ICE BUCKET CHRISTIANITY
Proverbs 6: 6-11; II Thessalonians 3: 6-13
So, what I am about to say should not be taken as a direct critique of this specific emphasis. Rather, I am using it as a model of how too often we approach social problems/issues in our culture: throw money at it, make a splash — and go on to something else. Our attention span for causes reminds me of a reply my oldest son gave me when I asked him why my 20 month old granddaughter’s Mother’s Morning Out class did not have chairs. “Dad, remember at this age children have about a 30 second attention span. They would never stay in the chairs. The teachers would spend all their time trying to get them into the chairs.” Right! I knew that. We spend so much time trying to get people’s attention for worthy causes and events...just sit still and listen!
The Ice Bucket Challenge is flashy, dramatic and easy. However, there is a tremendous difference between dumping a bucket of ice water over one’s head and finding a cure for ALS. There is an ocean-sized chasm between this act and caring for or even visiting someone dying with ALS. I will never forget my visits with Betty Keaton and how her aide would point to words or letters on a iPad, whereupon Betty would blink her eyes — the only part of her body she could move — to spell out words or phrases in order to carry on a conversation. Tedious is the word which comes to mind as I remember her last few months and weeks. Yet I also remember that she was always smiling and always laughing at something. Behind the curtain of paralysis was a mind and personality ever active.
Unfortunately many people approach their faith and church life in a similar manner to the Ice Bucket Challenge: run me through the water (baptism) and let’s get on with life. What they soon discover is that the water part is easy; the hard part is getting down and dirty in the trenches of life and living as a follower of Jesus Christ.
Doing church work has always been a struggle, even from the beginning of Christianity. Among the earliest of Paul’s letters — and therefore among the earliest of our written documents of Christianity (52-54 CE) — are those to the Thessalonians. Thessaloniki was a city in Greece which Paul visited early on his missionary journeys and where he established a thriving church. However, after his visit it seems that many of the Christians wondered whether or not they would go to heaven if they died before Christ returned. Also, it seems than many more decided that since Christ was coming — and the church was providing a free daily meal for them — that they would just stop working and enjoy life. These Christians are living off the largesse of the other members of the church who are working and providing the resources for these meals. Paul uses an interesting word here to describe them: we translate it as idling, but other translations include “disorderly” or “out of rank.” In other words, when one is not contributing in some form or fashion to the health and work of the church, one is in a disorderly status.
It is but a short interpretive jump to also conclude that these, while not working outside the
church, were also not contributing to doing the work of the church. It has been my experience in
life that someone who would not work (not who could not find a job) in the outside world, was
not much help at church, either.
By and large, church work is not glamorous. It can be tedious and fraught with tension — after all, you are working with people. Persons pursuing vocational ministry sometimes erroneously believe that ministers sit around all day either praying, reading a few books, drinking coffee, eating lunch with people, and having a jolly good time. When they discover the hours of study required, visitation in nursing homes and hospitals at all hours of the day and night, they are shocked into an awareness of reality. Sadly, many good persons walk away, not wanting to put in those kind of hours.
Likewise, I have had more than one successful business person say to me: “You just don’t know now to organize your work, your staff or people...let me do it for you.” Three months later they are back and saying: “How do you accomplish anything in ministry, anyway? This is the most frustrating experience I have ever had. How do you motivate people when you don’t have a paycheck over them?” I just smile and give a little chuckle...it’s not what you thought, is it?
Several years ago I had a friend share with me a sermon he wrote: it was quite good and I enjoyed it. Knowing him I could see that his thought pattern was that sermon writing wasn’t that hard and by inference being a minister wasn’t that hard...Any educated person could do this. After he kept fishing for more compliments I finally said to him: “John, this is a good sermon. Now, do this 46 times in the next year...with each one showing some modicum of creativity and depth...all the while visiting hospitals, shut-ins, and prospects and then do it for 35 to 40 years. Let me know how that works out for you.” He has yet to answer me.
Later I happen to run into him after visiting a close relative of his who was in a nursing home and rarely spoke. I said, “I saw ‘Fred’ the other day...he replied, “I bet he didn’t say much.” The reality is that he did not say much...but he knew I came...he knew I was there and that I represented our church...and we prayed together. As my friend walked away I thought to myself, you just don’t get it, do you. Ministry is not about doing the easy or popular or even fun thing. It is about serving Christ and representing Christ to people in whatever fashion they need.
The reality is that church work is very difficult. Committees, ministry teams — keeping up buildings, providing weekly meals, visitation teams, etc...it is all quite cumbersome and arduous. I have watched more than one minister or lay-person burn out trying to carry a church on their back.
I found it quite intriguing that Paul, in this instance, issues a command by the authority of Christ Jesus. Obviously this “idling” or “out of rank” was a significant issue for the Thessalonican church. Paul exerts all the authority he can muster: “If you don’t work, you will not eat.” End of story. In other words, if you are not contributing in some way to the overall health of the church, then you will not be able to participate in the life of the church. For when they ate, this was not only a meal, but was the Agape love feast and was front and central to their worship and life as the ecclesia, the called-out ones. Paul’s command is not just about missing a meal...it is literally about ex-communication from the life of the church until one changes one’s behavior.
