Church of the poor - Jesus Army

he poor
We learnt
from the
poor the
dangers
of the
conveyorbelt
of
status and
wealth
which is so
false
with us they’ve found they’ve enjoyed work as something
that’s very different from how they’ve seen “work” before.
Gradually we’ve seen the “taking, consuming” attitude
becomes a “contributing” attitude.
To put it another way: one of the most rewarding aspects
about the gospel is that with it we carry God’s power so that
“the losers” become winners. “Takers” become “givers”.
The early Salvation Army would bring some of the poorest
and most afflicted people into such powerful conversion
that two years later they were church leaders! We’re
dealing with a different culture – the drug culture and the
lack of industry culture and the resultant lack of self-respect
– but we find the same transformation taking place.
Because, as God’s people, we disentangled ourselves
from the values of the material world and all its falseness
it’s meant that the poor find a place with us. Because our
poverty is voluntary and intentional it carries credibility
among the poor. I guess we’re easy to relate to because
of our simplicity which means our basic standards don’t
present an ostentatious barrier. They find genuineness
among us. It’s come from a prophetic sight of the
falseness, the transience, of wealth, status and fashion. I
often think we’re more basic than them in a sense – some
“poor” kids we know can’t cope with our simple, wholesome
meals: they’ll stop at the shop and get Pot Noodles
before coming to lunch with us!
Our first generation paid a big price. That’s brought
us so far – nearly 40 years. And it’s my joy to see the next
generation is just as generally convinced of the need for
social justice as we were. We’ll continue to be a church of
the poor.
JL
• The first Jesus Fellowship
common purse was a teapot,
into which all its members
put whatever money they
had. It was set up by a small
group of people at a house in
Bugbrooke, Northants, not far
from the small Baptist chapel
where the 1969 move of the
Holy Spirit began.
• In 2008 there are 45 large
and 40 small community
houses, lived in by 515
adults and 130 children.
A total of 41 common
purses, each administered
by a common purse deacon,
receive the income of its
members and pay all the
bills for that individual
household. While each
common purse has its own
bank-account, the common
purses are all audited by a
central accounts office and
audited each year by outside
auditors. Have a look online
at www.newcreation.org.uk
www.jesus.org.uk
Jesus Life One/2008 Page 7