Why Tab?
Why Tab? by Rev. L. John Gable
JUly 9, 2023
If you have been with us the past couple of weeks you have been good to allow me to reflect a bit on the various influences on my life and faith, as well as my experiences in ministry. When we left off I was wondering if I had “one more in me” after having served 13 years at a wonderful church in a northern suburb of Milwaukee and two churches prior. If there was “another one in me” it would have to be a church in need of renewal and revitalization (as I recognized these as being my primary interest and experience in ministry) as well as being uniquely positioned to allow me to draw on my collective or “crystallized” experience in ministry, since I was now in to my 50’s with 25 years-worth of experience. Most importantly, we would also have to feel called by God to that ministry, not just looking for another opportunity. That’s when we became aware of Tab.
Both Kris and I had known about Tab for a long time, Kris since childhood since one of Tab’s former pastors was the son of the former pastor of her home church in Bloomington, IL, both affectionately known as “Doc Martin.” And our closest college friends, Bart and Ann Ost, were long time members, so we had talked with them about Tab for decades through its various ups and downs. While on vacation together in 2007, they mentioned that Tab was looking for a pastor, again, and we began to wonder if perhaps this might be the “one more in me.” But we had to answer the question, “If so, why Tab?” That is a question which not only we, but each of us, has to answer for ourselves. What is it that makes Tab so uniquely special, and I assure you it is. So for the next couple of weeks I want to talk with you about what it is that first attracted us to Tab and what it is that makes it so unique among churches, and trust me when I say I am not alone in saying this.
Aaron Renn is a local writer, who along with his family, worshiped with us for a number of years until a more recent move. He sent me an email informing me of their move and wanting to “convey his appreciation to Tab”. He then listed 10 very thoughtful reflections, this being the first one.
He writes, “Every church I’ve ever attended regularly has shaped my perspectives on church and the Christian life in some way. Twice before I attended 100+ year old churches that had all but died and been revived to become thriving congregations where the Gospel was proclaimed…Tab has been a new experience for me: a 170 year old congregation that’s still alive and faithful, having been brought by God through many highs and lows. That’s a legacy that matters… I can’t imagine there are many churches like it anywhere in the country…Tab is a very special congregation. Tab’s mix of evangelical witness, social engagement, world class building, strong finances, establishment orientation and its long and faithful history is extremely rare. I hope you appreciate how unique and precious this is. It makes me consider Tab the most strategically important church in the city.” This was not intended to be given as flattery, but his honest estimation of Tab and our ministry impact and potential in this city; and I agree with him.
So, I want to begin my reflections on “Why Tab?” with his first observation: the unique mix of evangelical witness and social engagement; we will touch on some of the others in the weeks to come.
This was the first observation I made about Tab when we started to explore this opportunity, the balanced mix of evangelical witness from the pulpit and social engagement in the community; something we who have been around Tab for a while largely take for granted, as we do many things that are unique about Tab, but this one in particular is a rarity among churches. Churches tend to bias toward one end of the spectrum or the other, but rarely find a balance of the two.
Let me speak for a moment on what he/I mean by “evangelical witness” because unfortunately the word “evangelical” has been dislocated from its original meaning and co-opted as being political and partisan such that it has been rendered meaningless to most and offensive to some. This is so regrettable because historically, an evangelical was one who became a Christian through their personal response to the evangel ( to the Good News, the Greek is euangelion), as opposed to one who understands themselves to be a Christian simply by having been born in to an established church tradition or family. In the evangelical tradition, faith is a decision which an individual makes to become a follower of Jesus, not a birthright. So, in this sense, all protestant Christians, such as we are, are by definition evangelicals; but unfortunately that meaning has been lost and the word has been tainted.
The point still holds though that Tab has a long history of “evangelical witness from the pulpit” or to state it another way, “Scripture-based, Christ-centered preaching and teaching” that calls people to hear the Gospel and respond to it. This is essential to who we are as a church, as a community of faith, as a company of followers of Jesus. He is the center of our life together and, given our diversity, without our shared and common faith in Him we would most likely not be together. Jesus is the starting point and center of our life together and so of our preaching and teaching. He is the Who and the why behind the what and the how of everything else we do. This is what aligns us very well with the “evangelical” tradition of our faith.
But at the same time Tab has a long history of social engagement in the community. Long before our decision to remain in place in 1966 Tab had demonstrated our commitment to caring for the needs of our neighbors. That commitment was most clearly demonstrated when we made the decision not to follow our membership as they moved north and committed ourselves to being a “light for Christ in this metropolitan area”, a commitment we remade in 2016 with our Vision Renewal statement: Greater Faith, Deeper Relationships, A Stronger Community.
