DanSardinas.net

Did Jesus really hate religion?

Did Jesus really hate religion?  I guess it all depends on what you mean by your definition of "religion".  In the last week, a youtube video uploaded by Jefferson Bethke has gone viral.  Viral....as in 13 million views... in one week!  Ah...the power of social media.  In case you've been living under a rock and haven't seen this yet...watch this first.

 

 

 

Jefferson's video immediately grew huge praise....and criticism.  It drew praise from many who understood "religion" one way....and curses from those who understood it a different way.  His words were definitely misinterpreted by many.   However, he could have chosen better verbiage throughout this poem to truly communicate how he feels about true faith.  

The first time I watched it..I understood what he was talking about.  Jefferson is bashing the religion that promotes self righteousness, works salvation and takes the place of knowing God intimately.  We've all been there and done that.  I understood it from the angle of Jesus' trashing the Pharisees religiosity of His day.  Need a reminder of that?  Read this - 

Matthew 23:1-34

There is no doubt in my mind that the "religion" of the pharisees is what Jesus wants done away with!  The problem is that most people associate the word "religion" with  prayer, bible study and going to church.  So when somebody hears "Jesus came to abolish religion!"...they freak out.   Jesus doesn't want me to read my bible? Jesus doesn't want me to go to church?  Jesus doesn't want me to pray?  No..no...no!   It's impossible to celebrate our faith without observing the "religious" practices that Jesus himself instituted.  Jesus prayed.  Jesus knew the scripture.  Jesus taught and worshipped in the synagouge.  Jesus was religous.  However...you never see Jesus insert what he does "for" God the Father with his relationship "with" God the Father.  

That's the problem I have with religion. It's when people think they are ok...based upon what they do for God.  Our religious practices (prayer, bible reading, church attendance, feeding the poor, taking care of orphans & widows etc.) propel us forward in our relationship with God.  However...they are never a substitute.   Salavation is based upon the Grace of God alone in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross!

Does Jesus hate religion?  It all depends on how you define it.

God in a Box: "Why you really don't have a "Biblical Worldview".

    Everybody lives within the confines of their own reality.  This reality, and what we make it appear to be, is influenced by who we have become.   This reality is how we view and see the world.  Some may call it a "worldview". The problem is that our worldview muddies the water of how we see everything.  You can not explain something or be passionate about anything without looking at it from your worldview or perspective.  It is your reality. With this worldview we have put God in a Box.  We don't expect God to be anything different that what we expect. The question becomes...do I have an accurate worldview?

    Your worldview has been shaped by the things that have happened to you and by the people around you.  It definitley has been shaped and has been molded from what you percieve to be true.   There is a reason an Al Qaeda terrorist flies a plane into a building or blows himself up on a crowded bus or street.  He believes that by doing this act he will enter "paradise" and inherit 70 virgins.  He believes a story that somebody down the line told him was true.  I'm sure growing up he heard how evil America was.  He may have even witnessed first hand occupation or "terroristic acts" from America.  These people and events have shaped him.  Maybe 10 years ago when the war began his family were victims of the shock and awe campaign waged against Saddam Hussein.  Whatever the situation, he believes that he is right.  He is just.  He believes that he is the good guy.  He lives in the confines of his own reality. 

    Many Christians today claim to have a "Biblical Worldview".  But is that really possible?  I mean..yes we strive to live the Bible and see the world through the filter of Scripture.  I totally agree with that!  However, it is hard though to see the Bible without your own biases getting in the way.  

    For years, the Bible was used to defend and promote slavery.  Slave owners pointed to the New Testament and Paul's letter to Philemon.  For years, the Bible has been used to mistreat women and treat them as second class citizens.  The Bible has been used to justify war and excuse the slaughter of multitudes.  Don't believe me?  Do a google search or check the history of Christopher Columbus and also the Crusades.  These people would have also claimed a "biblical worldview".  But obviously, God is not for slavery; the mistreatment of women; and the slaying of the masses for failure to convert to Christianity. 

