{"id":10368,"date":"2022-11-21T04:23:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-21T02:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/clone\/the-new-missional-era-evangelism-in-a-post-christian-world\/"},"modified":"2023-06-02T06:55:46","modified_gmt":"2023-06-02T04:55:46","slug":"the-new-missional-era-evangelism-in-a-post-christian-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disciplestoday.org\/clone\/the-new-missional-era-evangelism-in-a-post-christian-world\/","title":{"rendered":"The New Missional Era: Evangelism in a Post-Christian World"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Our world is changing. And the evangelistic approaches that worked yesterday, don\u2019t work as well today. We all feel that. But what do we do about it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some have given up. <\/strong>Maybe people are just not open to the gospel today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some have given in. <\/strong>Maybe we should downplay things like sin, righteousness, and judgment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some have been given away. <\/strong>Maybe it\u2019s time for me to let go of my own faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m reminded of Jesus\u2019 warning about what it will be like in the last days: \u201cBecause of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved (Matthew 24:12-13, NIV).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you given up? Have you given in? Have you given it away? Or are you standing firm, but wondering how we can ever reach an increasingly secular age like ours?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like many of us, Daren Overstreet, our new co-evangelist in Tampa, has wrestled deeply with this question over the last few years. His love for God\u2019s people and deep dive into this question has moved him to write a book about it, called Wildfire<\/em><\/a>, available through the DT Media Store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He\u2019s also been speaking about it to church leaders and members since then. Recently, he was invited to speak on it at our Fall Florida Church Leaders meeting, and I\u2019d like to share with you what he said. Of course, any thoughtful analysis of the challenges the church faces today, where those challenges come from, and how to best move forward evangelistically in the new missional era is going to be one perspective among many. So, please receive this offering in the spirit of humility and love that it is being given – in the hopes that it will lead to more conversation from other perspectives as well. These dialogues should be conversation starters, not conversation enders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, with that, here are the observations and insights Daren presented at that church leaders’ meeting (presented here in collaboration with Daren and with his permission) \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Daren suggested we find ourselves in a \u201cNew Missional Era,\u201d a phrase that comes from a book by Patrick Keifert called We Are Here Now<\/em>. It\u2019s an era with both new opportunities and new challenges. The opportunities lie in a greater willingness for people to challenge the accepted norms of our past and give fresh thought to old ways of doing things. But the challenge is that we now live in a post-Christian society, which means life, reality, and identity are no longer assumed to be defined by an involved, intimate God. We can no longer fall back on religion for determining our steps, or how to relate to one another in society. Those ideas are now seen as na\u00efve and simplistic for a majority of people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what are the practical implications of this for our evangelistic efforts today? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s some quotes Daren presented that he has heard from different demographics in the ICOC:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From church leaders: <\/strong>\u201cIt is getting harder to preach these days without having to apologize for offending somebody, or having to choose my words extremely carefully. I find myself staying away from the hot topics of society, even though most want to discuss them. It also seems like people are not only reading the Bible less, but differently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From campus ministers: <\/strong>\u201cThere seems to be something different these days with Christian college students. They think differently, rarely seem to default to scripture for identity, and are increasingly afraid to act in any way that may get them accused of passing judgment. Some are very afraid to disagree with others, especially on issues related to morality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From church members: <\/strong>\u201cI can\u2019t put my finger on it, but it feels like my church is changing. People are much more sensitive, but also more opinionated. It also seems like political ideologies are taking center stage. I wish someone would clearly explain what we believe and how we are navigating our current times.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From non-Christians: <\/strong>\u201cI am just not sure the Christian faith is relevant for me anymore, nor do I feel the scriptures are reliable. They are old and outdated. We need a new and improved idea of what it means to be good, as well as to deconstruct all our notions about what it means to be a church.