Upsetting the Christ-Centered People
JT pointed me to the article on Out of Ur, following up on Willow Creek’s repentance and now confession. Check it out (emphasis mine):
Today, Greg Hawkins, executive pastor at Willow, recapped the study and then shared some changes that the church is now making in response to the research. He said they’re making the biggest changes to the church in over 30 years. For three decades Willow has been focused on making the church appealing to seekers. But the research shows that it’s the mature believers that drive everything in the church—including evangelism.
Hawkins says, “We used to think you can’t upset a seeker. But while focusing on that we’ve really upset the Christ-centered people.” He spoke about the high levels of dissatisfaction mature believer have with churches. Drawing from the 200 churches and the 57,000 people that have taken the survey, he said that most people are leaving the church because they’re not being challenged enough.
Because it’s the mature Christians who drive evangelism in the church Hawkins says, “Our strategy to reach seekers is now about focusing on the mature believers. This is a huge shift for Willow.”
You can read more here.
For background info, check out “Willow Creek Repents” (Part 1) (Part 2)
Tags: Church Growth Movement, Confession, Evangelism, Repentance, REVEAL, Willow Creek
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April 12, 2008 at 9:45 am
“Because it’s the mature Christians who drive evangelism in the church Hawkins says, “Our strategy to reach seekers is now about focusing on the mature believers. This is a huge shift for Willow.
Yea its called discipleship. Its apart of the great commission. Don’t get me wrong I commend what they are doing just wished they would have seen it from the start.
JAGII
April 12, 2008 at 10:40 am
It sure is an interesting development and I’m glad to hear it. However, the cynical side in me wonders if there is a need to generate a new income stream. Perhaps we will need a whole new set of seminars, training and programs to attend and purchase to show us how to do get this new way of doing church right.
April 12, 2008 at 11:06 am
[...] friends in seeker churches have been telling me they were starving spiritually for the last 20 years. All you had to do was call
Posted by: Michael Spencer @ 12:05 pm | Trackback | [...]
April 12, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Well, what get’s me is that I am reading a bunch of books on Christian leadership and church planning that quotes Hybels and Willow Creek on just about every other page. It’s hard to get past their influence on churches over the past two decades. And while I applaud their efforts to change, it’s going to be a big undertaking to undo all they have done in the name of “church growth.”
On a side note, have you noticed how many times these church growth experts, such as Hybels, Rainer, and Barna contradict themselves? I just don’t see how I can take any of these church growth guru’s seriously when they sound so confused themselves. I know that sounds harsh, but they are making a lot of money off ideas they apparently don’t believe in themselves (well, if they do, not for a long time anyway).
April 12, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Timmy & JG II I agree. I feel a serious rant coming on, but it will probably be like preaching to the choir. I need to take a breath…
I do have a question though, is he (Hawkins) implying that the serious, mature, Christ-centered believers are leaving the church because they are not challenged enough? Does that make any sense? It even sounds stupid when I write it. Mature, serious, Christ-centered, leaving the church. What church? Where are they going?
April 12, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Willow Creek is still relying on “research” and “strategy”.
They need to toss all of it out and start reading the only book that matters.
.
.
.
.
.
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The Bible.
April 12, 2008 at 5:58 pm
I think, fundamentally speaking, this comes down to how you understand the church to be in nature and function. While discipleship often becomes the point of contention for many issues regarding the church growth movement, I think we need to go even further back to the gospel.
Also, when you spend so much time and energy getting “inside the minds of unchurched Harry and Mary,” it is easy to get disconnected from the minds of the committed and faithful Harry and Mary. If the gospel you preach gets them into church but does continue on in gospel sanctification and a thorough work of grace, then what becomes of the those who have been converted under your ministry? Shepherds have a responsibility for the sheep primarily, and they will give an account for the way they shepherded them. If the shepherd has neglected his sheep and their overall well-being because their focus is elsewhere, then how has that shepherd been faithful to their calling?
I have been in churches where the Sunday School, the sermon, and just about every other kind of corporate gathering was intended for seekers and not for believers. In churches like that, I understand why the “Christ-centered people” (that’s the church–the body of Christ–by the way) would have a hard time. There’s so much of the Bible that needs to be taught, so much of God’s revelation needs to be shared, and yet it remains concealed. If God is developing a hunger and thirst for the Word, then a discontentment would naturally arise if you are going to a place that does not appreciate, recognize, and develop that work of grace in their lives.
I think what Willow Creek is battling is the tension between the attractional and missional approaches to ministry–from focusing on seekers coming to church, to church members going into the world. As they rightly note, those who know God best are most equipped to speak much of him. You cannot take people where you have not been, and you cannot speak openly what you do not know personally.
April 16, 2008 at 11:03 pm
They still seem to be man-centered. They are merely shifting their focus away from “seekers” and toward mature believers. They need to quit basing everything on research and study hard and long the Word of God for it alone is our sufficient and errant guide for ecclesiology. Moreover, they need to take great care in not being offensive to God rather than offending men.