Risky Business: The “Self-Help” Gospel
A couple weeks ago, I attended a conference for small group leaders. It was at a large well-known church, so I will omit names. My hope is not to gossip, but make a vital point. There was much to affirm about the training, but I had a frustrating experience fairly early that illustrated a theme that was rampant throughout the conference.
The first session, titled “Good Questions, Great Listening,” highlighted the importance of listening and asking questions in teaching. So far so good.
I took my seat and listened as the speaker modeled this philosophy in his teaching by engaging the audience with questions. However, as time went on I became increasingly worried that this session was not even Christian.
Was it heresy? Not at all. But it was strictly business. The speaker did not include a single verse of scripture when the Bible has MUCH to say about showing love and respect in community. Here are some of the questions he asked the audience:
Which is a more effective teaching tool, giving an answer or asking a question?
Why should we listen to people?
How does listening make people feel?
How does one listen effectively?
I grew increasingly frustrated with each question. The vast majority of the answers were along the following lines:
People feel validated when you listen.
You should listen by asking good questions.
You listen effectively by having good posture, positive body language, nodding in affirmation, etc.
I could go on. Trust me. At the last question (“How do we listen effectively?”), I couldn’t stay silent any longer, and raised my hand to answer (paraphrasing):
“If we see everyone, Christian and non-Christian alike, as image bearers of God worthy of love, then all these things will happen naturally. Otherwise we will treat non-Christians like “projects” to be converted, and Christians with a lack of authenticity. We have to transform our hearts before we can hope to change our treatment of others.”
The speaker then repeated it through the microphone so everyone could hear:
“That’s a good point. He said that we should treat people with love and respect because everyone matters to God.”
Did you see the subtle but dramatic difference in how he reworded it? Our value is derived from the fact that we are the only creation of God that “bears His image.” Not even the angels can claim this! Nothing that God created was given so much love and adoration as to bear His image. But the speaker took this grace-oriented element out of my statement and instead placed the worthiness of God’s love on the shoulders of men (legalism). We can never change that we bear God’s image, it is part of our human identity. But if we “matter” to God any other way, it is because of our own effort or merit. Am I nit-picking? I don’t think so, but let me illustrate.
If I am confronted with a heroin-addicted woman who is both pregnant and drunk, it is safe to say that I would be hard pressed to see her as worthy of love and respect (particularly if she is causing lifelong damage to her unborn child). If her value is derived from the fact that she bears God’s image, I have a decent chance of being able to see the goodness that lies underneath her abuse. But if her value is derived from her effort because she “matters” to God, it will be very difficult to love or respect her when she has so clearly chosen not to matter to God.
I wish the above were just an illustration, but I actually experienced it about 3 years ago during my law enforcement internship. Saying that “we matter to God” is professional, neat, and boosts our self-esteem (which is a lie, but that’s a post for another day), but it does not stand up to the ugliness of human sin. “Self-help” will not heal, redeem, or empower. Self-help only helps us feel a little better about our sin. Self-help gives the illusion of control where there is none. Ministry is messy because people are messy. We are broken, jacked-up, and in dire need of redeeming.
When will we stop trying to love from a distance?
When will we realize that Jesus loved people by coming alongside us and sharing in our pain?
How dare we try to love with detached professionalism instead of a heart of love and Christ-like compassion?
Relegating the Gospel to self-help is risky business, indeed. But what people truly need is risky love.
Recommended Reading:
Brothers, We Are Not Professionals by John Piper
The Heart of Evangelism by Jerram Barrs
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You worry too much my very good friend.
Try not to live in the either/or us vs. them mentality.
Their model of ministry is different, but not based upon a different gospel or different (implication: substandard) Theology… not really. Step back, take what they have, move forward in your own gifts and strengths, and worry less about them and more about the woman you met…
You’re the man; the real trick is to maintain your passion, but not turn it into a battle until it clearly is!
Matt,
“You worry too much my very good friend. Try not to live in the either/or us vs. them mentality. ”
That is entirely possible. However, I worry in this instance because it was communicated in an either/or mentality. Professionalism and business models have a valid contribution to ministry, but it must not replace it.
And again, there was much to affirm in other sessions of this conference. I was more attempting to extrapolate a point from this one instance that, admittedly, did not constitute the whole. I do not believe their theology to be substandard, only that this particular session seemed content to equip lay leaders with the professional side of ministry without the underlining theological foundations. I wholeheartedly agree that it is a both/and situation and not an either/or or an us vs. them. I do not seek to criticize, only to use the experience to illustrate a point.
The larger (attempted) point with this article is that people are messy. When we either deny our messiness or we try to fit it into neat, clean little models, we minimize or outright deny the need for Christ.
And, I’m with you on the “Brothers we are not professionals” side of things… Just trying to be encouraging!
Good points, Brad. I am growing increasingly concerned when models for ministry in the church are made to be virtually indistinguishable with those in business…
brad,
i think a wonderful point you made. i know that i have often tended to look at people as projects. and if they “matter”, then i think that is what will happen, BUT if they are “image bearer” then we will see God in them.
peter
Tim,
You would absolutely love the Piper book… I do think there are many aspects that can be affirmed and adapted to ministry, but it must be done critically.
Peter,
Ain’t it good to be reformed?