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These comments were powerful to hear \u2013 since most of us have heard similar comments or made them ourselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Daren went on to describe a new brand of Christianity that is spreading through our churches like wildfire \u2013 without most of us even realizing it. And it\u2019s as dangerous as a wildfire as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the influence of an approach to the scriptures and to church life that seeks to make the hard truths of Christianity more palatable to the world \u2013 but in the process, waters down some of the most essential truths of Christianity \u2013 thus diluting our faith and weakening it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Daren\u2019s book, he labels this increasingly popular influence that is encroaching on our churches, \u201cprogressive theology.\u201d Simply put, one source defines \u201cprogressive theology\u201d as \u201ca rewriting of essential and important elements of biblical Christianity to fit Western secular values\u201d (Renew.org).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s how Daren went on to explain where he believes this theological approach comes from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are three dynamics, all coalescing to form a brand of Christianity that feels relevant but is extremely dangerous:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Postmodern thought: <\/strong>This is not new to us. Postmodern thinking has been around for a long time. It is characterized by affirming all ideas of truth, no matter who presents it. Truth is a result of experience, feelings, and desire. In our society, a source of objective truth like the Bible is seen as outdated. Postmodern thought has also led to erasing anything that looks or feels like a judgment, validating all paths to identity, rejecting authority, and essentially blurring the lines of morality, making it very hard to draw any lines of righteousness in the sand. Above all, it is causing extreme confusion to the younger generation. What makes postmodern thought extra concerning today is that it is baked into so many new ideas and concepts, and if you disagree with them, you are labeled as narrow-minded.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Critical theory: <\/strong>Essentially, this is a way of organizing reality that was developed a long time ago as a way of explaining economic imbalance. It now looks at many power imbalances in society and seeks to explain why they exist. It simplifies things by labeling some as oppressors and others as oppressed and offering political ideas about how to fix the imbalances. As this thinking slowly makes its way into the church, mainly through discussions around the hot and divisive topics of society, it subtly undermines gospel theology by pitting different groups of people against each other and reducing all of life to a quest for power. While sinful humans have always mistreated each other, critical theory suggests retaliation, while Christianity teaches the way of forgiveness and equity based on the fact that all humans are created in the image of God, and thus equally valuable. The cross levels humanity\u2019s sinful imbalances by drawing people into a relationship with Jesus, which causes us to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ; while critical theory levels sinful imbalances by using social, economic, and political power to force its agenda. No wonder it promotes division, not unity, in the body of Christ.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. An ancient and ambiguous view of the Bible: <\/strong>Essentially, scripture is revered and respected in progressive Christianity, but the Bible is subtly adapted in order to be more relevant to today\u2019s postmodern audience. Since it is an ancient book being applied to a postmodern society, it needs updating in order to reveal what the Holy Spirit is up to today. Since it is ambiguous and hard to understand, much of it is assigned to a place of metaphor, allegory, or simply wisdom \u2013 but not too much that resembles certainty or objective truth. It assumes there can be no real missional or hermeneutical creativity today without changing scripture to make it more relevant to Western secular ideas.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Taken together, these concepts are creating a toxic atmosphere in some of our churches that requires addressing; something we in Tampa are committed to. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Consider how this scripture addresses what\u2019s happening in our churches today:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201c Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such \u201cwisdom\u201d does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, and <\/em>demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. But the wisdom that comes from heaven is, first of all, pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere <\/em>.\u201d \u2013 James 3:13-18<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    James offers a clear contrast between two different types of wisdom: the wisdom of the world (full of human ambition, envy, and agendas), and the wisdom of God (unifying, peace-loving, pure, and fruit-bearing). How different are these two types of \u201cwisdom\u201d? One \u201ccomes down from heaven,\u201d and the other \u201cis earthly, unspiritual, demonic\u201d (vs. 15). That\u2019s a huge difference!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We\u2019ve simply got to address this encroachment of worldly thinking in the church if we are to keep ourselves faithful, our children faithful, and our fellowship faithful to God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The irony in all of this is that research shows \u201cprogressive churches,\u201d who adopt a low view of scripture in order to not offend modern sensibilities, are actually dying, not growing. Instead of an onramp to Christianity, they are proving to be an offramp to secularism (Wildfire, pg. 103).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So, how do we evangelize successfully in the new missional era? Daren suggests:<\/p>\n\n\n\n