Radical Realignment

This diagram is a result of the findings of Christian Schwarz, who discovered the principles behind Natural Church Development. The basic idea is this, churches tend in two directions. One direction, to the right, is organizational. When taken too far, this approach becomes "technocratic". Churches that function in this pole confuse religion with God. Their religion becomes their God. Particular styles of music, models of doing church, buildings, people, or programs become the means for church growth in these churches. People, systems, structures, and buildings become idols for these kind of churches. So much of what is known as mainstream Christianity in America fits into this category. We believe if we do all the right things, then the church will grow. We measure success by numbers, both people and dollars. We fall into the trap of ministry idolatry and jealousy. We want to do the newest and biggest thing. And as I've heard it said before, this model leads to institutionalization, which eventually becomes a museum where everyone has a sense of nostalgia about the past.

But there is a pendulum swing to the other direction. When faced with the institutional church, many throughout history have rejected this for a more "free" approach. There is a genuine desire to see a stronger reliance on the Spirit and to see the church become the organism that it is supposed to be. But unfortunately, this usually leads to "spiritualism". This extreme leads to disorganization, chaos, and the rejection of leadership. Usually, these churches are characterized by a rejection of "organized" religion because they feel that buildings, programs, and others systems are "unspiritual". They fail to be able to see that what they are rejecting is the practical side of our faith. Most Christians that fall into this category make community their God and love to talk, but move to very little action. They can often be found talking about "theology" for hours and hours, without ever actually contributing anything other than criticism to the body of Christ.

Both poles are dangerous and unhealthy for the church. What the church must shoot for is a radical realignment. We must find a way to rely on the Spirit of God to produce organization in the body. We must trust in the systems that He leads us into in our particular context. We must stand by the truths of scripture and then live out those truths in real churches. As the diagram shows, we rely on God to provide growth, but in the mean time we must plow, sow, water, and reap. If we rely too much on ourselves, then we slip into institutionalization. If we fail to recognize our responsibility, we slip into spiritualism. We must realign on the truths of Scripture, directed by the power of the Holy Spirit, and live out our faith in the context in which we live. How does your church need to realign? How do you need to realign?