What If Church?

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. Galatians6:7-9ESV

What is your idea of church? If you are older, and have been going to church for a number of years, you must have seen changes. I am guessing you accepted some, but held your nose with others mostly because church attendance was important to you, and it is Scriptural after all.

There are many denominations within the Reformed tradition, so if you were unhappy with the changing direction of your own doctrine and fellowship, what would you do?

What if church was viewed as a morning or evening out with friends? Or a way to have a nice time? Or to be entertained? Or a social event? Any kind of gradually reducing Spiritual content would then be taken as part of the territory and would be accepted as normal going forward.

A friend from a different denomination made a refreshing comment which warmed my heart. It wasn’t about the programs in his church, or the outreach, or the growth figures. No, he said simply, “all I know is that Jesus is my Saviour, my sins are forgiven, and I am bound for heaven.” I mean, who talks like that anymore? (said with my tongue firmly in my cheek). Seriously, shouldn’t our conversation with Christian friends be more like that, and not our football team, or our latest baking experience, a photo of our dinner plate, or even our latest diet? Just sayin’.

Opt In or Out?

There is an energetic debate going on within the UK, whether organ donation should be an opt in, or an opt out system. The assumption being proposed is that medical staff in the UK will presume you have consented to organ donation, unless you have opted out. I don’t want to explore the ethics of this being the right or wrong thing to do, but look at it from a different angle.

I believe that many folks think their faith, or to be more accurate, their religion, is an opt out system. It would work this way: If you are baptised or christened into a particular church ‘denomination or family’ when you are a baby, then that automatically makes you a member of that faith group, and therefore a christian. So once a ‘christian’ always a ‘christian’, unless at some stage in your later life, you decide to change your mind and opt out. If you don’t do anything about it, you are heaven bound.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but according to the Bible, it doesn’t work like that, because we can only OPT IN to salvation and faith! If you don’t make a conscious decision to ask for forgiveness from a loving and gracious God, you are not a christian by membership of any denomination or faith group, no matter what they tell you. The decision is not made as a baby. Christening or infant baptism doesn’t change the baby, it is a set of promises for the parents and Godparents.

It’s personal, and it’s a conscious choice, as these words confirm: If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9 NIV. That just leaves the question, ‘Have you opted IN?’

One Body

The Christian community divides itself up so easily by denomination. It’s a way of helping us define who we are, and to let others know and see those doctrines that separate us, even though we are one in Christ. I am in the happy situation of knowing people of other Christian denominations, and also happy to say we have never had an argument. Serious discussions yes, but no arguments.

However, there is a world of non church people out there who don’t care about denominational differences. Those inside ‘the Church’ are all seen as ‘those Christians’ and not always in a nice tone. It is true that we set ourselves up for a fall when we fail our Lord, and it doesn’t matter which church we may represent. Scotland is reeling at the allegations of inappropriate behaviour of Cardinal Keith O’Brien, the highest Roman Catholic cleric, and one who has a vote to elect the next Pope. It doesn’t take long for the outside world to jump all over the story, and label all Christians as fake or hypocrites or both!

Sometimes I think we worry too much about the effects the ‘outside world’ has on the church, and we almost disregard what we do to ourselves. Every time a priest fails his calling, or a minister falls short and gets caught with his hand in the offering plate, or a pastor succumbs to temptation, and leaves his wife and family for the choir leader or organist, the church of Jesus Christ suffers much more. So much more! We are quite well prepared to know what the outside world thinks of the church, but we are never quite prepared for the evil we bring on ourselves when one of our own falls and takes precious souls with him. That includes us. You and me, so the warning is clear. To the man or woman in the street, it does not matter the denomination of the wounded or fallen soldier. The end result is that many souls are lost, who otherwise should have been able to turn to those people for counselling and consolation. We may never know the eternal consequences of these lost opportunities.

However, the Church is not doomed by our foolish actions, and we should also remind ourselves of Jesus’ words when He said in Matthew 16:18: “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”

Church Reality

We all know that the church is not the building, but the people, as the old chorus tells us, but hold that thought. I would ask you to consider that we belong to two churches, and neither of them is the brickwork. Both are people centred.

The first church is the establishment formed by their statements of faith, and the standards to which it adheres. So, you might belong to a mainstream national church, or be labelled as an Evangelical, Baptist, Salvationist, Catholic, Holiness, Calvinist, Arminian etc etc. Belonging to one of these groups will broadly determine your church’s belief system, but not necessarily yours, or indeed the majority of the congregation. I have found that most folks go to a church because they feel comfortable there. It may be the music, or the minister, or the friends you make. Only very occasionally will it be the denomination.

The second church, and in my opinion, the more important church, doesn’t filter down from the statements of faith of a denomination, but from the congregation, or roots, upwards. In other words, it doesn’t really matter what it says on the tin (the manual), the content will likely be different. It may even bear no resemblance to the church’s core beliefs. Too strong? Think I am wrong?

I believe I am right in thinking that members of my own church who are over 55, will know and understand fully what their church’s core belief is, and claim the experience. There is usually one main difference between the protestant denominations, and in mine it’s Holiness. Sanctification. Second Blessing. This teaching sets the bar high, but it is no more than is required by God’s Word: ...as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy”. 1 Peter 14-16 NKJV

My particular church denomination is over 100 years old, and does not resemble the faith group it once did. Maybe we have become middle aged, or elderly (in church years), or maybe we have ‘moved with the times’, or maybe just maybe ‘the Glory has departed’. How bad and sad does that sound? So do you recognise my concern that we become the church we deserve? Maybe I am wrong, and things are really much better now, than they ever were before, and I would like to understand if this is the case. I understand that we all then have a responsibility to become the ‘Church’ in its true form, and I also recognise that I am an individual part of that body of believers by denomination, but more importantly by personal conviction, decision and witness. I pray I will be found worthy by the Head of the only Church that matters.

I know this piece will be read by people of various church groups and denominations, and so I would appreciate your own thoughts and experiences (if you feel you can comment freely).