What is church?

Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck have written an important book, Why We Love the Church: In Praise of Institutions and Organized Religion. See their promo video on YouTube. They finish by saying, "Jesus loves the church. We think you should too."

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Yearning

C. S. Lewis said,

"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world."

(quoted in John Piper, The Dangerous Duty of Delight, p. 8).

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Soul Food

“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4, ESV).

“More to be desired are they [i.e., God’s words] than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb” (Psalm 19:10).

The Word of God is a priceless gift we have in our hands: do you cherish it? Do you go to the Scriptures for soul food? Do you study and meditate, do you listen to the Lord and respond in prayer? Is the Bible sweet to you—is it treasure? There is more to the Christian life than joyfully diligent Bible study, but never less!

Satan is always at work tempting us to bypass God’s Word:

• "There’s no time for serious Bible study in my schedule"
• "I’m no scholar—it’s too hard to understand"
• "The Bible doesn’t inspire me—it’s not relevant to my life"

Satan has a lot of lies, those are just a few. And people fall for them! I hope you don’t. You make time for food, right? Skipping the Bible leads to spiritual starvation. The daily news is relevant, right? How much more pertinent to your life and eternal joy is the news of God’s greatness and grace?

The bottom line is that authentic Christianity involves trusting in Christ—we’re saved by faith (Eph 2:8-10). How is faith gener­ated and sustained? “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Rom 10:17). Reading and wrestling with the Bible is how we grow in faith; as we spend time with Jesus Christ via the pages of Scripture, the Lord arouses faith / trust / devotion in our hearts. By contrast, failing to dig deep in God’s Word and study it carefully destroys faith.

Let’s be candid: Does the Bible receive your undivided, eager attention on a regular basis, and are you involved in groups or classes that help you dig deep into the treasure of Scripture? Or are you walking away from Christ? It’s one or the other.

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Multi-Site Churches and the Future...

Jonathan Leeman offers thought-provoking reflections about where the multi-campus church trajectory may lead: click here.

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Summer Struggles

Now that we’re into the thick of summer, I encourage you to be on the lookout for certain temptations that come with the season.

For one, there’s the unspoken but pervasive pressure to let your priority on church involvement slide due to summer’s special attrac­tions: away at the shore, on vacation, gone camping, off to see relatives, going to a game, etc. Of course, it’s good to get a break—we all need it. And it’s good to keep up with loved ones living far away. But a reasonable summer break can quickly morph into a vanishing act in which your church family hardly gets a glimpse of you. Don’t shrug off the church this season; the body needs you and you need the body all year round!

Another trap along the trail has to do with summer apparel. Are you prepared to glorify the Lord by dressing with modesty and discretion? Modesty may not always be the top fashion, but if you mean business about following Jesus, then there will be more important things than conforming to trends. People who want to grow deeper in trust toward Christ find it a great relief when those around them don’t make their bodies “exhibit A.” So ask God to search your heart (Ps 139:23-24): deep down, are you trying to catch other people’s attention through your summer style? And a related question (especially for guys): are you prepared to honor the Lord this summer in the way you use your eyes—and do you realize that “just looking” isn’t just looking (Matt 5:28)? Fix the eyes of your heart on Jesus (Heb 12:2) for true satisfaction!

A third summer threat is the tidal wave that can wipe out your devotional life. Predictable schedules in other seasons encourage consistency of spiritual practices (e.g., Bible reading, prayer, fasting, meditation): we’re creatures of habit, and that has its advantages. But summer rolls in and regular patterns are thrown to the wind as we dive into so much “enrichment.” I hope you have a very refreshing summer. But don’t lose your bearings: first things first. Plan ahead and build protected “space” into your schedule (including time for the family together) so your spiritual life can flourish. You can’t afford to put spiritual life on hold for a season!

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