The church is...

Lately I've been reflecting with my church family about what it really means to be the church. This seems to be necessary--and urgent--because we're so prone to take our cues for Christian community from the surrounding culture. We look at organizations, institutions, clubs, interest groups, etc., and we assume the church must fit in somehow. But the similarities are on the surface; at a deep level there are profound differences. Ultimately, the church is stunningly unique. Let's get a closer look.

A reporter asked people on the street what came to mind when they heard the word “church.” Answers included: prayer, irrelevant, meetings, religion, politics, good people, Jesus, cross, idols, quiet, buildings, boring, sing­ing hymns, sermons, values that don’t apply anymore, religion is responsible for conflict in the world, steeple, time consuming, for old people, rules.

There’s a fascinating mixture of truth and error in these replies. Frankly, there’s a lot of confusion in society and even among those of us who are “church goers” about what it really means to be the church of Jesus Christ. And much is at stake in how we see and portray the church in our day. Unless we’re vigilant, we will get swept up in distorted ideas along with their wrong-headed expectations. And if that happens, it’ll mean great harm to the body and to neighbors we want to love and serve.

Many people use sharp words to describe the church because they’ve had the proverbial “bad experience”: the church is “full of hypocrites,” or judgmental, or it “tries to force religion down people’s throats.” Again, despite the inflammatory exaggeration, there’s a grain of truth in such charges: some churches and some believers have been flagrantly two-faced or shrill or domineering. What’s more, all churches and all believers have, to some extent, been guilty of such faults. That’s because the church is a fellow­ship of sinners: every local congregation is made up 100% of imperfect Christians. In light of this, it’s not surprising there are those “bad experiences”—haven’t we all had a bad experience? And caused a bad experience?

The crucial thing about following Jesus together is NOT becoming perfect (that’ll have to wait for heaven), but responding to our imperfections with humility and grace. That’s the way that the Gospel can shine forth through a broken people, a fellowship of sinners—in how we forgive, how we embrace one another despite annoying traits and past disappointments, and how we love one another “warts and all.” “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).

To be continued.

.