VineAge

I recently came across an article on the online magazine Wired that talked about a guy who is a traffic engineer that believes that less regulation of traffic is better than more. It is an interesting article that I liked because it helped me grasp how less regulation on the church can be better than a lot of organizational and systems thinking (hierarchal and lineal) that has restricted the church for so long.
Here are some quotes from that article: (I highly recommend reading the entire article) http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.12/traffic.html

Roads Gone Wild:
No street signs. No crosswalks. No accidents. Surprise: Making driving seem more dangerous could make it safer.
By Tom McNichol

“Hans Monderman is a traffic engineer who hates traffic signs. Oh, he can put up with the well-placed speed limit placard or a dangerous curve warning on a major highway, but Monderman considers most signs to be not only annoying but downright dangerous. To him, they are an admission of failure, a sign - literally - that a road designer somewhere hasn’t done his job. “The trouble with traffic engineers is that when there’s a problem with a road, they always try to add something,” Monderman says. “To my mind, it’s much better to remove things.”

“Pedestrians and cyclists used to avoid this place, but now, as you see, the cars look out for the cyclists, the cyclists look out for the pedestrians, and everyone looks out for each other. You can’t expect traffic signs and street markings to encourage that sort of behavior. You have to build it into the design of the road.”
Today some of the most car-oriented areas in the US are rethinking their approaches to traffic, mainly because they have little choice. “The old way doesn’t work anymore,” (sound familiar?) says Gary Toth, director of project planning and development for the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

From a video (that I can no longer find) Monderman says…

“Chaos is an order we do not understand yet…Order is a chaos we put into logic later on…in my opinion chaos and order have a lot in common.�

• The goal: speed traffic and improve safety.
• Based on a system that has as few signs and regulations as possible in order to encourage as much personal responsibility as possible.
• He sights three rules:
Drive, ride and walk on the right.
Anyone on the right has the right of way.
Everyone in an intersection is equal.
• The system depends in part on a collective insecurity.

Hmm; what if we let the church go with less organizational and systems limits and encourage individual responsibility. Is what would look like chaos to us have a “Godly order�? If Jesus is the vine and His Father the gardener can we trust Him to oversee a church that is released to His care? Other than the Holy Spirit and the Word of God as our guide how much more structure or engineering do we need to add to the church?

I say; “Let the church go and let the chaos of God take over.�

John 15:1-5 (NIV)
The Vine and the Branches
1″I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5″I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

It is not about organization it is about individual responsibility and freedom to be the church.

• Jesus is the vine. The one from whom all things are given life.
• Father God is the gardener. The one who oversees and controls the growth of the vine. (God does this by His Spirit and does not need an organization to do it for him.)
• Every branch is a life source from the vine…each individual.

Jesus refers to himself being the true vine and source. He calls us to him not an organization. His father is the gardener or the one in control of how the vine grows and functions. The big question is…Can we trust God (Father, Son & Holy Spirit) to oversee the church or do we need an earthly organization to oversee it?

Elements or conditions of Gods Chaotic Plan to develop the church.

• Abide in Jesus - relationship & source of life.
• Allow the Father to be the director and the “Lord” of your lives together. Be sensative to and obey the Holy Spirit.
• Make the Word of God your source of truth that you look to for direction.

Chaos Theory:
A branch of science that deals with systems whose evolution depends very sensitively upon the initial conditions. Chaotic systems are very sensitive to initial conditions; small changes in those conditions can lead to quite different outcomes.

Church in Gods chaos has very clear initial conditions. Stay connected to the right vine, be committed to the word, allow the Father through the Spirit to clean and prune or direct you. Pretty simple…we have made it complicated by adding conditions (organizational systems that are hierarchal and lineal) that have created some very odd outcomes. Let’s get back to basics and free the church to function in Gods chaos instead of mans complicated and combersome (self serving) systems and organizations.

My thought is to move from the “Age” of organizational church (300AD – 2006AD) to an ”Age” that I will call the VineAge where the emphasis is on individual freedom and responsibility and where God’s “chaos” is in control instead of our ordered and controlled systems.

I am thinking that the church has functioned in an “ordered” paradigm for 1700yrs (since Constantine). In general, we don’t seem to be doing well as it relates to the population of the planet or growing in a way you might expect. If anything it seems that the traditional church model is becoming irrelevant and impotent in many ways (no offense intended). It seems that where the church has not had organization or “systems” because of legal issues or persecution it has grown at its fastest pace. My thinking is that the traditional church has become trapped and controlled by system and organizational dynamics regardless of the intentions of those involved. I propose an alternative approach…let’s let the church go and see what happens. Lets acknowledge, empower, encourage and facilitate the micro church in it’s multitudes of expression and allow them to become what their “tongue, tribe & nation” need them to be. Let’s facilitate the “chaos” of the power of God to express itself without the control that systems and organizations put on them.

