At present I am inclined to call the church (or network of churches) I am called to plant CityWells. This name comes from two passages of scripture that are foundational for what I believe the church is to be; one concerns the city; the other is about a well.
The first passage is Jeremiah 29:1-7. In these verses we find God's encouragement and command to His people who find themselves as exiles in Babylon. Jeremiah writes a letter to the leaders of the exiled community and tells them God's desires. We might expect God to tell the people to insulate themselves against evils of the pagan city and the prevailing culture, but we find something quite different. The Lord simply tells His people to live well in the midst of the city. God instructs them to do the things normal people do: build homes, plant gardens, get married, have kids, and build community. However, the people of God are not simply to do these things for themselves, as if God's goal is just to make us happy people. No, from the beginning God has always blessed people in order that they become a blessing to others. So, true to form, God calls his people to "seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare."
Live well. Bless the city.
The second passage is John 4:1-42 - the classic Jesus story about the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well. Several things in this passage strike me as incredible and as central to God's calling for me to be a church planter. First, if the church is to remotely resemble Jesus, then we must be a radically inclusive people! At the well we see massive cultural barriers being torn down: male/female, Jew/Samaritan, God/sinner. I dream of churches that follow suit, where people of varying races, cultures and social classes come together by the unifying, line-crossing power of Jesus.
Second, I love that this woman is free to engage Jesus with all of her questions... though, like most of us, she wasn't necessarily asking the right questions. I dream of churches where people are free to discover the love of God through honest wrestling with hard questions, where no one feels like they have to check their brain at the door or suppress their doubts.
Third, a well is a place where people go to find life-sustaining water. At this particular well the Samaritan woman discovers Jesus, the only source of living water! I dream of planting churches where we continually discover Jesus, grow in relationship with Him and learn to live with and for Him. These churches must be absolutely committed to sharing the good news of Jesus with anyone and everyone who does not yet know Him.
Fourth, this well is a place where Jesus radically empowers the most unlikely of persons to become His ambassador in her community. This marginalized woman becomes the herald of God's salvation for many in her village who came to trust in Jesus. I dream of planting churches where the common dichotomy between clergy and laity are dismantled and every follower of Jesus is empowered for ministry in their community.
Taking cues from these passages, I dream of CityWell churches where we live well, bless the city, tear down dividing walls, question honestly, discover Jesus, and become His agents of community transformation. That's the CityWell Dream!
Think of the Jeremiah passage in relationship to the passage from Jeremiah 2 ... my people have committed two sins, they have turned away from me - the living water - and built cisterns for themselves (paraphrase).
ReplyDeleteThe contrast of a cistern to a well, might be a helpful image. Wells are places where people gain access to running water sources instead of stagnant puddles of water on the surface.
Great connection, Dave! This image of running water is essential if a church is to remain oriented toward the community. We are to merely gathered from the city, but also sent back into the city. I'm afraid our tendency in the church is to focus more on what we bring in (people, programs, money) and less on what we send out... to be cisterns! Thanks for your thought.
ReplyDelete