Ties to Christian Heritage

Yesterday I announced in worship service that through the many interviews I've had with the folks in the church, a common theme had arisen. This concerns closer ties to our Christian heritage. A couple examples of this is the desire to have communion monthly and to have a cross placed on the outside (and possibly inside) of our worship center. Our leadership team has agreed that both of these ideas are good ones. In fact, beginning September 1st, we will move to a monthly communion in memory of our Lord’s sacrifice for us. In addition, we will move forward with the visible placement of a cross on the outside of our worship center. We may have another placed inside the worship center, but that is still under discussion.

While there is no known reason for why we ever decided to hold communion on a quarterly basis as opposed to monthly, it is important to understand why there is no cross on the building today. The following explanation (slightly editorialized by myself) was provided by our Teaching Pastor, Mark Bolton:
“The main passion of a church must always be giving glory to God. We do not answer first to our culture, not even to Christians or to our congregation. We first and foremost answer to God and must always give Him glory and honor. In the chapter 4 of the book, “Knowing God”, written by J.I. Packer (one of the greatest theologians of our time), you will see the case made for not using images in worship. This is a strong case, though it is most strongly against representations of God Himself, and the cross is not, per se, a representation of God. I would, however, add that the problem with the cross that is highlighted by Packer is that any image used in worship is necessarily and unavoidably limiting. It is part of the story, never able to convey the whole. So God has appointed a means to represent Himself. It is not an image of any kind, it is His Word. So a cross is a good symbol, it brings to mind the sacrificial aspect of the work of Christ. But it does not capture Jesus, for example, as reigning King. Again, a good symbol but limiting, which is what God is not pleased with.

A second reason we have eschewed employing a cross is due to the sense Hollis and I have had that many crosses just can’t capture the majesty of the work of Christ. They, due to their placement and design, sometimes seem ‘cheap’ if you will, not weighty enough.

A third reason, and a less important one, is that a cross allows the visitor, the spiritual investigator in particular, to make certain categorizations of you. It lets them put you in a previously conceived class of people of which they may have impressions that may not be true of you. For example, they may associate you with a Fundamentalist, judgmental group they have judged in the past to not be the kind of group they could ever imagine associating themselves with. Why put up a barrier to their keeping an open mind. This argument may be less valid than in days past. There is now, seemingly, a positive reaction to Christian symbology by the increasingly secular audience we may be drawing.

Now, having said all that, let’s put up a cross. But let’s not let ourselves or anyone who asks get the impression that our reticence to do so in the past was anything but a desire to correctly glorify God and invite His stray sheep to come to the real cross that doesn’t exist in wood or metal but exists in history as the place where our sins were atoned for.”

Well said, Pastor Mark! Thanks for keeping us well informed and for applying consistent Christian principles to an ever changing culture.
As always, your feedback is appreciated.

Comments below or email me at csonger@new-communitychurch.org