Don't just learn from church history - look to the global church too

In all the discussion about how to navigate the consequences and implications of COVID-19 for churches and believers meeting together, historical events have often been alluded to. From the efforts of Christians to care for the sick in Roman times, Martin Luther's refusal to leave Wittenburg when bubonic plague came, to the Great Ejection of the Puritans in 1662, people have drawn analogies with what Christians have done in past centuries.

This is right and good. The Bible is of course our authority but we have a lot to learn from those who have gone before us in how they interpreted and applied Biblical principles to real life. We sometimes talk about being in uncharted waters now, but there are those who have navigated similar waters in the past and we do well to carefully consider their examples and decisions.

But wouldn't it be better if instead of reading their words and about their situations, we could talk to them? Wouldn't you like to hear the voices of those early Church believers who lived through such difficult times and yet still rejoice in Christ? Wouldn't it be good to have a conversation with the brothers and sisters in Christ who have had to weigh up the hard decisions about whether or not to meet in person and the dangers of hymn singing? Wouldn't it be great to be able to talk with the Puritans about when and how civil disobedience is required?

Those believers are in heaven now and we'll have to wait until we get there for the in-person conversations. But the global church is full of people who have either wrestled with analogous issues in the last fifty years or are still experiencing them today. Christians in the West would do well to remember that they can draw on the breadth and depth of experience within the global church - and then actually do so.

Limits on attendance? In many countries, for either legal or practical reasons, believers often need to meet in homes. That's an attendance cap.

Unable to sing? There are countries today where either it is within living memory that Christians were unable to sing aloud or they are currently still unable to do so.

Submission to civil government in a Biblically appropriate way? Take your pick of countries where believers have been working through these issues for many years. 

In our city in Turkey, we've been thinking through the implications of COVID-19 for public worship and the meeting of believers. Our Turkish pastor has been leading that - but he does so from the perspective of someone who may not have lived through a pandemic before but has certainly dealt with some similar issues. Our church may meet in a building now, but it started off as a house church. Our pastor has thought through when and how to submit to civil government for years. For example, the law here prohibits under-18s from attending church without parental permission and we fairly frequently have teenagers who want to come to our meetings. He hasn't personal experience of believers being afraid to come to church for fear of catching a virus - but, after three Christians were martyred in a city not too far away from us 13 years ago, he does have experience of believers being afraid to come to church for fear of being killed or persecuted. 

Practically, if a church already has links with cross-cultural workers in countries where there is likely to be experience to learn from, it may be as simple as asking them to help facilitate some links and information sharing from their local leaders and believers. Books, articles and videos also give insight into how churches across the world have adapted in the face of difficulties, but a bit more digging might be necessary to find helpful analogous situations.

Clearly a course of action should not be automatically approved solely because it originates from an African, Asian or Middle Eastern church. Suffering and difficulty does not always result in practices in line with an orthodox understanding of Scripture. There are issues of right Biblical interpretation and appropriate cultural application too. And these are not clear cut issues - two different people from the same cultural background, never mind different cultures, can take the same Biblical principles and after prayer and deliberation come to different conclusions. There is a good chance you might disagree with the approach that a pastor from a persecuted church (as well as the pastor from the church down the road) has taken.

But if you're going to look to history for examples of how Christians have dealt with similar issues, you might also remember that there is wisdom and value in looking to the current global church as well.

Sharing the Gospel with Muslims

I met up with a friend the other morning. Our children played in the park together and we chatted between rocking pushchairs and doling out snacks. She'd forgotten her mask so borrowed her daughter's Frozen-themed mask.

She has a Masters degree and worked in finance before having children. She speaks four languages and even while speaking in English - her third language - she made me laugh out loud with some of her stories.

My family have just returned from holiday with another British family and as we were chatting about that, my friend asked if my family had had opportunity for worship times together with the other family while away together. We talked a bit about how God reveals himself in nature too.

