Imagine a World Without Denominations, Part 2

I think the current level of cross-denominational cooperation is woefully inadequate because I think we are called to a MUCH higher level of service than is common among Protestants. There are countless cooperative works, but the percentage of members active in hands on service to the needy in a given week is not high enough to matter that much to a hurting world.

I see this as on the upswing. Katrina was a big kick in the pants around here. But we are still not nearly where I think God wants us to be.

Here’s the test: are the poor, illiterate, mentally ill, etc. measurably better off in a city with lots of churches than in a city with very few? I’m told by a sociologist friend (a professor at UA) that this has been measured, and Dallas (VERY churched) has the same rate of social pathologies as Seattle (not nearly so churched).

In short, instrumental or a cappella, weekly, monthly or quarterly communion, high church or low church, very few Christian congregations would be missed by the rest of the community if they went out of business. (As proof I offer the fact that churches close their doors every day and they are not missed by their communities.)

The word translated “save” can equally well be translated “heal.” And we are called to seek and save the lost in both senses. Research shows that Protestantism is losing members by the millions–and I haven’t heard anyone outside the church complaining–meaning we are failing on both fronts.

Are there bright, shining exceptions on the hill? Yes. Enough? Not nearly.

I’m a lawyer and so I ask myself: If the American church were your client, what advice would you give?

First, get out of denial and admit the problem.

Second, be willing to do whatever it takes to fix the problem.

Third, I guess it’s just the Church of Christ’er in me, but I figure we need to study our Bibles and not the marketers and book writers and consultants to see what the cure is.

Fourth, Jesus says love each other and be united and they’ll know you’re Christians. Peter says do good works so the world will glorify God when the end comes.

If we were already doing those three things, we’d already be seeing those results. Therefore, we aren’t really already doing those things.

Fifth, do this thought experiment: If you were the first missionary in an entirely unchurched country, how many denominations would you set up? Why?

Multiple denominations give lots of styles and ways to make members comfortable. Hmmm. Comfort is not on the list of what we’re missing. Jesus rather pointedly tells us not to expect comfort in the Kingdom. (Rats!)

The New Testament says if you agree on Jesus and disagree on other stuff, you may not divide (Rom 14, 1 Cor 1-4, Gal 1-5 among others, of course). Division is always spoken of negatively in the New Testament. Always.

Therefore, any argument in favor of division is rationalization. If you can’t worship together in good conscience, then one or both of you misunderstand the gospel. But work through it. Compromise. Have two services. But don’t divide and celebrate your diversity or your purity.

Am I an idealist? Yes, and a revolutionary, I hope. Things gotta change.

Contrary to the old (and very funny) joke, there won’t be denominations in heaven. And it’s our job to build the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. Therefore, while a given denomination may well do good, the fact that we have multiple denominations is, on the whole, unhealthy, even wrong. It tells the world that we prefer to be among people like ourselves. And, of course, the lost aren’t like ourselves. And so it says to the world, you aren’t welcome.

This is, in fact, a key reason that many churches have chosen to do without denominational labels. Saddleback is a member of the Southern Baptist Convention, but it’s not “Saddleback Baptist.”

But wouldn’t it be better if the closest ties among congregations were within our communities. It’s great that the Baptists meet in a national convention and make plans to save the world. I think it would work better if every church in Tuscaloosa met and made plans to evangelize and heal Tuscaloosa–and the same in every other town where Christians dwell.

Those grandiose world-saving plans might work, but not nearly as well as a truly united church in Tuscaloosa working to heal Tuscaloosa–repeated thousands of times across the country.