“Get the church out of the church in order to be the church.”
If you are anything like me you have heard this statement so much that it may, at times, seem a novelty. I hear it from both well meaning christians and non- christians alike. For decades artists have been writing songs about it. Getting past stained glass windows and being the hands and feet...We sing about it in our worship services. We talk about it in our small groups.
Please hear my heart, this is not a dig on what we are doing wrong. I am not saying that going, serving and just generally being a part of a church is a bad thing, absolutely not. I have said it before and I will say it again, you need to be where God is calling you!
Let me back up...
I was listening to music in my car the other day (I spend a lot of time in the car(-:) and I heard multiple songs during my trip saying something along the lines of; I’m gonna do me during the week and then come Sunday I’ll turn back to God. Obviously, that is some serious paraphrasing, AND, that was the intent of the songs that I am referring to.
They had great beats. Catchy melodies. They were genuinely fun musically playing behind the scenes and when I began to really listen to the lyrics my heart broke. I felt as if this idea, these songs, are too recognizable for comfort. How many times have I seen these songs playing out in those around me? Even worse, how many times have I played these songs out in my own life?
Aren’t I/we supposed to be one that stands out. A light in the darkness. The salt of the earth.
I think that sometimes we think that in order to “get out of the church in order to be the church” means that we have to go about doing the things that we value as “less than churchy” say things that are “less than churchy” and be places that are “less than churchy”. We have to go and “do me” as the songs implied and then come Sunday we come in and have our come to Jesus time and do it all over again.
But the thing is that first “church” in that phrase is not a building. It’s not a place that you can map on your phone. It’s a people. It is you. It is me.
In 1 Corinthians 12 it says that we are the body of Christ and in Ephesians 1 it tells us that the body of Christ is His church! We are His church!
Romans 10:15 ...“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
We are the “church” that needs to go beyond our four walls. Not to blend in, but to be the light. To shine in the dark places, not to create more darkness.
I have said this in at least one other article, but I feel it is worth repeating and face it, I’m the one with the keyboard. LOL
We don’t go into a dark room and say “darkness go!” We simply turn on the light.
What is that song...
They will know we are christians by our love by our love Yes, they’ll know we are christians by our love
So how come we don’t have more love in our world? Real love? God’s love? Isn’t that what we are called to do? The top 2- Love God, Love others. I’m speaking to myself here as well.
I know for my family and I the Lord has been giving us ideas of how to love people better where we are and it is not necessarily inside the church walls. It’s hosting events in our home whether big or small. It’s in loving the kids and parents (that one is sometimes harder) that we encounter in during our kids extracurriculars. It’s going over and helping someone with a home project that they are struggling with. Supporting local startup businesses. All the while we have the opportunity to speak life and truth into their lives. Meet them where they are at and call out their God-given identity.
It’s time we stop hitting people over the head with the Bible and love them like Jesus did. Like Jesus does, and meet them where they are.
Maybe we need to take sometime to draw in the sand...
So as for me and my house, we want to have some “beautiful feet”. Love you,
P.S. I would love to hear from you! What are someways that the Lord is calling you outside of the church to be the church? Maybe you inspire someone else to take action or spark an idea!
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