CHURCH VIEW
22/04/15 16:27
I believe that one thing that has hurt the church in the past several decades is the fact that the church is viewed as a building or institution. Though we know the truth and proclaim the truth that the church is the body of Christ, a group of people, we act like and communicate like the church is a building, or an institution. We understand that this is our mindset because of the ways we present the church.
In viewing the church as a building we make statements like, "I'm going to church this morning" or "Where do you go to church": we see it as a place we go to worship, it's about going to a place. If church is a place, a building, that means we are "consumers"; and the church becomes a vender of religious services. We go and pick out what works best for us. We treat it like a market place of religious ideas like we would buy, from a supermarket, the items that best suits our desires, or that we can get the best deal for our money, what product works best for me and my family. That's the way we treat church.
In viewing the church as an institution we see church leaders, and the one who leads it. There's actual jockeying for positions in churches; and people who try to control what goes on in the church. We talk about giving money to the church. We talk about how our church does this or that, like there's a competition as with what we may see between grocery stores. If a church looks successful then we want to bring that idea to our church so we can be successful too. We actually market our churches, it's ideas, what it has to offer, to pull people in from other churches.
I'm bringing this to light so that, maybe, just maybe, we can start viewing the church for what it is; and acting upon that truth. The church is a body; and if the church is a body, then we are a community of faith who comes together to show God's Glory on Earth and bring more people into this community. We become less about competition, less about we go here and they go there, and more about a community of love who wants to bring people into that community. The church that is a building or institution is man made; but Christ made the church that is a body. Let us be apart of that church. Fact is, if we are not, if we are more engrossed into the building or institution, then we are missing out on the real church, and we are in danger of missing out of the Glory of God in the end.
In viewing the church as a building we make statements like, "I'm going to church this morning" or "Where do you go to church": we see it as a place we go to worship, it's about going to a place. If church is a place, a building, that means we are "consumers"; and the church becomes a vender of religious services. We go and pick out what works best for us. We treat it like a market place of religious ideas like we would buy, from a supermarket, the items that best suits our desires, or that we can get the best deal for our money, what product works best for me and my family. That's the way we treat church.
In viewing the church as an institution we see church leaders, and the one who leads it. There's actual jockeying for positions in churches; and people who try to control what goes on in the church. We talk about giving money to the church. We talk about how our church does this or that, like there's a competition as with what we may see between grocery stores. If a church looks successful then we want to bring that idea to our church so we can be successful too. We actually market our churches, it's ideas, what it has to offer, to pull people in from other churches.
I'm bringing this to light so that, maybe, just maybe, we can start viewing the church for what it is; and acting upon that truth. The church is a body; and if the church is a body, then we are a community of faith who comes together to show God's Glory on Earth and bring more people into this community. We become less about competition, less about we go here and they go there, and more about a community of love who wants to bring people into that community. The church that is a building or institution is man made; but Christ made the church that is a body. Let us be apart of that church. Fact is, if we are not, if we are more engrossed into the building or institution, then we are missing out on the real church, and we are in danger of missing out of the Glory of God in the end.
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