What are We Doing?
Are you showing up on Sunday mornings, listening, taking part in communion, singing praises and engaging in fellowship with the rest of the believers? And Sunday nights, are you meeting with a small group, studying, praying and engaging in fellowship some more? Maybe Wednesdays too?
Yeah, I am too.
I think we're missing something.
We are so "busy" going to church that our lives have not transformed to be the Church.
There is something more to, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is —his good, pleasing and perfect will"(Romans 12:2).
Something a friend mentioned a while back has had me thinking for quite some time. He asked, "why do we bring non-believers to church services"?
My thoughts probably echoed the common response, "well, so they can learn about Jesus"!
But should that really be the case? What we attend on Sunday mornings and evenings and Wednesday nights are church services. Let us think about that word for a minute.
This same friend brought up the idea of communion: the meal that Christ instructed believers and followers to take part in at the start of each week. Yes, we should take the cup and the bread and drink and eat in remembrance of what He has done and who He is. But Communion is so much more than that.
Consider what Jesus says here in Luke 22:19
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."
He broke His body. We are to DO THIS in remembrance of Him. My reason for bringing up the subject of communion is to reflect on why we gather together for these services. Taking part of Communion is more than just, in the words of Matt, "nipping and sipping some crackers and juice" and doing quiet reflection. It is the whole reason we gather together! We share the sacrifice of Christ together as a body of believers and followers! To suggest that "bringing people to church" is the answer to "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation" (Mark 16:15) is to suggest that we have no personal responsibility to one another.
Maybe I'm getting a little extreme, but if our God loves us and sacrificed everything for us just so we can give Him glory through our reflection on Him, that doesn't seem to make Him very great. That belittles the Almighty, Alpha, Omega, Yahweh, Great I am. God is Supreme and supreme-ness entails supreme dedication: picking up our crosses daily for The One that demands our life, our all.
These "services" serve a great purpose, don't get me wrong (yeah, I did just say services serve haha). But they are intended for the believers. Bringing people to Christ and to knowing Christ is a daily task. It's an investment in those around us. The believers are not limited to and responsible for the 1% of their lives found on Sundays and Wednesdays.
The early Church, like you've heard a million times before, met "Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts" (Acts 2:46).
DAILY. In their homes and in the temple. It's got to start somewhere. I can't help but think that starts in our homes.
Yeah, I am too.
I think we're missing something.
We are so "busy" going to church that our lives have not transformed to be the Church.
There is something more to, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is —his good, pleasing and perfect will"(Romans 12:2).
Something a friend mentioned a while back has had me thinking for quite some time. He asked, "why do we bring non-believers to church services"?
My thoughts probably echoed the common response, "well, so they can learn about Jesus"!
But should that really be the case? What we attend on Sunday mornings and evenings and Wednesday nights are church services. Let us think about that word for a minute.
This same friend brought up the idea of communion: the meal that Christ instructed believers and followers to take part in at the start of each week. Yes, we should take the cup and the bread and drink and eat in remembrance of what He has done and who He is. But Communion is so much more than that.
Consider what Jesus says here in Luke 22:19
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."
He broke His body. We are to DO THIS in remembrance of Him. My reason for bringing up the subject of communion is to reflect on why we gather together for these services. Taking part of Communion is more than just, in the words of Matt, "nipping and sipping some crackers and juice" and doing quiet reflection. It is the whole reason we gather together! We share the sacrifice of Christ together as a body of believers and followers! To suggest that "bringing people to church" is the answer to "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation" (Mark 16:15) is to suggest that we have no personal responsibility to one another.
Maybe I'm getting a little extreme, but if our God loves us and sacrificed everything for us just so we can give Him glory through our reflection on Him, that doesn't seem to make Him very great. That belittles the Almighty, Alpha, Omega, Yahweh, Great I am. God is Supreme and supreme-ness entails supreme dedication: picking up our crosses daily for The One that demands our life, our all.
These "services" serve a great purpose, don't get me wrong (yeah, I did just say services serve haha). But they are intended for the believers. Bringing people to Christ and to knowing Christ is a daily task. It's an investment in those around us. The believers are not limited to and responsible for the 1% of their lives found on Sundays and Wednesdays.
The early Church, like you've heard a million times before, met "Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts" (Acts 2:46).
DAILY. In their homes and in the temple. It's got to start somewhere. I can't help but think that starts in our homes.
We are called to a new standard. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:34-35).
The Church is more than services. It's a transformation in your daily being. The sense that we are not living for ourselves should be the lens through which we interact with the world. I still don't know what all this means. But slowly, we are all learning as God reveals His will.
One thing that has been put on my heart to talk about is the daily meeting of believers.
This isn't in our formally fashioned classes or worship centers (which is necessary too), but in our homes around dinner tables, fire pits and living rooms. We were created to be working and communal beings. After a long day of working, gathering, even if 2-4 people, is a real and genuine encouragement in this world that bombards us with messages that are not of God. It is during this time we can invest and share our lives and stories with others who in the reality are brothers and sisters of the Almighty. This common ground and love is what will draw people in. Through this we invite others to take part. Maybe I can't speak for everyone, but I certainly feel a longing that I cannot explain. While I know that it is for God, I think He created us to long for people too- to love them in a way that only He could allow. This love enables us, motivates us, and should drive us to reach out to others...believers and non-believers.
Let's reverse the situation now. Would you feel more loved if someone invited you over for coffee and conversation, opening their home to you, making themselves vulnerable as they slowly share bits of life with you, and without your knowledge perhaps are praying for you on a daily basis...or if they said "hey, I go to such-and-such-church. You might like it. Want to come sometime? The singing is great". Perhaps that's an exaggeration....but shouldn't the former be our response as followers of Christ?
It doesn't make sense and certainly is not the standard way of living. We mainly concern ourselves with pockets of relationships: the family pocket, the friends pocket, the co-workers pocket, the stranger pocket. Shouldn't they all intertwine? And shouldn't we be driven to break ourselves and give our best to others as our sacrifice to God?
Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. (John 12:3)
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. (1 Corinthians 10:31)
What are we doing? Because I'm convinced it's not enough. Elizabeth Elliot says it best, "One does not surrender a life in an instant. That which is lifelong can only be surrendered in a lifetime". It won't happen overnight, but it must start now. A lifetime isn't very long.
I think this is all I can type for now. But feel free to comment. I don't have all the answers. These are just some of my thoughts.
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