// March 10th, 2009 // Comments Off // Church, Leadership, School
Negative Impact Of Modern Culture on Worship
Rationalism: is God really there?
Anthropocentrism: Focus on Performer
Individualism: Meet my tastes and needs
Materialism: How will it enhance my potential & achievement
Consumerism: Become market driven
authentic worship must lead to walk & witness. if it doesn’t it’s spiritual self-indulgence
if our worship is to lead to witness…we don’t dismiss congregations…we disperse them
worship is the heartbeat of our witness
Restructuring of the Church For Mission Engagement
How is it that a dynamic house movement became a static institution?
the household in the pre-industrial society was not just a domestic unit but an industrial unit as well (manufacturing, banking, food, trading)
there was social interaction in the oikos. and we make ourselves unaccessible to the world around us.
80% of the work force was indentured. not like modern slavery. the household often gave them dignity, place and purpose
what would have happened if all of these people had been released at once?
the early church dismantled it from within.
because of trading non-christian households came in contact with christian ones
prisca & aquila
see notes for cities with house churches listed in the NT. (leaders are listed by name)
Significance of the House Church
Observable – People see Christians in operation
*No privacy as we know it; more dense population wise than Manhattan
*Violent places
*Dirty with waste in the streets
Accessible – Close-by; feel at home
Economical – Don’t have to buy or lease real-estate
*Large/Mega-Churches are in danger during economic crisis
Flexible – Each relates to its context-
Re-producable – Every church can give birth to other faith communities
*Most church models aren’t in our context
*We desperately need much more of this
Apostles know everyone!
Prominence of Women in the Life of the Early Church
9 of the 26
Paul thinks highly of them
Intriguing of Case of Junia (prominent among the apostles)
Women mentioned first often
The problem here only comes when we whittle leadership down to individuals. The NT most often shows teams/communities.
People of Distinction
Aristobulus
Narcissus
Where Did They Meet?
Very small proportion actually lived in the villas that we think of
hard to get more than 30 people in them
extended households: family, slaves, apprentices, clientela, amici – friends
Paul saw fruit of Pentecost dispersion into other cities.
most lived in insula…as many as 6 floors
single room dwellings with shops on the first floor
buy meals @ the cafe on the corner; you were looked down on if you cooked in your home
no privacy; people hung out on the block; often there was a laundry at the base of the stairs (urine was used for bleach)
a retired legionnaire often looked after the security of the block
if the church can grow here it can grow anywhere
antioch 350k, ephesus 500k, rome 1m…you knew your block. turf feelings
true of most european cities until the automobile
Taberna (what priscilla & aquilla have) a workshop; single room accommodation; 14 found around corinth
about 15 people could crowd in; fam lived in the back or in the loft.
Community of the Future
From Hierarchy to Polycentric
REPRODUCIBLE!
Is the church a starfish or a spider?
There will be more and more attacks on the institution; we better be building organizations that can grow when attacked.
