Saturday 10 November 2012

We Need a Christian Revival in Britain!


It’s not overstating the case to say that many ordinary people in Britain feel that Christianity is just not for them; why?  Well, I hope to answer that as we go along.  First, I will take myself as an example.  I am a Christian, a dyed-in-the-wool Christian, who has been a Christian since I was thirteen, but if I am being honest has really tried to live the faith since I was about thirty.  Being in some ways a very private and even shy person, with occasional moments of overtness, I tend not to like the look of churches that get all emotional, or in accepting group ideology when at heart much of what I believe is very deeply held and not up for grabs in any way.  Organised religion seems to me at best a watered-down version of what we hold in private.  But for me, this corporate version of what starts out a very personal and private faith, has many problems attached to it.  Firstly, it can get hierarchical when I feel most of us want an egalitarian faith; does God see high class status or white skin as more important than any other?  Secondly, organised religion is a business, and in the business of raising money and holding stocks and shares and the like; is this really what God wants from us, running religion as a business?  Thirdly, the individual, especially if they are deemed not important, plays a poor second to so-called group-ideology, where somehow the ideas of those who are deemed important trickle down to the rest of us; is Christianity just another branch of the class system?  Fourthly, and similarly, it seems that Christianity in Britain has become just a reflection of the often unfair social system we all live under; if people fervently promote such unfairness in ‘organised Christianity’, are we so certain that God also promotes such unfairness?  Isn’t this something humans can do all by themselves?!

 

A calling in Christianity, a calling from God, isn’t just to be a priest or vicar or even archbishop, it is to be a Christian and to serve God with a whole heart.  For many people like myself, believing and having faith in God but not particularly believing in a hierarchical structure that seems more about class and socially important people, there is a void opening.  In Britain, there are many Christians who just do not get organised religion or big denominations but who still have a deep and genuine hunger and thirst for God.  This void has widened over the last fifty years or so.  Let’s be honest here, much religion, much organised Christianity in Britain was about social control, was about getting people into pews and then telling them that the way things were, the deeply unfair social system, was somehow inexplicably ordained by God; the church was preaching falsehood so that the ruling class could control, manipulate and own millions of ordinary people.  This put many ordinary people off religion and so they stopped going to church.  In the last fifty years or so, when ordinary people’s options began to proliferate and people could live any way they wanted to, the church became far less relevant.  But has God become far less relevant?  I believe the answer is no.  But what do Christians like myself really want?  I don’t want hierarchy.  I don’t want the church run like a business, collecting vast sums of money; and for what exactly?  I don’t want top-down ideology, ideas from the elite trickling down to everyone else, using religion as a convenient way of controlling people.  So what do we want then? 

 

Reality

If we really want to have a faith worth living for, first of all we need to open up a debate, a debate that encompasses all Christians, not just vicars and priests and bishops and archbishops and those deemed socially important, I mean all Christians that want to get involved should get involved.  I also think we need to think about ‘church’ as being the body of believers, not some vast impersonal organisation or a particular denomination or a building in need of repairs; why can’t we get together in each other’s houses or hotels or even pubs and bars?  Who says it has to be a dusty suburban church anyway?  Thus says Yahweh: With heaven my throne and earth my footstool, what house could you build me, what place for me to rest, when all these things were made by me and all belong to me? - declares Yahweh. But my eyes are drawn to the person of humbled and contrite spirit, who trembles at my word.  (Isaiah 66:1-2 NJB)

 

What we all need is a dose of reality, and perhaps we also need to know just what God wants from us, and for us, as well.  I believe God is life-affirming, life-enhancing and life-transforming but little of this wonder, this magnificent nature of God seems to be disseminated through traditional worship and Sunday service churches; is it any wonder people find Christianity irrelevant and even boring? 