    Did you know that for awhile I thought that America was God's only hope for the world?  It was almost as if I believed that if you were any other Christian living in another country that you weren't as good or special.  I believed that America was the next best thing to living in heaven because this was God's paradise.  No, I'm not saying that I don't love America and that I'm not patriotic.  But, where faith and patriotism intersect in my journey is far different than it used to be.  I had to ask myself, am I a Christian that happens to be an American or an American that happens to be a Christian.  I had to ask questions outside of what I percieved was truth and reality.  What does it mean to be a Christian and have all the "expectations stripped away".  What does naked truth and faith look like?

    How much of what we percieve to be true in applying our faith really isn't?  There is absolute truth.  We just get in the way of seeing it for what it really is. Down the road, what is something, that we hold dear to, that others will compare to the "slavery" example?   What parts were never meant to be true but we have made them to be? 

    You can claim to be fundamental.  You can claim to be liberal.  You can claim to be progressive.  All of these groups would claim a "Biblical Worldview" and believe that they were/are right.  But really, nobody can have an untainted "Biblical Worldview".  Their Biblical worldview is really a "Personal Biblical Worldview".  It's how they see the story of the Bible in thier lives and culture.  They live within the confines of their own reality.  We would need the Bible to speak for itself...instead of us speaking into it.  Get God out of the box you have him in.

 

Gospel Transformation: Kingdom Building vs. Castle Building

If we are to truly transform our cities with the Gospel then we have to change our entire strategy.  How many churches are trying to get "bigger and bigger" at the expense of true city wide transformation?  Most churches measure success by butts in the pews...and money in the plate.  Doesn't that sound a tad like a movie theater?  

How many people are watching the show and how many are buying tickets?Is that what God has called us to do?  Is it any wonder that our churces are filled with "spectators" and not doers? Too many churches are into what I call...Castle Building. Churches who are trying to build castles (i'm not talking about a building) are only worried about how big their church grows.  They may even compete with the other churches in town.  They may have clever slogans about how their church is "better" than any other church. Or maybe that church is selling itself as more "relevant", "hipper" or "cooler" than the next.  I remember in one town that I pastored I was scolded by another pastor about how I was in his "territory". Wow... It's no wonder our cities are so lost.  

Jesus has not called us to build castles.  He has called us to be engaged in His ever expanding Kingdom.  Once churches in a city realize that it's not about them...the city will be better.  That city will be better reached with the Gospel.  The Kingdom of God is the rule of God over all creation.  God is up to something huge.  He is up to something that you and I can never compete with or ever dream to outdue.  Jesus was all about this kingdom.  

Wouldn't it be phenomenal if churches joined each other for the sake of the Gospel?  Wouldn't it be great to join other churches in the Missio Dei than the pettiness of doctrinal divide?  Folks...it's time to realize we are all on the same team if we have been redeemed.  Isn't that what he prayed for us in John 17 before he was arrested in the garden?  

Jesus said to seek first His Kingdom.  Why are you building your castle?

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. - Matthew 6:33 

 (for other posts about the Kingdom of God on dansardinas.net click here.

 

 

Redefining Mission

We have all been there before....a church service where the leaders are begging for volunteers. You have probably even read it in the Sunday morning church bulletin. An all hands on deck approach to ministry is very common in modern church life. If you asked most pastors today they would argue that the problem is in the peoples motivation for Christ and his work. I have been there and did that many times. I now wish I would've known then what I now know. The church is a living organism, made up of those who follow Jesus, who through the power of the Spirit live out the ways of the Kingdom of God. And they do this together. Why is it that we are so focused on making the ministry within the church more important than our ministry in the world? Could the very reason most Christians don't share their faith be because we have conditioned them to be so busy with "church work"? The danger is that we have made something to be institutional that was meant to be organic. We have taken the beautiful mystery of community and sold it out for the latest fad. One of my most memorable days at VWC is when we didn't have a service. In August of 07 we cancelled the formal service and met together to serve our community. We repainted a local park and picked up trash off of Oil City streets. It was a great day. However the turnout was not what I expected. I was hoping to have about 50 or so helping that day. We only had about 22 altogether. I was greatly discouraged as this was pumped up for weeks as a huge thing that we were doing. I played the normal "pastor card" and just said that people had issues with God. From that day forward my outlook began to change on ministry. Release your people from the guilt of serving. The more pastors beg...the more guilt sinks in. Some people will cave and serve in a place out of duty alone. And then the inevitable will happen....they will burn out and their absence will create a larger void. It's time to redefine ministry and release people for mission. I am not saying that people shouldn't serve in ministries in the church. But when we are taking people away from being a light in the world that is where I have a problem. If you don't have enough people to do a program then you cancel the program. Lastly are we keeping people busy building our empires? Or are we releasing them to multiply the Kingdom of God? Redefine your ministry into your mission. Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Church: The Cult of being Cool

