Letters To The Church By Francis Chan – Crucified, Unleashed, and Church Again:
How do you need to die? Be specific.
In this chapter, Francis Chan spoke about a “suffering of rejection.” I think I am pretty open when it comes to letting others know that I am a Christian. And when specifically asked about my convictions, I don’t hold back. However, I have been in the midst of a conversation with unbelievers all too often, and I have thought to myself, ‘I have a good opportunity to point this conversation in the way of the gospel,’ but I shrink back. This happens purely because of a fear of rejection. Not knowing how others might react to my convictions or treat me differently because of them causes me to suppress them. This is one way that I need to “die” to follow Christ.
How did you live sent this week?
Living in a world run by COVID makes it easy to find excuses not to live sent, not good excuses, just excuses. That said, I probably didn’t do a very good job of living sent this week. I did, however, meet with a man for discipleship and mentoring this past Sunday. I also attended my weekly men’s breakfast on Saturday, though I can’t recall any ‘sent’ conversations, at least not this week.
What keeps you in a cage?
Looking back at my answer in the “Crucified” chapter, I would say that fear of rejection keeps me in a cage… Francis Chan said something in his closing remarks of “Church Again” that resonated with me.
All my life, I have battled a desire to be respected by others. Because of this, there have been many times I cowered out of a fear of rejection. I took my eyes off the future and did what was easiest in the moment. I deeply regret these moments. The Bible tells countless stories of godly men and women who stood for what was right, even when it meant suffering pain and rejection. I often pray for God’s grace, that He would bless me with the courage to follow their examples. ~ Francis Chan
What are your thoughts about Francis Chan’s method for church?
I loved reading about Francis Chan’s method for church. What he described reminded me a lot of what we see in the New Testament.
In our reading last month, Mark Dever talked about requiring more of our church members. It seems to me that Francis Chan’s method not only requires more of church members; it demands it. And not in a way that may be misinterpreted as un-loving, but in a much more natural way. When people are living and following God in such small groups, it makes it impossible to hide or to disappear in the crowd. Which, in turn, I believe, would lead to stronger church members and stronger churches.
If you were to plant a church what would your core values be?
When I first came to Christ in 2011 at the Gateway family retreat, we had t-shirts with five symbols on them. I remember not knowing what they stood for, but it was broken down for us at some point in the weekend. The five symbols stood for service, worship, fellowship, discipleship, and evangelism. Ever since that weekend, I have looked at this list and asked myself, “how am I doing in my walk with Christ?” I think this list should be included in the core values of any church. Today, I think I would probably add prayer, missions, and unity.
How would you structure your service time together?
I picture church plant services and the services that Francis Chan described very similar to most of the life groups I’ve attended. There is a time of breaking bread, be it a snack or a whole meal, either before, after, or maybe even during the main service time. There is a time of fellowship and just hanging out and being with one another. There is a time of prayer and prayer requests. There is a time of worship. And of course, at the center of it all is a time for God’s word and its study.