Our church's leadership team gathered at a mountaintop lodge in Pennsylvania with the stated goal of "making a good church, a great one for the glory of God!" Ambitious, isn't it? In our time together the one thing I found most valuable was the renewed sense that the work of God in this world is not just about 'me,' but rather is about 'we!' In our planning and praying our personalities showed up - ranging from the reserved planners who brought their Post-it notes and flow charts to the exuberant prayers who brought their fiery devotion to the creative work of the Spirit! We trusted each other with our dreams and our criticisms, with our perspectives and our pre-conceived ideas. Now, we wait to see what God, the Spirit, will do in us and through us as we purpose to continue the work. As we come down from the mountain, both literally and figuratively, we are confronted with the challenge of staying committed to each other, so that we are able to express love in the daily work of the church. Staying 'in the Body' is a daily decision that I make - and not always a glad nor easy one - but a decision that ultimately proves greatly beneficial.
Are you, Believer, in the Body?
Are you committed to the Church and the church?
Think I just typed a line that is in error? That's not a mistake. The Church is the universal Body of Christ that we joined when we were born of the Spirit and baptized in faith. There is another step we need to take intentionally beyond joining Christ's Church. Yes, we need to join up with a church, a local congregation that is an expression of the Church. In the church, we ideally find support, fellowship, and encouragement that help us to mature in faith. But churches are made up of real people, just like you and me, flawed people who are in the process of becoming holy, just like you and me, and therefore in addition to the good stuff, in the church we are called to greater service, get the sharp edges knocked off, are held accountable, and learn about the sacrificial qualities of love! It's a lot like being married. Marriage brings us days of bliss and days of anguish, but our covenant love keeps us together.
Many Believers have not understood their relationship to the church in terms of radical commitment akin to marriage. As a result, they are disappointed again and again, moving from church to church, in an endless search for a place that feeds their needs. They date churches endlessly, but never marry one! Thus, they never know the great joy that can only be experienced as a part of a team that is building the Kingdom of Christ. I wish I could explain to them the importance of forgetting about who talked to them, or if someone remembered to recognize them, or if what they did was properly valued. If the Tempter is allowed to stir up feelings of resentment toward members of Christ's Body, we fall into the sin of offense, which builds a high wall that divides us from those with whom we share a common faith and with whom we will live in Heaven! Worse, when we let resentment loose we start to attack what Christ loves! Think what it does to His heart when we tear down, for selfish reasons, the Bride (the Church) that He loves so much that He gave His life for her.
The New Testament is filled with references to the church. The word in original Biblical texts is one that means 'the ones called out.' In that time it referred to the Greek custom of calling the citizens of a town together to make decisions about community life. The Bible's writers adopted the term to describe those who were called out from the world to become citizens of Christ's community. While we have privatized our Christian faith to a great degree, that is not the norm of the New Testament. There we find the highest expression of Christian faith set squarely in the context of the church, the ecclesia, "those called out."
In Ephesians, we find this lofty description of God's plan for the Church. Paul says, "By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News. Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord." (Ephesians 3:7-11, NLT) God's plan is to use the church to demonstrate His grace and goodness to Heaven and Earth! Amazingly, He invites you and me to be part of that lofty and wonderful plan.
Join up! Make a radical commitment to the work of God in your local church, shifting focus from what the church does for me to what I do for God in the context of the Body.
Here's a word from the Word to ponder today.
"I ... beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.
For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all." (Ephesians 4:1-6, NLT)
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