Do you hear me ? Humble, culturally helpful communication.

This is the first question of several as a prompts to ponder / help us meditate in our 2023 sessions on what kind of spiritual leaders are needed as we seek to see the gospel grow across the world ?

NO 1: Humble flexible, culturally sensitive communicators of the word of God, who respond and are flexible to the Spirit's leading, as they seek to proclaim the unchangeable gospel to changing cultures and multicultural in frontier mission.

In the bible God has chosen to communicate with us, how does this shape and impact how we chose to communicate with our world, so full of many who want to be "Influencers."? 

The Wisdom and omniscience of God has breathed a bible which is useful for all cultures and all generations. However, in a group bible study, several people can have several perspectives on the same passage whilst all understanding the non negotiable exegetical truth. If there is cultural variance in a home group in the Midlands, Yorkshire, Skegness, Abersoch, Dundee or Loughborough, how much more flexibility to we need to be equipped for in a frontier context like Nepal,  Bhutan or Guinea-Conkary. The Spirit covered all contingencies. Whilst we hear the bible in our language and culture, we need to think also about how it will be read in other contexts. As we humble ourselves to this process and other believers impacting our world view (as we submit together to God and his truth) we walk into a richer understanding of how utterly wonderful the word of God is, as the word of life.

• Genesis 1: "In the beginning God... and God said.."
• Hebrews 1: "In the past God spoke... in these last days he has spoken to us..." 
• John 1:14: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt amongst us..."
• Jeremiah 23:1 "woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture" 
• Luke 11:18 "The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: "God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector"
• Luke 5:30-32 "but the Pharisees and teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"
• John 10:11 Jesus said... "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep."

 Here's a basic starter thought that may lose me some friends. It comes with love and a broken heart wanting to see God impact our nation, and many others, as we better communicate the gospel which so desperately needs it.  It comes from trying to read the bible without pretext, and with an eye on several cultures (not just my own natural habbitat) in which I might try to communicate what God is opening my heart up to.

 I realise more and more as I engage with other cultures, how badly conditioned and constrained I am to only think about my own little world, with blinkers on, both in the cultural and in the spiritual realm. It is part of my fallenness which Christ by his staggering grace is redeeming. It is partly my sin (because we all like to know what we like, and know what we like to know) and partly that I am human and God's word is written in divinity for humanity. What awesome patience he has to take us out of our small mindedness. 

Why was the bible written for us?

A relational introduction

It is a basic fundamental conviction that the prototype of communication given to us by God in the bible and in Christ is a relational, personally invested one, not a "Data Dump" of facts. What starts for us in Genesis 1:1 plays out on the stage of our redemption, (Hebrews 1:1), the God who introduces himself in loving communication for the purpose of rescue wants us to know him above all things. The bible is a relational book for relational communication.

When someone dies, people sometimes flippantly say... 

" he has gone to meet his maker" a technical statement to cover what is unknown. However, anyone can meet their maker by opening the first page of the bible. Here... God introduces himself, the primary issue is God, not creation, which is why each Hebrew expression emphasises that this is something only God could do (1:1, v21 (creating life) (1:27 creating humanity). The whole nucleus and reason for all things, you and me, life and humanity is found in God.  Put another way, at the core of Christianity is not a seminary dissertation for intellectual stimulation about minutiae, but a loving, heartfelt, sacrificially invested, personal  conversation with humungous, mind boggling, relational implications of eternal significance. God wants to introduce himself to us. He does this through creation in order that we know him in ways we can only begin to comprehend. Surprisingly though, I'm not sure how much of this relational primacy drives our training and thinking of the next generation, or our approach to the rest of the bible. In our desire to make much of the written word, we may have often missed the balance between truth (details) and grace (profound love), truth (information) and relationship, truth (what is said) and tone (the way it is heard), often just emphasising fact (truth), and therefore God's supremacy without immanency (relationship to us and with us).

John 1:17 

"For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."

MISSING THE WOOD FOR THE TREES.

