What are we trying to accomplish anyway?

I find it very difficult, impossible really, to take action unless I first understand a thing. So it's been very much on my mind to grapple with the mission of the church. I know what individual Christians are called to do, but have been less sure of the role of the church as the formal institution imagined by the New Testament. Once again, I happened upon a useful book – What Is the Mission of the Church? Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom, and the Great Commission by Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert. I'm aware that this is written towards one end of the spectrum of views on these issues, but I trust that won't prevent me from reaching my own conclusions ;).

After an introductory chapter, the book does some thorough-going exegetical work in Genesis 12, Exodus 19, Matthew 28, Mark 13 and 14, Luke 4 and 24, John 20, Acts 1, and Paul's letters (other passages are explored in later chapters). You will have to read the book to see how their working goes, but a shorthand way of doing some of it is to ask, 'How would this passage/book read if it were talking about building community or improving economic participation (etc)?' This sort of question exposes the word-based ministry found throughout somewhere like the book of Acts. We don't see the apostles stopping to advocate for the poor in the cities of the Ancient World or instructing others to do so. Their primary concern and what they spend their time doing is to spread the Gospel of life and to see believers built up in their faith. It is this that DeYoung and Gilbert conclude is the mission of the church – “to go into the world and make disciples by declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit and gathering these disciples into churches, that they might worship the Lord and obey his commands now and in eternity to the glory of God the Father.”1

Now the reason that God's Word focuses on proclamation of the Gospel and teaching of disciples is not because ending poverty, conflict, and environmental degradation aren't important – but because this is Jesus' work, not the church's. What's more, this is work he has already accomplished on the cross, the results of which will be finally and fully realised at his return. Jesus doesn't need our help in bringing about world peace, for he has already done it. It's not for us to build the Kingdom, we are simply to enter in. And so the most compassionate thing we can do for suffering people is to urge them to join his people and then to together pray to hurry the return of King Jesus. This is exactly what he has commanded his church to do. Of course each Christian still needs to live as his faithful servant, and that may mean caring for other people or for the environment in some practical way, but we shouldn't think we are 'helping Jesus out'.

There are of course passages that exhort us to care for the vulnerable and suffering. DeYoung and Gilbert don't argue with this – it's just that they don't see these passages speaking of the mission of the church. They also argue that this care is rather more narrow than we might think. The Bible urges especial concern for the destitute among fellow believers (cf Mt 10:40-42; 25:31-46; 2 Cor 8:13-15; Gal 2:10; 6:10), for people who are oppressed and exploited, and for those near to us in some way. The second of these categories is bound up with the biblical conception of 'justice' – which is not so much concerned with the aid and empowerment of the poor and disenfranchised, but rather with putting a stop to “a corrupted judicial system, an arbitrary legal code, and outright cruelty to the poor”2 and a concern that people “should not steal, bribe, or cheat”3. From this the authors conclude:

We dare say that most Christians in America are not guilty of these sorts of injustices, nor should they be made to feel that they are . . . . If we are guilty of injustice individually or collectively, let us be rebuked in the strongest terms. By the same token, if we are guilty of hoarding our resources and failing to show generosity, then let us repent, receive forgiveness, and change. But when it comes to doing good in our communities and in the world, let's not turn every possibility into a responsibility and every opportunity into an ought. If we want to see our brothers and sisters do more for the poor and afflicted, we'll go farther and be on safer ground if we use grace as our motivating principle instead of guilt.4

The third point (care for those near to us in some way) is illustrated in the parables of the Good Samaritan and the Rich Man and Lazarus – “the rich man in Luke 16 is damned because he ignores poor Lazarus at his gate. His sin is a sin of omission. But this omission is more than a general failure to 'do more' or 'do enough'. His extravagant wealth makes him blind to the needs right in front of him.”5 Similarly in 1 John 3:17 failure to help a brother in need is a grave sin. However Paul is much less severe in 2 Corinthians 8-9 – because the brothers live some distance away and are not part of his readers' local church community (cf 8:8; 9:5).6 DeYoung and Gilbert observe:

There are no easy answers even with the principle of moral proximity, but without it God's call to compassion seems like a cruel joke. We can't possibly respond to everyone who asks for money. We can't give to every organization helping the poor. Some Christians make it sound like every poor person in Africa is akin to a man dying on our church's doorstep, and neglecting starving children in India is like ignoring our own child drowning right in front of us. We are told that any difference in our emotional reaction or tangible response shows just how little we care about suffering in the world. This rhetoric is manipulative and morally dubious.7

They helpfully add, “This doesn't mean we can be uncaring to everyone but our friends, close relatives, and people next door, but it means that what we ought to do in one situation is what we may do in another.”8

Let's end on an upbeat note:

If we want every church to move into the city, drink fair-trade coffee, focus on ending world hunger, and feel like guilty oppressors when we don't do these things, we're going to have a hard time backing that up with Scripture. But if we want every church to look outside itself, exercise love beyond its doors, and give generously to those in need (especially those on its member list), we will have ample biblical support.

All that is to say, as we see the physical needs all around us, let's motivate each other by pointing out salt-and-light opportunities instead of going farther than the Bible warrants and shaming each other with do-this-list-or-you're-sinning responsibilities. We would do well to focus less on prophetic 'social justice' announcements and more on boring old love. Love creatively. Love wildly. Love dangerously.9

1 K DeYoung, G Gilbert, What Is the Mission of the Church? Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom, and the Great Commission (Illinois: Crossway, 2011), 62. (italics theirs)

2 Ibid, 159.

3 Ibid,161.

4 Ibid,176-77.

5 Ibid, 167. (italics theirs)

6 Ibid, 170, 185.

7 Ibid, 184-85.

8 Ibid, 184. (italics theirs)

9 Ibid, 193. (bold theirs)