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Go find Andrew for me. New nets!
When Jesus appears vividly and visually in your prayers–not like he stood before Saul of Tarsus, perhaps, but like he can surprise us when we slip into a silence that comes alive visually–well, you take notice. I’ve been praying for over thirty years as a Jesus follower and I can only think of three times that this happened. Each one feels as real or more real than ordinary reality and each one is seared into my memory. Each has taken me years to digest. Thank God he doesn’t show up this way more often. I’d be on overload.
This one was maybe four years ago early on a Sunday morning getting prayed up for church. I’m an observer on the shore of a lake. Before me is Jesus working on some nets near a boat. He looks up at me and says, “Go find Andrew for me!” Then, after a pause, holds up the nets he’s been working on and says with delight, “New nets!”
Andrew, who was he? A literal one, probably. And a metaphorical one, maybe. An early adopter, like Andrew, Peter’s brother? One who understands fishing nets and has the good sense to try some new ones, especially if they’ve been made by Jesus. Andrew, someone willing to become a fisher of people with new nets?
New nets, what’s up with that?
We need some new nets these days. Those of us who care about fishing–especially Jesus style fishing, which is fishing for people.
The old nets are letting too many fish through. We cast ‘em out there and the fish swim in, but when we draw them out of the water the fish are swimming right out. A good fisherman doesn’t curse the fish. He examines the nets, and tries to make some new ones.
Read the surveys. The church in the United States has become a kind of club that services its own members and doesn’t draw many new fish in. If it weren’t for immigration, the church would be in decline in the United States–during the era when more people are coming to faith in Jesus around the world than any time in history. When it’s a bull market and you’re not making a profit, there’s something wrong.
The fastest growing segment on the religious landscape is composed of people trying to get off the landscape entirely. The growingest religious order? Nones.
Who are the people not coming in to our churches? Use your imagination. Who don’t you see in church? Don’t see many biologists, or people who subscribe to Scientific American. Do see a lot of people who think science has got it all wrong. Don’t see a lot of people who are worried about the environment and what we’re doing to trash it. Do see a lot of people for whom it’s not a pressing concern.
Don’t see many gay couples, though 58% of gays say they have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ, according to Christianity Today. (Do see many divorced and remarried ones these days. In Catholic churches they are not supposed to take communion. So they feel out of place there, like they are allowed in the house, but can’t come to the table for dinner to eat. So they go to the churches that allow them to eat. Our nets catch them. But not these others.)
Don’t see so many young people post-college, pre-middle-age. Do see middle-age and older people.
Is this the fault of the pearl of great price, the treasure hidden in the field? He does turn people off with his hard teaching, perhaps. This is the rap I’ve heard. But it doesn’t wash. He’s done very well in the drawing-people department for a long time. Kingdom business is flourishing almost everywhere else but here. What’s up with that?
Who makes the nets we use? How are they working? Can Jesus make his own nets? Would they be the same kind of nets that we make or better? Knowing how he operates, would the nets he makes be conventional or controversial?
Would just anyone be willing to use them, or would we have to find the early adopters willing to give them a try?
Tags: divorce, environmnet, evangelism, gay, Jesus, nets, remarried, sciene, Scientific American
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Knowing Jesus, the “new nets” would probably be controversial. Just think about the way the reached out to folks in the 1st century. He broke all the social norms of the day….
For me, the hard part is learning to trust the Spirit and to care less about what others think. Growing up in a Christian home, I was taught to “avoid the appearances of evil” – which included alcohol of any type, locations of questionable content, street corners, and anywhere else that “sinners” hung out.
However, as I pressed into God and read the words of Jesus I have come to understand that the Church needs to be going to the places it has taught its members to avoid. I have had to break down the walls within my heart and learn to lean on Jesus so that I can befriend the lonely, the poor, and the downtrodden.
In a similar way, we must break down the walls build up by well meaning folks trying to protect the Church and start hanging out with the gay community, the scientific community and every other community that is slipping through the “nets” of Christ’s Love. It is a struggle. But it can be done with the help and empowerment of the Christ.
