How To Write A Better Sermon

Over the last number of years I have worked really hard on developing my craft as one who preaches the Gospel. Pulpit ministry is tricky because there is a sense that you look for affirmation in the wrong places. You want people to like what you say, but, if you're preaching the subversive gospel then they probably won't like what you have to say very often. 

I have come to realize that it doesn't matter whether people like my message. I want the message to stick and I want it to be fruitful. That means, when I preach my hope is that life change follows.

Early on in my days of preaching I would often bite off more than I could effectively communicate. I studied so hard and prepared so much that messages would last 45 minutes and really be all over the place. I would over illustrate, over metaphor, and educate. 

A few years ago at Grace Chapel we began writing children's questions for every sermon. If you were preaching you were responsible to write the questions. I have found that thinking through these questions with children (4-12 year olds) in mind has transformed my preaching. 

One of my good friends said that the best thing that he had to do in seminary was give a message to 5 year-olds. I believe it, now, more than ever. 

You see when you are thinking about communicating the Scriptures to a child you know that there have to be a few things that are true of your message:

• It has to have movement. This means that you need to have a narrative arc to your message. If you don't then boredom will set in. There must be a clearly defined beginning, middle, and end. 
• It has to be focused. You can't go on rabbit trails. If you do they lose interest.
• It has to be concrete. Your messages can't be theoretical. Kids don't get the theoretical, they don't have the intellectual hooks for it. 

Here's my secret: The things that are true about speaking to kids are the same things that are true for speaking to adults. 

The beginning of this process for me is writing children's questions. This exercise forces me out of my "great" theological mind and into the necessity of movement, focus, and the concrete. 

Do you want to be a better preacher? Write a few children's questions. 

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How Should Christians Respond to the Demise of Public Officials

Today in Detroit, former mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, was found guilty and sent to prison. As a mayor he failed and did some horrific things. The evidence proved his guilt. Most of the response in my social network feeds is that of jubilation and mockery.

Mostly by Christians.

It seems that this kind of response is not the way that we ought to respond. As a people we are called by God to pray for those in authority. We are also supposed to pray for our enemies.

It's interesting, when I regularly pray for someone it makes it very difficult to hate them. I find myself seeing things from their perspective. I begin to experience empathy.

In the case of Kilpatrick I am thankful that the city of Detroit and our metro area will experience closure. But, I am saddened that a family has been destroyed. What is lost in all the mess is that Kilpatrick through his decisions destroyed a city and his family. His children won't have a dad around.

This is not a time for celebration. It's a time for somber reflection.

It's a time to ask hard questions of ourselves and those we have placed in public office.

There is joy when justice happens. There is also sadness when we see the effects of evil. I hope that we as Christians will bring both to the public forum.

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Modeling and Engaging Faith is Better Than Separation and Isolation

We do things really weird at +The Antioch Movement.

It's true.

Really weird.

For starters we include our children in everything we do. We place a high value on inclusion. The reason is simple, we believe that discipleship is the proper model of the spiritual growth of our children, and all people.   If we think that discipleship is the means by which to best reach others, then we must be committed to it in the context of our own families. We believe that the primary discipler is the parent, Mom and Dad.

In most of the West when Mom and Dad arrive at church they are told to drop off they kids in "children's wing". Where wonderful Christian men and women will teach their children. They are wonderful. They are amazing. My kids have benefited deeply from Sunday School. They are benefiting even more as they see us engage with others and others engage and model the faith for them and with them in a multi-generational context.

We are in a time of training and preparation in the Antioch Movement. Part of this is me as the "professional" getting out of the way and letting go of leadership. We have been learning a model of bible study leading that is simple and can be with anyone and led by anyone. So, I started getting out of the way,

"Who would like to lead our conversation next week?" I asked.

"Is there an age limit?" asked the 11 year old.

"No."

"I want to wead..." said the four year old.

Silence.

"Ummm....OK. Sidney you're leading next week." I responded.

"Sid, we'll practice this week together. OK?" her dad chimed in.

"OK, and Vinnie will help too!" Beamed Sidney...

A week later, we had a great conversation. Sidney's dad asked the question, Sidney repeated it. It was fantastic. It was proof that anyone can lead a discussion about the Scriptures and do so well. For the adults in the room I think it showed them that we need not fear leadership.

A four year old did it.

That's not the best part though. The best part is that Sidney wants to lead it every week. She is engaged and interested in our gathering around the Scriptures. She has meaningful training from her parents. Her parents are training her and helping her grow in the Lord.

The rest of us saw this, experienced this, and profited from this.

Discipleship is something that is central to who we are as the church. It is our central means for reaching the lost and maturing the found. If we believe this then our practices must reflect our belief.