There is a prominent philosophy that has been sweeping church circles that has been having a damaging effect.  That philosophy is  the relentless pursuit of "The Church should be Cool".  I know this very well because I've been in that mindset before.  It was a mindset that drove me.  Instead of focusing on being a relationally driven church that lives and teaches the ways of Jesus to a lost and dying world...the church is driven by what is cool or entertaining.

I feel as I look back on my own journey that my drive to show that Jesus is cool was driven by being in very legalistic churches growing up and early on in my life.  As a kid Church wasn't cool.  In fact it was very boring.  It didn't do a whole lot to connect with me.  The songs were boring the preacher was longwinded and the people were very judgemental.  I remember worrying more about what would people think if I didn't wear a suit today than that actual worship of God.  It is for this very reason that many have left the church because they claim it isn't relevant to their lives.  But when you are passionate about Jesus and know that the church is the answer for this world....you revert to anything you can to convey the message.   So what is the normal direction most take from this point....they try to make the uncool...cool.  The irrelevant....relevant.   The "what seemed to be fake" to be real.  

 

Now let make it clear.  I don't see anything wrong with being what many may say is cool/relevant.  I don't mind the worship bands that play cool music...the pastor who wears jeans while he preachesl...the videos that drive home the message.  I don't mind the free coffee and donuts in the morning...who doesn't?  :)  None of that stuff is bad.   I begin to have a problem with above mentioned items when it becomes the "end".  I believe the above mentioned things are just a "means to an end".  Some churches think that because they are hip or cool means that they are doing a great job in the "Great Commission".   Let me be very clear here.   Just because you are gifted in drawing a great Crowd doesn't mean you are doing the Great Commission.  In fact....it's the opposite.

 

The very first word in the Great Commission is the word "GO".  Go and make all discples of all nations.  I would argue that the mantra of the modern day church is not GO.  The mantra of the modern day church is the word "COME".   The difference behind those words are really a line in the sand.   The word "COME" invokes a very attractional philosophy.  It translates into "you better look cool/hip so that when people "COME" to your church they will want to stay...because if not they are going to go to the next church that is cool/hip."   IF you have the "COME" Commission than it's just a waiting came to see whose going to show up.  I think that Jesus knew people better when he said...GO.  Jesus knew that people had to be motivated.  This is also called the "Attractional" view of ministry.  You'll see slogans and mottos that suggest that their church is better than anybody elses church.  "The Place to Be"..."Discover the Difference".  Many churches have slogans to suggest why their church is the best church to "come" to.  

 

I believe the better answer lies in being "Missional".  That is simply put...."being the hands and feet of Jesus everywhere you GO".   I also see a major difference between the Attractional vs. Missional views in this way.   The attractional view of church focuses it's attention on building an empire.  I can't say it's true for 100% of churches but most attractional churches focus on "growing their church".  The major questions swirl around "how many did we have?"...."what was the offering".   The "Missional" approach lies in building the kingdom of God.