By and large, church work is not glamorous. It can be tedious and fraught with tension — after all, you are working with people. Persons pursuing vocational ministry sometimes erroneously believe that ministers sit around all day either praying, reading a few books, drinking coffee, eating lunch with people, and having a jolly good time. When they discover the hours of study required, visitation in nursing homes and hospitals at all hours of the day and night, they are shocked into an awareness of reality. Sadly, many good persons walk away, not wanting to put in those kind of hours.
Likewise, I have had more than one successful business person say to me: “You just don’t know now to organize your work, your staff or people...let me do it for you.” Three months later they are back and saying: “How do you accomplish anything in ministry, anyway? This is the most frustrating experience I have ever had. How do you motivate people when you don’t have a paycheck over them?” I just smile and give a little chuckle...it’s not what you thought, is it?
Several years ago I had a friend share with me a sermon he wrote: it was quite good and I enjoyed it. Knowing him I could see that his thought pattern was that sermon writing wasn’t that hard and by inference being a minister wasn’t that hard...Any educated person could do this. After he kept fishing for more compliments I finally said to him: “John, this is a good sermon. Now, do this 46 times in the next year...with each one showing some modicum of creativity and depth...all the while visiting hospitals, shut-ins, and prospects and then do it for 35 to 40 years. Let me know how that works out for you.” He has yet to answer me.
Later I happen to run into him after visiting a close relative of his who was in a nursing home and rarely spoke. I said, “I saw ‘Fred’ the other day...he replied, “I bet he didn’t say much.” The reality is that he did not say much...but he knew I came...he knew I was there and that I represented our church...and we prayed together. As my friend walked away I thought to myself, you just don’t get it, do you. Ministry is not about doing the easy or popular or even fun thing. It is about serving Christ and representing Christ to people in whatever fashion they need.
The reality is that church work is very difficult. Committees, ministry teams — keeping up buildings, providing weekly meals, visitation teams, etc...it is all quite cumbersome and arduous. I have watched more than one minister or lay-person burn out trying to carry a church on their back.
I found it quite intriguing that Paul, in this instance, issues a command by the authority of Christ Jesus. Obviously this “idling” or “out of rank” was a significant issue for the Thessalonican church. Paul exerts all the authority he can muster: “If you don’t work, you will not eat.” End of story. In other words, if you are not contributing in some way to the overall health of the church, then you will not be able to participate in the life of the church. For when they ate, this was not only a meal, but was the Agape love feast and was front and central to their worship and life as the ecclesia, the called-out ones. Paul’s command is not just about missing a meal...it is literally about ex-communication from the life of the church until one changes one’s behavior.
What a change from how churches operate today! We beg and plead with people to serve. Paul
was not about begging and pleading...he was about stating the stark reality that the people of God
were a fellowship based in Christ. When people refused to work, they were refusing to take the
body of Christ seriously and therefore, their faith and relationship to Christ seriously. He was not
afraid to say to these that if they were not willing to work and contribute to the life of the church,
they were not welcome in the church.
I have watched churches over the years and have come to one conclusion: we need to help people turn “church work” into “the work of the church.” This is more than a word game...allow me to explain. Church work is seen as tedious and a drag...not what I want to do. Stuffing envelopes, cleaning bathrooms, cooking meals, etc. — who wants to do that? The work of the church — that is about ministry i.e., feeding the poor, housing the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, sharing the gospel, worship, teaching and touching people with the love of Jesus. It is often easier to get people motivated about doing the work of the church as opposed to church work.
What is necessary is for us to change our vision — and to see that church work is necessary and vital to carrying out the work of the church. We need to see that when we do “church work” we are fulfilling the mission of the church and the call of Christ Jesus.
I have watched churches over the years and have come to one conclusion: we need to help people turn “church work” into “the work of the church.” This is more than a word game...allow me to explain. Church work is seen as tedious and a drag...not what I want to do. Stuffing envelopes, cleaning bathrooms, cooking meals, etc. — who wants to do that? The work of the church — that is about ministry i.e., feeding the poor, housing the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, sharing the gospel, worship, teaching and touching people with the love of Jesus. It is often easier to get people motivated about doing the work of the church as opposed to church work.
What is necessary is for us to change our vision — and to see that church work is necessary and vital to carrying out the work of the church. We need to see that when we do “church work” we are fulfilling the mission of the church and the call of Christ Jesus.
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When we work in the Nursery we are not baby sitting, but providing a service for young
parents to come to worship and Bible study .
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When we work in the kitchen and wash pots and pans we are not doing kitchen work, but
enabling fellowship and koinonia to be shared among our community.
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When we welcome and greet people we are not just be cordial, we are inviting them into a
place where they can see their relationship with Jesus come alive.
Consider the following projects which have been ongoing:
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Through our garden we are feeding hungry people fresh vegetables in the name of Jesus Christ.
