Untamed

Alan Hirsch and Debra Hirsch

Rick Warren writes in the forward of this book:

A generation ago an English Bishop ruefully admitted, “In the New Testament, everywhere Paul went he sparked a revolution. But today, everywhere I go, they just serve tea and crumpets!” 

“We’ve become tamed by tradition, captivated by culture, and controlled by our desire to fit in, not make waves, and never offend anyone. We’ve become domesticated instead of being discipled.”  (p. 8)

Alan and Debra have written an uncommon book about discipleship. Those in the know realize that discipleship books are a ‘dime a dozen.’ The Hirsches understand that discipleship has been one of the great failures of the church over the last 70 years or so. They have been inspired to come at the topic from a new vantage point, untaming domesticated believers to become followers of the radical, even wild Christ.

Alan and Debra believe in the church, stating, “When it is true to its identity and purpose, it is far and away the most transformative force for good in society. It must be, because when it is faithful, it is the most concentrated expression of the liberating Kingdom of God.” 

They have come to believe that we are never going to be the movement Jesus wants unless we first get the issues of discipleship right. This is because the health and growth of transformative Jesus movements are directly related to their capacity to make disciples. No disciples, no movement – it is that simple. (p. 17)

Jump to the blog page here and we will add more fuel on this fire of making disciples to renew the church.

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Alan and Debra point to possibly the greatest issue in this discipleship dilemma, “The Jesus software is not being downloaded properly into our lives.” (p. 19)

They say, “To be a truly radical disciple does require a relentless evaluation of life’s priorities and concerns, together with an ongoing rigorous critique of our culture, to ensure we are not adopting values that subvert the very life and message we are called to live out.” (p. 23)

Reggie McNeal makes a declaration that turns this evaluation, even critique, toward the contemporary church. It is not easy to admit something is missing in the Christian faith mode I have been a part of all my life, yet renewal can only come when we are willing to be honest. McNeal states, “Church culture in North America is a vestige of the original [Christian] movement, an institutional expression of religion that is in part a civil religion and in part a club where religious people can hang out with other people whose politics, worldview, and lifestyle match theirs.” (p. 23)

If this is the case at any point, it is a clear call for renewal in the church.