McLaren's Gospel (?)

Michael Krahn has a note from the Emergent "Why Everything Must Change" conference this past weekend. Answering the question, "What is the good news?", Brian McLaren responded [in full],

“I think this is where it gets interesting because one of the ways that what we do becomes colonization, when we’re going to represent a religion and trying to make converts to a religion… but the good news isn’t the good news of Christianity, it’s the good news of the Kingdom of God. And I think that Fatmire [Muslim peace activist also present at conference and sitting next to him on the panel] working for peace, is an agent for peace, and I’d much rather her be working for peace being who she is than… becoming a person in a church worrying about the list over there on that wall. [on “the list” are things non-essentials like speaking in tongues, etc.)

So, to me there’s something we really have to grapple with about whether the border of a religion is the border of the kingdom of God. And I think that’s a question we’d be wise to raise. I liked what you said about there not being despair when you’re among the extremely needy people. Wouldn’t it be interesting if we found out that God is present wherever there’s suffering because God is there bringing healing and God is really present wherever people are working against injustice because that’s the work of God, wherever people are working for peace. And then the we find that the place that God isn’t is where you have a bunch of affluent people who are self-absorbed… and that wouldn’t surprise me why they would get depressed, because, in some way, it’s not that God isn’t present but they’re snoring through the presence of God.”

I understand the problems many in the emerging church have with "Christendom." Many churches and individuals fly the colors of Christianity who are not worthy of the name; however, to allow a disjunction between Christianity and the Kingdom of God and fail to clarify the exclusive claims of the gospel is an inexcusable slip at best and abandonment of the gospel at worst. God is present where there's suffering and injustice, working to bring peace and comfort, but the kingdom of God is not definitively displayed in God's work. It's displayed in his Son. The people of Israel experienced the amazing work of God, and they dropped dead in the desert. The 5,000 experienced a "kingdom meal" with Jesus, and many rejected him when his theology started to cut. Ten lepers were healed in Lk 17. Only one came back to Jesus.