May 28, 2004
To the Elders, Deacons, Teachers,
Evangelists, and Members of the
Denver Church
of Christ:
It was He who gave some to be apostles,
some to be prophets,
some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the
body of
Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith
and
in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining
to
the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves,
and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning
and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking
the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the
Head, that is, Christ. 16
From him the whole body, joined and held together by every
supporting ligament,
grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
(Ephesians
4:11-16)
______________________________________________________
For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of
yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with
sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given
you. 4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these
members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we
who are many form one body, and each
member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according
to
the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use
it
in proportion to his faith. 7 If it is serving, let him serve;
if
it is teaching, let him teach; 8 if it is encouraging,
let him
encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let
him give
generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if
it
is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. (Romans 12:3-8)
______________________________________________________
There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are
different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different
kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. 7 Now
to each one
the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8
To
one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to
another
the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to
another
faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by
that
one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy,
to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking
in
different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation
of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit,
and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
12 The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though
all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13
For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or
Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
14 Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15 If
the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not
belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to
be part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an
eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease
to be part of the body. 17 If
the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If
the
whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in
fact
God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as
he
wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would
the body
be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!"
And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" 22 On the
contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are
indispensable, 23 and the
parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And
the
parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while
our
presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has
combined the
members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that
lacked it,
25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that
its parts
should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one
part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one
part is honored,
every part rejoices with it. 27 Now you are the
body
of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28 And in the
church
God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third
teachers,
then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those
able
to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking
in
different kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are
all
teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all
speak
in tongues? Do all interpret? (1 Corinthians 12:4-30)
______________________________________________________
I grew up in the Churches of Christ
as a child. As a young adult
I attended the Boulder Church of Christ and was baptized in 1981, and I
was one of the original team members to help plant the Denver Church of
Christ (DCC) in 1986. I have seen many things go on in the
church. I have been a faithful follower of Christ for many years
and am grateful God granted me salvation through the gift of His
Son. I met my husband at
DCC and we had our children during our time here. I have had the
privilege
and honor of serving as a leader here in a few different capacities
over
the years because different individuals believed I could serve the
church in this way. I have been incredibly blessed to have
obtained my Master’s degree in Counseling from Denver Seminary over the
last three years.
Since being a part of the Denver
Church of Christ over the past 18
years, I have supported many teachings and concepts and have accepted
them as true and right, blindly and without question. I am
ashamed to say that I have acted on some of these teachings that have
turned out to be harmful to
others, such as being inflexible to the needs of others, harsh in
discipling others, dogmatic in my evangelism, and prideful in thinking
the International Churches of Christ were the only movement God could
possibly work in, bless, save, etc. Thankfully, God has molded me
and matured me (yes, matured!) in many ways and I think very
differently about many of these issues now and
try to conduct my life in accordance with those values.
For many years now, my husband and I
have been aware of many of the
issues that have plagued the church for years, both externally and
internally. We have not solicited people’s opinions about these
issues, but many across
the country and around the world have voiced these concerns to my
husband
for several years now. We have tried to speak the truth in love,
we
have encouraged many to persevere and to pray for changes, we have let
people
know where we stand, both in Denver and outside of Denver, and, most of
all,
we have loved the church. When Henry Kriete’s letter came out,
myself
and others felt hopeful that for perhaps the first time in many years
the
church would take many of these issues to heart and important changes
would
be made in the heart of the church. Many of the older Christians
were
eager and hopeful for more biblical study, theological depth, and new
direction
in the church. Unfortunately this was short lived and with some
of
these proposed changes came new challenges as well. Many people
have
reacted out of confusion and fear, both leaders and non-leaders, to the
various
issues on both sides. Both sides have misinterpreted and both
sides
have misrepresented each other (i.e., “discipling”, “evangelism”,
“accountability”).
On an individual level, we know some of the leaders at DCC and they are
terrific people who love God. On a leadership level, though,
there seems to
be a resistance that comes through with changing our paradigm and
accepting input from older members.
