“Why are you doing this?”

Last week I had a conversation with a middle-aged woman. She asked what I did and I told her about what we’re doing with Renew and how we’re attempting to be a blessing for the community. I mentioned Tim Keller’s statement: we are not trying to build a great church, but a great city, because when we have a great city we will have a great church.

At the end of the conversation she said, “You all are doing a lot for the community, which is great, but this is new for me. I feel like this is a pretty unique thing for a church to be doing. Why are you doing this?”
I told her that we are here to ask “How can we help?” in order to renew Lansdale physically, emotionally, mentally, culturally and spiritually in the name of Jesus. We’ve asked that question a great deal.
But from a biblical perspective, where are we getting this approach?
Why is this so important to our mission?

Why are we striving to be an advocate and an ally for the community?
Here are a few key verses that compel us to want to work for the betterment of our community.

(1) God’s heart is for the renewal of all things.
Genesis gives us the beginning part of the story of God at work, who sought to create a world to be inhabited by his creation. Sin entered the world, scarring all of creation. But the remainder of the entire Biblical story is God’s redemptive work – through Jesus – to bring back all of creation to Himself. All of it.

The Old Testament book of Jonah is significant in understanding this concept. This book is not a book about the Old Testament minor prophet, Jonah and his big fish, but about Jonah and his big God. The book paints a vivid picture of God’s inclusive, compassionate heart for people. What’s interesting is that the last line of the book God expresses his heart for all people – and even for the animals (Jonah 4:11b). The good news is good news to all of creation.
We work towards joining with God in the renewal of all things.

(2) Seeking the peace and prosperity of the city
Another Old Testament prophet, Jeremiah, who was banished to exile in the foreign land of Babylon, had these words spoken to him by God:
“Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” (Jeremiah 29:7) We strive for the welfare of our city – for its peace and prosperity. We believe when we do that we will have regained trust that Christ’s Body has lost over time.

(3) Sent-ness
One of the central themes of the gospel of John is that of being sent. If you do a word study on send, sending or sent you will notice that those words show up all over its pages. Jesus said at the end of his life, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you” (John 20:21) We feel sent out into the world in order to be a blessing, to be agents of change, to be vessels of renewal. We’re sent, not to start something new, but to join with God who is already actively at work in Lansdale. John also records Jesus saying, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.”

(4) Servanthood
John 13 details the significant event of Jesus debasing himself by washing the dirty, cracked and muddy feet of his disciples – something absolutely unheard of in the first century. After washing their feet he looked at them and said, “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you” (vv. 14-15). The example has been set. We strongly believe that we follow suit by washing the feet of our community be serving, not demanding power. If we do this, we live out the ways, values and priorities of Jesus. And that’s our goal.

(5) Moving into the Neighborhood
The poetic and striking language of the Message translation helps us have creative missional imaginations.
We’re doing what we’re doing in Lansdale to impact our ‘oikos’ (our circles/spheres of influence). Eugene Peterson translates John 1:14 this way: “The Word [Jesus] became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.” God dwells in our neighborhoods and as representatives and ambassadors of the Risen Christ, we are called to affect and impact our neighborhoods with intention, humility and compassion and seek out opportunities for renewal right where we are.

(6) How can I help?
The language of The Message is poignant when it comes to the role of every follower of Jesus to have a posture of humility and servanthood. Romans 15:2 says, “Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, ‘How can I help?’”
We want to continue to ask that question.
Would you like to join us helping to renew Lansdale?
We’d love for you to join us.
–J.R. Briggs