Mel Gibson, in the movie Braveheart, portrays the true story of the Scot revolutionary, William Wallace. The common folk were poor and routinely stripped of their lands and treated with contempt by their overlords. While the movie does not depict all that motivated this young man, he was surely impacted by two significant turning points: the death of his father in a scuffle with an Englishman, and the murder of his wife under the direction of the English sheriff. He took up the family motto: “"Pro libertate" – "For Freedom" and become both an avenger, hero, and martyr for the cause of seeing his people set free. Wallace’s life experiences and tragedies helped awaken him to the oppression and abuse as well as motivate him to say, “Enough!”
In the same way, all revolutions, resulting in greater freedom, are preceded by an awakening. People wake up to the stark reality that they are not living as they could. They have succumbed to various states of oppression or depression or subjugation, and they wake up to the harshness of their condition and say “Enough!”
Today, there is an awakening in the church taking place and a new cry for freedom. The liberating of the church is happening. It’s happening en masse. It’s happening not by someone’s design, but simply because person after person has experienced something that is causing them to more fully awaken to their condition and say ‘enough.’
People are awakening from a tyranny that I place under the overarching term: religion. Religion encompasses the dead spiritual systems that we substitute for life—life with Jesus. Religion goes far beyond the oppressiveness of just legalism though that’s an important aspect of it. It involves all of the forms of godliness—external and internal—that become substitutes and alternatives to real spiritual life and vitality. These ‘forms of godliness’ can include:
- The religious routines we follow that replace a vibrant, risk-taking life of following Jesus.
- The church systems we set up that sustain themselves with activities and programs which many use to replace real relationship with Jesus and with one another.
- The motivations we fall into that are about serving our own ego-identities rather than, truly, God’s Kingdom and purposes.
Freedom is the goal of all revolutions and this one is no different. God is awakening His people because He has destined us for freedom so that we, in turn, may bring freedom to a world that is deeply oppressed and in need of what Jesus’ life and only Jesus’ life can bring.
Let’s explore some of the many ways that God is freeing His people from religion and unleashing His bride to serve His glory, reflect His presence, and follow his purposes to bring about life in a decaying world… (More to Come).
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NOTE: This is a stab at setting the stage for the first chapter of the "Irreligious Follower" book. I will share a bit at a time as I try to organize the flow of the book!
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Comments
14 responses to “The Awakening Irreligious Church”
This sounds like a great start, Roger. I’m looking forward to the unfolding of the book.
There is so much evidence of the awakening that you mention, it’s everywhere in the church. I’ve been keeping track of some of it in an area of my blog that I’m calling ‘Organic Wine’. You might find some material there that you can use.
– http://jesus.scilla.org.uk/p/organic-wine.html
Look under the ‘Topics’ heading, you’ll find several of your own blog articles listed there 🙂
One recent addition intrigues me, Tony Dale is wondering whether there may be a role for those who are awakening to go back in to what they once felt they should leave.
I love the idea that we’re being awakened for freedom. ‘If Christ has set you free…’
Apologies, Paul Byerly is wondering, not Tony Dale. But perhaps Tony is wondering too!
Thanks, Chris. Good stuff!
Great start to the first chapter and I am compelled to write to say here,here! that would be from down under Australia where I am excitedly witnessing people coming alive to the freedom of being true followers of Jesus and experiencing intimacy with our Father through the practices of sharing hearts being still and listenening prayer (vulnerability, honesty and jumping off a cliff). Simple, profound and revolutionary. I am thankful to be part of a community of risk taking and hungry friends who are begining to get wind of something BIG. Most of my “new friends” are still “in church” and the lines seem to be blurring, issues of being a “house church person,or not” seem to have lost significance in the conversation. Intimacy through the wonder and experience of learning to hear Gods voice and the possibility of living more like Jesus, only doing and saying that which he saw is Father doing is captivating our hearts and minds. (With thanks to my friends John white and co, positive deviants of the LK10 community)
Awesome! Sharing this on FB!
