Emerging Thought

It is fall! Hunting season is here,the leaves are changing and Ohio State is once again having a perfect season. This is my favorite time of year. I love everything about fall, except one thing, the weather. A beautiful fall day can turn into winter in a matter of hours. It is a common Joke in Ohio that if you don't like the weather, stick around it will change soon.


Recently a conversation came up about the Emerging Church. If you haven't heard of it, just stick around it's the next big thing. The movement is becoming popular among people disillusioned or unsatisfied with the church status quo. Many believe the church in it's current mode is falling out of touch with post modern society and are in search of a way to reach the culture around them for Christ.

The movement is gaining momentum in many mainline denominations as they seek to become relevant and better understand how to reach a post-modern generation. This is good in some respects and is bringing about some positive change and "new" concepts into christian ministry. I put new in quotations because I had to laugh last spring when I read a plan for small accountability groups written in the 18th century by John Wesley. Maybe instead of new we should say rediscovered.

I believe there are some things we should be aware of about the emerging movement. As a movement it cannot be theologically defined. It is neither Calvinist or Wesleyan but at the same time it is, and some believe it isn't anything that can be an absolute. They have deconstructed and questioned so much. Many in the movement have come to the conclusion that there is no absolute one best answer to theological questions.

Is Jesus the way? The Bible does not say maybe. John the Baptist did not say that could be Him. He is.


Not all emergent leaders are of the same mind. There are some very conservative and theologically sound leaders who define themselves as emergent because of the way they view ministry. Liberal methodology mixed in with conservative theology. They are referred to as fourth stream missionals. I believe these are the kind of churches our children and grandchildren will worship in. Whether we like it or not. In the meantime lets be careful and not swallow a pill without looking at the label. All the more reason to open your Bible and read.

Below I have posted a short snippet from an article written by Chuck Colson. You may follow the link to the full article. And also at the end of Mr. Colson's article you will find a response from Tony Jones an Emergent leader.







"This article first appeared in June 06 issue of Christianity Today. Used by permission of Christianity Today International, Carol Stream, IL 60188."



The arguments of some emerging church leaders, I fear, draw us perilously close to the trap set by postmodern deconstructionist Stanley Fish. Defending himself after his sympathetic statements about the 9/11 terrorists boomeranged, Fish claimed that postmodernists don't really deny the existence of truth. He said there is simply no "independent standard of objectivity." So truth can't be proved to others; therefore, it can't be known—a verbal sleight of hand.

For evangelicalism (let alone emerging churches) to buy into that would undermine the very foundation of our faith. Theologian Donald A. Carson puts his finger precisely on the epistemological problem: Of course, truth is relational, Carson writes. But before it can be relational, it has to be understood as objective. Truth is truth. It is, in short, ultimate reality. Fortunately, Jim came to see this.

The emerging church can offer a healthy corrective if it encourages us to more winsomely draw postmodern seekers to Christ wherever we find them—including coffee houses and pubs. And yes, worship styles need to be more inviting, and the strength of relationship and community experienced. But these must not deter us from making a solid apologetic defense of the knowability of truth.Click Here for complete article