I’ve always gone to church. I was baptized at two months old in a pretty little white dress, sang in the church choir from the age of six, and was confirmed at thirteen (in a really ugly white dress). My parents were on the consistory (board) for most of my childhood, so we practically lived at church. Our pastor came to dinner every Sunday. I was the first female crucifer at our church, hefting the ornate cross atop the mahogany pole to lead the procession of choir and pastor down the aisle as the Sunday service began. I attended youth group and week long youth retreats. I taught Vacation Bible School and Sunday School, sat on various church school education committees as an adult, and still sang in the choir. From childhood I could recite the Apostles Creed and the twenty-third Psalm and sing the Doxology, as well as just about every old hymn. I grew up and got married (another pretty white dress— for the eighties, anyway) in the same church as my grandparents and parents. I have always “done church.”
So why is it that I was born into the church in 1961 and didn’t come to know Christ until 1997? Of course the time of my salvation was determined in God’s sovereignty. Still, until I began to elevate Jesus, these endeavors, good as they were, amounted to nothing more than religious trappings and tradition.
A few years back I threw out a little test on Facebook, asking people to respond to the prompt, “Quick, I say church, you say…” Included in the responses were fellowship, pastor, pray, God’s people, community, Amen, worship, building, steeple, mouse, and lady. Interestingly, not one response referenced Jesus Christ. Yet Jesus tells us,
All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20).
Christ commissioned his church. He was not nebulous or vague. Make disciples of Christ, baptize into Christ, teach obedience to Christ. It’s all about Christ!
My brother-in-law Matt defined the church as “a community of God’s elect chosen for our good and his glory.” C.S. Lewis wrote in his brilliant book, Mere Christianity,
…the church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose.”
Reflect
Read the following Scriptures:
What imagery does God use to describe his church?
What is the ultimate purpose of his church?
Read the following Scriptures:
What is Christ’s desire for his church?
John Piper spoke about what he referred to as “minimum” vs. “maximum” church. Minimum church is characterized by attending Sunday service, participating in Communion, establishing a church governing body who oversees the congregation, and regular worship and study as a body of believers.
Read the following Scriptures and describe what John Piper means by “maximum church.”
Based on everything you’ve read, reflect on how you think Christ defines his church.
Pray
Dear Father, you are clear about what you expect of your church. Help us to be people who fulfill your desire to be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ. Help us to be in unity, to serve others selflessly, and to not “neglect meeting together” as your body (Hebrews 10:25). Please give us a heart to love you more, a mind to understand your sovereign will, a longing for your Holy Word, and a desire to walk in obedience so that the world will know you through the love we have for you and for those you wish to reach.
Amen