 

I believe being trapped in the "cult of being cool" has robbed many pastors and churches of it's soul.  That does not mean they have lost their salvation.  It just means that it has take away it's true focus of reaching this world for Christ.  When you got more wrapped up in the details of lights, camera, action....and less focused on worship and building community amongst the people...you've lost it.   I can remember many, many weeks where I was more focused on being cool in my sermons...then I was in showing God's love to somebody.  It is easy to fall into the trap.  I believe it's a natural reaction that many have bought into because more people don't go to church today than used to. So they want to change people's minds.

 

Remember.....You don't need to make Jesus or the Bible more relevant....They already are.  You have to make yourself more relevant because relevance changes everyday.  Don't let relevance steal your soul.

What is the church video

Great video I found off a friend of mine's blog from youtube.  This video fis great with all of my others postings dealing with the definition of "church".  Watch this and may it further our discussions on the church! 

Church: The Experience??

This posting is a continuation of a post entitled Church: One Man Show?

Why is it that so many churches use the word "experience" to label what makes their church unique?  I recently heard in a church I attended ; "Please grab your seats for the 'Worship Experience' will begin in 2 minutes.  It almost makes the church a spectacle...or even a venue or event that one needs to purchase tickets to.   Is church just that?  Is it merely a spectator sport?  Now I understand what the pastor was saying but still I believe it can convey a wrong definition of what church really is.  Is church something that we go to and experience and then go to home/work.  Then the next week we go back and experience it some more....and then go on our normal lives.  I believe that many pastors (myself included) have given a false expectation and definition of what the Body of Christ does when it gathers.

Now don't get me wrong.  I love a great worship service.  I feel that for myself I can best 'worship' or tune in when the service speaks my language.  I love the worship band, the screen, videos, visuals, etc.  All that stuff is great and healthy.  All of that can help a person connect to God.  I have nothing wrong with theses mediums for a worship service.  But when we convey that church is only about experiencing "worship" and helping once a month to change diapers in the nursery....then we are missing the point.  

Many churches spend thousands and thousands of dollars on the "Experience". Many churches have falsely thought they are doing the Great Commission because they can gather a great crowd.  But are the crowds there for the "Experience" or are they there for the "Great Show".  What if pastors spent a little less time on the details of the "Show/Experience" and spent more time mobilizing the crowds for service in the world.  As a pastor I have been guilty of that.  I have been so consumed about every detail about the service (lights, camera, action) that to a larger degree my own brothers and sisters have suffered.   Also what happens when you have an "attractional" paradigm of doing church is that you always have to reinvent yourself.  You have to "out due" the last worship experience.  Without knowing it...one falls into a trap of doing what you can to keep the crowd coming.  Pastor's have to keep upping the anty to beat what they did before.  After all...who wants to see the same movie twice?

How many people are going to our churches in and out every week sitting, soaking and souring? Yes they might be heavily and genuinely moved by a great service/song/sermon;  but their faith venture doesn't continue until the next service. 

 It goes without saying that the modern church is dying.  The statistics are staggering.  It is estimated that 4,000 American churches close their doors every year!  According to George Barna, "There has been a 92% increase in the number of unchurched Americans in the last thirteen years. In 1991 there were 39 million unchurched Americans compared with 75 million currently. (2004)"  

Hmmmm.....It seems to me that we are losing ground, no?  Ssomething must be done and the answer is not to be "cooler and hipper".  We have to get down to the core issues of what makes a church a church.  Thank God for those who have been reached by attending an "Experience".   But please o please church...WAKE UP...don't let it stop there.  Church is not just an experience.  The Church are people who are living out the Gospel of the Kingdom of God to a lost and dying world.  The Church is made up of people who are deeply committed to each other and to God.  

I have been in the "Experience Mode" way too long.  I asked the tough questions and found some tough answers.   The Bible says that Jesus purchased the Church with His own blood.  I can't sit here as I type this and think that Jesus died so I can have a cool worship experience.  Because if church to you is just about the lights, camera and action...then that's what you have just limited Jesus' sacrificial death to.  Jesus is above the smoke and the mirrors.

