Mark Driscoll, the fearless and sometimes controversial founder and Pastor of Mars Hill church in Seattle, writes books the way he preaches: . In fact, his recent books are transcribed from earlier sermon series’. Sure, there’s some editing and polishing, but if you’re familiar with his preaching, the content of his books is no surprise.
In Vintage Church: Timeless Truths and Timely Methods, Driscoll attempts in each chapter to address a question about the church, including what it is and how and by whom it should be led. (see table of contents below).
In all, the book is a great resource for church leaders and planters. Aside from the bits of humor, the book reads very much like a course text, with Driscoll, who has “been there and done that” and lived (barely) to tell about it, as it’s narrator. He is also aware of his church’s status as a “megachurch”, which puts it in a vast minority of churches on the planet. Rather than focusing too much on “here’s how we do it”, he focuses on “here’s why we did it this way”. His insights and recommendations are based on principles more than particulars.
Driscoll’s penchant for humor usually works well live from the stage, but in print it serves more as an annoyance than a useful distraction. In addition, he uses the same humorous anecdotes too often. New comedic material is the lifeblood of a good comedian and since he has studied the great comedians, he should see that his current crop of quips needs a makeover. (For example, the joke about Mars Hill starting “at about the size of Mormon family” is getting difficult to chuckle at.)
At one point he relates a story about someone giving him a sermon on tape, even though, as he points out, he has not seen a tape player since “the days when Michael Jackson was male.” While Jackson’s recent passing (after the book was published) makes this seem extra offensive, it is still unwarranted. The Gospel is often offensive by nature; comments like this, I would argue, offend people for the wrong reasons.
In one sense, you could say that Driscoll is trying to augment the offense of the Gospel with his own form of offensiveness. It requires no such assistance.
Whether speaking or writing he delivers a lot of facts – straight up. Delivered without humor, they lack life; delivered with the same tired anecdotes he’s been using for years, these facts become tiresome opportunities to take a jab at an easy target.
Those who have Driscoll pegged as simply an old-school pastor with a new-school mouth will find a few surprises here. For example, he endorses the active participation of non-believers in the life of the church.
As someone who is quite familiar with his writing and preaching, I have watched him mature as a leader, teacher, and preacher, increasing in humility along the way. Here’s hoping that trajectory continues so that more people will be drawn to his teaching than are repelled by his sometimes necessary crudeness. (Yes, that means that I believe that some of what he says that is counted as “crude” is actually appropriate.) If you can get by the instances of unnecessary crudeness – and you should be able to – there is much to be learned. At heart he is a caring and, according to current demographic data, young Pastor who, like the rest of us, is seeking to grow in godly maturity.
Driscoll’s passion for the local church – yours, mine, and his – is undeniable. His ability to accept criticism and wisdom is surprising for a man of his personality type, and this makes him rare. I have benefited greatly from his teaching in my own journey as a Pastor.
Vintage Church is a good read, packed with resources and wisdom. You will not agree with it entirely, but that’s true of any book. If you are a church leader of any kind who is concerned with both relevance and unchanging truth, I recommend you read this book.
You can read a sample chapter of Vintage Church here.
You can find previous posts at The Ascent to Truth about Mark Driscoll here.