Our location allows us both the privilege and opportunity not only of serving or resourcing our neighbors in need, but of actually getting to know them as neighbors and friends, which we are committed to doing, using TabJams this evening as an example. We don’t need to travel far to find someone who is in need of what we, as representatives of the Body of Christ, have to offer, whether that be a basic provision of food or housing or relief or the spiritual provision of a restored relationship with God.
Tab is uniquely positioned, both by theological conviction and by physical location, to fulfill the Great Commandment of our Lord, to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” This is the summary teaching of our Lord, as He says, “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” It all comes down to this: Love God and Love your neighbor.
Now, it would seem that every church should be equally committed to these two, but unfortunately that is not, and has not been, the case, in too many churches for too long. For some reason churches across the theological spectrum have tended to tease these apart, emphasizing one OR the other: love God OR love neighbor, and that emphasis becomes evident in the focus of their preaching and teaching AND in the practice of their faith.
Some hear that the call of the Gospel is to lead people into a saving relationship with God by faith in Jesus Christ, so see evangelism, soul-saving, disciple-making as the primary task of the Christian Church; while others believe that the call of the Gospel is to care for the poor and needy and work for justice in world. Both can find good Scriptural reference for the positions they hold, but unfortunately too many have taken the posture of “either/or” rather than “both/and”; but not Tab. We have a long tradition of “evangelical/Christ centered preaching and teaching from the pulpit” AND “active social engagement in the community”. This “holistic” understanding of ministry leads us to the work of evangelism AND justice; spiritual salvation AND social activism; personal piety AND community change; to Greater Faith, Deeper Relationships and Stronger Community. This understanding and practice of our ministry is one strong reason I, and so many still, can say, “Why Tab”, not as a question but as a statement, an affirmation of who we are, Whose we are, what we do and why we do it. We preach it, teach it and live it.
In his book A Life of Search, Elton Trueblood writes “There is always a great temptation to stress either the inner side or the outer side of Christianity to the exclusion of the other. Thus there are a good many people who try to set up some kind of dichotomy between what they call the social Gospel and the personal Gospel… I see no justification for such conflict and I believe that many people in the world are looking for a religion which unites the temporal and the eternal in one miraculous whole.” Tab has done this beautifully, and I regret to say rather uniquely, and I pray we will continue to do so because it is desperately needed in the world and in the church’s witness for Christ.
Several months ago the Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, the stated clerk of our denomination, came to preach during our centennial celebration. Admittedly, he did not know anything about Tab prior to coming, but once he got here his eyes were opened and he was amazed at the work of ministry we are doing, and have been doing for so long, so much so that he called me after his visit saying that the Historical Society in Philadelphia needs to know about Tab, so they are coming out to visit us in October. He then told me that following his visit with us he decided to write a book and he wants to use Tab as an example of what churches across the country should be doing. So, believe me when I tell you, Tab is wonderfully special and unique, for a myriad of different reasons.
John Perkins summarizes beautifully the beneficial relationship between Christ-centered preaching and teaching and social engagement. “Evangelism creates committed people, the concern for the needs of people and broad community base from which to launch social action. Social action, in turn, fleshes out the Lordship of Jesus Christ, reaching people’s spiritual needs through their felt needs.”
This dual calling is woven in to and throughout the whole of Scripture. “Spiritual and social ministry, when woven together, yield a stronger fabric than either strand alone. Here the Good News and the good works are intertwined” (Churches That Make a Difference, p.57). This then is what I believe Jesus meant when He answered the “gotcha question” being asked by the Pharisee, “Which commandment in the law is the greatest?” Rather than taking the bait, Jesus laid out the balance, saying, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment.” This is why I believe every church that calls itself Christian must be committed, as it’s starting point, to Scripture-based, Christ-centered preaching and teaching, but it mustn’t end there. Jesus goes on to say, “And the second is like it” (similar to it, on par with it): You shall love your neighbor as yourself”, be as concerned about the needs and well-being of your neighbor as you are of your own. “On these two commands hang all the law and the prophets”, do these and all the rest is just commentary. Everything we say and do should be viewed through the lens of the Great Commandment. Our love of God should lead us to care for the needs of our neighbors. Our care for the needs of our neighbors (those we can see) is the way we can demonstrate our love of God (the One we cannot see).
It is this balance between the two that first attracted me here 15 years ago and it is this that continues to be first answer I give to the question: “Why Tab?”
Rev. L. John Gable
Tabernacle Presbyterian Church
Indianapolis, IN