“As a historian of Christianity, I [Sweet] want the church to lean back–not just back to the 50s, but all the way back through 2000 years of history, all the way back until we’re, in the words of that Sunday School song, “Leaning, Leaning, Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.” But at the same time and I do mean simultaneously, we must use that energy and power that comes from “learning to lean” to kick forward into the future and Carpe Manana [seize tomorrow].”- Leonard Sweet
When I first read those words, “lean back while kicking forward,” by Len Sweet, I was immediately captivated. My mind began to dream what the modern-day representation of the Church could actually accomplish by employing this strategy. I have always been labeled as a “contemporary,” or “out of the box” type of leader and I had always envisioned the Church, the bride of Jesus Christ, as a shining beacon to hurting people. A refuge from the storms of every day life, a safe place for people to come together and experience real fellowship, with each other, and God.
But I never saw that achieved in the “established” churches, neither in the ones I started or was a part of. Nor did I see it in the “mega”-churches or super-successful ministries we all held up as “models” for how churches should be.
How then, could this be accomplished in the 21st Century? By looking BACK at the 1st Century. Acts 2:42-47 is the MODEL for how churches should be run. So how can culturally relevant, established churches accomplish what Acts 2 describes? (more…)