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We Must Change Our Thinking On Property

Photo Courtesy of Todd Waller

This week I was in a meeting with church leaders and civic leaders in our city. There are some amazing people and things happening in our town. There are people who have huge hearts and care deeply for the people of our city. I was impressed and thankful to be among them. 

There was a brief side conversation that took place about a church purchasing a significant piece of property in town. As a result of the church buying the property it came off the tax roles. While many see this as a huge benefit, I struggle with this reality. Many smaller cities like ours are in need of taxes to keep things balanced and to provide core services. I appreciated the fact the official from the city is hopeful that the people coming in for church programs will spend money at local businesses and in this way add to the tax base. Just to be clear nobody from the city had anything bad to say about the church buying the property.

This conversation confirmed some thoughts I have been having about the role of the church in a city. I am convinced that the Church should not own property, or if it is going to, should willingly choose to pay property taxes. Another thought would be to consider repurposing the building to something for-profit that would cover the taxes and provide a service to the community while simultaneously funding the mission.

Why?

It's because often times we own some of the best property in a city. We have a responsibility to the city to be stewards of the city. Part stewarding the city is paying our fair share. This is significant. I know many will read this and say, "It's not right to pay taxes off of offerings given by the congregation. That money has been taxed already." Or they might say, "If we had to pay taxes then we wouldn't be able to afford the building at all!"

To both these critiques I say, "Then don't own property."

It is my hope that +The Antioch Movement will some day rent property that owned by a local person. We will be adding to the economy of the city and not simply taking. The other thing this allows for is the ability to respond and adapt to the needs of our community and city. A church that rents can choose to not be building poor. Maintenance will be done by the landlord. Parking lots, landscaping, etc...all would be taken care of by someone else. 

This kind of change is foreign in our thinking. The American Dream is to own property and this dream has extended to the local church. Why? Because the Church in America became domesticated and institutional. It is time for the church to return to its roots as an ever changing community that proclaims the excellencies of Jesus in word and deed.

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The Beauty of Community

Today I had lunch with +Todd Waller and we talked about a range of things relating to the +The Antioch Movement and the +Evangelical Presbyterian Church. As I have reflected on our conversation I am struck by the beauty of community.

Near the end of our conversation Todd shared a story with me about an interaction he had with my son, +Ethan Rose, and he was complementing him on his discernment. It was this brief bit of our conversation and an article that was posted in BreakPoint recently about "youth ministry" and the failed experiment that has been the last couple of decades that has me left in awe of biblical community.

As we launch The Antioch Movement we are not launching a worship service. We are not creating slick youth programs and children's ministry. We are gathering as the people of God. This means that families are worshiping together as one.

Along with hearing about Todd's interaction with Ethan, I also heard from another family that their young son has been asking great questions about God. We are seeing that as families worship together there becomes a natural openness and interaction that pervades their daily lives. Kids see their parents worship, participate in communion, and ask questions about God. Therefore, they know that it's OK and appropriate to ask questions about God too.

Not only do children see their parents engaging authentically with God but they also engage and interact with other adults and kids. Not to mention they see their parents interact with other adults about God.

All these things create community. A community that is rich and meaningful.

It is this community that leaves me in awe. It is beautiful and real.

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Unity Means Sharing Power

I finished reading the State of the Union. I always find them interesting. What I find most interesting is that the key word in every one that I can remember is "bipartisan".

Last year was the year of "Lincoln" for me. I really enjoyed Team of Rivals and a few other things I read on him. What struck me about his leadership was that he viewed himself "first among equals" and as a result did not do what most Presidents do. He did not surround himself with "yes men". Lincoln shared power with his rivals.

I think that the Church has the opportunity to truly help the world by showing the world what "bipartisan" really looks like. Our leadership must reflect gospel reality. That means that those of us who are in positions of leadership must realize that we need a team of people around us to lead with us. To do this we have to let go of power and give it over.

The simple reason that "bipartisan" does not happen in Washington is because the folks there are constantly trying to consolidate their power.

If we are going to be agents of reconciliation in this world we must be a people who will daily choose to not consolidate power. We must be willing to live in the leadership tension that Paul speaks of (2 Cor 12:9), "But he [Jesus] said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me."

This is verse in context is speaking about Paul's "thorn in the flesh" and is not speaking specifically to leadership. However, I think that it provides a principle that can be applied to gospel leaders.

Most of us are not comfortable with our weaknesses. We hide them. We cover them up. We try to fix them. Paul says, "NO! Embrace them!  Because through embracing them we are experience the power of Christ."

This is the kind of leader that understands "bipartisan". This is the kind of leader that shares power. Pray with me for our leaders that they would lead this way. Pray with me for the Church that we would lead this way and be an example for the world.

