Book Review :: Transformed: A New Way of Being Christian

There is a shift coming in the conversation about “missional church”. There is a shift away from explaining missional church in negative terms to using positive explanation. More and more voices are no longer talking about what is wrong with traditional forms of church and they are declaring boldly all of the beauty and wonder of church lived outside of the walls. A life of freedom and grace. A life of everyday wonder lived in the shadow of the glory of a savior.

If this is the kind of discussion about the missional church that you are after then Transformed: A New Way of Being Christian by Caesar Kalinowski is a great place to start.

Kalinowski is a founding member of Soma Communities in Tacoma, Washington. The insights that he shares in this book come directly from his experiences there. He shares stories and threads them through the foundation of Soma’s way of expressing church: “A Family of Missionary Servants that are called to be disciples who make disciples.”

This baptismal identity forms the basic outline for the book:

1. Family

2. Servants

3. Missionaries

4. Disciples

Kalinowski drives each of these into the heart of the reader with warm stories and biblical truth. The reader that accepts these to be true, the one that walks in this identity, will be one that feels that they are a dearly loved child of God growing in the compassion to serve and the courage to go to all people.

What next? Kalinowski sets being before doing as he places the identity of the Christian first and the rhythms of a life surrendered to the Gospel next. He sets those rhythms out as:

1. Story-Formed

2. Listen

3. Eat

4. Bless

5. Celebrate

6. Re-Create

Each of these is littered with examples and wonderful ideas to put into practice around your neighborhood right now. This is not difficult or a to-do list of ways to “get people to go to church”. But rather this book offers inspiration and encouragement to be the church right where you are. You can reach people by living in the identity of who God called you to be.

If you are looking for an introduction into missional church for yourself or want a great way to introduce others then you need to buy this book. Read it. Share it.

Life in the Shadow.

1 Corinthians 2:6-16

"Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God." -1 Corinthians 2:6-16

One cannot help but be impacted by the Trinitarian thoughts that these passages put forth. What makes us unique among people is not our actions but our connection with God through his Spirit. To live in light of this truth moves me to live in the shadow of the Trinity. The revelation of the Spirit leads me to the reality of the Son, Jesus Christ, which then leads me to a reliance on the Father of all creation. The truth of the Trinity is this: I cannot know truth without the Trinity.

The wisdom of Paul’s discussion here is one of maturity. Once you have the Spirit of God in you then you will see the world differently. You will see the world the way God sees the world. You will find yourself connected with fellow believers, you will live differently in light of this reality of regeneration, and you will proclaim the wisdom of the Gospel that you possess in a way that is consistent with the revelation of the Gospel that you have received.

This reality is not just a cultural alternative to the secular world we live in. As if it is enough for me to refrain from watching one kind of movie and replace it with another, to refrain from watching four hours of secular television in order to watch four hours of Christian television, or to put down the secular fiction in order to read Christian fiction. The Christian life has been reduced to a cheap alternative to the secular life. It is no longer a life that ceases to focus on oneself but rather one that tries to focus on oneself with the “right” stuff. The Christian life, as we know it, is rarely lived in stark contrast to the world. This wisdom, however, demands that we think theologically and understand life biblically not just for our own sake but also for the sake of others.

Paul’s gospel is not intending to show the Corinthians the “right” way to live the Christian life but rather that the Christian life is altogether different than the world around them. The motivation to live a crucified life cannot be communicated from the pulpit or coerced from a tract but must be compelled by the Spirit of God. This is not a “better way” to live life but the only way to live life in the shadow of a crucified Christ.

One True and Just God

They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served something created rather than the Creator- Romans 1:25

God is one and God is just. The justice of God also brings into the picture the wrath of God (1:18 see below). In 1:18-32 Paul will discuss those who are "without excuse" and must face God for the wickedness of being less than human.

Humans were created for compassion and kindness, for justice and good, but mankind sought after their own desires rather than those they were created for. We were created to have a heart like God's ("in His image" see Genesis 1-3), to love the things he loves, to care for the things he cares for. We know we were not created for selfish pursuits and we do not need religion to tell us this, our conscious testifies against us. When we seek after our own human desires we are being less than human because we were created to seek after God and his desires.

God, being just handed us over to our sinful desires and choices. The wrath of God could be felt in the consequences of our sins (6:23). None of us can stand before God, not even one (3:10, more on this later). Even pagans sought to make God in their own image instead of recognizing that we are made in his. Our only hope is to surrender to God (12:1-2).

If God is just and we surrender to him then doesn't that mean that we will endure his wrath. We would if we were the ones standing before God. But it is Jesus Christ that stands before God in our stead (more on this later). This is why any religion that leads you to a god without the intercession of Christ (God in flesh, more later), leads you to either a god that is going to subject you to wrath, or one that is not just. Either way, if you are not standing before a just God being represented and covered by his Son, Jesus Christ then good luck!

You are going to need it! 

Peanut Butter Christianity

In his book, RetroChristianity, Michael Svigel discusses the appetite of the current church-goer for all things inauthentic. We have been tasting something manufactured using the ingredients of post-reformation, post-Great Awakening, and post-revivalism faith for so long that we can hardly recognize what is truly authentic.

More than this. When we do taste the authentic faith of Historic Christianity as it was practiced and believed by our forefathers we quickly spit it out. We may even pull back from this authentic product. Svigel compares our reaction to that of peanut butter.