As we walked back, our conversation veered towards parenting and discipline. We were both agreed on the importance of children learning to obey authority while they were young and the need for consequences when they disobey. I mentioned my belief that learning to obey authority is particularly important because we want them to know that God is the ultimate authority. She wasn't quite convinced because, in her words, "I want my children to first know that God loves them and as they get a bit bigger to introduce the idea of God's authority, I don't want them to be scared of or dislike God."

My friend is a committed Muslim. She covers her hair and prays five times a day.

I don't know how many Muslim friends you have. But if you don't have the opportunity for many interactions with Muslims, here's a few things I'd love for you to know.

Muslims are individuals

Like everyone else, Muslims are individuals. Forget any assumptions or stereotypes and get to know the person in front of you. They are not an evangelism project, they are individuals with their own life story, hopes, dreams and fears. They may also have their own understanding and interpretation of Islam. I was surprised that my friend sees Allah as a God of love as that's not typically an emphasis in Islam. Circumstances (also known as corralling small children while walking down a street) prevented me from asking more about that, but I'm intrigued to know more of her thoughts on God's love and I've made a mental note that it's something to follow up on when I get chance.

God-talk isn't sharing the Gospel

Talking about God usually comes up fairly naturally in conversation when you're talking with Muslims. But just talking about God isn't sharing the Gospel. When our conversation has a smattering of God-talk sprinkled through it, it it sometimes difficult to know if you're talking to a Christian or a Muslim. My friend has been at my house before and picked up a toddler book called 'God made me'. She agreed with every word in it. If we haven't mentioned our sin and need of a Saviour, Jesus and his death on the cross and resurrection, and that it is only the free gift of grace that gets us right with God again, then we haven't shared the Gospel. 

Relationships need time

I didn't talk about Jesus that morning. Nor did I share the Gospel. But as God comes up in conversation and my friend sees that my faith is real and active, I'm earning credibility. And because my friend and I see each other fairly regularly, it's an ongoing conversation. I've talked a little about Jesus before. I'm asking her questions and listening to her. I'm praying that I'll have an opportunity to share the Gospel and that her ears and heart would be open to it.

The Gospel is powerful

The good news that we have to share is the best news there is. It is "the power of God that brings salvation" (Rom 1:16). It makes spiritually dead people alive again. And we have the privilege of proclaiming it. That means we do actually have to proclaim it! When you're talking to someone who has been taught their entire life that the Bible has been changed and Jesus didn't actually claim to be God and he didn't really die on the cross, it's tempting to think that nothing will change their mind. But the Gospel comes with the power to transform people and we should be bold and confident in speaking it.

Prayer changes things

We won't accomplish anything without prayer. Prayer changes things. My friend gets up in the early hours to complete her prayers despite already being up in the night to nurse a baby. But as Christians, we are invited into the throne room of the one true and living God to talk to him as our Father and he is always ready to listen to us. We must pray.

And will you pray for my friend and I? I'm almost certainly the only Christian she knows and possibly has ever met. Pray that she will be thirsty for living water and searching for truth. Pray that she'd be dissatisfied with any idea of being able to earn her way to God. Pray that I'd have the opportunity to share the Gospel clearly with her. Pray that the Gospel would powerfully impact her and bring her to Christ. Pray that God's Spirit will be at work.

Brought not called

The concept of 'being called' comes up, either implicitly or explicitly, rather frequently when you're in cross-cultural work. It's a reflection of the hearts of people who want to serve God well but it's also a phrase that can be easily misused or misunderstood.

While there can be a lot of confusion over what 'being called' and the idea of 'calling' means, Kevin DeYoung hit the nail on the head a couple of years ago in this blog post:

We have an upward call in Christ to be with Jesus and to be like Jesus (Phil. 3:14). We have been called to freedom, not bondage (Gal. 5:13). God has saved us and called us to a holy calling (2 Tim. 1:9). He has called us to his own glory and excellence (2 Peter 1:3). Not many of us were called to noble things (in the world’s eyes), but, amazingly, we have been called to Christ (1 Cor. 1:26). And if called, then justified, and if justified, then glorified (Rom. 8:30).