 

Worship

I have asked myself many times, ‘just what sort of worship does God want from us?’  I find all that ‘happy-clappy’ stuff, when usually, and supposedly, reserved English people gush and emote at some church services, to be rather embarrassing, both to watch and probably to take part in as well.  Unfortunately, I find the traditional variety of worship, going to church on Sunday at 9am, singing a few hymns and listening to a sermon, and saying hello to the priest or vicar, also not that appealing.  If we could make the inner and private faith we all hold into a genuine public faith, we could all probably move mountains.  How do we in fact square our very private and deeply held beliefs with a corporate and public faith?  How do we worship a God who in fact really needs nothing from us?  But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, descendant of Abraham my friend, whom I have taken to myself, from the remotest parts of the earth and summoned from countries far away, to whom I have said, 'You are my servant, I have chosen you, I have not rejected you,' do not be afraid, for I am with you; do not be alarmed, for I am your God. I give you strength, truly I help you, truly I hold you firm with my saving right hand.  (Isaiah 41:8-10 NJB)  Perhaps worship can be many things; we worship God by being aware He has called us to be His own; we worship God by staying true to our calling even when we live in a deeply sinful and enticing world; we worship God by treating other people with the same respect we hope others will treat us with; we worship God by being in tune with Him and by being in tune with other people’s needs, and many more things besides.

 

Obedience

I have learnt, usually the hard way, that God demands obedience from us; not partial or half-hearted obedience, but full and whole hearted obedience; we cannot live in any kind of sin and then proclaim that we are good Christians; in the end, we may fool other people, we may even fool ourselves, but we will not fool God.  When Israel remained obedient, God blessed them and rewarded them and showered on them both material and spiritual blessings.  However, when Israel only partially remained obedient, God warned them through prophet after prophet to amend their sinful ways and if they didn’t change their ways sooner or later God punished them.  ‘…Is Yahweh pleased by burnt offerings and sacrifices or by obedience to Yahweh's voice? Truly, obedience is better than sacrifice, submissiveness than the fat of rams.  (1 Samuel 15:22 NJB)  The Old Testament and the story of Israel’s often extremely shaky relationship with God is a timely warning for us today, that God means what He says and that He is a God who demands our full attention and our full obedience too.  If we get right with God first, before worrying about other things, we might find that our lives and our view of God are totally transformed.  Who am I to challenge the way things are, who am I to suggest changes to age-old problems and age-old ways of doing things anyway?  I’m just an ordinary sort of guy really, a Christian who wants to see my faith taken seriously but also honestly.  ' Now, please forgive my sin and come back with me, so that I can worship Yahweh.'  (1 Samuel 15:25 NJB)

 

Inner Reality
Paul talks about the ‘inner reality’, the reality that though buried by a thousand and one other concerns, is the only reality we need.  Nothing is to be done out of jealousy or vanity; instead, out of humility of mind everyone should give preference to others, everyone pursuing not selfish interests but those of others.  (Philippians 2:3-4 NJB)  Paul, as Saul the Pharisee, was in some ways an accomplished man, a man who had things to be proud of, but he dismissed it all in order to be a Christian.  But what were once my assets I now through Christ Jesus count as losses. Yes, I will go further: because of the supreme advantage of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, I count everything else as loss. For him I have accepted the loss of all other things, and look on them all as filth if only I can gain Christ and be given a place in him, with the uprightness I have gained not from the Law, but through faith in Christ, an uprightness from God, based on faith, that I may come to know him and the power of his resurrection, and partake of his sufferings by being moulded to the pattern of his death, striving towards the goal of resurrection from the dead.  (Philippians 3:7-11 NJB)  Always, Paul gets to the nub of the argument, and though an educated and eloquent man, he writes with clarity and simplicity, putting across things that could be difficult in a simple and direct way.  For at the judgement seat of Christ we are all to be seen for what we are, so that each of us may receive what he has deserved in the body, matched to whatever he has done, good or bad.  And so it is with the fear of the Lord always in mind that we try to win people over. But God sees us for what we are, and I hope your consciences do too.  Again we are saying this not to commend ourselves to you, but simply to give you the opportunity to take pride in us, so that you may have an answer for those who take pride in appearances and not inner reality.  (2 Corinthians 5:10-12 NJB)  Perhaps we need to get back to this ‘inner reality’, or if we don’t know it to find out what this inner reality really means for Christians; certainly it is that we live in the truth of a situation rather than hiding behind cosy but ultimately empty falsehoods.  We need to get back to the simple truth of the Gospel in everything we do and everything we believe.

