In Remembrance: John Wimber

It's been ten years since John Wimber died. Sam Storms, who knew John personally, writes a thoughtful remembrance. I never knew John personally, but was deeply impacted by his writings.

Wimber was a firm advocate of "the radical middle" between charismatics and evangelicals. While many of the things that would occur in a Vineyard context under John's leadership would be clearly described as "charismatic" by even the most casual observer, John also held strongly to the evangelical emphasis on Scripture, and also grounded everything in a hands-on, "doin' the stuff" authenticity of touching peoples' lives.

Many will recall that John was vehemently against hype and showmanship which characterized (and still does) most charismatic ministry; John was all about being low-key and "normal", even when praying for healing. We often heard the word "authentic" in Vineyard circles long before it became part of the new lexicon of buzzwords for the emerging/missional church.

John stressed ministry to the poor very strongly; if there was any observation/criticism that I had in my early days as a Vineyard pastor, it was that too few Vineyards actually followed Wimber's teaching and example; few had any ministry to the poor, and too many opted to emphasize the spectacular and developed a culture of hype.

One of the things I always appreciated about Wimber was his analogy of not "trimming the bush" too quickly; John would allow the "bush" to grow for a season, not jumping to immediate conclusions about different streams or emphases, but allowing it a chance to produce some fruit. Then, if things appeared to be getting out of sync with Vineyard beliefs and practices, he would "trim the bush" (think: Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship).

At times, this would land Wimber and the Vineyard into hot water (think Kansas City Prophets), but I respected and still respect Wimber for trying to remain open and teachable, although also still willing to take action when necessary. And, in reference to the KC Prophets, Wimber would later state that it was a mistake to embrace some of their teachings, and that it had gotten the Vineyard off-track.

Wimber's "Vineyard Genetic Code" was simply:

• Clear, accurate, Biblical teaching
  
• Contemporary worship in the freedom of the Holy Spirit
  
• The gifts of the Holy Spirit in operation
  
• An active small group ministry
  
• Ministry to the poor, widows, orphans and those who are broken
  
• Physical healing with an emphasis on signs and wonders as seen in the book of Acts
  
• A commitment to missions and church planting at home and world missions abroad
  
• Unity with the whole body of Christ with a healthy relationship with other local churches
  
• Evangelistic outreach
  
• Equipping believers in areas such as: discipleship, ministry, family, finances, and serving.

Wimber's books, most notably Power Evangelism and Power Healing, are powerful statements of the necessity of the present power and ministry of the Holy Spirit in the growth and expansion of the Church. I'd recommend giving them another read, or picking them up if you've never read them before.

The Wheels Fell Off?

Busy morning in the graphics department here, with so many Journeymates changing the look of their blogs. I managed to come up with some reasonable link graphics for the newest looks from Bob, Len, Jamie, Grace, Jason, Makeesha, Cindy, John and Pernell, but I decided to leave the Tall Skinny Kiwi as is, because he's ALWAYS changing the look of his blog, and for some reason, I really like the button I made awhile back.

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Brother Maynard emailed a few of us this morning with a picture labelled "Charismatic Movement: Then and Now", and it got me thinking.

UPDATE: The original artwork was done by Jon Birch, and his whole blog is a treasure trove of "blog art". Check it out!

Let's just go with recent history (last 30 years or so), and apply the first picture as representative of the Jesus Movement of the late 60's and early 70's. If we use that as a reference point, then the Shepherding Movement and/or the Word Faith Movement could be seen as the reason the wheel fell off and they are now metaphorically in "the desert".

This might represent what's happened, cuz I can't imagine the Spirit being stuck in the desert with us, except...

...I really don't believe that the Spirit hasn't noticed that the wheels fell off. I think He's more interested in seeing the wagon train keeping up than we are.
To take a hopeful view of the future, perhaps this graphic represents the Post-Charismatic dream: (1) recognize the genuine fruit of the move(s) of the Spirit in the last century, (2) recognize the genuine excesses and abuses that have caused -- for many -- the wheels to fall off, and (3) move into a more charis-missional direction that avoids the problems of recent years, and follows the late John Wimber's advice: "take the best and go!".

And if we take a longer view, based on the cycles of renewal, consolidation, institutionalization, and renewal that we see throughout church history -- the routinization of charisma -- perhaps it will look more like this:
Have the wheels fallen off the Charismatic Movement? I'd say you could easily argue "yes", if you take into account authoritarian leadership styles (more properly called "spiritual abuse"), aberrant theologies like Word Faith (a thinly-disguised justification for greed and consumerism), and the casualties that these have produced by the hundreds and thousands.

However, the greater problem is not the existence of these twisted views, as damaging as they have proven to be, it is the refusal to deal with the abusers, usually under the spiritually-bankrupt idea of "unity at all costs" (because "unity" is where God commands a blessing according to Psalm 133:1-3).

As long as the issues aren't dealt with by people willing to stand up and challenge the errors, choosing instead to ignore blatant abuses because of some false understanding of "unity", the Spirit will continue to move, but we may find "Ichabod" (the glory has departed) written over a few doors.

Ten -- Twenty -- Thirty -- HUT!

Sorry, it just kinda reminded me of a football game... which is a perfect segue to remind everyone that the Winnipeg Blue Bombers won the semi-final yesterday. Look for Big Blue in the Grey Cup in a few weeks! Yeah, baby!

I was tagged not so long ago with the infamous "10, 20, 30" meme, which shows (A) that I'm a sucker for these memes, and (B) further confirms that I'm old, because I remember the "30" part just fine, and I wasn't in diapers at the time.