Sounds fun, until you get in there and pick the vegetables, having to scour for them as they
hide among the vines.
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Through our Mission Possible Day we constructed bunk beds which have been used by
campers so that they might grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. On that day we also
carried out many, many mission projects which shared the love of God with others. The result
is that simple acts, sharing flowers or a visit, spoke volumes to those who received them.
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When our House and Grounds Team — or persons such as Jack Reece and Ron Young —
beautify our grounds they are not just growing flowers or grass and trees, they are saying to the
world “We love our Lord and His church.” When people see our facilities they either know that
we take our faith and church seriously, or not.
When we are about the work of the church, we gain a meaning and purpose far beyond our
immediate task. Here is where our motivation lies and from which we will draw our staying power.
Through church work properly understood we will grow spiritually in our faith, relationally as we
work together and numerically as God blesses us. The early church grew because people saw them
working together in love and harmony and wanted to be a part of that effort.
The reality is that God needs and works through us — through our agency — to perform God’s work. As a novelist has noted: God takes a hand whenever he can find it, and just does what he likes with it. Sometimes he takes a bishop's hand and lays it on a child's head in benediction. And then he takes the hand of a doctor to relieve the pain, the hand of a mother to guide a child. And sometimes he takes the hand of a poor old creature like me to give comfort to a neighbor. But they're all hands touched by his spirit, and his spirit's everywhere lookin' for hands to use.1
In a recent newsletter from the Wharton School of Business they examined the “Ice Bucket Challenge.” They noted that it succeeded for the usual reasons, but also because of a unifying factor: no one wants to be left out of a good thing. Everyone wants to be involved in something successful and stimulating.2
People ask me from time to time: “How can I help my church to grow? I enjoy it so much and want others to enjoy it as well.” My answer is simple: be involved as a positive influence in what is transpiring in us and through us. Join hands with us in enabling church work to become the work of the church — and you will be amazed at what God will do. Are the tools we work with perfect? No. Are we always wonderful craftsmen who use them properly and efficiently? No. But — the truth is that when we use what God has put at our disposal in a positive and loving manner, it is amazing how our church prospers. Anne Lamott said it best:
It’s funny: I always imagined when I was a kid that adults had some kind of inner toolbox full of shiny tools: the saw of discernment, the hammer of wisdom, the sandpaper of patience. But then when I grew up I found that life handed you these rusty bent old tools – friendships, prayer, conscience, honesty – and said “do the best you can with these, they will have to do”. And mostly, against all odds, they do.3
Yes, they do...and in the grace of God our church work becomes the work of the church — and we are blessed beyond all imagination.
Thanks be to God.
Robert U. Ferguson, Jr., Ph.d. Emerywood Baptist Church
1300 Country Club Drive
High Point, North Carolina 27262 August 31, 2014
1 Alexander Irvine, My Lady of the Chimney Corner, 1913.
2 http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/ice-bucket-challenge-viral/ 3 Anne Lamott, Traveling Mercies.
The reality is that God needs and works through us — through our agency — to perform God’s work. As a novelist has noted: God takes a hand whenever he can find it, and just does what he likes with it. Sometimes he takes a bishop's hand and lays it on a child's head in benediction. And then he takes the hand of a doctor to relieve the pain, the hand of a mother to guide a child. And sometimes he takes the hand of a poor old creature like me to give comfort to a neighbor. But they're all hands touched by his spirit, and his spirit's everywhere lookin' for hands to use.1
In a recent newsletter from the Wharton School of Business they examined the “Ice Bucket Challenge.” They noted that it succeeded for the usual reasons, but also because of a unifying factor: no one wants to be left out of a good thing. Everyone wants to be involved in something successful and stimulating.2
People ask me from time to time: “How can I help my church to grow? I enjoy it so much and want others to enjoy it as well.” My answer is simple: be involved as a positive influence in what is transpiring in us and through us. Join hands with us in enabling church work to become the work of the church — and you will be amazed at what God will do. Are the tools we work with perfect? No. Are we always wonderful craftsmen who use them properly and efficiently? No. But — the truth is that when we use what God has put at our disposal in a positive and loving manner, it is amazing how our church prospers. Anne Lamott said it best:
It’s funny: I always imagined when I was a kid that adults had some kind of inner toolbox full of shiny tools: the saw of discernment, the hammer of wisdom, the sandpaper of patience. But then when I grew up I found that life handed you these rusty bent old tools – friendships, prayer, conscience, honesty – and said “do the best you can with these, they will have to do”. And mostly, against all odds, they do.3
Yes, they do...and in the grace of God our church work becomes the work of the church — and we are blessed beyond all imagination.
Thanks be to God.
Robert U. Ferguson, Jr., Ph.d. Emerywood Baptist Church
1300 Country Club Drive
High Point, North Carolina 27262 August 31, 2014
1 Alexander Irvine, My Lady of the Chimney Corner, 1913.
2 http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/ice-bucket-challenge-viral/ 3 Anne Lamott, Traveling Mercies.
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