Plumbing Theology

This Sunday at the BICF (an international church in Beijing), there was a great sermon by a Colorado Springs pastor who spoke on "plumbing theology." What he meant was that there are two kinds of Christians. Those who are "buckets" and those who are "pipes". Those who are buckets are those who just want to get filled each week. The gospel doesn't transform their lives, and there's an overall stagnancy to their spiritual life. Then there are the "pipes" (which are like buckets with the bottom blown out), who let God's living water run through them, who respond to the gospel, and transmit God's love to the people around them. The Pharisees- the spiritual leaders of Jesus' day- are like buckets- they follow the law precisely yet they would never do what Jesus would do- like hang out with the most despised in society- the tax collectors. The pastor refers to the prodigal son story and how through grace, there is no limit to forgiveness, that we need to care for the marginalized and welcome the lost, be the desperate and broken people that can be pipes for this generation.