No Need to Leave This Party: Where We Are as a Denomination
Author: Mark Fenstermacher
March 25, 2022
There have been major stories in the news about a start-up denomination called “the Global Methodist Church.” What is going on?
The Wesleyan movement—which we at First United Methodist Church are a part of—began out of a passion by a small group of people in 18th century England to share God’s love with all people in ways that would transform the world. The early Methodists (they were method-ical about the disciplines of worship, Bible study, prayer, service, giving, and small group life/accountability) changed England and spread like wildfire across the American frontier.
Early Methodist preachers, preaching out of the Bible and speaking in plain language, called people not only to personal salvation and holiness but also confront injustice. At the heart of the Methodist message was a stress on the love of God for all, the fundamental concept of grace, and a belief that the Bible is a living word meant to be interpreted in every age with the assistance of the Holy Spirit. What does a text mean for us today? What is the core truth of scripture? What is the way of Jesus and how do we live that out today?
Recent news reports about the May launch of something called “the Global Methodist Church” has raised some questions among our church members about why this is happening and what this means for us as a local congregation.
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First, the why. For more than forty years we have had an on-going debate in the United Methodist Church about how we read the Bible. This debate has centered around questions of homosexuality, but down deep this is about how we interpret scripture.
I was a delegate to General Conference in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Fort Worth: I have seen this debate up close and personal. And, in my own life and study of scripture, I have to come to understand that when God makes all persons—whether heterosexual or homosexual—God pronounces them (see Genesis) “good.” Our own congregation decided, several years ago, to be an open, welcoming, and affirming congregation. It was a courageous and faithful decision, I believe, grounded in the commandment of Jesus to love as we have been loved. We have been exploring more and better ways for us to live out the love of God for all.
Those forming the Global Methodist Church believe homosexuality is a sin, and read the Biblical texts more strictly. (Of course, Jesus says nothing about homosexuality but he repeatedly addresses the question of divorce.) Some of their leaders are people I know, and they are taking this step because of the repeated delay (due to COVID) in convening our United Methodist General Conference (a once-every-four years gathering of elected lay and clergy delegates from all over the world).
My hope and prayer is that those who leave and those who stay in the United Methodist Church will remain brothers and sisters in Christ, cooperating in every possible way. I trust that God will be able to use those who leave and those who stay, and that the seeds of the Gospel will reach every corner of the globe through the efforts of each denomination (and other Wesleyan groups like the Free Methodist Church, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, etc.).
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What does this mean for us at First UMC? At this point there is nothing we need to do. There is no vote we need to take to remain a congregation of the United Methodist Church. In other words, there is no need for us to leave the party of redeeming grace that John and Charles Wesley, Jacob Albright, and Martin Boehm got started in England and on the American frontier.
We have a wonderful Lead Pastor coming to us in Rob Barton, and our challenge is not to be distracted by denominational chatter but to keep our focus on making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
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We believe that the Bible is the inspired printed word of God, and that in these 66 different books written over hundreds of years we are introduced to the deep truths of God. Some texts, we believe, are more important than others. For example, most Methodists do not believe that the texts prohibiting the eating of shellfish, the wearing of garments made out of mixed materials, or the ones approving the stoning of rebellious children and adulterers to death reveal as much about God as does John 3:16 or the great early Christian hymn found in Philippians 2.
In a wonderful article written by Steve Harper, which you can find here, you will find more substance about this than this brief article I have written. Steve is a highly respected conservative Wesley scholar, and he gets at the heart of this moment in the life of our denomination.
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In the 9th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus and his disciples are saying things and doing things that shock respectable, scripture-grounded Jews. Jesus tells a paralyzed man that his sins are forgiven (scripture teaches that only God can do that). Jesus calls a tax collector to follow as a disciple, and then the disciples and their teacher joined a party where they rubbed shoulders with all sorts of rascals. This also shocked the religious folks who believed scripture made clear that this behavior was way out of bounds. Finally, Jesus and his disciples are criticized when the scriptures encourage fasting.
Jesus points out that you don’t put new wine in old wineskins, but you put the new wine in new, flexible, expandable wine skins.
The wine of God’s love must go into new containers, is adapted to fit a new day and new situations, the Carpenter is teaching us. The central message doesn’t change but the way it is lived out and shared always is changing.
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Something new is being born among some of our brothers and sisters in Christ. We, however, don’t need to leave this party of God’s redeeming grace for all. We will continue to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world, believing that when Jesus invites all to come the Carpenter means all.
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- Join us for worship this Sunday at 8:45 and 10:45 (in-person or online) as we explore one of the greatest chapters in the entire Bible. This may be the best story ever!
- Order your “Rise’N Roll” goodies by March 28 to help support our Alaska Youth Mission Team.
- Put the “Trivia Night” on your calendar for April 2 and sign your team up by March 27.
- This coming week a short piece by me will be published by Christian Century magazine. It’s the third or fourth time this Chicago-based periodical has included a piece I have written.
Grace in Christ,
Pastor Mark
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