Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 4
Dean describes the church as “people called and born again… coming together to live out the teachings of Jesus,” like “a little embassy of the kingdom of heaven”; what would need to change in your congregation for outsiders to plausibly see it as an “embassy” rather than a religious club or social identity?
Another way to ask: What would need to change in your church so outsiders could honestly see it as a picture of God’s kingdom, not just a religious group?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
According to the transcript, outsiders would see the church as an “embassy” when it becomes a community of the “called and born again” that visibly practices Jesus’ teachings together, rather than relying on cultural membership or a state-church mindset. The credibility comes from lived obedience—showing “what it would look like” if people followed Jesus.
- Dean contrasts state church assumptions with Anabaptist beginnings: the church is not simply society religiously organized, but “people called and born again of Christ.”
- The purpose of gathering is practical: “coming together to live out the teachings of Jesus Christ.”
- He uses the embassy image: believers are “ambassadors living in the embassy of the kingdom of heaven,” demonstrating kingdom life to the world.
- He says the early radicals broke with Protestants because there was “no putting into practice the actual teachings of Jesus.”
- He emphasizes Jesus’ teachings as present and world-changing: “they’re for today… they’re beautiful and they’ll change the world.”