.4.3.3 Hermeneutical Challenges.
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Could it be that Matthew meant something completely different from the interpretation Warren placed on these two New Testament Texts? For Warren it was all about principles and a process. Is this what Matthew meant when writing these verses in chapters 22 and 28? It is interesting and also significant that the great commission of Matthew 28 had little interest to the New Testament scholars and it was not until the mid 19th century that scholars began to pay attention to this section of Matthews’s Gospel and then the modern missionary movement based its reason for existence upon it.
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John P.Meier[1] reflects on Matthew 28,There are certain great periscopes in the Bible which constantly engender discussion and research, while apparently never admitting to definite solutions. Matthew 28 seems to be such a periscope. While many interpretations of the `Great Commission` have been produced in book form, most writers would agree that these verses are pivotal in Matthew’s theology of mission.
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Some scholars have suggested that these verses are in fact Matthew’s manifesto for mission, Friedrich[2] succinctly suggests that, Matthew has, as if in a burning gas, focused everything that was dear to him in these words and put them as the crowning culmination at the end of the gospel.
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It could be argued that all that Matthew has been saying finds its fulfilment in these few verses. If that is so, is it then good hermeneutical evaluation to remove a few verses from their context to give foundation and even credibility to a 21st century ecclesiology? The debate here has to do with a selective hermeneutical and a critical appraisal of Warren’s interpretation. ...
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For Warren to work in this way, could it mean that he is giving to Matthew’s words a new life and meaning that was never meant to be? Can the context into which these words were spoken be totally ignored for the convenience of fitting into a 21st century missiological framework? Bosch[3] worried that the real meaning of the “Great Commission would be lost to the 21st century and that Christ’s words would deteriorate to nothing more than a slogan or used as a pretext for what we have already decided perhaps unconsciously it should mean”.
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Could it be that Warren unconsciously or consciously misused, abused the scriptures by interpreting them to suit personal preferences in his contemporary situation? Warren and the CGM, are heavily criticised for their classical church growth teaching which at times is anything but reformed or evangelical. The word of God is “the ultimate standard of faith and practice”,[4] while Warren believes this, yet he seeks scripture to validate his ministry as opposed to his ministry being the out working of scripture.
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Warren assumes “theology but ineffectively employs it to analyse culture, determine strategy and perceive history”.[5] Dr.Craig Van Engen, holds that because the CGM (Warren can be included here) lacks a sufficient ecclesiology, from a Christian position it cannot fully engage with culture.[6]
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Historical scholarship would suggests, that of necessity, Matthew 28 must be interpreted against the background of the gospel as a whole, if this does not happen then failure to understand its meaning becomes a reality and to do so would be to offer an interpretation which the gospel was never meant to have.
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Warren extracts five words which became his principles upon which his ecclesiology is built, “worship, discipleship, fellowship, ministry and evangelism”. As definitions have already been given for Warren’s three spiritual experiences, his four non negotiable doctrines, it is necessary to introduce definition for the five discovered principles.
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4.3.4 Reflective Evaluation.
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In discovering his principles Warren has satisfactory answers to his own questions; now in the light of the answers his search of scripture has yielded, he understands the church as seen by Dr. A. H. Strong[7] who defines the church of Christ, in its largest signification, as the whole company of regenerate persons in all times and ages, in heaven and on earth. In this sense, the church is identical with the spiritual kingdom of God; both signify that redeemed humanity in which God in Christ exercises spiritual dominion.
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Warren suggests that his investigation into the scripture was one of discovery and recovering the principles that governs health and growth of the church. Berkhof[8] reflects Warren’s understanding of the church when he says, the church consists of those who are partakers of Christ and of the blessings of salvation that are in him, unites men to himself, endows them with faith, and thus constitutes the church as his body, the communion fidelium or sanctorum.
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If Warren’s Ecclesiology is based on “rightly dividing the word of truth,”[9] can a direct line be established, between what Jesus had in mind for his community and the development of church in its more structured form by the Apostles? An investigation of Matthew’s gospel would suggest that Jesus was not interested in the idea of church as Warren understood it and we experience it today.
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The word “ekklesia” is only used on two occasions in the gospels; both references are found in Matthew’s gospel.[10] What ever may be argued about the legitimacy of these two sayings being included in the gospel of Matthew, what needs to be recognised, is that while Jesus spoke both these sayings he did not hang onto them in a significant way.
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Jesus continually preached the “kingdom of God has come,” [11] and that kingdom according to Jesus was both present and future, and if that is so, what bearing did it have and what was the nature of its influence upon the understanding of church? The answer to that question would help us to understand what influence the kingdom should have on today’s Christian communities. Recognising that not all the statements made about the kingdom apply to the church, could that affect the principles or choice of principles which Warren makes?
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For example when Jesus sent out his disciples, he informed them to preach the kingdom of God and the rule of God. kingdom preaching always returned people to Christ who in himself demonstrates the presence of that kingdom. In the New Testament “basileia” does not in any way indicate that disciples or others rule in the kingdom, the disciples are people in whom the law of the kingdom reigns and rules.
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This thinking introduces the concept of a community into which the rule of God’s kingdom reigns. With the coming of the kingdom of God, the community of believers who would inherit its power and proclaim its message. Is this what Warren suggests he has found in his principles? Warren reflects that, love requires community. We cannot obey Christ’s command in isolation. We have to be connected to each other in order to love one another.
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Being in community forces us to drop our relationship fantasies where everyone we know is easy to get along with and every conflict is resolved in happy compromise.[12]. If the Kingdom of God can be demonstrated in the lives of people in this way, is a differentiation between the kingdom and church of Jesus Christ really necessary? According to the New Testament the idea of community was in the mind of Jesus, particularly as we see him conducting his ministry against the backcloth of mission to enlighten Israel (his community).