In other words, I do not see in Scripture where we are told to expect or look for a specific call to a specific task in life.

He goes on to say that we do not need to necessarily abandon the language of 'calling' but we do need to be very careful in how we use the terms 'call' or 'calling'. We want to be making sensible decisions and thinking through whether something is a wise and appropriate route to follow rather than looking for a special word from God about a specific job, place or career. DeYoung highlights that ministry books typically talk about the three components of a 'call' - an internal call, an external call and a formal call - and that these can be a useful frame to use in decision-making.

In the circles we're from, and in our agency, we typically talk about the 'call' to overseas Christian service in a similar way. I often hear it as 'desire, opportunity, affirmation'. That is the desire to go (the inward call), the affirmation of a sending church of the gifting and maturity of the one(s) being sent (the external call) and the opportunity of being free to go and with an appropriate place, people and need to go to (the formal call).

DeYoung goes on to issue a warning at the end of his blog post though:

In short, if this is what is meant by “calling”—know yourself, listen to others, find where you are needed—then, by all means, let’s try to discern our callings. But if “calling” involves waiting for promptings, listening for still small voices, and attaching divine authority to our vocational decisions, then we’d be better off dropping the language altogether (except as its used in the Bible) and labor less mysteriously to help each other grow in wisdom.

And this is where the problem comes in for us. I use the term 'called' as a shorthand to mean exactly what DeYoung says - know yourself, listen to others, find out where you are needed. When I say 'God called us to Turkey', I mean 'God gave my husband and I the desire to serve the church in Turkey, and our family and life situation made our going possible; our sending church affirmed our suitability for that role and, with the support of our agency, sent us; we were sent to help in the work of making and growing disciples within the context of a local church; and with the help of local partners, we found a church and city where the local pastor wanted us to come and where there was a clear need.' It's just that most of the time that's a bit of a mouthful and if we're all on the same page with what being 'called' means, it's easier just to say 'called'.

But the nature of overseas Christian service means mixing and working with other believers, both national and foreign, who are from different Christian circles to us. And so when I say 'called' they may have the same understanding as I do or they may be thinking about promptings, still small voices, etc. 

As a result, while I may still use the term 'calling' with certain groups of people, for most of my conversations here I've taken DeYoung's advice and dropped the word 'called'. I found I still needed some kind of term to describe succinctly how we ended up here though. So I use the word 'brought'.

God brought us to Turkey. God brought us to our current city.

Using this language has several advantages. Firstly, it is not the word 'called'. It is the terms 'called', 'call' and 'calling' that seem particularly associated with still small voices. By using a different word, those immediate associations are avoided. And as a more concrete term, it removes the possibility of talking about 'calling' as an abstract or unrealised feeling. Secondly, it opens the way to talk about how God brought us here. It feels more natural and less intrusive to ask someone 'so how did God bring you here?' than it does to ask 'so how exactly were you called?'. 

Most importantly, it puts God, not us, centre stage. There is sometimes a tendency when talking about being 'called' to make it more about us than it should be; we heard the voice, waited for the sign, went through the open door. Others may say, "this is our calling". And when we feel the weight of being 'called', we want to see the fruit of our work, the evidence that we really were called. Returning to our home country can feel like failure and lead to questioning God - "but I thought I was called to this? Was there a mistake? Am I no longer called?".

But this is God's work and it's our privilege to play just a tiny part in it. God brought us here, therefore we can be faithful to the work and leave the results in God's hands. God brought us here and so he will sustain us when we'd be ready to give up and say it's just too hard. God brought us here and he'll keep us here for as long as he wants. God brought us here, so he can also bring us back to our home country if he desires.

God brought us here and we can trust in his goodness and sovereignty.