I was initially going to just comment on Pastor David Swanson’s post but it ended up being too long-winded, so I am just creating a new entry.
Even though I read the book with David, reading his summary makes me want to re-read those chapters! So I highly encourage you all to read The Jesus Way by Eugene Peterson as well. This is the first book of his that I’ve read and it has prompted me to also start reading through The Message, Peterson’s paraphrase of the Bible. I’ve been using it as my text for an intensive Bible study that I’m involved with at church and it’s been fruitful so far.
Anyway, my general feeling on his question:
A reoccurring idea in The Jesus Way thus far is the importance of the community of God to be distinct. Distinct in the stories we tell, our robust imagination, the language we use to describe the world, etc. This of course raises a question: In your experience, are the people of God a unique community formed by our pursuit of Jesus? Or, does our life together more closely resemble our surrounding culture?
is that we seem to operate out of a fear of being too different from the surrounding culture. Being too different runs the risk of lower church attendance and attracting controversy and scrutiny. However, sadly, it also keeps us from really living to the full as Jesus did. This is the very way that God has challenged me as I’ve made my way through the book. Am I any different? More importantly, is Jesus a means or an end to me? Am I using Jesus as a more effective means of achieving what I selfishly want in this life-acceptance, significance, a sense of purpose-or is He my end and my means? It’s been a difficult question to confront but a wholly necessary one.
I believe that it takes a lot of soul searching and honest inquiry of our hearts to determine whether Jesus is THE way or is just a way for us. Is He the only Life that we want or is He a genie that we try to conjure up from time to time to grant our wishes? So far, all of my answers to these questions haven’t been pretty.
September 12, 2008 at 7:48 pm
I’m not sure if I really agree that the goal is to be distinct. People that live in compounds live distinct lives.
Re-phrased though, maybe the goal is to live with total freedom. Freedom granted by your own security in your faith and Jesus. Then you don’t have to worry about trying to fit in or to be a part of the social norm.
And you could argue, that people that live there lives with that kind of freedom ARE different, even if the words they use, or the clothes they wear are the same as everyone else.
Arguably, people in church do use very different words than non-religious folk. In the last few months, I hear certain words over and over that I would have never heard had I not stepped into a church. Anyways, I think I sad about 1 paragraph too much.
September 12, 2008 at 10:58 pm
Sounds like some interesting reading. I think I wanna check it out…
Anyway, going off David’s question, I’d ask how do we remain distinct without becoming irrelevant? But on the same token, how relevant do we want to be without losing the whole message that Christ has commanded us to preach in the first place? weighty stuff we’re dealing with here. But I think that the message the community of God is often giving to this world is not that of the “Good News”. Instead we’ve pre-packaged it to be so watered down as to not be news at all, much less any good for us.
maybe i’m reading peterson’s quote out of context, but it alarms me. is Jesus’ life merely a metaphor of how we should live?
September 16, 2008 at 12:40 pm
[...] Won Kim has some thoughts about the first few chapters of The Jesus Way, a Eugene Peterson he and I … I believe that it takes a lot of soul searching and honest inquiry of our hearts to determine whether Jesus is THE way or is just a way for us. Is He the only Life that we want or is He a genie that we try to conjure up from time to time to grant our wishes? [...]