Darryl's Blog
The Sky is Falling!?!
I'm only supposed to be reading books that relate to three things: my thesis, sermons I'm preparing, and books I'm reviewing.
Good thing I break that rule or else I wouldn't come across books like The Sky is Falling!?! by Alan Roxburgh.
Found this inside which relates quite well to my thesis:
Throughout Western societies, and most especially in North America, there has occurred a fundamental shift in the understanding and practice of the Christian story. It is no longer about God and what God is about in the world; it is about how God serves and meets human needs and desires. It is about how the individual self can find its own purposes and fulfillment. More specifically, our churches have become spiritual food courts for the personal, private, inner needs of expressive individuals.
That's it exactly. The problem my thesis is addressing is preaching that is anthropocentric, that is more about God fitting into our plans than us being absorbed into what God is doing. Preaching becomes more about how to have a good life than about God.
The result is a debased, compromised, derivative form of Christianity that is not the gospel of the Bible at all. The biblical narrative is about God's mission in, through, and for the sake of the world and how God has called human beings to be part of God's reaching out to that world for God's purpose of saving it in love.
Well said. Theocentric preaching is ultimately missional preaching.
Looks like a great read. Wish I could have met Roxburgh when he pastored in Toronto.
0 TrackBacks
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: The Sky is Falling!?!.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://www.dashhouse.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/1105
AMEN!
He'll be back. At least to visit, anyway.
Great having a Limonata with you today.
The disfunction of antropocentric theology extends beyond how we relate to God. It also affects every aspect of our lives. When we buy into this prevalent mindset, I view not only the church, but my work, my spouse, my children, my friends, my government, my physician, everyone as only necessary to the extent that they meet my needs. It is a theology of isolation. When we become theocentric, we see that we are not the still point of the turning world, but just like everyone else. Human beings who need God to hold us together and help us make something of our lives. The shift is from what others do to make me happy, to what I do to resolve the myriad problems that my life creates in the world. I hope you'll say more of the book as your read it. (HT: Bill Kinnon for pointing to your site)
... Len H has some good meaty reviews of Alan's book over at his blog: http://www.nextreformation.com/?page_id=882