Skye Jethani, Dropped Jaws & Disagreements

I just finished Divine Commodity [affiliate link] by Skye Jethani. A phenomenal read–a must-read, even. But I got to a section of the book and after I read it, my jaw dropped.

Here is that section:

Pastors Tim Stevens and Tony Morgan encourage church leaders to “embrace entertainment” in their book, Simply Strategic Growth: Attracting a Crowd to Your Church. And like many others, their motivation is life transformation. They write, “We are about entertainment to the extent that it allows us to captivate the minds and hearts of those who don’t yet know Jesus.” To that end, Stevens and Morgan insist that staging an upbeat worship service is key. To infuse the proper level of energy they recommend “pumping up the volume . . . louder music creates more energy.” Temp is also important. “Songs that are upbeat and more celebratory in nature will generate a positive response from the congregation.” They also advise people on the platform to “practice looking happy” and “make sure you’re strategically using humor.” As the title of their book reveals, the reason for micromanaging the staged worship experience is to attract a crowd.

These pastors, representative of so many contemporary Christians, believe that God changes lives through the commodification and consumption of experiences. If our worship gatherings are energetic, stimulating, and exciting enough then people will attend, receive what’s being communicated, and be spiritually transformed. The justification for this approach is simple–people won’t come to a church that’s boring. And what qualifies as boring is defined by our consumer/experience economy. But the moment we believe transformation occurs via external experiences, the emphasis of ministry must adjust accordingly. Manufacturing experiences and meticulously controlling staged environments become the means for advancing Christ’s mission. And the role of the pastor, once imagined as a shepherd tending a flock, now conjures images of a circus ringmaster shouting, “Come on, come all, to the greatest show on earth!” In Consumer Christianity, the shepherd becomes a showman. (p.75)

I was shocked by the way that Skye didn’t mince words. It was refreshing, especially in Christian circles. Tim Stevens and Tony Morgan are two well-known evangelical pastors. But Skye saw something that troubled him about their beliefs and he wrote about it.

Brilliant.

I was more refreshed by the way that Skye challenged those with differing ecclesiological beliefs than what he actually stated. He honored these two men while simultaneously disagreeing with their fundamental approach to the way church should be done. Awesome.

That’s me. What do you think?

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Contributor: Justin Wise

I am a religious deviant who enjoys coffee, collared shirts, spending time with my wife and son, learning about quantum physics and creatively exploring the riches of the Spirit of Christ. Find more here: JustinWise.me
  • Lonnie Licklap
    Shouldn't any book titled "The Divine Commodity" at least be available as a free download?
  • Lonnie Licklap
    Shouldn't any book titled "The Divine Commodity" at least be available as a free download?
  • **Disclaimer: I haven't read the book yet***

    Each church must take the best approach to reach their community for Christ. Just because one approach doesn't match your approach doesn't mean you get to throw it under the bus in this manner. I'm not sure it helped his argument as well as the cause of Christianity. The point is that Granger is reaching a bunch of people, and the gospel is being presented. He boldly disagreed with Tim, but I wasn't impressed with how he handled it (as I've seen it so far).

    I have a lot of respect for Tim and his team, so this seemed like bad form to me...
  • chaseurlion
    A heads up to Tim and Tony would have been nice in this case. Better to voice your disagreements one on one with the individual(s) before putting into print for the whole world to see. I think it put Tim and Tony in a bad spot to have to hear about it and have everyone wanting a response so quickly. If there is a hug-a-thon then it needs to be videoed and tweeted.
  • There must be a hug-a-thon. That stuff is YouTube gold waiting to happen.
  • For me it's performance versus worship. I've not visited Tim Stevens or Tony Morgan's churches so I am definitely not implying this about their churches. (Although as a worship leader I have a lot of respect for the music team(s) at Granger. They are very gifted.) But I have visited churches (and watched video services) in which what happens on the stage seems to be more about the person and not about God. It's about feeding someone's ego for the sake of pride and performance and not about worshiping God and reflecting His light and love to the church. Sometimes the over-the-top production-heavy churches give me that vibe...sometimes not. It all depends. And at the end of the day, I can't judge someone's heart - only God knows what's happening on the inside. My hope is that we could all be nameless and faceless for the sake of God's glory.
  • Well said.
  • I'm feverishly taking notes. Tell me if I have this right--The proper way to honor someone whom you disagree with is to write a book, take the words of other pastors out of context (having never visited their worship service or spoken with them about it), never call or write to ask those pastors about that quote, and avoid any conversation about the topic even when spending an ENTIRE DAY with that pastor right before the book is published. Do I have that summed up correctly?

    And, can we all agree, it would be great if "more Christians would disagree in this manner" - AND - this is a "strategic and loving way to disagree and build relationships."

    Wow, what an interesting world we live in.
  • Tim,
    To respond to your comment (even though doused in sarcasm) I stand by what I said about disagreeing and building relationships. I don't feel the quote was in any way meant to tear you or your philosophies down. The way he disagreed with the approach to ministry does not seem to shoot down the ministry itself, to me. However, as you mentioned about him not bringing this up when you were together, that seems a bit shady. I can see how reading that comment in a book, when it was neglected face to face would make you question the critique.
  • Agreed.
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