We’ve heard it all the time in one fashion or another: you need to be an active member of your church and not just an attendee if you really want to be considered a part of the church, or perhaps even to get the most out of church. At the last church I attended and officially partnered at, when I became a member they asked if I had a letter from a previous church releasing me from partnership in order to partner with this new church. And again at my current church I believe they do the same.
I should start by saying that I completely agree in that Christians should have a church home and establish relationships with one another. Christians need others to rely on, and to encourage one another to love and good works. Having community is vital to your growth. That is true both in a spiritual sense and for life in general. We are influenced by those around us and the fellowship we choose has an impact on our growth, maturing, etc. We need an avenue to serve others. And furthermore we need smaller communities in which we can be open and vulnerable, to be our true selves and be able to take off any proverbial masks we may have on. Church is the people, the body of Christ, fellowship with believers.
But I think churches (the buildings, the organizations, [blank] Baptist Church, [blank] Church of [such and such city], etc) too often don’t see themselves as part of one body and I think that is the work of the enemy, isolating churches apart from each other. I have heard countless pastors and preachers compare their church to other churches in the same town, explaining what other churches are doing wrong and why their church is the “right church”. I have seen churches acknowledge to new guests that if their church is not the right church, they will even help you find the right church, but they still try to make their church appealing by having the best music, the best social media presence, the latest technology, and the most modern worship experience, all while asking their attendees to officially partner with and essential obligate themselves to this one church.
But what this does is isolate the church, one from another. It breeds competition between churches. And this competition drains church funds away from the true mission of the church and puts it towards trying to be more appealing than other churches by creating the “best experience” for new members. But it builds barriers between churches, and the same applies to denominations. I’ve heard just as many preachers talk against other denominations of Christianity, not to mention the church goers who joke around about other denominations. Again, I think this is the enemy isolating churches and limiting the effectiveness of the church at large.
I recently saw a social media post about a church builder going to a city because there “were no churches that believe in God” in that city. But there were in fact dozens if not over a hundred churches in that city, but since they did not fall under the same church denomination and association, they claim there were no God-believing churches! What message does that send? It says that “we are the only ‘right’ church and if you don’t go here, you’re not really a Christian”. Don’t get me wrong I’m all for growing the church network and establishing new churches and creating more opportunities for non believers to find their way to Christ. But we need to realize what message we are sending.
Imagine if the church truly saw themselves as parts to one body. Imagine the impact it would have on the city. One church organization on its own could probably have a significant effect on a city in feeding the hungry and helping the homeless if they managed their financial priorities to meet that need and accomplish that mission instead of focusing on having the latest technology and putting on the best show (that’s a whole other topic); but if that’s what one church could do, imagine if every church in a city got together to take care of their city as one body of Christ! I would bet that they’d be able to completely eliminate homelessness and hunger in that city all together. No wonder the enemy wants us divided and isolated!
In the early days of the church, the church leaders would travel around to other churches and encouraging each other, and also write to each other for encouragement and asking for help when it was needed. What is holding us back from having that same mentality in our churches today?
I pray that believers would see themselves not as a member of one individual church but as a citizen of God’s kingdom and the body of Christ! We need a church home and community but that should not separate us. And I pray that church leaders would see the church as being bigger than just their congregation. We could have a tremendous impact on the world around us if we tear down the things that divide us.
One Pondering Christian 