under construction (#3): home base

Our construction project continued this week with defining even clearer what it means to be God’s living and local presence in our culture.

Peter writes: Live such good lives among the pagans…(1 Peter 2:12)

Who is reading his letter?

Christ followers from 5 major urban centers in Asia Minor (modern day Turkey). The church in this area is a suffering and marginalized people (chap. 1) both for their faith in Christ and the society they live in. Most people in these urban centers don’t believe in a monotheistic god or religion. A chunk of the culture is wealthy and progressive compared to the villages the 1^st disciples walked in (Galilee) - with running water, sewage systems, and ancient-like strip malls to shop at (even though Peter's readers we're on the margins). At the heart of the church's suffering was their persecution.

But Peter writes to God’s elect. I.E. even though you’re marginalized you’re accepted by God. Even though you’re persecuted, you’re suffering for good. Even though you find obstacles moving ahead in your culture, you are valued in God’s community (perhaps even economy).

In this place, to these people, Peter says: LIVE AMONG THEM, it’s your home base

Here echo Jesus’ prayer and commission for his disciples throughout history: as the Father sent me, I am sending you. (John 20:21, cf 17:18).

God designed the church (spiritual house) to be a SENT COMMUNITY, a missional community. To live as God’s living and local presence among the culture they find themselves in. Peter never tells them to run, escape, tune into Christian radio… but to LIVE… among… the pagans (their culture). To make their community/culture home base.

What does this look like?

SIGN: the church is a sign of God’s presence in any culture it exists in.
The church, like Jesus - Whoever has seen me has seen the Father (Jn. 14:9)
“…so too has God designed it that when people have seen God’s people, they have in a real sense caught a view of God.”
“We live in a covenant community, a distinctive community spawned by God’s reign to show – demonstrate – it’s tangible character in human, social form”
(George Hunsberger, Missional Church)

SIGN-POST: the church’s actions are a sign-post of God’s future.
Jesus’ actions, miracles, and compassion all pointed to God’s future reign.
The way we live, how we serve our world, our values and actions all point to future God’s reign.
When the world sees us live among them they should be getting a snapshot of the God‘s future.
“Whatever our responses may be, we bring wholeness and dignity to the world and thereby provide a taste of a future in the reign of God under the rule and authority of Jesus Christ.” (George Hunsberger, Missional Church)
Things like: reconciliation, justice, peace, hope, faith, love, healthy relationships, forgiveness, joy, etc.. Whether big, small, bold, simple or complex our actions and life can point to how God’s reign/kingdom will fully look/be like in the future.

SIGNATURE: the church communicates to our culture that God is the source of their hope.
When we’re being God’s community… living and acting according to His values … it’s inevitable that we’ll have opportunity to speak God’s message and make sure people see his signature.
“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” (1 Peter 3:15)
When the church truly sees itself as a sign of God’s presence, living the ways of Jesus and under God’s reign, caring for the needs around them, the inevitable happens – people wonder who’s the cause of all this. Then we get to write God’s signature at the bottom of it and rant about how God brought us out of darkness into his wonderful light (1 Peter 2:9).

The Church was designed to exist locally knowing WHERE they were & WHO they were, LIVING as a Sign of God’s presence, a Sign-post of his future, and a Signature of his doing AMONG their culture.

I’d love to hear how you see the church fulfilling this or failing at it. What’s happening in your own community of faith that reflects this? Any other thoughts?

I got the idea of Sign, Sign-Post, Signature from George Hunsberger in Missional Church, chap. 4: The church called and sent to represent the reign of God.