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In The Great Omission, Dallas Willard says consumerism in the church is all too common: “We have generated a body of people who consume Christian services and think that this is Christian faith…We have trained Christians to be demanding consumers, not disciples.”
How can we plant so many seeds of consumerism and expect the fruits of discipleship?
In Renovation of the Church. Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken note that, “Attracting people to church based on their consumer demands is in direct and irredeemable conflict with inviting people, in Jesus’ words, to lose their lives in order to find them.”
We should be aiming for transformation and disciples who live out their faith with a contagious attraction. Instead, too often, we end up with moderation and nice people who are only able to invite others to church to hear a professional speak and perpetuate the cycle.
Unfortunately, attraction and hopeful assimilation are not sufficient for the task at hand. Carlson and Lueken ask this tough question: “If someone attended our church for three months, would he or she say discipleship is one of our central concerns?”
Our churches should be a place where you can encounter God and worship Him; learn how to disciple with Jesus; walk with the Spirit; and live in robust Christian community. Growing a big church on a lousy foundation is not consistent with the Great Commission and will not succeed in the divine economy.
Another angle: when we try so hard to attract the world, it is unlikely that we will have a community that looks much different from the World. Carlson and Lueken: “We weren’t really an alternative community with countercultural values. We were a composite of suburban America, consumerism, and Jesus. We blended right in.”
In contrast, when Peter preaches in Acts 2, he’s calling people from the world’s tepid version of “community” into the Church’s beautiful version of community—with an adherence to the Word, worship, prayer and biblical relationships.
The antidote: A robust approach to discipleship—where people make significant investments in their own discipleship within a church context where mentors lead them where they’ve already been.
Church leaders may not be able to imagine that people will make the requisite investments—and maybe they won’t, but they most certainly won’t if the vision is not cast and if a coherent path is not laid out for them.
What’s your plan for emulating the 3.5-year ministry of Jesus to make disciple-makers? If you find yourself complaining that your church is filled with consumers, figure out how to prayerfully flip the script.
Excerpted from Enough Horses in the Barnby Kurt Sauder and D. Eric Schansberg (Further Still Ministries 2017).
Have you ever felt the pull to full-time ministry work as a missionary or pastor? If not, you can still make a Kingdom impact without quitting your current job. In this eBook, you will learn the four essentials that can change your perspective of work, your workplace, and most importantly, your heart.
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