“Business Casual”
Is the term which has been used for quite some time to talk about the occasion of dress for dinner or a business meeting. For men this “usually” means slacks with some kind of button down collared shirt. Others think this term should include a tie without a coat, or a coat without a tie. It simply coveys the ideas of dress being less than formal and more than casual. As for women, I have no comment. For the application of this term to them could possibly be undefinable this side of glory. As many of you well know, my wife enables me to dress most of the time. And we often don’t agree about dress-can you imagine that!
I think this term fits the context of our worship and community at Christ Covenant. Of course there is nothing casual about worshipping the one true living God who is altogether holy. For God is unapproachable, whom no one has seen or can see. But in every worship service of God, in any given context, our worship is mediated by Christ’s holiness and righteousness. We can never meet God where he is, He must meet us where we are. Our God is the God of the incarnation. Jesus came and put on flesh, but he also put on a certain kind of “dress”. He wore robes and garments that were fitting within the broader cultural context of Jerusalem . The bible tells us we could have never picked Jesus out of a crowd, and if we did, we would not follow him because of his appearance (Is. 52:12ff). God meets us because we could not meet him apart from the Christ who represents his people in heaven right now. Therefore, when we speak of “business casual”, we are referring to the place, or the culture, where God chooses to work among us in Hernando.I have observed in a brief time, but willing to be surprised, that Hernando is not laden with formalism, nor is it an entirely a casual place. This is the South of course. But many people come to our church with various dress, backgrounds, traditions, and from far off places. Therefore, our church is called to be incarnational among the people of DeSoto County, and among the peoples of the earth. This means we must “speak the language”, learn the customs, build the relationships, all to proclaim Christ to all men. We are always missionaries. Why else would Paul write, “To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some” (1Cor. 9:22). Of course, this passage applies more to lifestyle evangelism than worship. But may I suggest there are correlations to both, because there is always a context for both. God never works without either, whether it be in a the garden, in Israel, in the church, or in the city to come. God will be worshipped by all the peoples of the earth in various contexts. Paul writes, “There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:4-6).
Our church for the most part, in my humble estimation, could be termed as “business casual.” On Sunday if you look at our dress, sanctuary, order of service, music style and selection, you will see a reverence and awe for Christ, that is neither pretentious, nor is it presumptuous. We are neither overly formal, nor are we casual. This again speaks to last weeks blog on the issue of traditional verse contemporary designations. Of course, contexts change over time, and occasions in the life of a church demand rethinking. But for now may the term “business casual” describe something of the worship and people of Christ Covenant. But this is certainly not all that we are, or is this all we hope to be.
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