And just for fun, I'll do multiples of five instead.

1. 30 years ago I became a Christian at an old-skewl high school crusade; despite being raised in a good Christian family, it took me a few years longer than more spiritually sensitive people like, say, my little sister, to "get it"
   
   
2. 25 years ago, I began my studies at Providence College
   
   
3. 20 years ago, Wendy & I graduated together from Providence College; me with a Bachelor of Arts in Biblical Studies, and Wendy with a B.A. in Christian Counseling, and we were all gung-ho about a future in pastoral ministry (and working alongside George Mercado for six years will always be a highlight of having a good pastor)
   
   
4. 15 years ago, Wendy & I had our first "CLB" (Church Left Behind) experience, as we were shafted out of our first pastorate for being "too Vineyard" (no link this time -- why invite more abuse?); in some ways, I don't think we ever really recovered completely from that experience
   
   
5. 10 years ago, Wendy and I left Vancouver Island after seven years, and crashed head-first into the wilderness known as "detoxing from church".
   
   
6. 5 years ago, Gary Best (Vineyard Canada National Director) referred to me as an "ecclesiastical anarchist" during one of the keynote sessions at the pastors' conference in Regina, followed by the question "Is McAlpine on drugs, or is he on to something?"; judging by the reactions of those attending the conference, it appeared about a 50/50 split on how people would answer that one.
   
   That was my last ever Vineyard conference, although to this day, I remain very Vineyard in my theology, and my understanding of the Kingdom of God.

One thing I can definitely say, though: "God is good, all the time, and I trust Him even if I don't understand."

Grace Moves On

No, not God's grace. (Insert heartfelt sigh of relief here)

Emerging Grace. She's been assimilated into the Wordpress Collective, and is now blogging at Kingdom Grace. Update your links accordingly, as Grace (she will continue to blog under a pseudonym) is a writer who blogs many posts that are thoughtful and inspiring, questioning and challenging.

Although I will miss the bio pic of her feet... It gave her original blog a certain sort of... air de mystère.

DTS Mid-Point

I can't help it -- I'm just really proud of these guys. They have been together now for six weeks of DTS, and despite being so incredibly diverse in cultural and language backgrounds (Swiss, German, Canadian, Korean, and Fijian), they've become a team that works hard together, worships and prays together, and pursues serious fun together.

Here's a snapshot of their unique personalities and heart:
They rock. I'm glad to be a part of their lives in at this point in their journey(s).

Miscreants & Misfits

Not so long ago, I had someone come up to me, with the question of how I would "envision apostolic ministry in the 21st century" on their mind. As I've been part of the Vineyard shoal in the larger charismatic pond for the better part of two decades, it's not a question I take lightly. At the same time, it can also be a "run screaming into the woods" type of question, as well.

Although, I must confess that I'm somewhat surprised at the assumption most people seem to make about apostolic ministry – namely, that it involves a pretty powerful anointing coupled with a position of respect, authority, and people submitting to you.

I can't help but think of St. Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 4 regarding how he was treated by people – and if anyone could confidently assert his/her genuine standing as an Apostle (which I don't believe 99% of those currently trying to posture themselves as modern-day apostles have any claim to), it would have to be the man formerly known as Saul of Tarsus.

"But sometimes I think God has put us apostles on display, like prisoners of war at the end of a victor's parade, condemned to die... Our dedication to Christ makes us look like fools, but you claim to be so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are so powerful! You are honored, but we are ridiculed." (1 Corinthians 4:9a, 10 NLT)

In this passage, where Paul is belabouring the point that elevating one human being over another is a sign of spiritual immaturity and "worldliness", Paul makes it look like being an apostle in the biblical sense is that last “position” anyone would want to aspire to.

I remember someone breathlessly asking a friend of mine, "what does it feel like to be an icebreaker, breaking new territory for the Kingdom?" After a moment's pause, my friend responded, "It FEELS like I'm strapped TO the icebreaker, getting my face mashed over and over."

"Even now we go hungry and thirsty, and we don’t have enough clothes to keep warm. We are often beaten and have no home. We work wearily with our own hands to earn our living. We bless those who curse us. We are patient with those who abuse us. We appeal gently when evil things are said about us. Yet we are treated like the world's garbage, like everybody's trash — right up to the present moment." (1 Corinthians 4:11-13 NLT)

Let's see what we’ve got so far…

• hungry and thirsty
  
• not enough clothing
  
• enduring beatings
  
• homeless
  
• working hard at manual labour
  
• cursed
  
• abused
  
• slandered
  
• treated like garbage…

The New International Version ends this passage with the phrase "we are the scum of the earth..."; why anyone thinks that being "apostolic" means power and prestige is completely beyond me.

So, when asked how I would "envision apostolic ministry in the 21st century", maybe it was a Holy Spirit moment of inspiration behind the immediate answer that came to mind:

"Remember St. Francis of Assisi? Picture St. Francis, walking barefoot in the snow, followed by a small band of brothers, also walking barefoot in the snow, on their way to serve the poor in some village. That's how I would 'envision' apostolic ministry in the 21st century."

We went on to have a great talk, late into the night, about re-envisioning the five-fold ministries (not "offices") of Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, and Teacher through the lenses of a Servant Motif à la Philippians 2:5-11 and John 13:1-17.

Who knows? He may yet become another miscreant with an apostolic bent, but hopefully he'll never equate it with an ivory tower and a cushy job description!