Michael L. Brown - Revolution in the Church: Challenging the Religious System with a Call for Radical Change

Revolution in the Church

Challenging the Religious System

with a Call for Radical Change

Michael L. Brown

Revolution in the Church: Challenging the Religious System with a Call for Radical Change

Copyright 2012 Michael L. Brown.

Kirkdale Press, 1313 Commercial St., Bellingham, WA 98225

http://kirkdalepress.com

A previous version of this book was published by Chosen Books (2002).

You may use brief quotations from this book in reviews, presentations, articles, and books. For all other uses, please write Kirkdale Press for permission. Email us at .

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-577-99529-6

Unless otherwise marked, Scripture is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Other versions used are:

KJVKing James Version. Authorized King James Version.

THE MESSAGEScripture taken from THE MESSAGE. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson, 1993, 1994, 1995. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

NASBScripture taken from the New American Standard Bible, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

NLTScripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Contents

On February 14, 2001 , the leadership team for FIRE School of Ministry in Pensacola, Florida, was meeting with Derek Brown, a dear fellow worker from England. As we were talking with Derek about our vision to see the Jesus revolution make an impact on our society, he made a simple but profound comment: Before there can be a revolution in the society, there must first be a revolution in the Church.

Of course! There must first be radical, change within the Body before we can bring radical change to the world. Dereks comment stayed with me, ultimately leading to the writing of this book. But not a single word was written as an exercise in abstract theology. The pages that follow reflect years of wrestling through the issue of what really constitutes the New Testament norm for the Church.

More importantly, these pages reflect the importance of actually living out these scriptural truths. That is where one is constantly reminded that talk is cheap, especially with the younger generationa generation that desperately wants reality, not hype. Not only must revolution be a subject of discussion; it must also be a subject of action.

Please take this book as my personal invitation to come along on the journey being undertaken by multitudes of believers across the world.

I hope you will find practical answers in these chapters, along with some fresh new challenges, since all of us at one time or another have probably done our part to promote what I refer to as the religious system, which exists wherever human ways take precedence over divine ways; wherever the will and wisdom of man are superimposed over the will and wisdom of God; wherever church traditions become more sacred than the clear teaching of Gods Word; wherever spiritual progress is thwarted by the flesh, however religious that flesh might appear to be.

I only urge caution to all who would challenge this system. It is costly and treacherous to go against the grain, since the moment we imagine ourselves to be Gods elite, last-days remnant, we have fallen into spiritual pride, which itself is an insidious part of the system we desire to change. Let us proceed with humility, then, asking the Lord to search our hearts first, to strip us of all religious pretension and to deliver us from bondage to dead tradition. Let the revolution begin with us!

My appreciation to Jane Campbell (she is the living embodiment of the word editor), for wholeheartedly embracing this project and pursuing its completion with excellence and enthusiasm. Thanks are also due to project editor Kristin Kornoelje for helping to ensure the quality of the work.

My profound thanks to the courageous FIRE communitythe leadership team, faculty and staff, the incredible army of students and grads, and to our community as a whole. The best is yet to come! Bless you all for not losing the vision. Bless you for believing the dream. And to Nancy, the joy of my life and my precious bride of more than 36 yearsI would not have made it this far without you.

On with the revolution! Jesus, lead the way!