The bible is God introducing himself to us.

It is easy to miss some basic facts when we come to the bible with our cultural baggage, especially if we ourselves have come from a "good sound" church, been "well taught" in a "good sound" college or seminary. The beginnings of all things for example (Genesis) unfold in a context which did not read or write. We are introduced to God as he speaks in this context. Adam and Eve had a relationship with God, oral communication which worked out in the only environment they had known was the way it all happened as they spent time with God and heard his voice, whether in grace, wisdom, provision or judgment. Each subsequent biblical generation had partial scriptures. Don't miss this or skim it. We have so many oral cultures around our world who do not think with a western logic mindset, or with conceptual premise, who are yet to hear the gospel for the first time. In many frontier territories for mission, what matters first is your motive, and then your authentic story (which they would like to hear relationally).

Very often the orderliness of what God says in Gen 1-2 is what we focus on, with our OCD Western eyes of logic from an "enlightened" position. I wonder though if those thoughts should be much more balanced and fully contextualised by the staggering dimensions of relational communication which explode on the first page of the bible, as God introduces himself to us. He tells us our story.  The great news of the bible is not just order but, the blindingly glorious one who brings it into our lives by his love and at great cost. His presence eclipses all things and all peoples. There is a kind of light so bright and so big,  that distinct details cannot always be focussed on or kept in view, when he is present. This is not a matter of order but magnitude. 

Contrary to the circular time idea of Eastern philosophy, this relational communication runs in linear time throughout the bible, to a point of completion and resolution (Rev 5:1, Eph 1:10). It is not limited to one generation or culture, but goes to all without exception. Here, on the last pages of the bible, the final phase of God communicating with a fallen world is brought to a conclusion and ended by the one who both commences the last phase of speech (Heb 1:1) and is able to bring all things to an end, even a redeemed people representative of every context, communication, culture and generation. 

We are unique in 2022/23 among many peoples and epochs before us. Our communications are wide (global, instant) and detailed, both immensely informed and grossly misinformed at the same time. What is called news is often just opinion, what is opinion often hides motives which are not so noble. What is promoted as essential for life is often frivolous and inconsequential to fundamental issues of life and death. 

Maybe this is why many approach Genesis now, thinking we know it all. We approach with such "informed" (arrogant) technical view about our firm (pretext) beliefs in science and biblical texts, so that our utmost thoughts and first instincts surround the judging of the writer, speaker or preacher alike to see if they fit in with our model of Genesis. Rather, instead shouldn't we be being dumb struck by the blatant truth. Stand back... THE AUTHOR of all things is speaking!!! We should be rocked back on our heels,  and with instant wonder our jaws should drop. It will take more than smelling salts to get over this one. That He , would want a relationship with us, want to be with us, want us to be with Him, and love us enough to speak to us never mind help us in all things, and rescue all things ? This will take eternity to unpack.

Even more poignant to me are the communicative ways of our incarnate, humbled (Phil 2:1-13) Saviour, who is so people submerged, relationally drenched and culturally savvy, whilst the "educated" Pharisees miss his glory, omniscience, and the desperate need of the world. With their  blinkers on, their darkened thoughts think they know everything as they obsess about first century Hebrew mono-culture. How often do you and I read ourselves into the narrative of the Pharisees? Are you and I any more broad minded, or receptive to Jesus as the ultimate radical frontier missioner? How ready are we to hear God's bigger worldview which disrupts our comfort and self proclaimed mastery ?

Influencers and the influenced.

In recent years, in a desire especially to encourage younger pastors without a helpful network of encouragement (often in disparate places trying to reach cultures with the gospel), I have noticed how they often split into a dichotomy of two camps which struggle to influence or impact each other. 

