Jared C. Wilson - The Prodigal Church: A Gentle Manifesto Against the Status Quo

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Jared Wilson provides a stern warning against the excesses of pragmatic approaches to church growth while reminding us that if the power of the gospel is not driving our ministries, we may build a crowd, but we are not building a church.

Thom S. Rainer, President and CEO, LifeWay Christian Resources

Jared Wilson paints a vivid picture of the grievous outcome of church centered on programmatic pragmatism instead of the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ. His critical analysis and probing confrontation, coupled with his personal encounter with grace, has the potential to bring the church to her senses and usher her back to our Fathers restorative embrace. The Prodigal Church is a desperately needed wake-up call.

Jeff Vanderstelt, Visionary Leader, Soma; Pastor, Doxa Church, Bellevue, Washington; author, Saturate

The Prodigal Church is indeed a gentle manifesto against the status quo. Wilson writes with humility, urgency, and true pastoral concern for Gods people. He pushes back against the consumerism and pragmatism so prevalent in twenty-first-century congregations, and points the church to something far superiorthe gospel of Jesus Christ. All who love the local church will benefit from reading this book.

Jason K. Allen, President, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and College

Jared Wilson writes that weve forgotten who the church is for. He rightly, and with a kind spirit, questions the status quo in this book. The church is not a consumer experience. Its not supposed to be a volunteer-draining, CEO-driven business. No, its much bigger, better, and more beautiful than that.

Brant Hansen, CURE International; storyteller; radio host; author, Unoffendable

Although I dont agree with all of the conclusions Jared comes to, he asks penetrating questions and lovingly argues as a man who deeply loves Jesus, the gospel, the church, and pastors. I am fully confident that what he has written here will save some weary pastors from burning out and will make The Village Church a healthier place.

Matt Chandler, Lead Pastor, The Village Church, Dallas, Texas; President, Acts 29 Church Planting Network

The Prodigal
Church

A Gentle Manifesto against
the Status Quo

Jared C. Wilson

The Prodigal Church: A Gentle Manifesto against the Status Quo

Copyright 2015 by Jared C. Wilson

Published by Crossway

1300 Crescent Street

Wheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law. Crossway is a registered trademark in the United States of America.

Cover design: Matt Naylor

First printing 2015

Printed in the United States of America

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture references marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added by the author.

Trade paperback ISBN: 978-1-4335-4461-3
ePub ISBN: 978-1-4335-4464-4
PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-4462-0
Mobipocket ISBN: 978-1-4335-4463-7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Wilson, Jared C., 1975

The prodigal church : a gentle manifesto against the status quo / Jared C. Wilson.

1 online resource

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

ISBN 978-1-4335-4462-0 (pdf) ISBN 978-1-4335-4463-7 (mobi) ISBN 978-1-4335-4464-4 (epub) ISBN 978-1-4335-4461-3 (tp)

1. Church. I. Title.

BV600.3

277.3'083dc23 2014048801

Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Once upon a time, there was a church that loved God and loved people but had a difficult time showing it because the image they gave of God was rather one-dimensional and so the way they attempted to love people was also one-dimensional. The church believed in a holy God, a just God, a vengeful God, and so they preached wrath very well, pushing the hearts of all who darkened the church doors with the imminent foreboding of their eternal damnation.

They did their best to scare the hell out of people, and when that didnt work, they cried and pleaded and begged. Wretchedly urgent, the church regularly reminded its people of the dire importance of obedience to God, of being holy as God is holy. And the church grew vividly aware, year in and year out, of the thou shalt nots of the Bible. And they came back for more, because guilt can be a powerful motivator.

But guilt is not a very enduring motivator, so as time went on and people grew weary of the burden of the law laid so heavily upon them, they began to drift away. Some had begun to suspect this churchs God was not quite love and that this God could never quite be pleased, so they stopped trying. But some kept trying, of course, fearful and diminished.

One day some brave soul gently suggested that the old way wasnt working. People could not be won by a God who seemed angry all the time, he reasoned, and in fact it made no sense to expect people to have interest in a God who didnt seem to care about their happiness. The God of the old way seemed so preoccupied with holy things that he did not care much for peoples everyday lives. Couldnt we make the way of the church more practical, more appealing? this person asked. The way we may see growth again, he reasoned, is to deconstruct the old way, remove the old barriers, and reassert that God is love.

So, where once the church emphasized Gods perfect holiness, now they emphasized his abundant love. Where once the church emphasized obedience, now they emphasized success. Where once the church emphasized sin, now they emphasized happiness. Where once the church focused on Gods demands, now they emphasized mans specialness and abilities. If we help people tap into their inner potential and remind them of how special they are, the church decided, and if we highlight how God loves them no matter what, people will be interested in church again.