In the 4th Chapter of Luke’s gospel, we hear a story about Jesus’ first sermon, given in his hometown of Nazareth. Quoting from the prophet Isaiah, Jesus says:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because he has anointed me
        to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
    and recovery of sight to the blind,
        to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

In those few lines, Jesus summarizes his mission in the world. A mission of justice and liberation.

But if that’s Jesus’ mission, and the church is meant to be the body of Christ in the world, why has the church become so complicit with systems and structures that exploit and objectify?

And as the American church especially continues in decline, why does it view silence in the face of injustice as its key to survival?

Are we missing a prophetic moment?

This week at New Wineskins, we’ll discuss a video from The Work of the People featuring Dr. Barbara Holmes, who calls out the church’s tendency to “go along to get along,” and we’ll ask ourselves how we can rise to the prophetic opportunity before us.

Join us this Sunday, Jan. 23, in our New Wineskins Virtual Pub for a conversation about being prophetic in the face of of the fear and denial gripping the modern institutional church.

6:00pm EST: Happy Half-Hour (informal meet & greet time)
6:30pm EST: Presentation & conversation begin

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