Most Americans today are not really eating peanut butter. We may think that we are eating peanut butter but we usually are not. Look at the back of the jar. Peanut butter is peanuts. Peanuts that have been ground up into a smooth form something like butter. We buy something smoother. We buy something sweeter. In fact, if most of us tasted "Natural" peanut butter we would probably not like it....at first.

But it still looks like peanut butter. It is still labeled peanut butter.

The same is true for Christianity. Current Evangelicals look Christian. They are labeled Christian.

"What I'm suggesting is this: over the last several decades, many of us evangelicals have become increasingly accustomed to a less "natural" form of Christianity. While still essentially Christian, many aspects of evangelicalism have become victims of "enrichment"   by non-Christian ingredients that are meant to enhance the faith. This "enrichment" has been done to make the gospel more convenient, palatable, or marketable. Yet as these added ingredients take up more and more space, the essentials of the faith are necessarily displaced."

 For us to continue forward without regarding the essential elements of Christianity that have been clearly evident in historical practices as they have been believed everywhere, always, and by all is for us to continue to accept a mere imitation of real Christianity.

"The time has come for evangelicals to reclaim the forgotten faith. However, this means doing something many are reluctant to do. It means reflecting on the past to rethink the present and revitalize the future. It means, in short, to think not just biblically and theologically, but also historically."  

We will continue in future posts to discuss a few ways that we can recover a more "natural" reflection of Christian faith.

Freedom from Independence...

The mark forever placed on those that are born and raised in the United States of America is an appreciation and celebration of freedom. Specifically, the type of freedom that displays itself in independence from another governing authority. Men and women of this country fought for it...died for it...and continue to defend it.

This passion for independence affects much of what is done in America. Independence is a cultural norm. It is a social expectation. We see it in marketing, in education, in entertainment, in technology, and in worship.

The standard form of Christian worship in America has been to gather as individuals...sing as individuals...have a sermon prepared and performed by an individual...and if we happen to take communion (depending on whether you hit the right day of the year) we take it individually. We are independent!

But this is not Biblical worship.

Biblical worship has a specific pattern that it follows. It has a form. This form is not arbitrary. The form is not dependent on personal creativity, the talent of the music leader, or the budget of the congregation. The form is Biblical, historical, and universal. This pattern and form does not negate our freedom. It upholds our freedom. It remembers our freedom. Freedom from slavery in the Exodus. Freedom from class, race, and gender. Freedom from the bounds of sin. Freedom from the ravages of death.

Freedom from independence.

In Biblical Christian worship we tell a story. The story of creation, redemption, and new creation. We tell this story with signs, drama, and participation. It has a beginning (invocation) and an end (benediction). It celebrates Christ's incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection in gathering around the table for Eucharist (thanksgiving). It demands response from the people through hymns, creeds, prayers, doxologies, confessions, and offerings.

This is worship that is Biblical.

This form and pattern of worship also unites Christians throughout time and space. We are in communion with patriarchs, saints of old, a gathering of languages, cultures, genders, and classes. This is worship that gives freedom. Not freedom to deconstruct and rework. Not freedom to explore a new way but a freedom to walk in ancient ways. This is freedom to be who we were created to be. This is freedom to behave how we were created to behave. This is freedom from being on my own. This is a freedom that is shared by a people...a new people. To engage the spiritual realities through physical signs. This is worship.

True worship is freedom from independence.

Such a Great Cloud of Witnesses

Our last blog post about reading Scripture in light of history ("History Glasses") brought up some very good questions in response. Two questions that surfaced regularly were "why?" and "how?" In other words, people wanted to know why history is such an important part of seeing Scripture more clearly and they also wanted to know how they could begin to tackle such a daunting task.

We have a far deeper and more rich fellowship within the church than many people realize and many churches (see our last post) refuse to acknowledge as a witness to various views. Hebrews calls this rich and deep fellowship "a great cloud of witnesses" (12:1). This "great cloud" that surrounds us allows us to "look to the author and perfecter of our faith". Some of us have grown up completely segregated from the church fathers and find them foreign and aloof. Many others approach them with skepticism and a Western idea that newer is better. We who live in the west have a natural predisposition to be wary of history because we can see their mistakes.

Christianity, however, points us to embrace history because the Spirit of God has been moving then, as now, to lead and guide us in faith (the point of Hebrews chapter 11). It is precisely because we can see the mistakes of others that history becomes more important for us. If we are led by the same Spirit, in the same faith, to worship the same Lord, then we might just be heading for some of the same errors. The fathers have given us a gift of seeing farther because we "stand on the shoulders of giants"(CS Lewis).

The barrier of how to go about engaging these fathers is a bit tricky. The immediate attraction is to pick up a history book and begin to read or purchase a paperback of the church fathers (here) and think that we can be in communion with them. These tasks may be helpful but they are not fellowship with the Christ in communion with the saints.

This kind of communion comes in worship, community, and mission. This comes as we celebrate, share, and serve together as we take into account the hearts, minds, and efforts that have come before. This means that pastors have a necessary responsibility to point us toward reflections, prayers, hymns, and confessions of the faithful. We need to be made aware where and when these meditations came from so that we can learn to appreciate them and even learn to read the fathers with eyes for insight. Our worship leaders need to purposely choose music that unites us with ancient paths and future ones.

Our faithful fathers of days gone by are not to be forgotten. They were, and are, the church. We owe much to them. We venture on a journey that has been laid bare by the feet of the faithful that have come before.

This ancient path is our guide as we walk into a glorious future.