For years I have been concerned about
the foundation the “movement” has
been built on. While “being committed” and being a “disciple” are
good
and right things, they cannot replace one’s relationship with God and
the
grace of forgiveness through Jesus. One of the major problems in
the
foundations of the International Churches of Christ under Kip McKean
and
under Chuck Lucas has been a very unhealthy and unbiblical role and
authority
of the evangelists. The evangelists have been given way too
long
of a “leash” and they have been exalted in unhealthy ways. I
cannot
find this exaltation of the evangelists in the Bible! In fact, I
see
the gifts of many people necessary to mature the body of Christ.
(Romans
12:3-13, 1 Corinthians 12:4-13:7, Ephesians 4:11-16) Perhaps this
is
why the Denver Church is still so stunted in its growth, but this is
just
my opinion. This dynamic still appears to be present in the DCC
today
even with the elders in charge. This has hurt countless members
throughout
the years and is an unbalanced, unhealthy model of leadership to
continue
to follow. Personally, I believe this is the number one reason
for
many of the problems in the church in the past and present. While
many
older Christians have expressed their concerns, the evangelists are
protected
at all costs, regardless of the damage to the older members. It
seems
that if people “encourage” the evangelists then they are picked to be
deacons
or leaders or “special” people. John and I have always tried to
steer
clear of kissing up to leaders in any way, yet we have been accused of
isolating
ourselves.
The evangelists have very little, if
any, training in the Scriptures or
public speaking. Yet, week after week members must endure their
flat
and self-centered sermons. The evangelists seem to think that the
members
are bad and they must be convicted of how bad they are in every
sermon.
The evangelists come across as though their words are weightier than
the
Bible’s! Teaching directly from God’s Word is more
than
convicting and more than enough to get us to heaven! I've
failed
to see the spiritual benefit of being yelled at during sermons to pray
and
to have more faith. It seems to me that perhaps the evangelists
need
more faith and prayer! Some members don’t want to come out of
Kid’s
Kingdom to hear the sermons. Some have walked out of sermons to
go
pray because they couldn’t take it any more. Some have told us
they
have not been happy at church for ten years or more. Many people
have
wanted the town meetings, but the leaders seem to be scared of them.
The
beauty of the town meetings was that leaders had to look at the truth
of
things rather than go along acting as though they had everyone figured
out.
Are leaders interested in the truth or just protecting their
egos?
Older members in the congregation
generally feel disregarded for their
“opinions”, perceptions, and general life experiences. Many of us
have to endure the “opinions” of those who lead us and that without
much Scriptural backing. Regular members, mostly older
Christians, have not had their needs met for so long, although they
have voiced them for years, and even more so over the
last few months, but to no avail. Many are looking elsewhere, on
a
quest to grow spiritually, and wanting to be useful for God.
Evangelists have been free to stand in the pulpit and ridicule those
who are older in the faith (those who think they are “mature”) rather
than finding out what these backbone members have to bring to the
table. What will the church do when most of the more “mature”
members leave? Who will you lead but
only those who do not question the leaders or the ways things are done?
My husband and I have heard about
many things said from leaders and
members in the church about those who have left the church in the past
few months to find healing for their tortured souls! Things have
been said like “stoning those who left” (jokingly, of course),
“Some in the church
are false brothers”, “We got rid of the squeaky wheels”, “We can’t
change
for just a few”, “If anyone wants to leave, let them leave!”, or “I’m
glad
they’re gone!” A new
command I give you: Love one another. As
I
have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know
that
you are my disciples, if you love one another. (John 13:34, 35)
Where is the love for your brothers and sisters who are struggling in
their
faith?
This brings me the issue of how the
leaders have labeled people “good
heart” or “bad heart.” What is a “good heart?” “Why do
you call me
good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--except God alone.” (Mark 10:18)
And yet, this congregation has taken it upon itself to label who is
good
according to how they may serve particular people or leaders in
particular
ways. This is ungodly and damaging to all members, including
those
doing the serving. It seems that when someone disagrees with the
leaders,
now they also have a "bad heart".
When some members left a few months
back, many remaining members were
in shell shock, dazed and confused about what happened. Some
encouraged the leadership several times to meet with the South region
to just talk and pray, but this was never done. Many innocent
people had their faith
damaged by this lack of caring for their needs. Is this how you
would
treat your own children and families in a time of crisis and
turmoil?