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Do You Have A Building? or Confessions of a Church Planter

Every time I talk with someone about +The Antioch Movement these are the questions that inevitably get asked in the first three minutes:

• Do you have a building?
• How many people are coming?

These are really good questions because they show that the person cares deeply about me and wants me to be successful. I am grateful that I have so many people in my life that care for and love me. 

The hard part is that these are two gauges of success that we are not using. They create a pressure to become something, that in my opinion, is not biblical. 

What do I mean? I mean that the Scriptures do not give us a scorecard of success that is based on buildings and numbers.  Success is determined by faithfulness to the invitation and commission of Jesus. I am convinced that if we are faithful to following Jesus and proclaiming his excellencies that everything else will take care of itself.

The danger for me is not to caught up in the question or to take my cues about success from the question. There is a vortex in the church planting world, not all that different from high school, of comparison. All church planters want to be considered successful. There are some church plants that look successful because they are a campus of a larger church. Some look successful because they are cool and draw people from existing churches.

Then there are the church plants that take a long time to grow because they are not attractive to existing Christians. They are more concerned about embodying the gospel Monday through Saturday in the lives of lost people than they are with numbers on Sunday morning.

I shared our strategic approach with some missionaries who serve in Albania. They got really excited but cautioned us, "This approach will not work with Christians, it is most useful in reaching people far from God."  This simple sentence has been a source of fuel for me over the last number of weeks.

The Antioch Movement will be successful if the handful of Christians that are starting it multiply their lives in groups within their spheres of influence. We will be successful if we send laborers to launch other movements in other towns.

We will be successful is we remain faithful.

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Showing Up Is Hard To Do

It's true. Showing up is really hard to do. That's why most of us don't. We typically do not show up because it is really hard to get up enough momentum to actually get there. There are always excuses that we can make and do make. But really those excuses are nothing more than the sad reality that we are objects at rest and they tend to stay at rest.

In his ninth chapter, Luke records this interaction:

On the road someone asked if he could go along. "I'll go with you, wherever," he said. Jesus was curt: "Are you ready to rough it? We're not staying in the best inns, you know." Jesus said to another, "Follow me." He said, "Certainly, but first excuse me for a couple of days, please. I have to make arrangements for my father's funeral." Jesus refused. "First things first. Your business is life, not death. And life is urgent: Announce God's kingdom!" Then another said, "I'm ready to follow you, Master, but first excuse me while I get things straightened out at home." Jesus said, "No procrastination. No backward looks. You can't put God's kingdom off till tomorrow. Seize the day."

Three men who couldn't show up. They had great reasons but the reality was they had no momentum. They were objects at rest and they stayed there. 

Jesus challenged people this way because he knew that they needed a spark to turn their potential energy into kinetic energy. He knew that there needed to be an explosion to move them off the spot and so that they would show up. 

Showing up is hard to do. 

Jesus wants his followers to show up because we must become what we want to save. Religious people might drive long distances to be a part of something they consider "dynamic" but the irreligious, those whose journeys are moving away from God will not.  

If we want to be serious about reaching people far from God then we must show up. We must enter into their world. Jesus sends his disciples into the world. He wasn't satisfied with a following he wanted sent ones and he sent them. 

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40 Days of Change and Transition

Physical Representation of Transition

The last 40 days in the life of my family have been adventurous. We have listed a house, sold a house, rented a town-home, moved out of a house, moved most of our stuff into storage, moved the rest into a town-home, our kids switched schools, and we are now living boots on the ground in the place that God has called us.

That's a 40 days and 40 nights that even Noah would be impressed with.

This past Sunday I baptized the son of one of our core group members and as I reflect on that moment I am reminded how God continually makes good on his promises.

When we baptize a baby we are reminded again of the fact that our God is a promise keeping God. He makes covenants and keeps them. The promise to Abraham and his children was real and God made good.

As we enter into the life of Ypsilanti, MI through this thing called +The Antioch Movement I am consistently overwhelmed by the promises of God and how he makes good. He cares so deeply for us and his hand is holding us and guiding us every step of the way.

Last night was the Super Bowl. We had a small handful of people over. I was really nervous because we are used to hosting people in our home that was perfectly designed for hospitality. It turns out that God has provided for us a place where we can gather his people together and worship. Our town-home is well suited for such a gathering.

What is just as fun is how God provides for small things, like microwaves. When you have an active family the microwave becomes an important tool because you need to be able to quickly warm up leftovers. We needed a microwave to borrow and God provided. Yes, even microwaves are pictures of God's faithfulness.

I am excited to see how God is going to provide the remaining $70,000 we need for a full budget and I am excited for the day when our core group begins to multiply and we see new groups launched.

God is on the move. God is keeping promises. God cares.

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