(part 3 of a miniseries on the emerging church – see part 1 and part 2)
Unfortunately, both sides (Emerging and mainstream) suffer from rejecting the other. Some of the old guard resists new life, ensuring the continuation of their own slow death. The emerging generation discounts the contribution of the previous generation – largely on the basis how little life change it sees – and thereby denies itself access to a great repository of solid theology and a heritage of belief.
One side needs to talk more about global issues while the other side needs to guard their theology a bit more.
I had the wonderful opportunity about a year ago to be at Brian McLaren’s “Why Everything Must Change” conference one weekend and being in Minneapolis at John Piper’s “Desiring God” conference the next. There was something at both that wasn’t at the other; there was something missing at both that the other addressed.
At WEMC, belief in the gospel was either buried under a torrent of concern for global humanitarian issues, or redefined as being the concern for those issues. These are not inappropriate or unimportant concerns.
At Desiring God ‘08 there was no mention of a current global issue at all. It was all gospel, all theology, all talk. I left there with my theological beliefs strengthened, which is a good thing. But where is the concern for global suffering and injustice? Connect the dots for us: how does this theological clarity lead us into a biblical concern for the poor and the action that must follow?
In my opinion, the best thing an organization like DG can do to stem the flow of young people going to the theologically unsteady regions of the EC is to talk more about practical application of the great truths they teach. In Piper’s own words, he does not “aim to be immediately practical but eternally helpful.” I think he should reconsider this and try for both.
A full gospel is both theological and social; it is belief and action.
Related posts:
- D. A. Carson: Five Trends in the Church Today D. A. Carson in a talk before last week’s Desiring God national conference: 4. There is a trend in our churches to be consumed by...
- Ed Stetzer on The Emerging Church Stetzer has just published a lengthy article in The Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry.(go to page 62 to read the article) Among the more...
- Andrew Jones responds: “John Piper and an ‘upper-middle-class’ emerging church” Andrew Jones (Twitter), a recognized long-time leader in Emerging Church circles responds to my post from earlier this week. Here is an excerpt: The EC...
- Liveblogging the EMMC NatCon – 3 A good day today. Dan Rempel and I delivered a talked entitled “clear.communication: Staying Relevant in a Changing World”. The session went well, it was...
- Church Size: Why Always “Bigger”? Is bigger always better? Two questions: 1. Can you list one biblical and one practical reason why we keep trying to make our current churches...
