Evangelism & Catechumenate
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
(II Tim.3:16-17)
Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that … I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
(I Cor.9:24-27)
We have grown strangely fatalistic over the implosion of Christianity in the UK. We’re no longer alarmed by Churches closing their doors or being re-invented as coffee shops, night clubs, restaurants, houses and so on. We are resigned to surveys charting the exodus of young people from the faith; the aging of congregations; the shortage of Church leaders; diminishing congregations; Bible poverty and a collapse of personal devotional practices. There are of course exceptions, and there are optimists, and others with vested interests, who try and spin it positively, but it sounds disingenuous to the point of dishonesty. Many of the Churches that are growing are benefiting from largely ‘transfer’ growth. Most Christians have never been instrumental in bringing someone else to faith, and indeed are insecure and fearful of being involved in evangelism at all. Where there is genuine evangelistic effectiveness it seems unclear that this is directly related to questions about style of service.
When historians look back at the collapse of Christianity in Britain in the late 20th / early 21st Century, they will – with the benefit of hindsight - identify a number of critical mistakes. I wonder if one of them will be the way in which we re-invented ‘Services of Divine Worship’ (as they used to be called) as ‘culturally-relevant, seeker-sensitive and accessible to unbelievers’. Whether the motives for such a breath-taking revision were always quite as missional and altruistic as professed is a moot point. We’ll re-visit the question of worship in a later study. Our purpose here is to reflect on the impact this has had on our (non-)evangelism, and to ask if there isn’t a better way of welcoming those who are becoming Christians.
It is a well-worn coin of wisdom that Jesus said: Go! while we say: Come! Rather than each of us taking responsibility for evangelism in the midst of our own family and networks of friends, colleagues and contacts, we have come to expect ‘the Church’ to do it for us. It’s right to have a corporate dimension to our evangelism, but generally, wrong that we think this should be the emphasis of a ‘Sunday Service’. We increasingly see ourselves absolved of the responsibility of actually talking to people about Jesus, and instead – if we feel any responsibility at all – invite people to ‘Church’ where we expect they will feel ‘comfortable’, and find a service geared toward and relevant for them. There are occasions where arguably this should be the case (e.g. a Carol service). But for this to become our default is devastating for both worship and evangelism. Many Churches spend years making their services ‘relevant’ and ‘accessible’, and still see no-one becoming Christians. Many Christians rarely – if ever – actually bring a non-Christian to Church. Better to let the service of worship be a service of worship and do our evangelism elsewhere in arenas specifically designed for it (e.g Alpha).
We aren’t naïve about how strange a Service of Divine Worship – indeed the whole life and belief structure of a Christian – can be to those who do not share our faith. There are many things done in a service that people obviously will have little experience in. We ought to expect this. When someone steps into a previously unknown reality, it would be insane for us to expect them to understand, appreciate, or be able to make sense of what is a wholly different way of being human!! We should expect a kind of culture shock, and that much of what they experience will be unfamiliar, and difficult. Rather than reducing Christian worship to a perpetual Christian nursery, why don’t we work with folk who are becoming Christians to acclimatise them to a new spiritual atmosphere. We don’t throw out generations of Biblical wisdom and accumulated spiritual insight because people in 21st Century UK don’t understand it. We teach, train and enculturate them. Historically this has been taken much more seriously than we take it today. It was known as a Catechumenate (see below), and it has trained Christians in not only worship, but discipleship. It bred and equipped generations of Christians not just to live costly and sacrificial lives, but to die rejoicing for the Name of Christ. The contrast with the Church in our place and time could hardly be more stark. The unprecedented experiment in evangelism and worship has been an unmitigated disaster. Let’s return to the ancient paths.
Questions
Why not take some time to share the story of how you became a Christian…?
If you are using this study personally, rather than in a Fellowship Group, why not create the opportunity to share your story with someone over the next couple of days?
Looking back to when you first became a Christian, what do you wish you had been taught?
Read Heb.6:4-12
Do you think this passage envisages people who are Christians losing their salvation? Why / why not? If not, how do you make sense of vv.4-7? What would this passage look like in our own experience of Church life?
Does the passage scare you? Do you think it should scare you? How can we speak of spiritual assurance when there are passages like this in the Bible? Where can we find confidence in our relationship with God?
Why does the passage talk about ‘crucifying the Son of God all over again’ (v.6)? What does it mean to do this? What would it look like for someone to do this today? Why would someone choose to do this?
What are the ‘better things … that have to do with salvation’ that are expected in v.9?
What does spiritual ‘laziness’ look like (v.12)? How would you recognise it in yourself (or in others)? What would you do about it?
By contrast, what does ‘spiritual diligence’ look like (v.11)? How could you cultivate this?
Who do you imitate when it comes to living as a Christian (v.12)? Why did you choose them as role models? How do you benefit from their wisdom?
Memory Passage:
Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labour and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Saviour of all people, and especially of those who believe.
I Tim.4:7-10
For further reflection:
The ancient process of initiation known as the Catechumenate was a kind of bridge into the life and worship of the Church. Typically lasting 3 years, it saw people coming to Christ as a first step on a much longer journey into the faith once for all delivered to the saints. New believers were mentored through the process by the person who was instrumental in bringing them to Christ, who shared life with them, and brought them with them in ministry and service. They were initiated into core beliefs through the Creed; taught how to pray through the Lord’s Prayer (which wasn’t taught to anyone until after they were baptised); taught how to worship by being instructed in the liturgy. There was a much stronger sense of a Christian life to be lived and of support as people stepped increasingly into it. Much time was spent learning how to put the 10 Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount into practise! Time was spent too in exploring sacraments and spiritual disciplines, and giving people an overview of the Bible and its teaching, and application into specific arenas of life – family (where appropriate), work, friendship, being part of the Church, how to relate to money, and the environment and so forth. They were trained in the art of fellowship and service of their brothers and sisters in Christ. It was seen as an apprenticeship in Christian life and worship.
What might it look like to re-imagine something like this as part of the life at MIE? It would begin by our recognising that the Christian life is often far more than we have experienced it to be. It recognises that we don’t just become men and women of God… that we don’t automatically do what God wants us to do – even when we’ve become Christians. We have to be trained and equipped, mentored and tutored in our faith and life. But more on that next week.