This is NOT a commentary about our local church. I don’t want to write a blog about our church. The following are simply a couple thoughts I’ve had about the local church in the U.S. Here we go.
1. The U.S. Church could stand to know some history.
I think we suffer from lack of perspective. If all you know about the local church is what you see tweeted by your favorite internet or celebrity personalities, go back and read about the church in ages past. You’ll see how the character and mission of the church were defined in times past.
Of course, not everything good or bad in the past will necessarily be good or bad now. But knowing how God forged the faith and mission of those who came before can certainly help us know limitations (and strengths too) of our current approaches and trends.
2. Start by comparing yourself and your church to Jesus.
Okay, so my pastoral perspective comes out a bit in that statement. I’m not afraid to admit that. But how often do we start by comparing ourselves to someone else? When someone asks you about your church and how things are going, do you think about attendance, finances, and structures? Or, might a more natural reply be: I think Jesus would be really happy with so and so’s growth and obedience.
What if statements like these dominated our responses to the same question:
- I don’t think the Lord would be pleased that we are struggling with (insert certain in).
- We are getting more focused on making disciples.
- Our unity is definitely maturing.
But so often our churches are defined by business-like comparisons instead of the Scriptural comparisons we should be making.
Think. On these two points, how well do you view your local church?
Act. Pray that people would be able to read the book of Acts and see those types of things happening in your church. Have some great conversations with church leaders about how to make your church healthy, not necessarily like something or someone else.