Reflections on Chandler’s Gravity…

July 28, 2006 | 12:40 AM

I’ve known about Matt Chandler and The Village Church for about a year now. My friend Clint introduced me to the church and podcasts, and for a while Clint was an unpaid intern there. The other day, Steve McCoy implored us to listen to Chandler’s message from the Resurgence Conference this year. It was entitled Gravity: The Weight of Pastoring and the Knowledge of Christ. You can listen here or watch here.

I should explain that I’m not a pastor. I’m a 25 year old seminary student living in New Orleans. I’m not ordained, and it’s not expected in the near future. I have no flock, per se. It’s just me.

But I’ve seen things. And I’ve been a part of things. And I learned very quickly in my Christian life that the Enemy is alive and well within the Church and (s)he sits on the front row. In case anybody has wondered why I’m so blunt sometimes, it’s because of that. I want to echo some of the points Chandler made in his message that resonate strongly within my heart.

1. It’s really hard to preach the gospel to people who think they’re already Christians. People who DO have just enough Jesus in them to be inoculated to the Gospel itself. People who you can point at and say aren’t doing the right thing, and they just say “Amen!”

2. Betrayal WILL occur. I remember toward the end of my time at a specific church back home, I was betrayed not only by a close friend but also by total strangers. People I’d never met. People who barely spoke to me. Cut so deep.

I’d tell you my own war stories, but I don’t know that it’s important to do that. What I do want to say is that Chandler addresses a lot I haven’t seen or been through yet. And you absolutely must listen to or watch his message. If you are a pastor, I am absolutely begging you, like Steve, to listen or watch. You probably aren’t alone in your situation. You’re not alone. Go listen.

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