Jacobs Well | Revolution in Jesusland

Jacob’s Well, Kansas City November 12, 2007

Posted by Zack in Missouri | 4 comments

After months on the road, we set up a home base in Kansas City. We’ve been here for most of the last two weeks and I really love it.

Just in our neighborhood, I think there are at least four old church buildings that were built way back by mainline denominations, but are now inhabited by non-denominational churches.

Jacob’s Well is just a few blocks away. It began in 1998, and now fills its large, classic, Presbyterian-built sanctuary three times every Sunday.

Elizabeth and I attended the evening service last night. These people are HIP. Really, I was intimidated. Such cool clothes, hair, tattoos and attitudes. But these are Christian hipsters, and so they were really nice and welcoming.

The founding pastor of Jabob’s Well is Tim Keel, who is also one of the leaders of the Emerging Church movement. He’s been teaching the book of James for twelve weeks. Last night, we caught the closing sermon in the series, which focused on James 5:1-6:

Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing you.

You could hear a pin drop after he read the passage. He asked the congregation for reactions. Several hands went up. Tim seems to be on a first name basis with his entire church, and called on folks one by one. Reactions varied:

“I don’t like it.”
“It makes me angry.”
“It’s so mean.”
“I think James has a tunnel that he’s writing through to our time.”

It is in these sermons, on the most difficult parts of the Bible, where I see God. Because how else can you explain why relatively affluent churches would find themselves struggling with—and applying to their own lives—the words of ancient revolutionary Prophets and defenders of the poor and oppressed? I’m serious. Try to come up with a good explanation that doesn’t involve supernatural forces for that. I’d like to hear it.

Tim was gentle in how he introduced James’ hard questions for those with wealth, but he allowed no escape. He said that James was speaking here not to rich people, but about rich people to poor people. He was speaking about land owners who exploited the community who he was speaking to. So what’s the message for you if you have wealth? You need to use that wealth in service of the poor, in service of justice, in service of building a better world.

So what are the implications for us middle-class Americans who live in the top few percent of worlds income earners?

Tim focused on consumer choices—who is making our stuff? Workers in poor countries. Are they being exploited? Yes, extremely. What do we do about it? Make different choices.

He introduced Advent Conspiracy, that the church will be participating in. It’s a national program for churches to change the way Christmas is done—refocusing it away from giving junk that will break to giving funds for essential infrastructure to people living in extreme poverty. Advent Conspiracy deserves a post of it’s own here—coming soon. I don’t know who started it. Could have been Tim, now that I think of it. Typically, the web site offers no clues. Wouldn’t want to TAKE CREDIT for something, that wouldn’t be Christlike.