BUSINESS AS USUAL?

[Subversive Underground]
Article #178

BUSINESS AS USUAL?
by Keith Giles


On Tuesday of this week I received an email from someone who had a question for me regarding the mounting debt issues at their church.

The email read:

"Our church is in debt. We owe the bank thousands. We now need the debt to function. We have become dependent on it. My spouse challenged the finance person, in private, about this and got no where. We suggested we stop doing stuff and paying so many people to run the church. These suggestions feel on deaf ears."

Now, my perspective may be different than most in this situation, but since the question has been asked, and since I believe that many other Churches will soon find themselves in the same boat very soon, I wanted to take the time and respond here on the [Subversive Underground] newsletter.

For a bit of background on my personal situation, let me make it clear that my wife and I have fairly radical views when it comes to the Church, and especially when it comes to church finances, offerings and tithes. For our family, it is our conviction that the offering belongs to the poor and not to the Church to spend on herself and her own comforts. This is why, 3 years ago, we left our on-staff, paid pastoral positions and started a house church where 100% of all offerings could go to the poor in our community. I do not take a salary. We use every penny received in our basket to buy groceries for needy families and to help people in need.

However, many churches, if not most, do not operate in this way. Most churches in America today are operating as a business. Because of this, these churches, like every single other business, are suffering financially and facing economic hardships that force many to make difficult decisions about staff, expenses and programs.

Like every other business, Churches around the nation are laying off workers, cutting back on programs and down-sizing to make it through these uncertain economic times.

Could it be that God might be allowing the Church as we know it to go out of business so that she can realize that He has never intended her to operate as a business in the first place?

Most Christians today cannot imagine Church without a paid professional clergy, a large building, a state-of-the-art sound system, and programs for youth and children. However, the historical evidence is that people have been operating without these things for literal centuries. These churches have been making disciples and preaching the Gospel and serving the poor and worshipping Jesus just fine, thank you. All without a building, a paid professional clergy, or programs or a thousand dollar sound system. Seriously.

Furthermore, the New Testament tells us that Jesus refers to His Church as a Family, a Body, an Organism and a Bride. He never treats her as a business and, in my opinion, the Scriptures reveal a very different DNA for Church than we've adopted here in the West.

One pastor friend recently shared that he had approached his board of directors at his church about not continuing to take a salary for his services. He wanted to take a job in the real world and not be a burden to the Body financially. This, I thought, was a wonderful idea. However, they wouldn't allow him to work for free or to take his salary elsewhere. This response puzzles me in many ways, but sadly, most cannot conceive of running the Church in any other way than as a business.

Over the last few years I have met three different pastors, here in California, who have found it necessary to let go of their church building and their paid staff due to financial hardships. In each case, these pastors made the decision to re-organize as a series of house churches. All of them have since discovered the joy and the freedom of "Being the Church" rather than asking their people to attend one. None of them would ever go back. None of them would have taken the step towards House Church if their bank accounts were bursting either.

Now that they have made the leap towards organic forms of "being Church" these three pastors have also discovered that, instead of shrinking in size, they are growing, in maturity and in numbers. Instead of hurting for money they cannot help but generate money, because they have little to no expenses. Instead of spending thousands of dollars a month on utilities and bills, they now spend hundreds of hours in community and in fellowship with one another and have discovered what it means to really be the Family of God.

Our house church, The Mission, has been together for just over 3 years now. I have been very blessed to grow alongside others who share our passion for living outward-focused lives of love. My family has been blessed to open our home and discover true Koinonia fellowship and community with people who have a sincere desire to follow Jesus. We've all been blessed to encourage one another in our faith and to spur one another on to do good works which God has prepared in advance for us to do.

We've been blessed to share our finances with one another, and with those we encounter in the community, who are in need. We've been amazed to connect every dollar we give with actual people whose lives are blesssed because of what we share.

Of course, this is no way to run a business, and that's the whole point. Our passionate desire is to live our faith and share what we have been given without allowing profits or corporate strategy or ROI to muddy the waters.

Perhaps God has other reasons for allowing financial pressures to put the Church out of business? Perhaps our economy will rebound soon and all of this will go away? Who knows?