1) The natural boffins:

 The first with a Western / European mindset who have many resources on their shelves, several years of "training" under their belt, sometimes a masters or two,  and a computer system or Logos library that they haven't even begun to fathom (in which they've invested huge amounts of finance). It is a subconscious, unwritten notion that they have bought into...

 that the key to all things is extra information. To quote Francis Bacon, they believe on some level that "knowledge is power". Interestingly these friends who love books, and are often stoked by those who wrote in ages past often struggle relationally with those under their very nose that God has placed them amongst right now. Many aspire to bible college lecturing roles or becoming a writer which would be the pinnacle of achievement in their eyes.

2)The deeply ordinary practical and unpretentious friends: There is a second group who generally are not naturally gifted academically, or conversely live in a place where books and seminaries are scarce to non existent. They sometimes struggle to preach neatly, or give a great strategy paper. They love people however, and have numerous informal Phd's in reading people and situations, getting on with life (and people) in really hard situations with great grit and stickability, which resembles the faithfulness of Christ. They are not phased when things don't match the textbook situation, because they never read any textbook other than the bible on the subject. I learn so much in this context, and if I'm honest, often wish more of it could be moved to the UK church.

 Miranda Kerr is an Australian Business woman, who rose to fame as a Victoria Secret model. In many ways she is a product of her age.

She says "I feel knowledge is power; if you know how to take care of yourself, you can be a better version of yourself."

 In many ways this quote summarises our age; driven by feelings, self obsessed, self defined, willing to do anything as long as we gain personally from it. Modelling from 13, once married to Orlando bloom, before marrying Evan Spiegel the CEO of snapchat, she has attained a prominent voice on social media and quote pages. She is the archetype influencer. Millions of a certain generation hang on her every snap/ tweet / insta as their self help rationale to boost living each day, regardless of how different their own situation is to hers as a multi-millionare. They want to be her. In my humble view (genuine humility as I am very consious that hardly any numbers of significance listen to what I say compared to her, or are interested in what "product" I use), what Miranda is saying is frequently derivative, void of wisdom/ depth (other than makeup / quantity of foundation or eyeshadow) and fundamentally the opposite of the biblical mindset, yet with a malaise of vague confusions, and conflicting generalities - what she says is often taken as fundamental ("gospel") truth by many. She says in a Telegraph interview question about her being Buddhist... 

"I'm not Buddhist. I'm Christian. I pray every day. I meditate every day and I do yoga. I'm not religious, I'm spiritual. And praying is something my grandmother taught me as well. To pray and be grateful, have gratitude, is a big thing for me."

You may think this is far removed from the beginning of our discussion, that this is celebrity tittle tattle talk, rather than issues of gravity re: communication from true spiritual leadership, but I suggest that in many ways far too many aspiring "leaders" who aspire to spiritual leadership have subconsciously bought into a similar approach to Miranda's, and actually far more than they have begun to realise, even though they would laugh and scorn at such a ludicrous suggestion.

Some fundamental observations:

