Building the Kingdom Through Socks and Cigarettes January 5, 2007
As missional people, we are all familiar with the term contextualization. It is one of those words that we embrace and hang our ecclesiastical hat on but, as is often the case, we may have difficulty defining it. As an exercise, quickly jot down your definition of contextualization. It is harder than you think. The best definition I have found is:
“Contextualization is the work of presenting and practicing the Christian faith in such a way that it is relevant within the surrounding cultural context” (read the full article here)
Once it is defined, one must make an effort to be contextual. This is less black and white. Being contextual means adapting. It means to live in a constant state of tension. The more I meditate on what it means to be contextual, the more I am willing to let the term remain full of question. Let it remain in the spiritual gray area, while the unyielding, so-called orthodox theologians draw their lines in the sand and forcing the kingdom of God into a neat and tidy little box—a box which unfortunately never allows any one out or, even worse, in.
I read this great passage recently in Rick McKinley’s excellent book This Beautiful Mess. Beginning to see the world around him through the lens of the Kingdom of God, McKinley describes a paradigm shift experienced by he and his friends in their ministry to the lost and broken. God worked in their heart to show them a way to bring the gospel to the forgotten: God taught them to be contextual. McKinley writes:
“…no flashy programs. But with God’s help, we were beginning to embark
on a new way of being and seeing the world. A new way like socks and cigarettes for example.
Our group started passing out socks and cigarettes to the street youth of Portland. Hundreds of kids living on the streets were confronted with the kingdom through socks and cigarettes. The socks and cigarettes met needs, spoke their language, announced that someone cared and showed them that in the kingdom of heaven, no one is a throwaway.” (p. 52)
I understand that you are reading this passage out of context (no pun intended) but what is your gut feeling about their approach? Do you feel a little strange about it? What if next Sunday your pastor announced that your church was going to start a ministry to homeless street youth and the tool they were going to use to gain credibility and trust was to hand out cigarettes? Would you feel self-righteous indignation (after all, we know that Jesus doesn’t want us to smoke right?!) or would you see a bigger picture? The bigger picture of the story of God’s redemption that He wants to tell through you in a context that, in McKinley’s words, speaks the language of the culture.
As I sit and write this, I am at a Boys and Girls Club sponsored skate park sitting at a picnic table. Along with my 8-year old son, there are about 50 kids, all seemingly 12 and under, skating the ramps and rails…and as I look around I am the only parent here. Not an adult in sight. I can have two responses—I can shake my head in disgust and curse that my city is falling apart because our youth are lost and have no parental guidance. Or I can use this as an opportunity to be a glimpse of the kingdom, if even to just one of these kids. I won’t hand them a tract, invite them to my church (yet) or take them down the Romans road. No, I will meet them here on their turf and talk about skateboarding. I’ll talk to them about their music. I’ll talk to them about whatever they want to talk about. I can get to know them and their names. I can learn about their families, where they go to school, and what level of Tony Hawk Project 8 they have reached. Maybe it will all lead to nothing (in my eyes at least)…Yet my heart knows that even if none of these kids ever darken the doorway of a church, God loves them and created them. I know that there is a Savior who died and has taken away the sins of the world. Will they ever taste the sweetness of the gospel and be a participant in His kingdom like my son and I have the privilege of doing? I can pray for that. I can pray for God to use me in making that a reality. I can pray for God to show me what my socks and cigarettes will be, not just here at the skate park but wherever I go.
What about you? Take a look around you—the kingdom is happening. Don’t be a bystander and watch it go by. Grab whatever the socks and cigarettes are in your context and start handing them out.
- Posted in : Uncategorized
- Author : T.Berroth
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