You turned your back on many hurting people and did not shepherd
them!
Personally, I think an apology for not tending to their needs better
would
go a long way in healing people, but again, that is only my opinion.
Why have so many older Christians
across the country left the ICOC to
go
to area Churches of Christ or local Christian churches for
healing?
Why have many felt shut out by the elders and staff across the
country?
Something is not right. John and I have been repeatedly told how
much
people appreciate the way we have expressed our issues. We have
trusted
some in leadership, but we have not felt trusted. You want us to
trust
you, but you will not trust us! This too does not add up.
We
feel exasperated! Fathers,
do not exasperate your children;
instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
(Ephesians 6:4) I wonder if
this applies to elders leading
the church as they would their own families.
My husband has been a Deacon of
Teaching but has been shut out by many
of the leaders in the DCC. When he has suggested trying to come
up with a basic Statement of Faith for the Church and looking at things
with more
theological depth, he was regarded with mistrust and was part of a
special
meeting by the elders and evangelists to find out what his intentions
were!
He has not been able to use his God given talents and passion here in
this
church because of the huge amount of mistrust and control by the
leaders.
How long has he been a member here that people do not know his
intentions?
He has not been able to even give a communion talk or anything
for
months on end, while other deacons are able to. We can see
something
is up. My personal opinion is that some evangelists feel
threatened
by him. Someone recently asked an elder whether we would have
more
involvement from the teachers, including John in particular, and the
comment
was that the teacher up North was being used and we would see what
Chris
Reed wanted to do in the South! The elders have said they want
different
perspectives, and yet we have felt very shut out when we have expressed
different
perspectives. We are mistrusted for speaking up. Gordon
Ferguson
used John as an example at the teacher’s workshop of someone who was
brave
enough to speak out, even before Golden Rule Leadership and the Kriete
letter,
trying to encourage other teachers to do the same.
My question is what is the crime here
of the older members? What
are
we asking for? Deeper worship of God? Deeper Bible
study? More talk of God’s grace in our lives? More ways of
getting involved with changes in the church to help it grow and
contributing to the needs of
others? Yes, these are what we are asking for. None of this
resistance,
labeling, and ignoring members pleas even makes any sense to me or many
others
for that matter. Are these “bad hearted” requests? No,
rather
these are good and right requests for members who have moved into a
stage
spiritually of needing more depth in their walk with God.
While I understand leaders not
wanting to change everything around for
one or two people, but for the many, why not, if it is good and
right?
Many have already expressed their needs, many more will express their
needs,
and the younger members will when they reach our age. You cannot
always
have only young Christians to lead. This is our church and we
were
all baptized into the body of Christ. God has given elders,
deacons,
and evangelists authority in the church, but that does not mean that
members
have no part or say. You cannot say you don't need us or that
only
certain members are important.
While some can still grow spiritually
here in this congregation, I
cannot. I no longer feel confident that this congregation will
help me and my family to get to heaven. We must look elsewhere
for spiritual comfort and to
be fed by God’s Word. This has been a hard decision that we have
not
taken lightly or been hasty about, but rather have tried to wait and
were
eager to help things change, along with many others. I have tried
to
honor what my theology teacher taught many of us at school. He
encouraged us to not leave when we get discouraged with our
congregation, but rather to stay and help change things as long as we
could. John and I have done this to the best of our ability for
many years. We have always wanted good for this church and not
harm.
After much study, prayer, patience,
and talking with leaders about
these issues, my family and I will no longer attend this congregation,
but we will look elsewhere on our quest heavenward. God's church
is universal,
yet local; invisible, yet visible; and spiritual. God's church is
not
contained in a building or with any one congregation. Christ is
the
head of the church and He will do with it as He pleases. (Revelation
2:1-3:22) May God help us all! Even with all of our
frustrations and disappointments, we hope and pray God will bless this
congregation again in the future.
Patricia Engler
There
is a time for everything, and a season for
every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a
time
to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a
time
to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to
dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to
embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a
time
to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to
speak,
a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for
peace.
(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)
Link to John Engler's letter