We now come to the halfway point through this series on Pressure Points: Twelve Global Issues Shaping the Face of the Church. I have linked the previous posts below. 
We live in the instant. Human interconnectedness has increased across the globe. On our phones, we can get news of protest marches happening in Cairo, Skype with someone in Tokyo, and receive e-mails from Bangladesh—simultaneously. We move in the moment. A person can physically be anywhere on the planet within forty-eight hours. Safer and more efficient air travel, better road systems, and automobiles, trains, and boats have shortened the distances between the peoples of the world. Globalization has resulted in an accelerated, compressed, and intensive way of life for many. All areas of life including economics, religion, family dynamics, and education have been affected by this pressure point.
Solids to Liquids/Heavy to Light
Globalization can be described as a shrinking effect, whereby the social connections of people and organizations continue to become more and more tightly connected. In his book Globalization: The Essentials, George Ritzer uses a set of metaphors to understand the complexity of globalization. The first pair of metaphors describe globalization in terms of solidity and liquidity. Before the present age of globalization, matters related to people, information, and locations were solid and tended to be rigid. As a result of this hardness, people did not travel often, and ideas were slow to transfer from place to place.
The church needs to be aware of the blessings of innovation and technology that have been moving the world in a direction of liquidity. Great opportunities for global disciple making often arise as advancements come onto the scene of human history.
The second pair of metaphors Ritzer used to explain globalization is that of the world moving from being heavy to light. Industrial and pre-industrial societies were characterized as heavy. People remained in a location to farm land; they were difficult to move. The shipping of material goods often involved the movement of heavy objects at a slow pace and with much expense. Early books were often printed on heavy paper. The first computers were large enough to fill a room. Phone booths took up sidewalk space.
Implications
Though the church does not have control over the contextual issues that apply pressure to her, she is able to leverage many such pressures for kingdom advancement. However, while we have to live and move on mission in light of globalization, we must realize that globalization has brought with it many problems. While globalization is a force of change, the church must recognize that she is not to conform to any ungodliness that is found with this pressure. Rather, she is called to remain faithful in a rapidly changing, tightly connected, flat world.
Related to globalization is the global growing anti-Western sentiment. Correct or not, globalization–and its problems–has been equated with the West in general, and the United States in particular. In certain parts of the world, the nationality of United States citizens is a hindrance to global disciple making. We should not be surprised if such cultural barriers continue to grow toward those holding a U.S. passport.
We live in a flat world, one where the distant is near and the exotic is familiar. Unless present global infrastructures disintegrate, it is likely that the world will continue to shrink in the days to come. Technological, economic, and travel advancements will accelerate the pulling together of the continents into a virtual and practical Pangaea. Widespread contextual shifts demand that the church make wise adjustments to her missionary strategy in making disciples of all nations. While the truth of the never-changing gospel that was once for all delivered to the saints remains (Jude 3), wise stewardship involves methodological adjustment with the ever-changing contexts. In the days to come, the pressure of globalization will move the Church into deeper conversations and new actions related to the use of technology, business as mission, laboring among the diasporas, partnerships with Majority World churches, member care, and the integration of international and domestic strategies–just to name a few areas.
Pressure Points is set to be released July 16. You may pre-order it now HERE.
Pressure Point #5 International Migration
Pressure Point #4 Pluralism and the Plurality of Faiths
Pressure Point #3 Growth of the Majority World Church
Pressure Point #2 The West as a Mission Field
Pressure Point #1 Unreached Peoples
The Church and the Pressures of the Age
(image credit: Microsoft Office)
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