• WHO DEFINES US IS SO IMPORTANT:  Notice that Miranda thinks she is the influencer who embodies her gospel... that defining herself will help others. I'm increasingly alarmed by how many young spiritual leaders who have risen to prominence in recent years, subconsciously think of themselves this way. Sometimes they are even encouraged to think this way, as the journey to the platform is opened up to them, as their YouTube channel and "how to" books are promoted. "Good communication" is defined much more by its saleability rather than the motives or authentic actions , substance or eternal fruitfulness behind it.
•  Conversely as spiritual leaders, one of our greatest learnings/ education is when we realise we need to get out of the way for God to speak, to make much of Jesus and little of ourselves. He does speak through our character and the way we are being redeemed and transformed by his word. Preaching is truth expressed through our characters as we submit to Christ,  but... he doesn't need us, he choses to include us.
• Yet there is often a temptation in our socially media driven age to want to drive our identity. Maybe we want to be thought of as "orthodox", "well taught", "well read", "clever", "creative", "switched on" or someone to aspire to in ministry. However this plays out ...it is sin, idolatry of self. 
• Ultimately our identity and satisfaction is 100% in Christ, which should liberate us from ever, ever, ever having to feel the need to self promote. We are made by God, for God, he alone is our reason for life, from the first breath of life in Genesis to the eternal tree and river of revelation, he defines our eternal existence, not ourselves. We are to seek first his kingdom not our own, we are to love him 100% with all our heart and our neighbours as ourselves. Even with my poor maths, I can calculate that when I love him with everything, there is nothing left to love myself with. Being with him and in him is all we need for ourselves.
• God gifts and gives leaders to his church, but he never gives those who seek to rob Christ of his rightful glory, or those who would seek to personally influence the church for their own security or reputation. God's authentic mouthpieces always are concerned for his glory and his mission to all peoples, and to this they sacrfice themselves and their lives. 
• Notice Miranda's greatest influence on her spirituality was a relationship (her Gran), yet she is 100% a vehicle for perpetually constant information updating, a self driven and self fulfilling machine on snapchat (or anywhere else) to people she has never and will never meet. 
• Sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ is fundamentally much more than a download, it is always about relationship. Say it quietly... but books, words and thoughts are never enough on their own. We need more than books. We need a changed life and heart, and this will be read far more easily and speak more eloquently / penetratingly than many books for the transformation of lives.
• What Miranda needs most is someone who relates to her not on the basis of her role / as model, an influencer or money making machine, but as a person in unconditional human experience which is universal to everyone. She needs to know that she is known and loved on the most basic level of life. This qualifies everyone of us, especially if we know the one in whose image we are all made. 
• Is fame and prominence as good as it looks ? Whilst Miranda's following may be absolutely huge (just twitter 5million) just insta (13.8 million), her following will never be totally comprehensive or as complete as her make up. There will be those reading this blog who have never heard of her, don't want to hear from her, and deride the fact that I have quoted her. The point is that Even Miranda's fame idol is cracked, and a disappointing hamster wheel of perpetuity to herself. Spiritual leaders should never have a sniff of wanting this desperate and ugly idol, an invented reality. It is devastatingly disappointing to hanker after manufactured influence and has huge consequences which we will give account before God for. 
• Miranda thinks and speaks in short sentences. This is often commended, synchronised to the age, regardless of what is left unsaid or whether the sentences are true or make sense with each other. For our age, oftentimes being understood, and easily so, is more important than what we say. On the one hand this make us careful about how we communicate in the pulpit, maybe preventing us  from trying to answer complex questions which no-one is asking, and should increase us spending time talking with real life breathing people, not just reading books. It is heretical to say it I know (in "sound" Christian Ghetto's), but social media is actually sometimes quite helpful in learning how people think. You can learn a lot about how a person views themselves from how they tweet or snap, communicate on Facebook or be real. Obviously though, of course I am way too deep, sound, spiritual and interesting to ever use my time in this superficial way (cough!).
• In the Christian world we are driven often in the West by books and information. Newer books, often "tip a nod" to previous books, and "improve" on the past, and so a monster, self perpetuating industry emerges. Sadly we've often exported this idea around the world as an integral sub-part of the gospel, where richer cultures have settled for our thoughts after us, which ironically make little sense in their own culture. 
• Being well taught is so critical to growth as a believer. However, we forget the basic fact that sometimes the greatest teaching and education does not come from reading but watching the life of another who models Jesus Christ to us. Advent is about the LORD JESUS coming to us personally, sensitively, graciously, sacrificially as TRUTH into our context. This has more to teach us than 1000's of books. 
• With the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:1-24), Jesus imparts information which is well beyond her next stage of understanding, yet the overriding point of it all is that he comes for a relational encounter, with sensitive knowledge of who she is, in order to rescue her by grace, through the true authentic identity of who he is. Grace is always the loudest speaker, however softly it speaks above the noise and complexity of our identity in a messed up world.
• One last radical reflective idea: It is impossible to be a fruitful pastor without loving people and being with people. Our main qualification for leading sheep is not how good we are at information dissemination, (or downloading it to others) but convictional new testament desire to serve like Jesus as an under-shepherd because of the grace he has shown us. Spending time with sheep is what we are called to as pastors. We cannot communicate without our actions being watched. Either this becomes increasingly productive or our verbal spouting has diminishing returns because of the actions people see. We are relational communicators of God's truth not just librarians of it. This should profoundly change the way we read the bible to serve others, and how we should communicate it (bleet it) as a sheep to another sheep whether in speech, action or both.
• Sheep need time, pastors need time with sheep to understand them, their dangers, fears and motivations. If you have no time for sheep, feel no compassion which drives you out of the safety of your study,  and don't want time with sheep ... you should not be in a shepherding role. At least you should take something of a break to get over yourself, and get yourself reality corrected at the foot of the good shepherd. Feast on Christ, and as you love him more you will love the sheep he loves and gave himself for so much more. (John 21:17)
•  If you are a pastor, preacher or spiritual leader, you would be surprised by how many of your congregation are asking "if you love them?" and "if you understand their world ?" when you are more concerned about instructing them with your perfect exegesis. Those who are being moulded by the Spirit of God will be increasingly sensitive to the relationship of the spirit amongst the body dynamic. If your congregation is predominantly healthy believers,  they will be way less bothered than you are about how well you know your stuff, and much more bothered about the implications of truth for living where you lead them. If your congregation really is predisposed and only bothered by how well you and I know our stuff, (judgemental about performance), and slow to hear the relational voice of God...  maybe you and I have embodied and promoted a wrong view of biblical spiritual leadership, and need a radical rethink before we reach eternity. 

