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Taking a Look at "The Irresistable Revolution" PDF E-mail
Written by Jaime Gibbs   
02/05/08
by Jaime Gibbs
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The Irresistable Revolution by Shane Claiborne.  Have you read it?
 
The back cover says this, “…a movement of the Spirit that begins in the heart and extends through our hands into a broken world.  Using examples from his own unconventional life, Shane Claiborne stirs up questions about the church and the world, challenging you to live out an authentic Christian faith.”
 
Shane has had some pretty unbelievable experiences in his life, such as living with Mother Theresa and the lepers in Calcutta, helping the homeless in Philly, and playing with children in Baghdad as bombs fell.  He raises some very good- and oft uncomfortable- questions about what it means to follow Jesus.
He makes this statement on page 64,
 
“…we decided to stop complaining about the church we saw, and set out hearts on becoming the church we dreamed of.”  He continues to say, “We dreamed ancient visions of a church like the one in Acts, in which ‘there was no needy persons among them’ because everyone shared their possessions, not claiming anything as their own but ‘sharing everything they had’.  We knew we could end poverty.  The early church did, and the homeless families were doing it.  We thirsted for the Kingdom of God… We were not interested in a Christianity that offered these families only mansions and streets of gold in heaven when all they wanted was a bed for their kids now.  And many Christians had an extra one.”
 
A few pages later, he also shares something that Mother Theresa would often say to him, “We are called not to be successful but to be faithful.”
 
This book has radically changed my thinking.  What DOES it mean to be like Jesus?  To be His hands, feet, body?  To allow His Spirit to truly reside in me and do the work that He would do?  Besides telling me what I must initially do to inherit eternal life, what does the Bible say about living like Jesus?  What does that look like?
 
Personally, I have grown weary with the institution of church and the glorified title of being a “Christian.” But that doesn’t mean I am going to abandon the church or Christianity.  Claiborne makes the comment that “…church is like Noah’s ark.  It stinks, but if you get out of it, you’ll drown.” Recognizing something is wrong is the first step toward changing it.  If you’re frustrated, like me, then great!  At least we’re not numb to the gentle workings of His Spirit in us.
 
 I just want to be like Jesus.  For too long, I have been worshipping Him and telling others how great He is, but not really becoming like Him myself, not being his hands and feet among the poor and the hurting.  He’s not a celebrity or hero that we can look at and praise from a distance.  We must let Him really live in us, consume us, and be the reason why we do what we do.  And what do we do to be like Him?
 
Can people really see Jesus in me?  Or am I just a part of the fan club?

 
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For more info on Claiborne’s book, check it out here on Amazon.  I also recommend reading Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller, especially the four chapters on Church, Community, Money, and Love.