Restoration Movement Q&A 3

Answers from Brian Lowery

Does the Restoration Movement Matter? Answers from Brian Lowery.

Brian Lowery works with Christianity Today International, where he serves as managing editor for Preaching Today.

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Do you feel as strongly about being a part of the Restoration Movement today as you did fifteen years ago?  What, if anything, has changed?

Fifteen years ago I was 15 years old. I can really only recall feeling strongly about pizza, getting my driver’s license, and whether or not “that one girl in math class” liked me. The Restoration Movement wasn’t exactly on my radar yet. However, I can say that 15 years later””after undergraduate work at Lincoln Christian College, graduate work at Lincoln Christian Seminary, and numerous ministry opportunities with Christian churches””I continue to be intrigued by the Restoration Movement, and I hold a tense loyalty to it.

 

 

Is your commitment to the Restoration Movement primarily doctrinal or familial, or both?

My commitment to the movement is not at all familial. There never was much talk at home about our family being a part of a movement of any sort. I never once heard my parents say, “If you’re a Lowery, you’ll be a part of the Restoration Movement.” Because of the appropriate perspective they fostered, I’ve never felt that I “have” to stick around for my family”s sake. If ever I left the movement, there”s never been any indication that they would be anything more than a bit disappointed with me.

With that in mind, I suppose my commitment to the Restoration Movement is a doctrinal one. Though I don”t think we differ doctrinally from most evangelical churches as much as we like to think we do””we have an eye on the same Christ as, say, our Presbyterian brothers and sisters””I do appreciate and elevate our doctrinal differences concerning matters of baptism, for example.

 

 

If you moved into a new town and there was a strong and growing Evangelical church, and a weak and declining Christian church, which would you likely attend?

This question begs thousands more in return for me to actually answer it, but I can see the essence of what’s being raised: would I ever be willing to attend an evangelical church?  If I’m to take two cherished slogans seriously”””Not the only Christians, but Christians only” and “In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity”””I cannot foresee why my wife and I couldn’t worship and serve within the context of a healthy evangelical church. Would we be uncomfortable with certain aspects of their theological framework? Certainly. I’ve got my own eschatological bent, but it doesn’t mean I can’t break bread with those of another stripe. I have personal convictions about the use of Latin in worship (as some practice in highly liturgical settings), but I’m not sure it makes me any more uncomfortable than when Christian churches tip their hat to gimmickry and use pop songs from the radio “to make seekers feel more at home.” Bottom line: if Christ managed to create harmony between Jew and Gentile, I think he can do the same among me and my evangelical brothers and sisters.

 

 

Do you believe the Restoration Movement is just as valid in a postmodern environment as it was in the environment of the modern age? Why or why not?

I don’t think the validity of the Restoration Movement rests on the shoulders of any particular philosophical system, but I do think the movement is discovering new opportunities in the postmodern environment. Our desire to establish New Testament churches under the banner of John 17 has the potential to set hearts racing. There are elements to our heritage that were missional long before it became a buzzword. Our effort to look back past Calvin or Augustine to the early church for a way forward was ancient-future before Robert Weber ever coined the term.

Nonetheless, we do face significant challenges in the changing world. In an age that wholly embraces deconstruction, we will often come out awfully American in our ecclesiology. It can also be a little off-putting that we are a relatively young movement that has sometimes arrogantly disregarded the traditions of others (as if millions of our brothers and sisters had been “way off” for close to two thousand years). As much as emerging generations may be enamored by us, they’ll also find reason to be a bit skittish.

 

 

How important are the ordinances of baptism and the Lord”s Supper?  Do you think your view on these two issues is more conservative than your parents (and/or your children), less conservative, or about the same?

I don’t think I’ll ever change in my views of the importance of these two ordinances, because of what I find to be taught in scripture. I also don”t feel that”s any different than where my parents land. I confess I personally tender my views on baptism with many of the same elements that Campbell expressed in the Lunenburg letter (and the subsequent letters or articles thereon), but I consistently preach and teach the beauty and revolutionary flavor of baptism whenever I get the chance. As for the Lord”s Supper, I tend to think we’ve trumpeted frequency at the expense of intensity, but I would still argue for a weekly observance.

 

 

To you, what is the most compelling element of the Restoration Movement?

I would have to say our past is what compels me most. The voices of our family tree have a fiery tone to them, and it thrills me to no end. In earthy, gritty ways, the Restoration Movement embraced a pioneering spirit that never flinched in challenging the settlers. With a bit of a wink and a nod to the convention”s 2008 theme, I”m not sure we”ve really been all that appropriately dangerous for quite a while now, but the earliest days of the movement tell me that we have it in us. I”m intrigued by the prophetic posture of our past as I try my best to find a way forward in life and ministry.