GRACE DRIVEN RELATIONAL COMMUNICATION.

It is one thing to be faithful to a text, it is a much better thing to do that relationally faithfully to the God of grace and the person in front of us receiving his grace and for whom the text is written.

When we are driven by grace and the wisdom of Biblical approach...

 two things happen....

1) We become open to God shaping us for his missional and culture purposes, not straightjacketed by our own pretexts and preconceptions. God can do immeasurably more...we might be imeasurably more useful missional conduits for our Saviour when we realise that we are 100% not the Saviour, that our book knowledge is not the deciding factor in God working.

2) We increasingly see that God looks at the heart. We realise that what the world needs more of is not bookish preachers, communicators with particular presentation, but loving friends and faithful (salt and light) citizens. In some branches of western evangelicalism we are not short of preachers who quote books, salivate embarrassingly over past writers, idolise golden eras of church history as we express longing to worship in the ways of past ages. However, I would say we desperately are in need of more Christlike people who understand this age and how to communicate the grace of God relationally, and massive biblical issues.

• We need more of those who can express the word of God in a way human ears and human culture understand. We need those who know life, in all its complexity and nuance, not oversimplified theory. This is  certainly a significant factor in why the gospel is flourishing amongst some frontier contexts were spiritual leadership is lived out in complex and challenging bivocational ministry. When business as mission and authentic Christlike living are synchronised, the Christlike leader, employer, thinker friend becomes the vortex for a community, not because they seek to be an influencer but because Christlikeness is always magnetic, relevant and dynamite. If you are a teacher, mechanic, optician, physio, builder, plumber or painter who wants to serve Christ, I have no shortage of strategic suggestions / opportunities for you.

•  We need more young gospel workers in ministry who love people more than books, love others more than themselves, love grace more than detail and are humble to learn from the communication of God, and love Christ most. Knowing God relationally and submitting to his purposes is where true authority comes from, this is true influence. There is no substitute for humble relational response to the relational communication of God. 

Our age and Western culture is so desperately in need. Lord raise up a biblically literate generation with hearts and lives on fire to love and communicate the word of God in the way of God. In whatever ways yay chose make us servants of your choice in how and where you want to communicate. May our lives speak, the authentic grace of God through the transformed new community which reaches into every culture, wayward thought, malaise thinking, and error which drives humanity into multiplied danger. Lord raise up those those who know you deeply and communicate your truth and wisdom in a way which is so clearly harmonious with your tone that many hear the welcome voice of the good shepherd. May we live for that day when many tongues and cultures confess the name of the one who speaks over all.