Risk-averse Christianity threatens the Gospel
In this short video Alan Hirsch questions the “risk averse” nature of middle-class, American Christianity, arguing that it “attenuates” the Gospel because the Gospel calls into question our desire for safety and stability. A risk-averse Christianity turns the Gospel into a “civil religion that really just affirms my lifestyle.”
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HT Brian Lilly
Posted on May 18, 2011, in Gospel, Pastoral Theology, The Church. Bookmark the permalink. 6 Comments.
scientia et sapientia 
John Wimber, the Vineyard guy, used to say, “‘Faith’ is spelled R-I-S-K.” What if church became a “dangerous” place again?
I’m sure he fills this out more in other places, but what exactly does he mean to make church riskier? It just sounds like the same tired tropes about how “middle class” and boring the church in America is. Maybe the editor of the video just framed it to look like it was an SNL skit…
I’ve run into Alan Hirsch through my work with Second Stories (secondstories.org). Alan’s a cool guy with a good head on his shoulders.
Whatever happened to Christian religion that challenges the very foundation upon which we build our lives, namely comfort?
@Pat – I’m not sure of the specifics either (the clip is definitely intended to be more provocative than explicative), but it still made me stop and consider the question. I do think my church (and my life) is often set up more to facilitate comfort and security than the kind of sacrificial living that you see in the NT and in the lives of many of our greatest Christian leaders.
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