I was teaching a class of about 30 lay pastors. On the second day, one raised his hand and asked whether you could smoke and still be a Christian. I stopped what we were doing and led a long discussion on being saved by grace, not by works that you do or don’t do. The next day I asked this same individual, “So can you smoke and still be a Christian?” His answer? No, that’s not possible.
What was that all about? Was I such a bad teacher? I can understand better now after working with insights from developmental psychologist James Fowler. He distinguishes stages of faith development. The earliest stage is that of a small child who cannot distinguish the heavenly Father from a physical father. Another typical example is of school kids whose approach to life revolves around fairness. Let’s call this stage one: merit-based faith. This is where that lay pastor was stuck.
The next stage is recognized by mainline churches as confirmed faith: “I believe what my church teaches.” In earlier centuries most church members remained at this stage of confirmed faith because they ran into few challenges. Let’s call this stage two: confirmed faith.
We now live in a world where youth are overwhelmed with alternatives, especially in high school and college. We need now to focus on stage three: convicted faith. With the help of supportive pastors and campus Christian organizations, some mainline young adults do reach that new stage and come back to church life. Mainline churches that want to do well in this new culture will have to get better at helping youth reach this third stage. They should be asking, “How do we get beyond confirmed faith?”
Martin Luther himself offered a three-stage model that is very useful today. It appeared as an illustration in a sermon preached in 1521. Using the analogy of a sanctuary, he described a church yard conscience, concentrated on getting the rules of church life right. A nave (pew section) conscience characterizes those who are living faithfully but out of guilt with no joy. Progressing forward, those who are living with a heart changed by the Spirit have a chancel conscience. “Conscience” in classical theology describes what I call motivation.
Here is Luther’s ideal third stage: “When the Spirit comes, he makes a pure, free, cheerful, glad and loving heart—a conscience made righteous by grace, seeking no reward, fearing no punishment, doing everything with joy.” Getting to this kind of glad and loving heart takes the Spirit’s work. It is not a human achievement.
I propose this four-stage understanding of the faith-based relationship with God:
Stage One – Merit-based Faith
Stage Two – Confirmed Faith
Stage Three – Convicted Faith
Stage Four – Close-to-God Faith
With Luther, I believe that all those who confess Christ as Savior will have eternal salvation, whatever the stage of their personal faith. Jesus taught that unless you receive the kingdom as a child you will not enter it. The fourth stage is what the Apostle Paul described when he urged the Thessalonians to “be joyful always; pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances.”
A reasonable goal for a church pastor is to help participants move from Stage Two: Confirmed Faith at least to Stage Three: Convicted Faith. Congregations that stay at mostly Confirmed Faith are not going to do well in this new American culture we face. Some church leaders may want to take on the challenge of guiding believers further into the transformed life of Stage Four: Close-to-God Faith. One observation in stage theory is that individuals usually cannot envision anything beyond the stage ahead of them. Believers at stage two usually are not very interested in experiencing Close-to-God Faith.
Stages Three and Four are an opportunity, not a program. They are available only through the work of the Spirit as he builds individual Christ-centered relationships with other believers. Reaching Convicted Faith brings blessed assurance of who you are in this conflicted culture. Stage Four of living Close to God brings the life-affirming special blessings of the fruit the Spirit produces: more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Who would not want such abundant living here and how?
This is very helpful. I especially appreciate the insight that people have a hard time envisioning beyond the next stage. This sheds light on a lot of my pastoral experience. Blessings to you!
Thanks for the affirmation. Any suggestions on how we can spread greater awareness?
Spreading awareness of the various insights the Lord gives us is a problem we all seem to share. Putting out a blog as you do is a major first step that wasn’t available to us when I started in ministry. Guest blogging on each other’s blogs is a way of sharing our core insights with wider audiences. Of course there are the myriad “drive traffic to your site” suggestions available on the internet. The biggest thing, it seems to me, is to daily seek God for his guidance as to our part of getting his message out, and prayerfully trust that he will bring it to the attention of the people who need it. That’s how I approach what I’ve written.
Thanks. I will continue to do the blogs and hope the idea catches. Do you have any suggestions for phrases that catch better than faith development or closer to God?
Dave
I’m not the best person to ask about that. I do like “connect with God and make a difference,” but that’s more of a slogan than a keyword. There are tools out there that help you find the keywords people are searching for, and other SEO (search engine optimization) data.
Thanks. I will see what I can do.
Love these insights! Thanks for sharing. I’m sharing it with my staff and it will inform how we speak to our youth in confirmation as well as to the people in the pew. Very helpful!
Hi Dave,
I have been hoping pastors would share these observations with staff. If you want, send me their email addresses and I will put them on the distribution list.
Any thoughts on how to get spiritual faith development on the agenda of more pastors? It really presents a different way to see pastoral ministry.
I have been advocating here that confirmation classes be exposed to graduates who worked through the challenges of high school and college and came out convicted.
Hi Dave, I am still plugging along in service to the Lord and His People. I like what you have said here. People (saved baptized Christians) do move from stage to stage, if they stay plugged into the Lord and are open to His Spirit. Maybe they will then look at life with eyes of faith and spiritual insight and see things the way Paul suggests in Philippians 4. “4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness[d] be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned[e] and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”
Hi Larry. Thanks for the affirmation. It is hard to see how our heritage used these passages and never focused on growth in Christ or his Spirit. We never focused on the Spirit even though Paul refers to the Spirit 143 times. It is sobering to see how we all see with filters that block out a lot. Changing those filters is hard. That’s what I am trying to do. Any suggestions how?
I am a single woman in my 80-‘s. My husband passed away a few years ago. I am active in a good church — that took me almost a year to find after he went home to heaven. I live on Hilton Head Island in S Carolina. I keep up my home and yard men come in to take care of my Property. I decided to visit all the churches on HHI to see what was going on in all those churches. Nothing wrong – but not much in depth teaching of the awesome power of God’s Word. I am interested in what you might have to share with me.
Thank you for writing and sharing that you are on a spiritual quest. I am glad you have found a church that seems to work for you. Invest some of you time in what they offer. Growth can come through the fellowship with other believers. I hope you can discover and get to know others of your age and situation.
Do you have access to a Christian bookstore near you? There are many good Evangelical writers who have a challenging message to offer.
God bless you
Pastor Dave
Dave,
Thank you for sharing these insights! Not only are you giving practical and helpful teaching insights for the making of disciples, insights I want to pass on to church leaders and members but you are impacting me personally as I continue my discipleship journey rooted in my faith relationship in Jesus and empowered by the Holy Spirit! Thank you for using your gifts to enrich and equip us.
Jon,
Thanks for the affirmation. I am glad you are finding these blogs useful. I will send you the two collections of blogs in book form so you can distribute any blot you find useful.
How are your prayer workshops doing. I remember your time in Cleveland with us.
Dave