Skip to content or main menu

Getting In (the Theory of Bounded Sets)

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Ric Strangway

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the difference between “insiders” and “outsiders.” Today I want to pick up that idea and go a little further.

For centuries the Church has placed a high value on holiness, devotion and the kind of moral behavior that reflected that. Along with that has come numerous different ways we have “set the standard” and “raised the bar.” Some of it has been good, and some of it has been not-so-good.

What I mean is, often when the church has gone to great lengths to let the world know where stands, it creates an insurmountable barrier between God and the world. People aren’t good enough because they don’t reach the standard. They don’t get in because they always feel inadequate or unholy or shamed or some negative connotation that depicts their place in life.

The difficulty with this is that often the Church makes no room for people to come in and “work out their salvation” (in the words of the Apostle Paul). They never get close enough to be able to know God, to understand His grace and mercy, and to realize that the good news of the gospel provides a relationship with God whereby He begins to work in their life.

No, the line is drawn and until they pull up their socks they just don’t get in!

Which brings me to the idea of “bounded sets.” Bounded sets are a social theory that’s been around for a few decades. It’s the idea that people are often grouped or placed in sets according to clear lines that are drawn. Those lines could represent many things such as a specific grade, age, IQ or accomplishment. The end result is, if you have the ability, or you are one of the chosen, then you cross the line and you are “in.” You’re part of the group that is “bounded.”

The downside is that if you don’t make the cut, or you don’t have the IQ, or you aren’t able to accomplish the goal then you are out. You don’t belong. You aren’t one of the chosen. And in some cases, you walk away with the stigma of _not being good enough.” Sound familiar?

Bounded sets have their place. In fact, they can even have their place in the Church. The weakness is that too often the bounded sets keep people away from encountering God. The Gospel isn’t never good news because all they hear is that they are “the bad news.”

Hmmm, it makes me think… what would it look like if the church was a place where people were accepted just as they are so that they could come in and meet God themselves?

I mean, is it possible for you and I to be the kind of people that may not agree with where someone is at morally but we love them so much that they feel loved and accepted? And is it possible for that person to come to a place where maybe after weeks and months they finally are able to let their guard down enough that they begin to trust God?

I think it is. And I see it happening, bit by bit, at North Point. We are learning the gift of love.

We are growing in grace towards others.

We are removing the barriers so that people can meet God.