On Relevance

Something I’ve been thinking about lately. I’ve had past experiences with different types of churches that strive for cultural relevance in various ways, with varying results. Recently I’ve had some thoughts come to mind about this. What makes something truly relevant? The content or the context? Is a church relevant when it uses communication tools that are seen as connecting with the culture, or is it relevant when it communicates relevant ideas and truths? A combination of both?

Two points I’d like to make, which I’ll then elaborate on:

-The key to relevance is not in the means of communication, but in communicating truth and the Gospel, which are always relevant.
-Trying to be relevant will never work. Instead, we should strive to be who we really are, without any pretensions. Sincerity and genuine behavior such as that will be seen by others as being relevant, because people always need honesty and sincerity; furthermore, when we become who we were truly meant to be (that is, God’s light to a dying world), we are transformed into the very thing the people around us need most, and what does it mean to be relevant than to provide for a applicable need that people have?

I would propose that we in the church need a combination of both relevant context and content, but certainly more the latter than the former. I should say that I’m personally a fan of the use of technology and things such as modern music and art as tools to communicate the Gospel, but this is simply because I, as well as the majority of my church congregation, enjoy and feel a connection with these things in their own right. Thus it’s natural for me to use such tools to present Christ and Him crucified to others. But if a congregation doesn’t normally dig these things? In this case there shouldn’t be any pressure to utilize such resources in order to reach people. There’s a harmful belief circulating through much of the Church that an body of believers cannot be effective ambassadors for the Gospel in their community without being “cool.” While I certainly believe in presenting truth in the language of our culture (something that Paul felt was very important as well, as seen in 1 Corinthians 9, where he emphasizes the importance of becoming “all things to all men” in service of the cause of Christ), it is important that we use means of communication that are the most effective way to reach the people in our specific community, and not necessarily what pop culture as a whole deems as “trendy.” Playing Coldplay tunes in church is fine if your congregation, as well as potential visitors from your community, are edified (and not simply entertained) by this, but you shouldn’t be playing Coldplay simply because they’re on the top 40 or because they’re awesome. Playing Coldplay songs probably won’t work if the group of people God has called you to reach aren’t at all interested in that kind of music.

Furthermore, if you have to try to be “cool,” you probably aren’t. It should be natural, just part of your behavior already. Otherwise it’s forced and fake. If who you are as a person is not “cool” or “trendy” by our society’s standards (a relatively unimportant standard in Christian terms anyway, really), there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, and you shouldn’t pretend to be that way while preparing a church meeting. Unbelievers and believers alike would rather know they’re getting something genuine, even if it means not getting to be the “coolest” church on the block.

Ultimately, the most important thing to consider is that the teaching is relevant. This is still a bit of a loaded statement, as it’s possible to gleam a number of different possible scenarios from the intent to have “relevant teaching.” What I don’t mean are top-10 lists on how to live a better life or any other such works gospel-type teaching. I also don’t mean simply preaching about what people want to hear, or, again, what topics are the “in” subjects to be talking about in the church universal at the moment. What I mean is, simply, that we should preach the Gospel.

This returns us to my earlier point that the most relevant sermon at any given point in time will always be the one that is built upon the solid foundation of Christ and his cross–that is focused on the saving truth of the Gospel. This doesn’t mean, however, that every sermon need be a “salvation sermon”; that is, a message directly geared to unbelievers in order for them to accept Christ as king and savior. What it does mean is that every thing we preach (indeed, everything we do and say period, inside or out of church) must be filtered through the Gospel, for everything ultimately leads back to the cross. All that we have and all that we are is constructed on the knowledge that we were unholy sinners saved by undeserved grace, now saints that are daily further transformed into the likeness of Christ. Any topic that we preach upon, whether it be faith, hope, charity, the Holy Spirit, sin, anything–it must all point back to the cross as our sole source of strength, and serenity. All our power comes from Christ and his Spirit within us, given to us as a result of his cleansing work on the cross making us fit vessels (temples) for the Spirit of the living God. When we talk about faith, we must realize that our faith is in one place alone. When we speak of power in the face of doubt, we always remember that we are powerless without Jesus. When we preach of devotion, we make it clear that there is no higher cause to be devoted to than that of the Kingdom of God. Even if not explicitly stated, it is a truth that must always be understood if we are to see any spiritual growth in our life or impact on the world around us. Without the cross we find ourselves on shaky ground, nothing to support us or hold us up, and our faith begins to crumble in the piercing gaze of our sin and flesh. For only the crucified and risen Christ is strong enough to give us life, hope, and victory over that which once held us bound.