pat loughery

Whilst in Nica, Roy (our sending pastor) preached the Sunday service at La Vina in Managua. His message is still rattling around in my brain. And yesterday I preached (well, I showed a slideshow of our trip as a grand illustration of) Matt 5:13-17.

He spoke about set theory – what sociologists call open set and closed set mentalities. I can’t seem to find a simple web resource to link to, so consider this for a moment:

Draw a circle. At the boundaries of the circle, draw arrows pointing out, touching the edge of the circle (emphasizing the boundary). Closed set sociology says, in essence, that we define ourselves by describing what we’re NOT. As a local church, we may describe ourselves in ways such as these:

We’re not postmodern.
We’re not modern.
We’re not charismatic.
We’re against gay marriage.
We’re against hymns in worship.
We’re against scratch DJs in worship.
We reject the ministry models of guys like Benny Hinn, or Paul Cain, or the big haired people on 700 Club.
We reject the church of our past.
We say that art (outside mainstream musical styles) cannot be integrated with our expression of faith.
We’re not liberals (theologically or politically).
We’re not Republicans.
We don’t smoke, drink or cuss.
We smoke, drink and cuss because we want to frustrate the legalists who hate those things.

OK so far?

Closed set theory says that we focus on defining ourselves by what we’re not.

Open set theory works differently. Draw yourself another circle. From the edges of the circle, draw arrows that point in towards the center.

Open set theory says that we define ourselves by what we’re moving towards. For example, we focus on relationship with the triune God.

And somehow, when we focus on who we’re following, all of the boundary markers are in our rearview mirror.

Boundary markers for Israel – for example, keeping the sabbath, eating the proper foods, circumcision, observing Holy Days – were, over time, perverted into boundaries to keep the Gentiles out. But Israel was called to be salt and light TO the Gentiles (not away from them).

As for us, we’re called to be salt and light regardless of boundaries. We’re called to be flavoring, preservative, illumination to the evangelicals and the mainstream churches. To moderns and postmoderns. To believers in the Kabbala and in aura-reading and purpose-driven life folks and the people who implement every Jonny Baker worship idea. To those who are like us, and to those who are so much NOT like us that it freaks us out and we want to run away.

When we run, let’s run towards the Cross, dragging as many people with us as we can possibly find. Let’s focus more on the journey to the destination than we do on the boundary markers.

Let’s focus on the Way, the Truth, the Life.