8 comments:

  1. Amen! I am blessed to have had two church homes in my adult life that truly complimented what the Spirit said to me when I study the Bible alone. Services and songs and classes and people who have helped me worship God more fully, grow as a Christian and afforded me avenues to put feet to my faith. It is my prayer that all Christians should be so blessed.

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    1. I yearn for such Christian community, because I've never had it in my life so far. I'll keep praying and hoping God has a place prepared for me with other believers. Thanks for the comment Barbara!

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  2. Hi Tim,
    when I saw that you had put a new post up called 'We need a Christian revival in Britain' I started to think about making a comment and it came into my mind to put down in it that Christianity is watered down(as you mention), and that is the main reason that we are not seeing as much as what should be happening in the church. However, it is prophesied that there should be a 'falling away' and men 'drawing away disciples after themselves', so it does not surprise me what is going on in some parts of the church today. However, I believe it is down to the individual as to what they themselves do. We only have to look at the early church, which means 'congregation',two thousand years ago to see that we can gather in houses or anywhere else to worship the Lord and discuss the scriptures. As long as two or three are gathered in Jesus' name He is in the midst of them. As you quote in 'But my eyes are drawn to the person of humbled and contrite spirit, who trembles at my word.’ (Isaiah 66:1-2 God is drawn to those who show obedience and respect for His word, those who realize that what He speaks is a command not a choice, and that is where and when we see Him act in power. I have been,and still am, tested many times as to whether I do what God requires of me or whether I don't. Revival means 'to make alive again', and the only way we can see that happen is to do exactly as the Lord instructs us individually so that all parts of the body of Christ are functioning as they are meant to be. There are no such words as 'archbishop, 'vicar' etc. in the Bible, each person is appointed by God not man,and once you know what God requires of you it is just left to the individual to be obedient to Him. God's church should be the perfect example of 'synergie', all parts working together, but there are too many false doctrines appealing to people, and this only leads to the mind remaining 'carnal'. Wherever I have been amongst believers who allow the freedom of the Holy Spirit to operate, as shown in 'What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church' 1 Corinthians ch.14 v26, then I have seen God revealing Himself and His will to His people in amazing ways.

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    1. Wow; this is a post in itself Brenda! To be able to answer so well means you are well versed in Christian theology and scripture.

      You wrote: '...Christianity is watered down(as you mention), and that is the main reason that we are not seeing as much as what should be happening in the church.' I agree with you. Sometimes the churches are about traditions and things that are not really leading people to Jesus, but about social standing and the status quo and who is, and who is not, important sadly.

      I think I will bite the bullet so to speak and find a place of believers I can worship with, or at least talk about God with.

      You wrote: 'Wherever I have been amongst believers who allow the freedom of the Holy Spirit to operate, as shown in 'What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church' 1 Corinthians ch.14 v26, then I have seen God revealing Himself and His will to His people in amazing ways.' That's the sort of church I want to be a part of Brenda; I hope God has good plans for me.

