Wednesday, June 15, 2005
Tabula Rasa
I heard the song a couple of years ago. It was by Al Denson and the title was unusual, Tabula Rasa. It's meaning should be clear to every Christian because when we come to Christ, we get one. Tabula Rasa means "clean slate." It's what happens when we are born again. The old has gone and the new has come. That is how the song applies the message, but today I want to suggest a new application. Tabula Rasa for the church.
What do I mean? Well , what would the church look like if we started over with a clean slate. What if we examined the way we do everything. What if we trimmed the fat? What if we ground our sacred cows into hamburger and directed ourselves away from our man made traditions? What it we measured everything we do, every program we run, every ministry we try too do and measured them against the Word of God and the example of Christ? What would happen? How would the church look and would the world (remember the ones Jesus came to save, the ones God loved enough top give His son for?)? Would the resulting product be a more pleasing bride to the Lord? Dream with me for a moment or rather, dream with God. After all it's supposed to be about Him, isn't it. When as the last time you asked God what His dream was for your church? In all of our visioning for the church, is that ever taken into account? My thought is that this kind of thinking will rock the church to it's very foundation, it may not be for the faint of heart, it will irritate the comfortable but isn't that what Jesus did? Do you have the guts to go to God and say what do YOU want the church to be? Will you make that a matter of prayer for you? And will you follow His leading when He gives you an answer?
At my church we have taken the first step. I call it the Tabula Rasa challenge. I placed a blank canvas on an easel at the front of the church and stocked it with markers and paints. The challenge is this. The congregation has been asked to pray that very prayer, "What do YOU want this church to be Father?" They are then asked to create their picture of what God is showing them. This will be our reminder of God's vision for the church. Of course everything will be checked against the Word of God ad the example of Christ. So far We have a representation of art, symbolizing the use of our individual gifts in service and worship of our God, the vision I got was a red cross, like the logo for the Red Cross, symbolizing the fact that our church needs to be a place of healing, the third symbol is a heart symbolizing a place where people can come and find the love of Christ. It is an unfinished piece a work in progress but when it is finished it will represent God's vision for our church.
We have determined to upset the apple cart and slay any sacred cows we find. We are determined to be Tabula Rasa to the glory of God. How about you?
God bless,
Dave
I heard the song a couple of years ago. It was by Al Denson and the title was unusual, Tabula Rasa. It's meaning should be clear to every Christian because when we come to Christ, we get one. Tabula Rasa means "clean slate." It's what happens when we are born again. The old has gone and the new has come. That is how the song applies the message, but today I want to suggest a new application. Tabula Rasa for the church.
What do I mean? Well , what would the church look like if we started over with a clean slate. What if we examined the way we do everything. What if we trimmed the fat? What if we ground our sacred cows into hamburger and directed ourselves away from our man made traditions? What it we measured everything we do, every program we run, every ministry we try too do and measured them against the Word of God and the example of Christ? What would happen? How would the church look and would the world (remember the ones Jesus came to save, the ones God loved enough top give His son for?)? Would the resulting product be a more pleasing bride to the Lord? Dream with me for a moment or rather, dream with God. After all it's supposed to be about Him, isn't it. When as the last time you asked God what His dream was for your church? In all of our visioning for the church, is that ever taken into account? My thought is that this kind of thinking will rock the church to it's very foundation, it may not be for the faint of heart, it will irritate the comfortable but isn't that what Jesus did? Do you have the guts to go to God and say what do YOU want the church to be? Will you make that a matter of prayer for you? And will you follow His leading when He gives you an answer?
At my church we have taken the first step. I call it the Tabula Rasa challenge. I placed a blank canvas on an easel at the front of the church and stocked it with markers and paints. The challenge is this. The congregation has been asked to pray that very prayer, "What do YOU want this church to be Father?" They are then asked to create their picture of what God is showing them. This will be our reminder of God's vision for the church. Of course everything will be checked against the Word of God ad the example of Christ. So far We have a representation of art, symbolizing the use of our individual gifts in service and worship of our God, the vision I got was a red cross, like the logo for the Red Cross, symbolizing the fact that our church needs to be a place of healing, the third symbol is a heart symbolizing a place where people can come and find the love of Christ. It is an unfinished piece a work in progress but when it is finished it will represent God's vision for our church.
We have determined to upset the apple cart and slay any sacred cows we find. We are determined to be Tabula Rasa to the glory of God. How about you?
God bless,
Dave
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