Kingdom - Matrix

Everybody lives within the confines of their own reality.  This reality and what we make it appear to be is influenced by who we have become.   This reality is how we view and see the world.  Some may call it a "worldview".   Not all worldviews are good.  For example...The Muslim extremist's world view is to rid the world of infidels.  It doesn't matter what you do you just have to get rid of the infidel.  Even if it means flying planes into buildings.  The bad thing about a world view is that everybody thinks that their particular worldview is the right worldview.  Even if your worldview is that there is no truth and all is just relative.  If you claim that idea then you think you are right therefore deciding that something is true.  The problem is that our worldview muddies the water of how we see everything.  You can not explain something or be passionate about anything without looking at it from your worldview or perspective.  It is your reality. 

Your worldview probably has been shaped by the things that have happened to you.  It probably has been influenced by the people around you.  It definitley has been shaped and molded from what you percieve to be true.   There is a reason a Muslim Extremist flies a plane into a building or blows himself up on a crowded bus or street.  He belives that by doing this act he will enter paradise and inherit 70 virgins.  He believes a story that somebody down the line told him was true.  I'm sure growing up he heard how evil America is.  He has maybe even seen first hand occupation or "terroristic acts" from America.  These people and events have shaped him.  Maybe 7 years ago when the war began his family were victims of the shock and awe campaign waged against Saddam Hussein.  Whatever the situation he believes that he is right.  He is just.  He believes that he is the good guy.  He lives in the confines of his own reality. 

Many Christians today claim to have a "Biblical Worldview".   The problem with this is that they too approach the Bible with a worldview in mind.  They come in with their own biases.  Now before many of you storm off with your negative comments let me explain.  For years the Bible was used to defend and promote slavery.  Slave owners pointed to the New Testament and Paul's letter to Philemon.  For years the Bible has been used to mistreat women and treat them as second class citizens.  The Bible has been used to justify war and excuse the slaughter of multitudes.  Don't believe me?  Check out Christopher Columbus and the Crusades.  These people would have also claimed a biblical worldview.  But obviously God is not for slavery; the mistreatment of women; and the slaying of the masses for failure to convert to Christianity.  You can claim to be fundamental.  You can claim to be liberal.  You can claim to be progressive.  All of these parties would claim a "Biblical Worldview" and believe that they were/are right.  But really nobody can have an untainted "Biblical Worldview".  Their Biblical worldview is really a "Personal Biblical Worldview".  It's how they see the story of the Bible in thier lives and culture.  They live within the confines of their own reality. 

Did you know that for awhile I thought that America was God's only hope for the world?  It was almost as if I believed that if you were any other Christian living in another country that you werent' as good or special.  I believed that America was the next best thing to living in heaven because this was God's paradise.  No, I'm not saying that I don't love America and that I'm not patriotic.  But where faith and patriotism lay in my journey is far different than it used to be.  I had to ask myself, am I a Christian that happens to be an American or an American that happens to be a Christian.  I had to ask questions outside of what I percieved was truth and reality.  What does it mean to be a Christian and have all the "expectations stripped away".  What does naked truth and faith look like?

It was almost as If I was living in a matrix.  You don't know what that means?  Let me explain. :)

One of the 1990's most popular movies was the Matrix Trilogy.  It's one of my alltime favorites.  The movie in a nutshell is how machines have taken over the world from human control and power.  The machines can't survive without the humans as each human produces energy that powers the machines.  So in order to survive the machines now harvest humans and keep them in pods.  (I know stay with me...LOL).  In order to keep the humans alive in these pods and them producing the energy necessary, they hook up the humans to the Matrix.  The Matrix is a computer simulated dream world.  The humans unknowingly are dreaming reality.  It appears real to them.  They can feel, smell, breathe, eat, sleep everything as normal.  They have no clue they are hooked up to a computer and none of this is real.  They go about their normal everyday lives.  They laugh, play, go to work, go in debt, make money as all of life is normal.  Except it's not.  They live within the confines of their own reality.  None of it is true.  They are just humans being harvested in some pods somewhere for power so machines can live and continue to rule the world.  Far out?  Yes.  Can the same happen in a sense with our worldviews, yes.  Of course much of the goal is to free your mind and escape the matrix. 

