Friday, December 2, 2011

The Frank Viola Project by Michael Spencer (iMonk)

The Frank Viola Project (And Why You Should Take It Seriously) 

By Michael Spencer (iMonk)

Sometimes, I think we evangelicals talk way too much about the wrong things and far too little about more important things. I hardly ever- ever- find myself in a conversation about what is the Gospel. Or what Jesus would be teaching us about the kingdom today. Or how to meaningfully repent of our entanglement in various American idolatries. These conversations just don’t happen around me (and I am surrounded by evangelical Christians.) But the church? Oh yeah, we talk about church all the time. Preachers. Sermons. Music. Corporate Music. Programs. Buildings, Budgets. Music. Why we changed churches again. What we like. What we don’t like. How great such and such a church is. What our church needs to start doing. Why this group at our church is wrong, or bad, or stubborn. Why a particular worship leader gets it right. Why we need a new whatever. The talk about church is endless. Now I believe deeply in the church as a place of spiritual formation, but I am also deeply aware of the problems and limitations of the church.

To read the rest of the essay, go to http://www.frankviola.org/frankviola.pdf