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  3. Dear Tim,
    Talking about being a member of a church, I fully agree with you that there are many who separate being spiritual from organised religion.
    I can relate in the 1980s as belonging to a relatively large church in my hometown, led by the senior pastor who had visited a church in America (it was Willow Creek in Chicago, led by Bill Hybels.) In wanting to lead a similar sized congregation, our then pastor jumped on the money-for-building program, which covered much of the decade. Many of his Sunday sermons was about tithing and double-tithing, to the extent that by 1989, I got fed up of hearing about money all the time that I eventually left, to join a church in Ascot where I am today.
    The church I was in before did achieve its goal of a large building accommodating a thousand people. When I went to visit on its opening day, I did not feel I belonged there - too big and in my mind, too impersonal, more like sheep being herded rather than an individual wanting to know more about God.
    Then during the early-mid nineties, this church was hit by the "Toronto Blessing," so called, when members of the congregation shrieked, howled and made animal noises as they, so they say, were delivered from all adverse spirits which affected their lives.
    I was, and have always been skeptical about this "Toronto Blessing" - particularly among a Christian congregation - mainly because there is no record of anything relating to this at all in the Bible, particularly in the book of Acts. Furthermore, I actually sat in one of those meetings. Not only did I not respond but I felt very uncomfortable in such an environment.
    At present, I'm happy to say that our Baptist church at Ascot is striving to be as close to the New Testament as possible, with not so much "happy clappy" (we English ARE reserved!) as to bring prophecy, visions, tongues and its interpretations, a song or a reading of Scripture, in the intent of edifying each other. Here is a church I feel I belong.
    An excellent post.

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    1. I think it takes courage to go to a strange church Frank; I have never had that courage. Maybe I need to ask God for it? I can imagine anyone truly seeking God would get fed up hearing about money sooner or later; do we worship God or money after all?

      You wrote: 'The church I was in before did achieve its goal of a large building accommodating a thousand people. When I went to visit on its opening day, I did not feel I belonged there - too big and in my mind, too impersonal, more like sheep being herded rather than an individual wanting to know more about God.' For me, it must be a small number of people, especially if it was teaching me about God. I don't know how anyone could really find real comfort in a church of over 50 people, I just don't. And yet, sometimes it's nice just to be part of something that is bigger than yourself.

      I hadn't heard of the 'Toronto Blessing' before Frank, but people shrieking, howling and making animal noises doesn't sound Christian to me. It sounds like something a pagan religion would do; but what do I know?

      I'm glad you have found a church to belong to Frank; I need to find one I can belong to too. Thanks for the comment.

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  4. I am skeptical about the 'Toronto' blessing as well, although I wasn't there. I was baptized in a church in Adelaide, Australia where the pastor at that time had not been to Bible college. He had an experience where he believed he was called by God to buy a plot of land. He put a building on it and God brought people in. Things happened exactly as they did two thousand years ago in that group, as it states in the new testament, and there was a freedom to pray and to speak as the Lord led us, and people grew in the Lord and His teachings. We also went out evangelizing and it was wonderful. To cut a very long story short, I went on a Wednesday, knew God was speaking to me, got baptized on the Sunday,came up out of the baptismal tank speaking in 'tongues', walked into the church the following Sunday to hear the pastor saying 'Only believe and you shall see the glory of the Lord'. At the end of the service someone put oil on my head, prayed for me in the name of Jesus and a large lump in my breast disappeared immediately. I knew it was possible because I was healed from something as a child when my father prayed for me. That is really where my being part of the church began. I have seen many things in church gatherings and in house gatherings that completely tie in with scripture but I have also seen many things that don't. One example was a visiting pastor at a large church prayed for me and actually tried to push me over to make it look supernatural. I resisted. There is a vast difference between God's power and 'church entertainment'. The way we will tell the difference is allow the Holy Spirit to enlighten God's word to us as we seek Him, and check everything with that word. Always, also, it is good to remember that we are all learners and we all make mistakes when learning. If we are patient with one another and build one another up then it is good.

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    1. What you have experienced sounds like a real church experience Brenda, something I know I want and must experience too.

      You wrote: 'There is a vast difference between God's power and 'church entertainment'. The way we will tell the difference is allow the Holy Spirit to enlighten God's word to us as we seek Him, and check everything with that word.' I agree with you; I think there is a vast difference between the inner reality we truly know to be right and organised religion, which is often about the outer things, the showy thing, the entertainment as you say. Thanks for the comment.

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