the church.
I've been thinking a lot about church lately...what it is, what is isnt and what it should be and what God would have imagined it to be...how far off have we gotten from the original idea.
There are types of church services that I've always struggled with...all of them are extremes. I struggle with high church services...because they make God unapproachable..unfeeling. I struggle with charismatic healing/Holy spirit services, because they make God seem chaotic, and irrational. I struggle with traditional churches that sing hymns and do a lot of stand up sit down...they make God seem old and dead and care nothing for change and growth. I struggle with seeker sensitive churches because they seem to water down the messages, and don't promote depth of relationship with God.
If you open up the discussion with anyone who would want to talk about it, you find a LOT of passionate opinions and even broad generalizations. One thing I've noticed in particular is a concept that many many people brought up: consumer based church. A lot of people are passionately opposed to this concept. I'm not really...and I'll tell you why. In a lot of scripture you find a lot of things about what the church is and what its for. Encouragement, building up, iron sharpening iron, helping widows, etc. These are really what we might call in our modern age, member services. They're things to expect from a church, they are the purpose of the meeting together of believers. In hebrews we're encouraged to not forsake the gathering together of believers because we need to spur one another on....the spur is membership perk of being a member of the body of Christ. So what effect should quality of services provided have on one's choice of a church? If we disregard a churches ability to meet our needs because we don't want to seem consumer-y,then we allow the church to be less than what she should be. Churches that don't do what God intended shouldn't exist.
The churches in the Bible were often divided by geography, church at ephesus, church at corinth...church who meets at the home of....When you came to an area, you hooked up with the local christians and became part of that church. it wasnt about what kind of music they played, or how well the greeting committee met you, or what kind of kids clubs they had.
But does that mean its wrong to judge a church based on those things?! Some people think so...
i dont.
the gathering of believers is meant to spur you on, to help you finish the race, to strengthen you and to challenge you...Its meant to be a refuge from the world so that we can regain the strength to head back out again and share that faith. We've made it the church leadership's responsibility to be God to the community. "well if they do an outreach, I'll be a part." "I invited my friend to church, and the message didnt touch them, so thats the pastors fault" I believe that the church should be a place where people can come to explore God and christianity...but not at the cost of the growth of folks who already believe. Should we change everything for the non believers among us? Should we "dumb it down" or leave out parts that might be offensive to protect the weak? The Bible says that we should be careful to not cause our brothers to stumble when their faith is weak, but wasn't that passage referring to practicing greater levels of freedom around them?
I don't know what the perfect church is. I dont know what it looks like or sounds like...i know its not a church of extremes. Its not too wide, and not too rigid. Its welcoming, but not accommodating. Its free, but structured. Its to serve God and to serve ourselves. Its to love and be loved.
Acts 20:28
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.
There are types of church services that I've always struggled with...all of them are extremes. I struggle with high church services...because they make God unapproachable..unfeeling. I struggle with charismatic healing/Holy spirit services, because they make God seem chaotic, and irrational. I struggle with traditional churches that sing hymns and do a lot of stand up sit down...they make God seem old and dead and care nothing for change and growth. I struggle with seeker sensitive churches because they seem to water down the messages, and don't promote depth of relationship with God.
If you open up the discussion with anyone who would want to talk about it, you find a LOT of passionate opinions and even broad generalizations. One thing I've noticed in particular is a concept that many many people brought up: consumer based church. A lot of people are passionately opposed to this concept. I'm not really...and I'll tell you why. In a lot of scripture you find a lot of things about what the church is and what its for. Encouragement, building up, iron sharpening iron, helping widows, etc. These are really what we might call in our modern age, member services. They're things to expect from a church, they are the purpose of the meeting together of believers. In hebrews we're encouraged to not forsake the gathering together of believers because we need to spur one another on....the spur is membership perk of being a member of the body of Christ. So what effect should quality of services provided have on one's choice of a church? If we disregard a churches ability to meet our needs because we don't want to seem consumer-y,then we allow the church to be less than what she should be. Churches that don't do what God intended shouldn't exist.
The churches in the Bible were often divided by geography, church at ephesus, church at corinth...church who meets at the home of....When you came to an area, you hooked up with the local christians and became part of that church. it wasnt about what kind of music they played, or how well the greeting committee met you, or what kind of kids clubs they had.
But does that mean its wrong to judge a church based on those things?! Some people think so...
i dont.
the gathering of believers is meant to spur you on, to help you finish the race, to strengthen you and to challenge you...Its meant to be a refuge from the world so that we can regain the strength to head back out again and share that faith. We've made it the church leadership's responsibility to be God to the community. "well if they do an outreach, I'll be a part." "I invited my friend to church, and the message didnt touch them, so thats the pastors fault" I believe that the church should be a place where people can come to explore God and christianity...but not at the cost of the growth of folks who already believe. Should we change everything for the non believers among us? Should we "dumb it down" or leave out parts that might be offensive to protect the weak? The Bible says that we should be careful to not cause our brothers to stumble when their faith is weak, but wasn't that passage referring to practicing greater levels of freedom around them?
I don't know what the perfect church is. I dont know what it looks like or sounds like...i know its not a church of extremes. Its not too wide, and not too rigid. Its welcoming, but not accommodating. Its free, but structured. Its to serve God and to serve ourselves. Its to love and be loved.
Acts 20:28
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.
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