Kingdom Conspiracy: Returning to the Radical Mission of the Local Church

by Scot McKnight

we need to shape church life into kingdom gatherings by enhancing opportunities for fellowship. How can we do this? Small groups that don’t overdo the Bible study or theology study dimensions but include generous times for sharing life. Potlucks or social events for the whole congregation. I grew up in a potluck church, and not that long ago I was invited to speak at a church in the heartland of America—Pekin, Illinois—and it began with a potluck. Kris and I loved the weekend, and for us the highlight was the potluck! Sure, it brought back old memories, but it also created space for us to talk with the folks to whom I’d be preaching and teaching the next two days. Some churches develop dinner fellowships where folks mix with those they don’t know just to get to know one another better. Before we go too far I must say a word for the introverts among us. Churches tend to magnify what appeals to extroverts and ignore what appeals to introverts, and surely the very proposal of more social events can scare what remains of a social desire out of the introvert. So some may prefer the quiet evening instead of the potluck, or the smaller group with someone more trusted than the random gathering of Christians. Maybe the final kingdom will calm down the extrovert and excite the introvert into social fellowship. With this sensitivity in place, let us remind ourselves again that the future kingdom is a fellowship of God and God’s people. If that is the u-topia, then our attempts to bri...

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