September 3rd, 2009 at 1:15 pm
This is not a statistical sampling by any means, but on web discussions and what I hear in person, it seems that the general view of Christians is that they are a bunch of hateful, holier-than-thou hypocritical snots. Is it really true? It’s not my experience with people I know in real life, so are people getting this perception from the news media who like to stir up controversy, and thus highlight the most antagonistic? Sometimes I feel like people WANT to see Christians that way and look for any examples they can to add to their proof list that this is the way Christians are.
In a different category but one that has a large intersection with the above group are those who hold Science as their god, and since the Bible is illogical and unscientific, it’s a bunch of fairy tales that they have no interest in having anything to do with; some even believe the popularity of faith is detrimental to society, and they are in a zealous crusade to destroy it.
With the first group, we are up against media portrayals that are continually flashed before people’s awareness, while many don’t know real Christians to compare the reality with the hype. Is it because Christians are too quiet about their faith and afraid that if they bring it up, they’ll be branded as intolerant and ignorant? Or is it because Christians are not in the same social circles as those who are not?
With the second group, at first glance it may seem that an apologetics approach would be the way to go in connecting with them. But as time goes on, I have less and less faith in apologetics. Despite the constant calls these people make to bow down to reason and science, I think no amount of apologetics debate will convince the majority, for I believe the root of their disdain is actually something more emotionally based.
September 3rd, 2009 at 5:00 pm
I can say that as an evangelical, I never had a problem (nor did my church peers as far as I could tell) with science.
I grew up reading science magazines, believing evolution (loved reading about dinosaurs) and having faith in Jesus and the Bible with no barrier seen until I came to this church, and I used to attend conservative, Presbyterian and non denominational churches in Brazil and the US.
So this assumption that the larger church is not welcoming folks who love science is not accurate in my view. (The funny thing is, as I have been hearing more of this debate since the 90’s, I have more and more been attracted to the creationism side…and that because of scientific data!! Go figure.)
Not only me, but this idea of evolution or science having to be rejected by Christians is foreign to all of my Christian extended family members, my grandfather, who was a pastor in the backwoods of Brazil never had an issue with science and he read extensively, taught himself philosophy, Hebrew and Greek etc.
I went to an Drexel University (80% engineering at the time) and none of my peers at the local, very conservative Christian fellowship had any issue with science. I had a friend in that Christian group who was a Physicist and she told me she kept ‘running into God’ the deeper she got into her studies.
Sure, there are people of all stripes with many different experiences, but I reject this assumption that the church is alienating and rejecting lovers of science.
Now for the whole gay argument… I’ll have to get back to this, still processing, but I would like to mention that if we as a church start to accept/celebrate the active gay lifestyle as perfectly normal and not something to repent of, we will be doing a huge disservice to folks (I know one personally) who have long struggled to walk with God while battling homosexual impulses.
It would be akin to telling most men, especially single men, who struggle with porn and masturbating to internet porn sites; hey, buddy, you don’t have to take steps or ask your buddies in your men’s group to keep you accountable, chill out, this is who God made you, so indulge, all the biblical texts against adultery are just for that time and don’t really apply to this culture!
September 3rd, 2009 at 6:29 pm
@ Harshbarger – About the first group, I don’t know. I know several people in the church who would run a gay or lesbian couple out of the building while wallowing in their own pride and sin-filled life. These Christians seem to forget how screwed up they where when they first met Jesus. Instead, they think that if walk into a church building you must stop all immoral behavior.
True, as you follow Jesus, you should ‘clean up’ your life. But that is a work of the Spirit and not the Church.
As such, I think there are a lot of truth behind the medias portrayals of Christians as a “bunch of hateful, holier-than-thou hypocritical snots.” Sadly enough.
September 3rd, 2009 at 10:53 pm
I have no problem with drawing people in, however I don’t think that anything should go either. Love the people as Jesus as loved you, but also teach them HIS ways not the those of the World. I think too often churches are conforming to the ideals of the world in a mere attempt to be accepted by those in the world, if you ask me that is a little backwards in thinking?
