I’m currently reading Brian Mclaren’s The Secret Message of Jesus which is an interesting read. It’s the first of his books I’ve read and he makes a number of interesting points.
As I’ve been reading, I’ve found my thoughts going off at a tangent at times as something Mclaren writes triggers another idea! As this blog is first and foremost a place to record my thoughts excuse me if this makes no sense!
The earliest Christians were of course known simply as “Followers of the Way” and for them it truly was a way of life rather than a set of rules to restrain life. It wasn’t about a life controlled by the fledgling Church, but instead was about freedom to follow the way of life that Jesus had lived and taught.
If we lived lives that mirrored this understanding then maybe our churches wouldn’t be emptying at the rate they are. We shouldn’t be concentrating on the eternity that comes at some point in the future, but on the new life that came at our point of conversion.
I agree completely that this book triggers idea after idea. I don’t know if you have read McLaren’s latest book but it is a retelling of Acts. It discusses more about the Followers of the Way and it has essays from others like Chris Seay and Tony Jones. I thought it complimented Secret Message. Just thought you’d like to know. I found it on McLaren’s site. The link is http://www.hearthevoice.com.
Thanks for your comment Jonathan, and sorry for the delay in responding. The whole Hear the Voice idea looks very interesting. I might just order some of the material to see what it’s like.