I like to view Christianity as a compelling parade marching through culture.
It is nothing like the kind of parade you’re imagining right now – a 4th of July parade or a Thanksgiving Day parade. Those parades pale in comparison to the parade that is led by Jesus Christ.
I never really liked parades. They never could satisfy me the way I wished they could. Yet nearly every major holiday thousands of people line the streets to watch parades full of marching bands, floats, politicians, little league teams, and those old guys on their scooters with the red hats. If you’re lucky you might witness a cool drum line or an impressive float design. At best, you’ll walk away with a pocket full of tootsie rolls and bubble gum.
In all the parades you’ve sat through have you ever experienced something amazing to the point that it’s compelling?
How many times have you sat curbside at a parade waiting for something grand to happen?
Not too often do we experience something coming down the street that makes a lasting impact. Most parades are uninspiring, monotonous, and forgettable. Yes, I never really liked parades, but not all parades we experience are the ones that are led by fire engines and police cars.
Whether it’s a product, an experience, or information, there is always some sort of parade that is clamoring for our attention. Yet, within all those parades seldom is there anything that delivers on it’s promise to satisfy. And just like every parade, the hype is built up, we set our lawn chairs curbside, we hear the sirens in the distant, and we wait.
But then nothing compelling happens.
The world often sees the Church marching as a parade through culture with their own bells and whistles. Most of the time, however, all they hear is resounding gongs and clanging cymbals. They do not see or hear the good news of Jesus Christ. The very followers of Christ fail to present the reality of the compelling message of the gospel. Herein lies the tragedy.
The mission of this blog is to be a part of the compelling parade of Jesus Christ. This parade has been presenting a new reality that has exploded with great impact on the hearts and minds of people for nearly two thousand years. This parade proclaims a message of hope. It is a message that defies the conventionality of culture. It preaches a compelling reality that has the power to untangle the mind from mediocrity and superficiality. The banner that is carried in this parade reads, “It is finished.”
This blog discusses what it looks like to encounter Jesus and the compelling parade and to join with Jesus in the compelling parade. This parade is still marching through culture. You’re able to sit in your cubicle at work, on the front porch of your house, or in your car on the highway and encounter this compelling parade. There are no boundaries to its width, there are no limitations to its depth, and each and every soul is designed to be a part of this parade. We were created to be compelled.
When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law. – Matthew 7:28-29, after teaching the Sermon on the Mount
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