The church in the New Testament is described in Greek, as the “ekklesia,” or called out ones. This term is deeply rooted in the meta-narrative of scripture – from Genesis to Revelation – which for centuries has pointed to the particularities of God’s people being called out to reflect God’s image among all creation. The spiritual descendants of Abraham (Gal. 3:7) are the keepers and implementers of God’s promise to bless all nations (Gen 12:1-3) by grace through faith in the finished work of Christ.
The faithful, called out communities of Jesus followers…the CHURCH is the primary organism/instrument that God uses to fulfill his purposes on earth. We. Are. Church.
Our purpose as the universal church on earth and in heaven is to gather worshippers of all the tribes, nations, peoples, and languages to sing an eternal chorus of praise to our Creator (Rev. 5:9, 7:9). Christ following communities of faith reflects that purpose. Church is an expression of the people of God living out the Kingdom of God here on earth.
The chief aim of our existence is to enjoy God’s grace and extend his glory. Yet, 70% (4.7 billion) of the world’s population remain far from God’s presence and dead in shallow self-worship.
If we are to believe the words of Jesus and reach the world by gathering the bountiful harvest (Luke 10:2), deep spiritual roots are needed to see churches flourish and exponentially multiply. In our Western context, the roots of Christendom are quite shallow, withered and dying. To many from this generation and the next the church is considered dead, hypocritical, irrelevant, and completely out of touch with dominant culture. In the East, which is described as the 10/40 window, more than half the world either know nothing (unreached/unengaged) about the church of Jesus Christ or see it as an institution that is foreign, destructive, exploitive, and completely in conflict with dominant culture.
God’s heart and calling is for us to go, gospel, grow, and gather churches that are deeply rooted in the person of Jesus Christ.
Deep Root #1:
The church must be about loving people. Yet church is so often about the lights, music, money, masses, and masters. The “shallow root” paradigm is often expressed by self-helping, attraction-based programs and external forms and icons; heart-pounding live concerts, monster truck themed conferences, physical buildings with steeples, or trendy converted movie theatres with “culturally relevant” skinny-jeaned worship leaders. The roots of church must go deeper than Western cultural expressions often associated with consumerism.
The pursuit of prosperity kills the church while the pursuit of deep self-sacrificial love gives life and multiplies the church. The church of Jesus Christ is called to deeply love others resulting in the transformation of entire families, communities, cultures, ethnic groups, and segments of society. Despite all the flaws of the universal church/people of God, we are the ultimate pursuit of a missionary God who is seeking worship from every tribe, tongue and nation. Simply put, churches pursue and love others because God first loved us.
Deep Root #2:
The church must be about making disciples. Jesus said that He will build His Church (Matt 16:18). Our job is to make disciples as we live out our faith in our context and calling. We must build into servant leaders the DNA (Divine Truth, Nurturing Relationship, Apostolic Mission)[1] of obedience out of love (John 14:15). The “shallow root” paradigm would disproportionately focus on knowledge, teaching, and pastoral giftedness while compartmentalizing mission. Leaders who express more apostolic, evangelistic, and prophetic giftings are often regulated to side programs and para-church ministries.
Jesus’ pathway for leadership development was for Him, the God of the universe, to become less so his disciples would do greater things by bearing much fruit (John 14:12-14). Any church or ministry that concentrates all power or elevates centralized figures based on personal charisma, vision, and elocution skills are not multiplying disciples – they are simply making celebrity pastors in the same way that Lucifer was a celebrity among the angels around the throne of God (Isaiah 14:12-17). Churches that are recognizing and releasing all the leadership gifts described in Ephesians 4 will be deeply rooted, growing inwardly and outwardly. Discipleship is about releasing authority and empowering the laity as Jesus did (Matt. 28:28-20).
Deep Root #3:
The church must be about loving God driven by the mission of God (missio dei). We love God by participating and rooting ourselves in the missio dei. Our active participation in extending God’s fame and glory is in response to our deep abiding in Him. The church was created to fulfill God’s mission, not the other way around. The “shallow root” paradigm that places church and not mission in the center, will be characterized by emotionally reactive and non-strategic giving, self-serving “missions” trips, pew warmers who are unable to feed themselves spiritually, spectators who don’t know how to make disciples, seeker-sensitive messages of love, grace, and prosperity without repentance, obedience, and perseverance.
Churches driven by the mandate of the Father’s heart will love God, love people, and make disciples. The fruit of deeply rooted churches is spiritual generations of disciples making disciples and churches reproducing churches. This was God’s plan from the very beginning, rooted deeply in our creation. We are called out and commissioned to extend God’s glory and fame. Worship is both the catalyst and end goal.
How deep are the roots of your church…?
[1] Cole, Neil. Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens, 2005
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