September 4th, 2009 at 8:18 am
I like the metaphor of the nets. What do we do to make better nets? Isn’t the way Jesus taught part of it? Isn’t his divinity a good part of it? Aren’t the miracles a good part of it? So today, with us, isn’t the action of the Holy Spirit critical to drawing people in? What should we do to ask for and to welcome the drawing-in power of the Holy Spirit?
September 4th, 2009 at 8:28 am
I agree with Cassady. I struggle with the fine line between showing the love of Jesus to homosexuals and appearing to condone their behavior. It can be a difficult line to walk. I am not one to go over the top quoting scripture. I hope to cast “new nets” by being honest with my own struggles in my Christian walk and showing how the Lord sheperds me through.
Ken, thank you for sharing your “new nets” vision. This has really spoke to me.
September 4th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Ken, you are an amazingly creative guy. I realize that this will probably come off wrong, perhaps as a criticism. Actually it is probably both a criticism and a compliment. What I find so amazing is that virtually every post you write is the same thing, but said in a hundred different ways. I guess the criticism is that it would be nice to read your thoughts on a different topic occasionally-for example, do you find anything to say about large segments of Christianity ordaining practicing homosexuals? These are our people, so by your own guidelines you’re free to critique them. Why only critique the judgmental; why not critique the false teachers among us? But the compliment is that you are able to deliver essentially the same message post after post, but do so creatively enough that we keep reading.
September 5th, 2009 at 7:40 am
Maybe we can set up more signs all over Ann Arbor that say We Finally Have a Church That You Want to Be At….hiss….
I apologize for the small vent, but I think churches keep pushing the old nets and are not even considering the type of fish that are in the pond…
I think Ardell is onto something.
September 5th, 2009 at 7:42 am
Oh….and sorry I couldn’t say hi at Plum yesterday, I was on a business call.
September 6th, 2009 at 10:15 am
I am not saying to tell them to get over their sin or get out. A very good friend of mine is gay, so I completely understand it is a battle of long-suffering with them through it regardless of how long that journey is. With the same breath, I hope that Vineyard isn’t becoming a church where anything goes. I am all for the values of loving people like Jesus loves them, but like a parent to a child you have to also teach and discipline them or their behaviors will become destructive to themselves and those around them. Being a follower of Jesus is not just about the flowery ideals we often make it out to be.
September 6th, 2009 at 3:08 pm
The purpose of the new nets? Is it to get us to the building we call church or to fall in love with Jesus? Not looking for an answer.
Is a church necessarily the best vehicle to encourage love of Jesus? If not what is?
I was listening to Drew and Mike Friday, they were talking about how struck they were with how Ernie Harwell was handling his cancer. At 91 Ernie simply wanted to enjoy his wife and family. He expressed his lack of fear because of Jesus.
As soon as we identify a person by a title other then “beloved” we set ourselves up for failure.
Mother Theresa had it right.
Seems like all we need is a slight shift in focus.
September 7th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
To the orthodox, Jesus is a blasphemer. To the vested interests, Jesus is a revolutionary. To the self-satisfied, Jesus is nothing but trouble. To the greedy, Jesus is a scourge. To the righteous, Jesus is an affront. To the enfranchised, Jesus is a threat. Enough piety. Enough defensiveness and fearfulness.
September 11th, 2009 at 11:14 am
Supreeta, who is Jesus to you?
October 4th, 2009 at 7:52 pm
Appreciate this greatly. I have had great doubts recently about this faith, but I am so glad to be able to come home (on breaks, I go to college far away) to a church like this, where science is the friend of Jesus and not the enemy. Thank you Pastor Ken for investigating the truth and staying intellectually rigorous. I feel if the Bible doesn’t fit with observable reality, then it must be questioned, instead of questioning observable reality if it doesn’t fit with the Bible. I feel that Pastor Ken has found a way to have both and stay rational.
October 29th, 2009 at 8:00 pm
Jesus is Lord!