Episode 151: Destroy Idols, Live in Truth, Make Christ Great - Stewart de Jong (Part 2)

“It’s a disgrace. Rather than honestly saying, ‘I have a problem with this and either correct me or I will try to correct the denomination,’ we have people who say, ‘I don’t agree with you, so I’ll try to have a display of unity while believing something entirely different from you.’ It sows distrust…corruption…and difficulty, if we’re not presenting the same gospel.” -Stewart de Jong

Summary of This Episode

On this episode of the Messy Reformation podcast, Jason and Willy are back with Rev. Stewart de Jong of Austinville CRC. The conversation focuses around two major topics: hospitality, particularly for evangelism, and a gravamen overture Stewart authored and was sent to Synod 2023. 

As believers, we recognize there is a divide between the saved and unsaved, but God doesn’t just put us here to enjoy the assurance of our salvation. Jesus commissioned his disciples to go and make disciples of all nations. Our desire should be for the growth of the kingdom, for more people to share the faith and hope that we have. A common theme in both parts of this episode is that we like to think or philosophize ourselves out of action. 

Pertaining to hospitality and evangelism, we can think of plenty of things standing in the way of doing it in daily life. One of the greatest reasons—excuses—is that we can’t do it just right or the house isn’t clean enough to have someone over. Stewart reminds us, though, “…Hospitality [is about] having a space to welcome people into our lives. Nothing has to be perfect.” Maybe our home isn’t the setting to invite others into, and instead find “neutral places or those already existing community grounds where we can have a low barrier for entry and can build relationships with people and present the gospel in its truth and beauty.” He shares Paul in the Areopagus as a model—he went where people were. 

Jason picks up on that point of not forcing ourselves in, but being asked to come and being faithful. He shares the idea, “We need to be willing to just be guests in places.” The church is used to being the host—welcoming people in, but “Maybe we need to start putting ourselves in…the position where we’re the guest in other places.” Jason and Stewart agree there’s a level of discomfort there, but that doesn’t make it bad. They share about different experiences in various cultures when it comes to where people are willing to converse. Churches and believers should intentionally look for opportunities to show up in those places in their communities. 

From there, the conversation moves on to Stewart’s overture, which had to do with addressing those who sign the Covenant for Officebearers but are looking for loopholes and exemptions. He paints the picture of a lawyer trying to get the most money for their client; isn’t that what some in the CRC are doing and ultimately building on sand? “It’s a disgrace. Rather than honestly saying, ‘…I have a problem with this and either correct me or I will try to correct the denomination,’ we have people who say, ‘I don’t agree with you, so I’ll try to have a display of unity while believing something entirely different from you.’ It sows distrust…corruption…and difficulty, if we’re not presenting the same gospel.”  

He offers three reasons why these people would want to stay. 1) They enjoy the comfort of familiarity. As Jason says, they want to be in the “Dutch club,” it’s the heritage they know. 2) They genuinely care for people and want to be instruments of the kingdom, but they’re sacrificing what the kingdom is to try getting them in. They’ll change what the church is or what the Bible says trying to be inclusive. 3) They philosophize and intellectualize Scripture and theology so much that faithful, organic (earthy), shepherding ministry gets left behind for academic rationalizations. Willy points out these are the folks who don’t contend for the faith but are most prone to compromise, which we should not condone or take part in. 

Jason expands on Stewart’s second point—it’s not just those outside, but those inside as well that pastors and church leaders care for and are trying to stick around for. They have a desire to shepherd, they love their flock, and leaving the CRC would mean leaving them behind. If they’re leading them astray, it’s not a good thing of course, but we can understand the pain and cost of the thought of leaving as a reason why one would look for loopholes and exemptions.

That brings us to the end of the episode and Stewart’s final words—He, and we, can’t do this work of shepherding or reformation on our own. We need the fellow leaders in our churches, and we need God to be at work. Remember John the Baptist’s words in John 3:30, “‘…He [Christ] must increase, but I must decrease.’” Rather than making ourselves, our unity, or our denomination great, “We should be seeking to make Christ great.”