A Miscommittment or Misunderstanding? Part Two

A whole summer’s gone by. I’ve talked with lots of people. I’ve had plenty of time to continue to think about this and here’s the result. Our church is broken but not failing. Our focus seems a bit off but the message is still being spread. It seems as though we’ve completely missed the point but with further searching and a deeper look the love, service, and essence of Christ and what He called His body (the church) to be is being fulfilled all around us. The only real problem I see is that it’s the mentality of individuals and not the church as a whole. Within each body of believers can be found those who share their blessings as though they never owned them in the first place. With each congregation you find those who have everything in common with their fellow man and give of their physical things and their time to ensure that there is no one in want. But still I see a church as a whole that is projecting a damaging persona of selfish living and vain achievement.
Let me begin with what I see as bad news. If you’ve read the book “UnChrisitan” then you may have an even better idea about this than I do. It seems to me that the general view of the Christian church today is a group of people who think they are right and everyone else is wrong and this makes them better than you. It seems to me that when an outsider considers the church he doesn’t see a group of people filled with hope and joy. He doesn’t observe the loving one another as Christ has loved us nor does he feel like it’s a place where people’s physical needs are met. But he sees a group of people who play the political game of policies before people when it comes to their views of government or even within their own walls. This was the surface view I saw and felt when I wrote my previous post. I could see each person’s own personal comforts coming in the way of their serving others and the Lord. I could see a shunning and division between the haves and have-nots. There was a reliance on the physical world and it’s trappings for happiness and success rather than a hope in the Lord’s providence and a joy in the gift of salvation that he’s already given.
So why am I no longer so worried about the future of our churches? Because I was wrong. The Body of Christ as it is described to appear and behave in the scriptures is alive and well. But you won’t find it on TV or the web. You can’t see it in a bulletin or a casual church visit. The true church and Christ’s true disciples are hidden amongst and within the broken “churches” we have all around us. The congregations of hypocrites and liars, vain and self-serving people are also the congregations of struggling sinners, humble and self-giving people. Many times in fact these very individuals are one in the same. Other times your find these true disciples hiding among the fence riders. But whatever the case they are there, giving, serving, living as one with their fellow man and having everything in common. The meet together and give to each one as he or she has need. The disparity is this. I wanted to boast and bring to the forefront what God’s Word says to keep quiet. I wanted every person who walked through the doors and ever claimed the name of Jesus to instantly become his perfect follower.
Within the Sermon on the Mount Jesus addresses the sharing of our things and giving to the needy by instructing us to not announce our giving with trumpets and not to do our good deeds in front of men as if to win their approval. But rather we should do them in secret so that our Father will reward us (6:1-4). As I looked for the fulfillment of Acts 2, I found men and women following Matthew 6.
I still have a problem though. My problem is that earlier in the Sermon on the Mount, while comparing us to a light on a stand, Jesus says this, “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in Heaven (5:6).” So how can we find a balance? I think we must for two reasons. The first is that those who come into our churches and begin their journeys with Christ are immature in their walks and need to have the example of those living our Acts 2 to follow. Second, it seems obvious that unless the churches image among the unchurched changes we will remain a weak witness bringing little praise to our Father in Heaven.
I hope to next time discuss some ways that we might go about finding that balance. For now look at your own life and let’s see how we can change as individuals to better represent our Lord, doing good deeds in secret and yet being a lamp on a stand.