There is always a good reason to be disillusioned with the church. Congregations can be judgmental, uninviting, selfish, inward-looking, self-righteous, and the most unsafe places to be transparent with one’s own struggles. In many congregations, you are not welcome until you meet the standards they have set up for themselves, which is antithetical to Jesus, who welcomed anyone and everyone into His presence no matter how broken they were. In fact, the gospels say that He was a friend of sinners, something not many congregations can say today.
Let's be clear that this is not a new problem but one that has confronted the church from the very beginning of its existence. Churches are made up of “saints” who are deeply flawed, sinful, and at various levels of spiritual maturity. The journey from brokenness to spiritual maturity is often messy. I have no further to look than that of my own life, and I am sure that is true for you if you are honest. In fact, many of the letters that Paul wrote to churches, whether in Rome, Corinth, or Galatia, were letters to rebuke or rectify dishealth in those churches.
The Galatians had allowed legalism to crowd out grace in their teaching and practice. In Corinth, there were power players who wanted people to follow them even as they overlooked egregious sin in their ranks. They were also darn proud of themselves as an educated, cosmopolitan church. In Rome, there were racial tensions between Jews and Gentiles. Such racial tensions have been true from that day to this.
None of these examples nullify the church or the need for a community of believers to grow in grace together. We grow in a community, and it is always a flawed community because we are there. But together, we learn and grow and are challenged by the believers around us to either go to the next level or, in some cases, resist attitudes and actions that don’t please Jesus. Everyone has a right to be disappointed with a church because all of us are in the messiness of moving from the sinful place of our past to greater maturity in Christ.
And here is something to consider. There is no more powerful example than when people see us move to places that are healthy. When we extend forgiveness to those who have hurt us. When we trust God, when the chips are against us. When we choose the hard but obedient road over the easy and expedient road. When we choose to be friends of sinners rather than stay in the comfort of the believing community. Whenever we choose to follow Jesus personally, we challenge those around us to do the same. And that is how the body as a whole matures and becomes like Jesus. Each of us plays a part in that.
There is a short book in the New Testament called Ephesians. It is only six chapters long and is the book where the church is called the Bride of Christ. Take a few minutes this week to read those six chapters, and you will see what God’s vision for the church is. Then, ask yourself how you can live out that vision. You will never be the same, and your church will not remain the same.
If you are a church leader, study Ephesians and read A Church called Tov. While all of us are responsible for healthy churches, no one is more responsible than church leaders. You shepherd under the leadership of the Good Shepherd, the Chief Shepherd, and unless our leadership and congregational culture reflect that of the Chief Shepherd, we are abdicating our leadership.
While there are many reasons to be disillusioned with the church, we should not be contributors to those disillusions. What is amazing is that Jesus Himself does not give up on His church. It is His bride, and He continues to work in our lives and the world through His church - and will till He returns. We may abandon the church, but He never will.
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