The church building
serves many purposes to further the ministries of the church. I love the
everything that the church is used for from weddings, soup kitchen, Vacation
Bible School, worship services, funerals, guest speakers, and everything in
between. I suspect that a majority of you feel the same way. Our
building is pretty awesome. What’s the difference between our building
and another church building down the road? Structurally, not much.
The true difference is the people, would you agree?
When we were going
through our release from the PC(USA), I lobbied for us to keep the building but
I was prepared to walk away from it and start a new church somewhere else.
Why? Because the building is a tool for ministry, it isn’t the
church. We are the church. This week’s Multiply study is about
getting out of the church and ministering to the lost while nurturing the
saved. Do you remember your life before you were a Christian? I
know that I believed that if I just looked at a church I thought I would get
struck by lightning. Of course I was wrong, but before I gave my life to
Christ, I wouldn’t have even thought of stepping foot in a church
building. So, how did I eventually end up putting that fear aside and
actually going to a church? People were praying for me, talking to me,
and showing me through their actions and how they lived what Jesus’ love looked
like. That’s exactly what we have to do, church!
Life change,
realistically, doesn’t always happen inside the church walls. Life change
happens over coffee, around the dinner table, or at the grocery store.
Life change happens all the time, but, in my opinion, it doesn’t happen much
inside the church walls. I remember a story a prior Session member once
told me. This person began attending church but wasn’t yet saved.
Not one person asked if he was saved. Not one person. You see, I
wonder if our mentality while we are inside the church walls is somewhat different
than when we’re not at the church? Whether it’s right, wrong, or
indifferent, can we sometimes assume that those at the church are there to
continue their growth in Christ? In other words, do we believe, more
often than not, that if you’re at the church, you are there to receive the
needed nourishment for your Christian walk? To put it another way, do we
generally believe that if you’re in the church, you’re already saved and
therefore don’t need evangelism? I do think that as a church we do a great job,
but I also believe that there is always room for improvement. I know this
sounds somewhat crass, but it needs to be said.
As Christians, we
must be Christians all the time. Our lives must reflect the love that
Christ has for us by loving Him and loving others (Mark 12:28-31). We are
a team but not a football team. We don’t just
play the game on a Sunday afternoon; we must always be on the first-string
lineup ready to evangelize those around us, whether in the church or somewhere
else. This Multiply study is a tool for our ministry. It is
teaching me (and hopefully you) a lot about discipleship, but it shouldn’t stop
there. We need to put what we’re learning into practice in every aspect
of our lives. At your work, do you show the love of Christ through your
actions and words? At home, do you pray with and for your family and
others? Do you study God’s Word continuously? Do you long to grow
closer to Him on a daily basis? Our lives must revolve around God.
In doing so, we will show His love to others regardless of where we’re at.
As a church body,
our job is to better ourselves as disciples and make disciples through
evangelism and deliberate discipleship. Our job also includes showing
others how we live through actions and words. Accepting Jesus Christ as
my personal Lord and Savior was the easiest thing I ever did (once I saw His
love through others). One of the most challenging things I’ve ever had to
do was show how I was a Christian through actions and words. My blood pressure
rises to dangerous levels when I drive because I get angry at bad
drivers. When people drive me nuts at work, I get annoyed. When I
don’t see results immediately for something, I get discouraged and upset.
I have my faults, just like you. It takes time, energy, and God to press
through those challenging times to show others that even though things aren’t
necessarily going your way, God loves you–and them.
I’m writing this
blog entry earlier than the others because I have a challenge for us.
Every day, the average person interacts with approximately 30 people.
That’s 30 people that you have the power to show what the love of Jesus Christ
looks like. I challenge each of us to get out of our comfort zone and
make a concerted effort to ensure we are showing the love of Christ to everyone
we interact with. Sometimes it’s really easy to do and other times it is
a huge challenge. I encourage you to put your fears and concerns aside
and really show people, through your actions and words, Jesus’ love. This
email is going out to a list of 208 people in our church. If you do the
math, we have the opportunity to show Jesus’ love to 6,240
people in one day!
We have an awesome
opportunity to reach literally thousands of people a day with the love of
Christ. Not everyone is ready to hear the Good News, but there are some
who are. It is our responsibility to be the component of the church that
helps those people come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. I’m
committed to be all in…are you? Take this challenge with me. Don’t
just stop at one day, continue this challenge until it becomes who you
are. We are not perfect, but as we continue to be more Christ like, it
will no longer be a “challenge” issued by me, it will be who we are,
individually and as a church body.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Jeremy Meier