Everyone involved with the ICoC is waiting for news from the World Missions Jubilee in Portland this past weekend. I’m sure that there will be a mention of the situation in Salt Lake City. Jay, the former minister there, mentioned moving to LA to receive more training in his last sermon. Those of us in the ICOC know that means, “Kip fired you.” Yet, it doesn’t appear that the congregation wants a replacement from LA. Who knows? The situation is fluid and the end is bound to be different from anyone’s conjectures.
Still, I imagine that sermons in LA will mention the weakness or lukewarmness of Salt Lake for months to come. With no one to really stop Kip from saying what he really wants to say, I imagine the article after the one about the Jubilee will belittle and criticize his former congregation. Then again, who can predict the moves of the Great One?
In other news, Seattle’s blog mentions the need for the Plan for United Cooperation. Me and other readers here commented to the post about other avenues of cooperation that were also encouraging. This prompted responses here and here.
First, congratulations on the baptism. I look forward to the day that my children come to the Lord. Second, I think it is great that a non-UP congregation works together with a UP congregation. I believe that this kind of cooperation, as well as cooperation with other Restoration Movement churches is critical for all of us. I believe in the efforts of those within the RM to bridge the historic gaps that divide us. We need each other. More than that, I believe that cooperation with non-RM churches is also critical. There should be no limit against working with other men and women that call upon the Lord. That is a subject for another column.
As someone that believes in unity, I think the UP is relevant to the discussion of working with other churches. When RM cooperation was mentioned during the formation of the UP, all that was said was, “any church can sign that desires to do so”. Would a document of this kind be any help to RM Unity efforts? I do not believe that it would.
I understand that the UP was primarily a tool to establish order in a confusing time. I disagree that order was more important to establish than righteousness. To my knowledge, we, as a denomination, have done nothing publicly to deal with our past and present teachings that led us to where we are now. I’m not talking about individual church efforts - I’m talking about high-level folks saying unashamedly that we are going in a new direction as a result of our repentance of shameful acts. Instead, order is still the number one priority. Those that disagree create varying amounts of disorder and it does not appear that disorder is tolerated.
Within the RM, though, we do not need order. We also do not need a call to minimum standards and clarity. It would be nice for all of us in the RM to get together in a room and vote that will be unified. However, lacking the efforts to even try to get us all in a room, there is a more excellent way. We should be looking for ways to serve one another instead of ways to get along with each other. When Jesus showed the full extent of his love, it was by taking the role of a servant. He went on the tell his disciples that people will know you are his disciples by the love for each other. Love wins the day. The Pharisees searched the Scriptures because they believed they were saved by their efforts. Jesus chided them for their short-sightedness. I pray that we do not become as short-sighted.
Small things happen. A new website, a few articles, VBS, and more. When we humble ourselves to let others love us, when we humble ourselves to love others, God works. Only God can bring us together by the call of His Spirit within us.
As far as Salt Lake, are we going to get them sign the UP like we did in Syracuse? I hope not. I hope that others, like the church in Denver, will choose to serve. The church I attend has folks that know members there. We should offer to help - not because we want more people on our team, but because it is the right thing to do.
As far as UP congregations, we need to serve them, too. It doesn’t matter if others signed with the hearts - there’s not a place to sign the thing anyway. Love covers over a multitude of sins, including the creation of divisive document.
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5 Responses to “One of Those Things”
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from the Hilo church website re the Jubilee….the newest kind of ‘disciple’:
“We can’t wait to see all of the Biblical disciples gathered for some awesome fellowship”
ttk
I haven’t spoken with anyone there, but I’m not under the impression that anyone from outside got Syracuse to ratify the UP, but that the group who didn’t want to be part of Kip’s divisive congregation chose to ratify it on their own. Do you know of someone who cajoled them into ratifying? ‘Like how I didn’t say the “S” (sign) word?
You are right on the money with the value that could have come from a humble response by ICOC leaders and the aweful damage that has been done by the prideful responses that have come from ICOC leaders. Several have implied that, in the wake of HKL, ICOC congregations were embracing false doctrines right and left. Yet no examples. None. Zilch. Frankly, I do not think they exist, which of course makes any reference to them a lie. Given the ICOC’s devaluing of integrity from the top down, that’s not surprising.
There are a few small signs of progress, and I’m grateful for them.
It would be good not to hear any more about the UP, especially the kind of updates we saw in the past every time someone new “signed”. That sort of thing only served to distinguish one group from another– in other words, identifying a faction. That called into question the “U” in the “UP”. Thankfully, that sort of thing seemed to stop a while back.
It would be great to see some constructive public discussion of tangible unity efforts with other RM groups, by the people who wrote the UP. If they believe all the things they wrote in those articles leading up to the UP (especially how each part of the body needs all the other parts) then they must pursue a relationship with those other groups.
BTW, I like the new blog look!
I thought and said since HKL that the upper folks need to apologize, say what they/we did wrong and move in a new direction. This was never done, to my knowledge, and I’ve been bashed for suggesting they do it in the past. It’s a good article Pink but it’s same ole same ole stuff for the ICOC. I do think you and the other responders have hit a nail on the head with unity meaning love and serving. If that were pursued it could give hope and maybe work. However, I doubt it was ever the intention of the UP concotors to be united with others they just wanted others to be united with them. To say we need each other is true but to actually listen, follow and serve others is not done. We only want to be listened to, followed and served.
P.S. - Nice look of the site.
Confession of sin. Yes, very important. When I was part of the C of C (and early ICOC), I always thought we were the only ones that did it. But of course, as beg points out, even the leaders of the ICOC seem to have a hard time with it. See Doug Wilson’s recent sermon on it…