The idea is that God and the power of the gospel is chaotic by our standards. I am using the term chaotic to mean “lacking a visible order, unpredictable”.  It has to do with the sovereignty and the omnipotence of God. What appears to be chaos to us is very manageable to God.

Our traditional church paradigms are very much a controlled system that we (humans) are comfortable with (hierarchal and lineal) but get in the way of and slow down the dynamics and the power of the gospel. The Alternative Church is an attempt to allow the power of the gospel to take a less “resistant” path (through independent micro churches) to the development of the Macro church.

By allowing the “church” to function without control in a sense we are putting our trust in God and the promises made by Jesus that He would send us the Holy Spirit as a guide, teacher and that He would intercede for us. The Alternative Church is an attempt to put the control of the church back in God’s “chaotic” and powerful hands (micro churches) and take away the controls imposed by human systems and organizations.

Chaos Theory:
A branch of science that deals with systems whose evolution depends very sensitively upon the initial conditions. Chaotic systems are very sensitive to initial conditions; small changes in those conditions can lead to quite different outcomes.

What basic conditions are appropriate when launching a micro church movement?
Doctrine?
Use of web based tool
Doing what a church does
What will training look like? How should you influence a chaotic system?

Chaos theory and social constructs?

* How will the same conditions affect different social constructs (ethic groups, cultures, ages, sexes, subcultures, etc.)?

I became a Christ follower in 1973 at the age of 18. I was raised Catholic but drawn to the Protestant faith based on an awareness that I could personally know God and not have to depend on an elaborate set of rituals and an enormous religious system to be in communion with God. The whole Catholic system had me confused and lost. Since becoming a protestant, I have to say that I have been equally confused and disappointed in church life both as a parishioner and as a pastor. There seems to be plenty to keep me busy but having a sense of community and a sustainable life of Christian community that is relevant seems to have escaped me. I walk away from my experience empty and worn out. I am not alone. In book after book I read of others struggles with the “system” or “the machine” we know of as the “Church”. As people have tried to figure out how to be more real it has been interesting to watch as we have slowly opened up to new ideas like cell groups, “independent” churches and a proliferation of “Para church” organizations that can innovate and be more flexible than traditional church systems can be. Many authors over the years have spoken out on the need to change and adapt and of late there have been many books writing about the emerging church. I recommend books like; Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell, The Present Future by Reggie McNeal and The Radical Reformission by Mark Driscoll. As people address the emerging church and contemporary society we are coming up with new systems for them to function. What system or machine is the emerging church going to create that will help? What is wrong with our current system? Maybe it is that we have a “system”. Was that Jesus intention? To replace one religious system or machine with another? I was recently reading a conservative theology book that I studied as a bible school student with the Assemblies of God many years ago. The book is “Knowing the Doctrines of the Bible” by Myer Pearlman. In the Church section of the book there were some interesting thoughts…

“Plainly Jesus designed that there should be a society of His followers to give to mankind his gospel and minister to mankind in His spirit, to labor as He did for the increase of the kingdom of God. He fashioned no organization or plan of government for this society…. He did a greater thing than give organization - He gave life. Jesus formed the society of His followers by calling them together about Himself. He communicated to it as far as He could while He was on earth His own life, His spirit, and purpose. He promised to continue to the end of the world to impart His life to His society, His church. His great gift to the church, we may say, was Himself.” Robert Hastings Nichols

“…He fashioned no organization or plan of government…” Page 361

Speaking of the early church “…As a living body adapts itself to its environment so the living body of Christ was left free to select its own forms of organization according to its needs and circumstances. Of course the church was not free to follow any development contrary either to the teachings of Christ or apostolic doctrine. Any development contrary to Scriptural principles is a corruption.” Page 361-362

“We see plainly that there is no warrant in the New Testament for the merging of the churches into an ecclesiastical machine governed by a hierarchy….In the early days there was no centralized government of the whole church. Each local church was self-governing and managed its own affairs in freedom.� Page 362

In the early centuries the local churches, while they never lacked the sense that they all belonged to one body, were independent, self-governing communities, preserving relations with each other, not by any political organization embracing them all, but by fraternal fellowship through visits of deputies, interchange of letters, and some indefinite giving and receiving assistance in the election and setting apart of pastors. Page 363

I think my personal journey is taking me closer to a Church that is not governed by a denomination or system that slows its development or controls its culture. I trust God, I trust the Holy Spirit, I want to let the Church loose of systems that hinder its growth and discourages its functionality. Let’s let the Church go and be what it is meant to be with Jesus and the Holy Spirit in control instead of a organizational structure and system. Let’s empower the Micro Church through an open source community to function and to learn from one another. We have more access to information, teaching and networking available than any time in history. Let’s leverage the tools we have and let’s let creativity and the power of the Holy Spirit flow!