How much of what we percieve to be true in applying our faith really isn't?  Down the road, what is something that we hold dear to that others will compare to the "slavery" example?   What parts were never meant to be true but we have made them to be?

Let me give you an example of the above statement.  Let's take for example.....Church.

Is this really what God had in mind?  Did God intend for christians only to meet on Sundays?  Does the pastor always have to have 3 points and a poem that all begin with the same letter?  I'm kidding here of course.  The following examples but sound a little extreme but they are said in such a way to make the point.  I am not blaming all Christians and Churches of the same ideas and philosophy.

But, when did the church become an exchanger of religous goods and services instead of a living breathing community that loves God, loves people and loves the world?  You see within a Matrix you are confined to certain barriers and things cannot be altered.  You can't alter the sacred service.  You can't alter Sunday School.  You can't bring contemporary culture within for fear of being programmed worldly.  In the world of Matrix Christianity you must support hundreds of missionaries without being a missionary in your hometown.  You must support efforts overseas first before you reach the hurting, helpless in your town.  Within the confines of the Matrix...Pastors are more CEO's than Shepherds and Deacons are more of a "ruling board" than servants. 

Within the matrix of American Christianity you care more about your personal success and wealth than the "least of these".  Within the confines of this reality the poor are seen as lazy and are reaping the fruits thereof.  Within the confines of this reality Jesus is a white, middle class Republican who would always vote with his party.  Within this matrix we always vote for the guy who is against abortion but is pro-war.  Within this matrix it's ok to slam and ridicule fellow believers because they hold to a different take on an issue or belief because you are "defending the Gospel".

When do we realize that we may not have it all right and there is still more to figure out?  When do we take on faith as a journey to discover new truths and new ways to live?  Don't get caught in the Matrix. There is more truth than you think there is.  You don't have it all figured out.  If you think you do....WAKE UP you are connected to the Matrix!!! 

CHURCH BANS AUTISTIC BOY

Leave it up to Christians to continue to smear the name of Jesus.  I just read this article on www.msnbc.com and was horrified.   The church of Jesus is supposed to be a place for anybody to enter and feel welcomed and loved.  This church in Minnesota banned the boy for being a distraction to their services.  This of course happens when church's have the mentality that it's all about a "service" or Sunday.  The church is not about a day or an event.  The Church of Jesus is about living in community with others and about serving in the work of God in this world. 

How would Jesus have dealt with this boy?  Hmmm......I think just a tad different.  How did Jesus deal with lepers, the blind, the deaf, and the poor and destitute?  I belive Jesus also said that we are not "offend any little ones from coming to him".  Jesus said it would be better if a millstone were tied around our necks and us thrown out to sea.

Church: One Man Show??

For a long time the church has been mostly been about a "one man show".  This needs to change.  Why is it that in most churches that the pastor is the focus of attention.  When somebody is asked "how did church go today?" Why is the answer usually about how well or how bad the preacher preached his message?  How did the church evolve into a one man monologue on doctrine and soap boxes?   Back in the "early" days of the church (Acts 2) the church was not about any one person.  Instead the church was about the whole not just a separated part.   Look at this passage from Acts 2.

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

It was not about any "one person" or "leadership team" or "deacon board".  They were the church TOGETHER.  They were the BODY of CHRIST.  This bunch of losers and has been's (aka; the church) formed together the most powerful force on earth.  They also changed the course of history.  So the next time your with your church don't put the focus on the pastor or his message.  Don't put the focus on the music or the band.  Put the focus on Jesus. 

Why have so many churches today evolved into the worship of the pastor? When was the last time your church acted the way ACTS 2 describes the early church?  It's time we stop glorifying "The Pastor" and realize that they are just someone else in the body of christ whose gifts include pastor/teacher.  Not a corporate executive who brings in the bucks and the crowd.  I don't believe that God ever intended for the gift of a pastor, to be used as a Professional Employee.