Question: In general observation of most mainline denominations this is true, there is so much religion with no relationship, but there is the exceptions among certain churches of these denomination where a pastor has “Seen the Light”. This is also true of some denomination, do you make a blanket statement all denomination are playing church or do you see any that are not?
Thanks for the comment, Stephen. In making broad statements about the general condition of the church, I do not mean to target any specific denomination nor any type of church expression. Rather, my intention is to challenge all of us to press forward into greater freedom from the religious tendencies that are common to all of us and which, at various times, become a hindrance to our personal, relational life with Christ.
Only those who are too busy with the cares of the world may not notice this….
Good stuff, that many are “awakening” to, even globally. I like this start and look forward to more. I am involved in both Renovare and 3DM communities, which seem to be embracing this “movement” of the LORD as well. Enjoy your heart in these posts and all the things that Asa James and Brian Dodd send me too. 🙂
Testing in Firefox 10.
Roger: I wrote a very long note a minute ago and then lost it somehow??!! Not surprising though getting old. In any case this is exactly what I was on about at the Herricks when I recommended Richard Roh’s book “The Naked Now’ I also want to add Eckhart Tolle’s book “Now” and “Awakening to your Life’s Purpose”. Both speak to this revolution of thought even on a world wide basis. Great stuff , but I need to ask for a bit more of the “Simplify, Simplify” approach for the little people like me that way I don’t have to read each line three times
Peter Devoy
I’ve been watching this space for a while and considered posting something but always thought any contribution would be too simple until Peter D said “Simplify Simplify”.
I have been a “Pastor” in a conservative church and poured many years of myself into trying to transition this church into something that incorperated both the large gathering (weekly or biweekly) and the small more grass roots scattering into the homes and hopefully the suburbs, only to have the people I cared for and love stab me in the back (I suppose I am in good company, for the religious people crucified Jesus). I now am a Chaplain in a State Primary school and have been there for the past four years (since leaving the denomination). I am amazed at the amount of people I meet who have left the traditional church because of the general complaciency toward doing something that remotely resembles the Great Commission of “Going into the world”. It seems people are very happy to default to the position of giving money to missionaries and mission organisations but don’t want to get their hands dirty themselves.
I have been trying for the past four years to gather a group of people into our home and have invited a number of these dis-infranchised people to come. All is good until we get to the place where we talk about doing the very thing they left the traditional church for i.e. the great commission. People start to make excuses and we see less and less of them.
I have tried to be a role model for our gathering and I know some of the difficulties of reaching our own people but I continue to try.
I am wondering how and if this book called “The Awakening Irreligious Church” might give me some clues on how to empower the people I meet who have left the church.
Hi Roger….as I stated in a comment about a month ago and restated by yourself a few days ago, it is the church itself that is the primary reason that people are getting out and staying out of church in droves. Where I live in eastern France there are no less than 17 “protestant” churches each of which have an average Sunday attendance of 30-40 people. What I didn’t know until the past week or so is that around a quarter of each congregation go to the other churches on a regular basis. Sort of a “Sunday Merry-Go-Round”. Why? Because they feel that there is basically no difference in any of the churches aside from the denominational name. They just look at church as somewhere to go on Sunday morning to meet friends. There are, of course, those who stick to one church and have a relationship with God, but we are a minority. So what to do? Most of these churches are stuck in the mud of tradition and ritual. And they don’t even talk about their church to the unsaved because they aren’t excited about anything spiritual. There’s nothing going on to talk about; just the same old same-old. I was told that France would be a tough nut to crack, and I’m not being disappointed. But….there is a sliver of light. The Simple Church concept has taken a foothold here. Ever so slowly growing, but growing nonetheless! Everybody please keep praying for France. There are a lot of good people here looking for a God who is alive!
Appreciate your comments, Stephen. I’m sure many of us can relate. I can say, for myself, that I now put less energy into trying to reform those who have been churched and may or may not truly want to be reformed, and more time into those who really want more and/or are new believers. It’s difficult to get the desire for comfort out of the comfortable, but I do think God can connect us with the discontent and lost who want more than just status quo. In any case, I will take one of the latter over a room full of the former.