A Nodding Head Does Not Equal a Heart that Says “Let’s Go!”
What do people mean when they nod their head “Yes” in agreement? It’s not as clear cut as one might think. Here’s an episode that helps us crack the code.
Peter has just visited the house of a gentile as instructed by God, according to Luke. (Acts 10)
Like many leaders his actions provoked an outbreak of criticism.
FIRST the uncircumcised believers in Jerusalem criticize him:
“YOU went into the house of uncircumcised men and ATE with them.” (Acts 11.3)
THEN, to their credit, they listen to Peter’s story:
“Peter …explained everything to them…” (Acts 11.4)
NEXT, they celebrate in God’s goodness and affirm Peter’s actions:
“When they heard this they …praised God.” (11.18)
This is where a lot of leaders trip. Just because they praised God doesn’t mean they now went and had pork chops with their gentile neighbors. The head that nods “Yes!” does not equal the heart that says, “Let’s go!”
What seems agreeable in concept often times turns out to be disagreeable in practice. Seeing where we need to go is one thing. Going there is another.
But let’s be grateful. At least they were moved to rejoice and became “deeper in the faith”. By “deeper in the faith” I mean perhaps just as useless in the faith but at least less of an obstruction to those who follow the gospel where ever it leads them.
Thus, FINALLY, most of them (probably) stayed home and did nothing about it:
“…telling the message only to Jews…” (Acts 11.19)
This last quote speaks of the those who had been scattered by the persecution. Those critics who had stayed behind in Jerusalem — don’t critics always seem to stay behind — most likely would have experienced even more pressure in the ancestral Jewish home to maintain the cultural and religious boundaries.
Now we get to the heroes:
“SOME OF THEM, HOWEVER…” (Acts 11.20)
Another place leaders trip is mistaking the “nodding heads” for “beating hearts” and expecting them to have “moving feet” (that is, feet that the apostle Paul would describe as “beautiful feet”, the kind that would be taken by the gospel where it wants to go.)
These “SOME” –as distinguished from “most of them” perhaps? — busted across the boundaries of culture and shared the gospel with the Greeks. They were an unstoppable force of “galloping horsemen” and “marathon women” announcing good news to the world.
Are you a church leader or a church planter that is trying to turn “nodding heads” into the “SOME OF THEM”? Maybe, instead, you should join the “some” and leave the happy and praising critics behind. They will be happy growing deeper and deeper in the faith until they burrow a hole so far into the earth’s interior they will never see day again. So tell them to go to their happy places, then take the ball of the gospel of Jesus Christ and smash through the wall that keeps the world enslaved in darkness.
Tags: Church Planting Central, General News, missional leadership
