Methods and Traditions

Just getting home from working over at the new building, but I can’t sleep anyway…I’m pumped up! Tonight during Men’s group, our special guest speaker was Dave Draper from Winebrenner Seminary.

In a nutshell Dave encouraged us to do something I first heard Bill Hybels say many years ago…Be culturally relevant while remaining doctrinally pure. In other words, the Gospel message never changes, but the methods in which we present it must.

Dave shared a great story of how when he was a boy his dad left him plow the fields with a small tractor that plowed about a 2 ft. swath at a time. He then shared that one of his friends out at the seminary owns a bean farm and has allowed Dave to work the tractor. The difference…this tractor is self guided by a GPS system and every 6 inches it recalculates the ground to measure how much fertilizer and seed is needed…and oh yeah…it plows and plants 40 ft. at a time.

Dave reminded us that some things never change, like that seed needs to be put in the ground and then later harvested, but that obviously the methods used today are more effective than when he was a boy.

The same is true in the church…Dave reminded us that many times we want people to come to Christ in the same manner in which we did, but that sometimes that’s just not the best way any more. It doesn’t mean that it was wrong, it’s just that there are more effecitive ways now. And oh yeah as a side note…the things we’re doing today that are making United so effective, won’t be in 5 years, or in some cases, even a year from now.

As Dave spoke I couldn’t help but be reminded of Jesus words in Mark 7:8…”You have forgotten the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.” My prayer is that I would never become more in love with a method or tradition than I am with helping people come into a relationship with Christ and it’s my prayer that you’d feel the same.