Excerpts from the book “The Present Future� by Reggie McNeal
I highly recommend you purchase and read this book.

“The current church culture in North America is on life support. It is living off the work, money, and energy of previous generations from a previous world order.� “Please don’t hear what I am not saying. The death of the church culture as we know it will not be the death of the church. The church Jesus founded is good; it is right. The church established by Jesus will survive until he returns. The imminent demise under discussion is the collapse of the unique culture in North America that has come to be called “church.� “We are witnessing the emergence of a new world. The church of Jesus is moving into the postmodern world. Its expression is going to be more different than most people realize or may want to imagine.�

“The age in which institutional religion holds appeal is passing away – and in a hurry.� “Church leaders seem unable to grasp this simple implication of the new world – people outside the church think church is for church people, not for them.� “People are interested and searching for God and personal salvation through a relationship with him. Increasingly they are not turning to institutional religion for help with their search. In fact, just the opposite is true. They don’t trust religious institutions because they see them as inherently self-serving. So they are off on their own search for God.�

“We will see more and more people, in the church and out, who have the call, the ability, and the finances to resource their own ministry passions in the community.� “The first Reformation was about freeing the church. The new Reformation is about freeing God’s people from the church (the institution). The original Reformation decentralized the church. The new Reformation decentralizes ministry.�

I think there is a parallel thought that like I came to the realization as an individual that I did not need a religious system to facilitate my personal relationship with God (changing from Catholic to Protestant), I also do not need a formal or traditional religious system to validate or facilitate my corporate expression of my faith as I live out my “church” life with those around me. This same realization is taking place in many people and would explain a lot of the exodus from traditional church participation. Of course; this would be viewed as a bad thing by those in that traditional church system but can actually be a good thing as Christians are empowered to live out their faith in practical ways in their everyday life and world.

In my posting I have to make it clear that I am coming at this topic from a mission perspective.  I am a former pastor and currently a missionary for the past 25+ years.  My heart is to see people touched by God and my passion is for the nations. When I analyze church and making the gospel available to all it is from a missionaries perspective in addition to wanting to have a valid expression of my faith in my personal life.  With that being said…let’s get started.

From a mission perspective our current methods and forms of church planting seem to be lacking to say the least.  When you think of the millions without a personal knowledge of or relationship with Jesus Christ it can be overwhelming.  How is the church going to do its job and go into all the world and establish the church at the pace things are going and under the lineal and hierarchal way things are designed?  In many societies our current mission and church planting models are not welcome or irrelevant. It must be that we need to be open to new ways of doing things.

How do cultures, cities, ethnic, and people groups function? When the Bible says that every tongue, tribe and nation will be before the throne of God what does that mean when we develop a church planting or mission strategy?  I believe that “every tongue” refers to how a person hears something.  The gospel has to be presented in a way that every person can hear.  “Every tribe” refers to groups of people that hear things the same way and every nation is a gathering of tribes.  How do we take the good news of God’s love to the nations? I believe the best way to do that is by allowing those closest to the tribes or in the tribes to reach out in their unique ways to speak in the appropriate tongue. Most misson models require that people learn how to “speak” our language and become one of us.  I would like to facilitate believers of all tongues to reach their tribe and shape their nation. What i call  The Alternative Church is a strategy that acknowledges, empowers, encourages, and facilitates people forming micro churches to speak the appropriate tongue if you will and to do missions without the constraints of traditional organizational dynamics. The church becomes free to express itself in a limitless number of ways to those who speak different languages and live in various tribes.

The Alternative Church and the Micro Church concept is a mission and church planting strategy that approaches the needs of a diverse and changing world.  How helpful or beneficial is it to be critical of the “traditional” church or take the approach of complaining about how the current systems and organizational structures are not getting the job done?  It seems a better approach to look ahead and consider the exciting possibilities of new expressions of the church as we discuss the topic of what the church might look like in the future? How is technology, globalism, social dynamics, and other big picture issues going to shape how we approach world evangelism and church planting?  How do you communicate with the different “tongues”? How do different “tribes” function and how can they be reached?  How can a movement spread throughout a “nation”?  How do organizational and social systems work?  How does that affect how God has designed His church to function and expand?  These and many other questions arise as we consider the need to rethink how “church” is done in the future.

What I envision is the acknowledging, empowering, encouraging, and facilitating of the Micro Church to live out in the social dynamics of each environment what it means to be a community of believers.  I envision the influence of each life and small group expressing itself as a mobile, flexible, and creative expression of the church.  As we unleash the power of the Micro Church to be active and involved in every dimension of society the gospel will be able to penetrate and influence all tongues, tribes and nations.