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What then did Jesus mean when he used the word “ekklesia” in Matthew’s gospel and what relationship has it to his Great Commandment and Commission? If the use of “ekklesia” is an authentic inclusion in the gospel, Warren’s question needs a response, “Why does the church exist?”
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That of course is only known when you answer the question, “what is the church?” What did Jesus mean when he uses the word “ekklesia?” The origin of the word will give some understanding of its New Testament usage. In the LXX version of the Old Testament “ekklesia” is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word “qahal” meaning “the congregation of Israel”. The usage by Jesus of this word with its link to the LXX interpretation of the Old Testament refers to his disciples as a new community related spiritually to the Messiah.
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When Jesus used the term “ekklesia” he is not talking about an institution but of a “movement” of people spiritually linked to him and ever witnessing to others about him. There is a loose ness about this relationship, in that it is spiritually developed but does not have institutional hindrances.
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There is no reason to believe that the early church did not have this type of loose human structure as it enjoyed its spiritual inclusiveness. While structure may well be necessary on many levels, the sense of spiritual community comes to the fore and with that the idea that Jesus looked forward to the continuation of his own mission through those who would follow him. If the community existed in that fashion, what relevance had the two main passages, which Warren promotes as his foundation for service through the church?
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Matthew 22:37-40 according to Warren contains the first of the principles, which drive the process he calls the Purpose Driven Church. For Warren the life and hope of the 21st century church is to be found in these verses.. So what was Jesus saying that Matthew felt necessary to record in his gospel? A gospel written to Jewish believers who were estranged from their homeland, expelled from the synagogues and who were facing the future with the certainty of faith in Christ but the uncertainty of where it would take them.
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Matthew writes, When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. One of them, who was an expert in the law, asked him a question as a test: What commandment in the law is the greatest? He said to him, you must love the Lord your God with your whole heart, and your whole soul, and your whole mind.
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This is the great and the chief commandment and the second is like it, you must love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments the whole law and the prophets depend. [13] .In Matthew’s gospel the Pharisees are seen on the offensive trying to trip Jesus up but in an instant and in response to the devious ways of the Pharisees as they tried to protect their privileged positions, Jesus gives an answer, which could be construed as the perfect definition of religion.
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Love God and love your neighbour. For Jesus, religion could only begin and end in loving God completely. For the Jewish religious mind he answers by using the Old Testament and quotes directly from Deuteronomy 6:5, “Love the Lord your God will all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength”.[14] This verse is a portion of the “Shema”, a creed used in the synagogue worship services. It was a creed that every Jew would have known by heart.
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A creed that dominates thought, words and actions, it was the total commitment of the soul to God, the highest expression of love for the follower of “Yahweh” to make. This intense and complete love for God was the real measure of a man’s life and the real depth of his worship. To reflect such a love to God was to live in that place of worship. The church’s reason for “existing, being and doing” are summed up for Warren in the “Shema”.
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Warren’s seems to be directly affected by the way Matthew formed his Judeo-Christian theology. This developing theology seems to have captivated Warren’s ecclesiological thinking. In chapter 5 of his book, “The Purpose Driven Church” Warren begins to describe his five purposes for the church; the first two directly connect with the Jewish “Shema”.[15]Warren[16] suggests that all the biblical analysis that he carried out is encapsulated in these two vital passages in Matthew’s gospel and it was out of those two passages that he derived his five principles.
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Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind….Love your neighbour as yourself. All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments.[17] Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.[18]
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Whether consciously or unconsciously Warren and ultimately the development of Saddleback was heavily influenced by Matthew’s Gospel. It is also interesting that Warren has 5 purposes for the church[19] Matthew has 5 main teaching sections and out of the 44 main references used by Warren 25 of those references are taken from Matthews teaching sections. This could indicate that Warren is also following Matthew’s principles and process as he communicates truth to his new found Jesus Movement.
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Warren’s ecclesiology, hermeneutical interpretations, his theology of church growth and church health may be theologically acceptable but it counts for nothing if he cannot communicate it. Warren’s interaction with the New Testament and particularly Matthew’s gospel helped him discover his five principles of worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry and evangelism, but how to engage with his 21st century in a meaningful way would be determined by the process he would use.
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Warren’s five principles where the five purposes[20] for the church to commit itself to, he believed that Christ had ordained [21]that his church would be driven by them. Warren’s first principle is worship, “Love the Lord with all your heart”.[22]
[3] Bosch, TM, 56f.
[4] Engle & McIntosh, Evaluating The Church Growth Movement, 24.
[5] Engle & McIntosh, ETCGM, 25.
[6] Engle & McIntosh, Evaluating The Church Growth Movement, 24.
[7] Hawker L., Personal Theology Notes, Christian Doctrine 1&2, Quote Strong, 1975.
[9] 2 Timothy Ch.2:15.
[10] Matthew, Ch.16:18, 18:17.
[11] Matthew, Ch.4:19.
[12] Rick Warren, Better Together, California, Purpose Driven, 2004, 17.
[13] Matthew Ch. 34-40.
[14] Deuteronomy 6:5.
[15] Warren, The Purpose Driven Church, 103-107.
[16] Warren, TPDC, 102-107.
[17] Matthew, 22:37-40.
[18] Matthew, 28:19-20.
[19] Warren, The Purpose Driven Church, 103.
[20] Warren, TPDC, 103.
[21] Warren, TPDC, 103f.
[22] Warren, TPDC, 103.