This movement is based on a book by David Platt and is fashioned around “an idea that we were created for far more than a nice, comfortable Christian spin on the American dream. An idea that we were created to follow One who demands radical risk and promises radical reward.”
Again, this was a well-intentioned attempt to address lukewarm Christians in the suburbs, but because it is primarily reactionary and does not provide a positive construction for the good life from God’s perspective, it misses “radical” ideas in Jesus’ own teachings like “love.”
The combination of anti-suburbanism with new categories like “missional” and “radical” has positioned a generation of youth and young adults to experience an intense amount of shame for simply being ordinary Christians who desire to love God and love their neighbors (Matthew 22:36-40). In fact, missional, radical Christianity could easily be called the “new legalism.”
A few decades ago, an entire generation of baby boomers walked away from traditional churches to escape the legalistic moralism of “being good,” but what their millennial children received in exchange, in an individualistic American Christian culture, was shame-driven pressure to be awesome and extraordinary young adults expected to tangibly make a difference in the world immediately.
But this cycle of reaction and counter-reaction, inaugurated by the baby boomers, does not seem to be producing faithful young adults. Instead, many are simply burning out.
I understand Bradley’s concern, and we go back and share common concerns on many issues. He’s been both a participant in, but also a critic of, some of the missional conversation — particularly calling out those who do not engage real issues in the inner cities, etc.
This specific article was rooted in a conversation he had with a student and a separate phenomenon he observes: “For too many millennials, their greatest fear in this life is being an ordinary person with a nonglamorous job, living in the suburbs and having nothing spectacular to boast about.”
I too have seen this. As a professor and speaker, I encounter almost weekly a pastor or student “wanting to do great things for God” and thinking that the only way that will be accomplished is through selling everything and moving into a disadvantaged neighborhood for the sake of the gospel.
And while I wholeheartedly agree with Bradley that some are reducing a missional lifestyle to nothing more than legalism, there is nothing inherently wrong with living out a missional, radical faith. In fact, it’s what we’re called to. Shaming others who aren’t following suit is the issue. Not the lifestyle itself.
Ray Ortlund posted his thoughts on the charges of the legalism of missional Christianity this week on his blog. He wrote:
Whenever we put a qualifier in front of the noun “Christian,” we might be inserting legalism.