I just cannot help to see God at work in all of this, especially when I hear joyful reports of pastors who are seeing growth and maturity in their church as the walls come down and the people discover what it means to be the Church they were always meant to be.

My hope and prayer is that the people of God here in America would really begin to fully understand what it means to operate as a family, and to share what they have, and to embrace one another, and the poor, no matter what the cost.

Peace,
Keith
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And They'll Know We Are Christians

[SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND]
Article # 174

And They'll Know We Are Christians
by Keith Giles

"If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints? Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church! I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? But instead, one brother goes to law against another—and this in front of unbelievers! The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers. - 1 Cor 6:1-7

The church in Corinth was rebuked by Paul for a litany of failures. They had failed to love one another, they tolerated gross sexual misconduct in their fellowship, and they abused the Lord's Supper table.

In the passage above, Paul is rebuking them for taking one another to court and airing their disagreements publicly. His appeal to them is to consider their witness to the world around them, and to prefer being wronged and mistreated over tarnishing the Gospel of love and peace.

"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you." - JESUS (Matthew 18:5)

Over the last year I have been saddened to see Christians spew hatred and bitterness towards one another on public forums like Facebook, blogs and message boards. One brother in Christ recently called me a swine on my Facebook page simply because I suggested he read something for himself rather than accept a cut and paste quotation at face value. My attempts to respond in love were rebuffed with more name-calling and public attack. This is not the first time I've been the target of such venomous dialog, obviously, but the ongoing, relentless stream of hatred from brother to brother has started to wear me down.

"But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment." - JESUS (Matthew 5:22)

Can we not see what this sort of behavior is doing to the Bride? Can we not pause for a moment and consider how our hateful words are damaging the Gospel, our witness, and especially, our own brothers and sisters in Christ?

I would rather be wronged, and wrong, than to continue this sort of online dialog any further. We, as ambassadors of Christ must return to a posture of humility and respond in love to anyone and everyone (whether online or in person) for the sake of Christ and in obedience to our Lord's command to be known by our love.

There are several people who I know read these words of mine and feel that I have been the one who is guilty of speaking hateful words here, and in my articles about God's design for His Church. Let me respond to this in advance by saying that my motivation for writing about the church has always been to share what I've learned with others. I will confess that at times I have intentionally crafted a headline or a paragraph to provoke a response, but my hope was to provoke a response which was thoughtful, not hateful or angry.

For those who have read my articles and felt offended I sincerely apologize. My desire is to teach my brothers and sisters in Christ (whom I love) about the exciting things I am learning about God's plan for His Church and how the New Testament reveals something many of us (including myself for many years) have missed.

I have done my best to take Scripture at face value and study and teach what it says to anyone who will listen. My aim has not been to offend or to attack or to harm anyone. I have also done my best, both in the articles and in my response to detractors, to avoid insult and refrain from name-calling. If anyone can show me where I have failed at this I will respond to their rebuke and repent publicly.

"Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift." - JESUS (Matthew 5:23-24)

In the last several days I have also attempted, to the best of my ability, to make peace with those who have something against me. Some have responded favorably to my attempts to make peace, others have not, and some have simply ignored me.

My hope is to communicate the truth without harming anyone. I pray that I can shed far more light than heat and, in the future, I will go out of my way to avoid public arguments on this blog, or in response to my articles. If a brother or sister in Christ begins to publicly insult me or to become abusive I will end the conversation publicly and seek reconciliation privately.

I do understand that a discussion of ecclesiology can be difficult between brothers in Christ. Last week I went to lunch with my dear friend Bill and over lunch we had a spirited discussion of this very issue. He had many of the same questions and objections that many others have brought up and we had a very stimulating dialog together. Afterwards, Bill and I prayed for one another, blessed one another, embraced one another and made plans to meet together again soon.

Therefore, I know it is possible for brothers to discuss these issues without resorting to bitterness or name-calling or personal attacks. It is possible if we do our best not to forget that we love one another and that we are part of God's Family.

"How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!" - Psalm 133:1

Peace,
Keith

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ARTICLES TO SHARE:
LET'S JUDGE EVERYBODY
by Brant Hansen

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