By Pastor Tee, Pastor of Outreach

This is the longer version of an article submitted to The Leader Magazine.  To read Part 1, click here.

Jesus, the Church and Branding
   Back to Jesus. From the time of his temptation and throughout the Gospels, Jesus resisted every effort to separate him from his Father (John 10:22-30). Although his critics tried to brand him with negative perceptions based on class (isn’t this Joseph’s son), his social nature (he is a glutton and a drunk) and association (being with sinners), he humbly stayed in relationship to the one true God in spite of the gossip and obstacles placed in his way.

   The early 16th century Anabaptists took a similar approach when challenging the Catholic Church’s monopoly on Christian expression that did not line up with Scripture. They believed Jesus’ words and rebaptized each other, lived in community by faith, engaged in foot washing, prayed for one another, etc. We know about them not because of their branding efforts but because they did their best to take Jesus’ words seriously as a community even though it meant persecution and death.

   Apostle Peter also took Jesus’s words seriously when he declared that Jesus is the Son of the Living God in Matthew 16:16. This leads Jesus to remind him that God’s essence makes the Father accessible to us through revelation. Jesus gives Peter a vision of how the New Testament church will be different from other communities in three ways:

1. We are under Jesus’ ownership.
2. The forces of death and darkness will not prevail against us.
3. We have earthly and spiritual authority.

   This is why our identity in Christ IS a reflection of God’s essence. This is our brand!!! When the church believes that the cross is the way back to community, peace and connecting to God, we will be at odds with our idolatrous society. Why? Because Jesus teaches us not to place our identity in material things (Matthew 6:25) and to worship God and Him only! Article 6 of the Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective reminds us that we were created for relationship with our Creator, to live in peace with each other and to take care of the rest of creation. So, we need to be careful not to force an identity crisis on vulnerable people by promoting the values of consumerism through our branding. Jesus warns us:

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.” Matthew 6:1

Expressions of Branding
   Empowered by the Holy Spirit, the mission of Oxford Circle Mennonite Church’s (OCMC) is to share in word and action Christ’s message of love that reconciles us to God and neighbor. We also have a nonprofit organization that serves our community to this end. By God’s grace, we have ministries that are attempting to express God’s essence to the church and community.

   Here are some ideas to consider about modern branding for your church based on Jesus’ life:

• Your vision and mission should be birthed from understanding your relationship to God. Churches often go astray when we forget who we belong to. (John 3:16; John 1:12)
• Understanding who we belong to reveals our purpose. (John 15:16)
• Knowing our purpose helps us understand how God wants to spiritually grow us in our context. (John 10:7-10)
• When we understand this, we are free to be who he designed us to be. (John 8:32,36)

   For the church, branding means nothing if we do not desire to be in relationship with God, embracing His essence and adopting a righteousness that goes beyond our pride, need for recognition and selfish pursuits.

   So, churches should avoid making the 3 C’s (Consumption, Comparison and Competition) how we express our ownership and identity. These are byproducts of American capitalism, not the Gospel. Jesus did not promise or endorse any of these capitalistic expressions as the way to God. Most of how he lived and what he said was the exact opposite. If we treat our Christian faith and Christianity as a consumer choice, then Jesus was a liar.

   A church can have a logo and brand touchpoints: website, branded merch and digital content. But let’s invite the Holy Spirit to do the heavy lifting and continue to reveal God’s essence to us through Christ Jesus. Over time, OCMC’s hope is that our branded items point to a Spirit filled Jesus community that desires its neighbors to see God’s essence inside of them to set them free. When Jesus sets us free, we are free indeed. See, that cannot be branded.

To see my design work, go to https://www.prophetiksoul.com