The Space Between Us: Moving Past Church Politics to a Shared Center
We would be wise to realize that our theology is the grammar, not the poem. Grammar is essential; without it, we have only noise. But no one falls in love with a grammar book. They fall in love with the story the grammar allows us to tell.
When we look at the landscape of church movements across our cities, it is easy to get bogged down in the grammar. We spend an immense amount of kingdom energy trying to define our specific lanes, protect our theological boundaries, and safely navigate our tribal differences. We look at other communities and instantly assess their machinery; their scale, their style, their structures. In doing so, we accidentally treat the city movement like a market to be segmented rather than a body to be knitted together.
But the telos—the ultimate end of everything—has never been a cosmic project designed to manage efficient church networks. The goal isn't to build a more predictable machine; it is to enter into a living relationship.
A relationship is simply the space between persons. The health, the depth, the freedom, and the affection that occupy that space are what define it. And this is true not only of our individual walk with a living God, but of our collective life across a city.
When Surge invites us to collaborate, the invitation isn't to look at one another as targets, resources, or theological competitors. The invitation is to step out from behind our institutional credentials and find our footing in a shared, unpolished humanity. Our local churches, our unique expressions, and our distinct giftings are beautiful scaffolding but they are not a substitute for the actual relational space between us.
True unity across our city isn't a matter of signing a sterile checklist or pretending our differences don't exist. It is closer to a fire we gather around. It asks us to bring our unique offerings, lay down our titles, and trust that the Holy Spirit is already here in the ordinary spaces where our communities collide.
To hold to the truth is to step into relationship, aligning our minds, our hearts, and our local churches with a living God who simply desires that we join Him, and one another, at the table.
Written by Gavin Linderman, Surge Network Executive and Pastor of Axiom Church.
