A New Kind of Christian - chapter five

A New Kind of Christian
Chapter Five

 All generations are generations of change but not all are generations of transition. In transitions you must use new tools. Using old tools will make a mess of things.

 What would you say to someone making the transition in 1507?
• Don’t put your confidence in the institution of the church; put your confidence in God.
• Be open to new ideas and new interpretations of the faith.
• Don’t be too quick to criticize.
• Expect things to be messy.
• Don’t resist the change. Go with it.
• Keep going back to the Bible, but not with the standard interpretations blinding you to new interpretations.
• Try to sort out tradition from the real essentials of the gospel.
• Get with it, get out of the way, or get counseling!

 Am I scared? Sometimes I’m terrified. The lowest available risk that I see is the risk of journeying in faith. You see, I believe in the Holy Spirit. I believe Jesus meant it when he said the Spirit of God would be with us, guiding us, to the very end. He has a purpose he is working toward, and I want to keep up with him. I suppose that’s my greatest fear, not that I’ll go too fast or too far but that I’ll lag behind.

 I find it hard to believe that modern evangelical Christianity, of which I am glad to be part, is dying, as you suggest.

 We should expect that the best modern churches in history would exist today, right at the time when the modern world is passing, much like the world of the horse and buggy in 1910.

 If you are a missionary going to any educated culture on earth today, I think you need to learn to think and speak postmodern.

 Everywhere in my life except at church, I think I am postmodern. But I think when I go any place religious or Christian, I just sort of switch. It’s like I click into my parents’ way thinking for an hour, and then I switch back.