Parlez vous Christianese?

English: The Shekinah Glory Enters the Tabernacle; illustration from The Bible and Its Story Taught by One Thousand Picture Lessons. Edited by Charles F. Horne and Julius A. Bewer. 1908. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hallelujah! After the worship (during which we’re hoping for contributions), an anointed apostle will be opening the Word to us – we’re believing for salvation and sanctification, amen?!

Depending on your background, whether you’re a Christian or not, and the sort of church you attend, there’s a pretty good chance that you were either inspired by the above quote, or left like a rabbit in the headlights.

This year I’ve had the pleasure of visiting a lot of different local churches and if I’ve spotted one thing more than any other it’s that every local church has its own language, which can make you as a visitor feel a lot like an outsider. A couple of examples:

Names of clubs, groups, meetings, etc

Something every church seems to want to do is name its kids groups and prayer meetings something fun and catchy. Nothing wrong with that, but when you’re told during the notices that ‘Trail Blazers is meeting this evening at the usual time at Fountain House,’ you haven’t really been told anything.

Use of unfamiliar words

Non-Christians simply don’t talk about stuff like ‘regeneration’, ‘the Shekinah glory’, or odd foreign words like ‘hosanna’. Using them alienates everyone except the inner few.

Unfamiliar use of familiar words

Some words are used outside of Christian circles in a different context; ‘worship’ means singing for a lot of Christians whereas a non-Christian would never make that connection (this really annoys me), and ‘the Gospel’ means ‘good news’ to Christians but ‘a bunch of rules’ to non-Christians.

There’s a solution

I know this is tricky, but how about we just stop using Christian jargon altogether without explaining it first? To assume makes an ass out of u and me so would it be so hard to just use normal language when talking about Christianity?

What size church is best

Image by jcoterhals via Flickr

A friend told me recently about some article he was reading which went into detail about what church size is the best one – the conclusion he came to was that regardless of size, the local church should comprise one member due to its unity in the Spirit. I agree with the concepts although the way the author got there seems to me a bit cheesy I’m sure I’m often guilty of the same crime…

Anyhow I’ve been listening to the excellent seminars available from the TOAM conference and really enjoyed Steve Tibbert’s session on church structures and programmes. Something he said stood out to me – he referenced a paper by Tim Keller, so I looked it up.

Keller suggests that the size of a local church can actually make far more difference than we may think; we may be affected more by the size of a church than by its doctrine. Moving to a smaller or larger church could therefore have more of an impact on us spiritually than moving to a local church of another denomination if it was a similar size.

Anyway, Keller’s article can be found here for your joy, and if you like that there are plenty more over here.

Women and missions

I like Thabiti Anyabwile’s blog, and he’s recently been going through a series around the whole complementarian thing. I thought his most recent post was good, and challenging. Here’s a quote from it, but I’d encourage you to read the whole thing:

Younger women are steered toward home and domestic life rather than service on the mission field.  Single women are often counseled to build their lives around an anticipated husband by delaying commitment to the mission field “until they find a spouse.”  We sometimes encourage sisters to wait on the Lord for missions in order to actively seek a spouse and family.  It seems we should reverse this: we should encourage the sisters to wait on the Lord for spouse and family while actively seeking to be on mission.

Foolish Dick – a quote from Spurgeon

I stumbled across a wonderful quote this week. Apologies for the spelling, but this is Foolish Dick we’re talking about:

We would…rather believe that our brethren will welcome all who, with true hearts, desire to testify to the truth as it is in Jesus, will cheerfully appoint them such service as they are capable of, and assist them in qualifying themselves for greater usefulness. This will be easy work for the pastors if the brethren are all of the same spirit as Richard Hampton. One of the last records of his experience runs thus:—

“My expearyance at thes time es, that I have laately found a grawin’ in graace, an’ have injoyed braave, cumfert ov laate. I have no end in view in going round as I do, from plaace to plaace but the gloary of God, an’ the good of sawls. In times past, I cud’n help shaakin’ an’ trem’lin’ when I used to see anybody cum that I thoft was come to shaw a bad sperrit, or to loff an’ grizzle, but the Lord have took away the feear of man from me—I doan’t knaw nothin’ ’bout et now, I’ve ben a straanger to et ever sence; thank the Lord! I do love every Methody ‘pon the faace ov the eaarth weth a partikler love, but saame time I do railly long an’ desire that aall mankind shud be saaved. I shud like to be consedered a member ov society in Porthowan class so long as I do live. I doan’t waant to laabour in no circuit no further foath than is plaisin’ to the praichers in that circuit: an I do wish all’ays to be in subjecshun to they that are ovver the flock, as ‘they must account.’ God es my wetness, I never look to praich in laarge chaapels nuther: owld baarns, staables, or any plaace like that; an’ I b’lieve the Lord will shaw, in the day of account, how hes poor sarvent have tried to maake the best of the taalent that he gove me.”

Foolish Dick went across the Jordan not very long ago, leaving behind him many who remember his name and work with devout thankfulness. He was never married, but he rejoiced greatly in his spiritual sons and daughters, who were on earth his comfort, and will be in heaven his crown.

I want to be like Foolish Dick.