Leslie Newbigin in 1982 prophetically spoke of what is still true in the church today -a kind of assumed split between evangelism and social action. He states that “the dichotomy that opens up in our perceptions at this point is part of the deep going dualism that we inherit from the pagan (Greek) roots of our culture and which the biblical witness has never been able to eradicate.”
"...The church that invites men and women to take refuge in the name of Jesus without this challenge to the dominion of evil, [structural justice] then it becomes a countersign, and the more successful it is in increasing its membership, the more it becomes a sign against the sovereignty of God. An ‘evangelism’ that seeks to evade this challenge and this conflict, which‑for example‑welcomes a brutal tyranny because it allows free entry for missionaries rather than a more humane regime that puts difficulties in their way, becomes a sign against the gospel of the kingdom. We have, surely, the authority of the Lord himself for saying that church growth that does not bear fruit is only providing fuel for hell (Jn. 15:1‑6)." OUCH!
As a pastor I find it terribly difficult to mend this fundamental rift of the gospel. I think we do hold a fundamental dualism that is Gnostic and Greek in it's roots not biblical. I am sure we can think of lots of churches where this is true. BUT... The goal of this post is not to pull out the spec in another's eye but to take notice of the log in our own. Where is my church community fundamentally truncating and reducing the gospel in this manners? Lord help me to see!
