Living Inside-Out - Values, Part 3

After a week off for Spring Break, I return to the values statements on our Mission Wall at the HBA Mission Center. Value number 3 ...

Spiritual Formation: Calling one another to grow in personal and experiential knowledge of Jesus Christ.

So much of what we do in the church is action-oriented. We try to take seriously the Bibilcal admonition to "be doers of the word and not hearers only" (James 1:22). However, if we are not careful, we run the risk of becoming utilitarian Christians--using the Bible as an instruction manual for doing the Christian life--rather than Christ-followers who interact with God's inspired recorded self-revelation and who are being continually formed in the image of the ultimate self-revelation of God: the Word made flesh (Romans 8:29; John 1:14). So, as a missional network of congregations, we should not ask the singular question, "What would Jesus do?" in fulfilling our ministry strategies. We should also ask, "What is Jesus doing/forming in our lives that informs and inspires new ministry strategies?" It was my own asking of that question that led me to the issue of values in the first place. So, let us consistently and intentionally ask one another, "What is Jesus doing in your life and in your congregation?"