixes, and the church's message has accommodated our short attention spans."

The result is numerous people actively seeking to be 'a Christian,' at least as it has been presented to them, but they're feeling like something is missing. Even more have heard and perhaps responded to this view of becoming a Christian, and are now doing little to actively follow Christ. Leadership Journal posted results of a survey which indicated that 81% of Americans that identified themselves as "Christian" could not meet their standard of "Active Christian." (See http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2007/004/1.19.html.) I can't help but wonder if this is because we're not helping people embrace full-life discipleship with Jesus. Are we essentially just making church-members instead of disciples? They've passed the initiation rite to join the club, but now that they're in...

This all seems to beg a question or two: What's our underlying theology of salvation? What do we believe salvation really is? We'll have to wrestle with that next.

Becoming a Christian, Part 1

Is conversion an event? Is salvation a transaction? Is becoming a Christian really a matter of making a decision or saying a prayer? Is it "crossing the line of faith," "asking Jesus into our hearts," or "accepting Jesus as my personal savior and Lord"?

Our church is currently doing a series on Sunday mornings with the "Becoming a Contagious Christian" material put out by Willow Creek and Zondervan (http://www.contagiouschristian.com/). I had the chance to go through this material with the author in the mid-90's when it first came out. I've also taught the curriculum as an adult class. I value it's emphasis on learning to share about Jesus in a style that is natural for you rather than giving a formula or cookie-cutter approach. BUT... there just has to be a but... I'm increasingly unsatisfied and even troubled by the way we're told to present "the gospel" and invite people to "become Christians."

The so-called "four spiritual laws" and the accompanying bridge analogy are the recommended means for calling people to respond to Christ. (See http://www.billygraham.org/SH_StepsToPeace.asp and http://www.godlovestheworld.com/) All analogies break down, and this one does too in some significant ways (e.g., it keeps sin as something separate from us rather than a part of us; it has no mention of community). But my biggest issue with it is that it implies that once you have followed the steps and prayed the prayer to "receive Christ," then you're done.

I'm reminded of this great quote by A.W. Tozer:

"The whole transaction of religious conversion has been made mechanical and spiritless. Faith many now be exercised without a jar to the moral life and without embarrassment to the Adamic ego. Christ may be 'received' without creating any special love for Him in the soul of the receiver. The man is saved,' but he is not hungry nor thirsty after God. In fact, he is specifically taught to be satisfied and is encouraged to be content with little." - A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

Tozer wrote that 60 years ago! Things haven't changed in many ways.

In the next couple posts I want to wrestle with some of the possible results of this approach to evangelism. Are we, as Tozer says, too easily satisfied and content with too little? I also want to explore some of the theology behind all this. What is it that we believe about what is means to be saved? And hopefully, somewhere along the line, some alternatives might emerge.

Live... without a net!

So here it goes... After reading others' blogs for several years, I've decided to give it try. Why? Because I've got more random thoughts bouncing around in my head than I know what to do with! Hopefully this will give me a place to record and process stuff I'm thinking and reading and generally musing on. And hopefully it will also give a forum for dialoguing with others who want to wrestle with the same kind of stuff.

Welcome to Ruminations and Regurgitations!