On this rock

When someone asked me about my beliefs, I used to call myself a Christian who didn't like attending church. Sure I had some bad experiences like everyone else did but I laugh at the way I looked at the church when I was younger. Perhaps the churches I had attended at that age weren't quite as biblical as they could have been or I was blind but it reminds me of a story Pastor Shane shared. He told us how he was traveling by plane, sitting next to another gentleman and inevitably waiting for the exchange of questions about each others line of work. First the other man spoke of his work and then asked Shane what he did professionally. Shane's response was of course, I'm a pastor for a church in Las Vegas. The man replied, ah church, I don't like church, it's full of hypocrites. And the most interesting response I would never expected from a pastor was, yes, you're right, we are a bunch of hypocrites, and there is room for one more.

Like this man, my childhood was also centered around this idea that I was better than the church, I had God and I didn't need the church but man, was I missing the point. I was no different than the scribes and Pharisees as the famous words were spoken to the adulteress in John 8:7 - "The one without sin among you should be the first to throw a stone at her." I was throwing stones at the church yet I had no right to. What I now find church to be is a group of normal people who believe in a central purpose and are willing and able to help and love each other while in the process of becoming better people.

Not only was I missing that point, but I had never even questioned the idea of church. What is church? Why go to church? To me, it was a place to learn about the Bible, about history and Jesus and in my pride, I knew I could learn the bible just fine without someone teaching me what I'm not intelligent enough to read on my own. But my answers to what church is, what it is supposed to be, were wrong, and I set out to find the truth.

The Greek word used in the New Testament for church is "Ekklesia":

"An assembly of citizens summoned by the crier; the legislative assembly."

As Jesus called the church into being, by definition, He never spoke of creating a building where people met, but instead spoke of uniting people under one central purpose and understanding; the good news that Jesus Christ is the prophesied Messiah. He spoke to countless people on how to live a better life, how to love your neighbor and how to give abundantly. He told us that although we've sinned before, we are saved by grace and our lives are better lived without sin. The heart of Jesus has never been fully understood in the secular and even the spiritual world but the truth is 'Ekklesia' is the calling of all who believe in Him to demonstrate His love through community, gifting and fellowship.

I've attended four different 'churches' in the past month and what I've realized is that the church is separated now more than ever. We've separated ourselves by buildings and have become prideful in belonging to a specific church; I'm guilty as well. But the calling is to be one church, united for one cause. What 500 Christians can do in a city, 10,000 Christians can do better.

If we believe in Jesus' call to be the church, then we should start acting as one church, and not many. If you belong to a church, don't think of other churches as your competitors, but think of us all as your brothers and sisters for the same cause. Make an effort to attend a different church every once and a while, make new friends and believers in Christ.

If you don't belong to a church, find one and get involved. It seems intimidating at first but it's one of the best actions you'll take in your life. If you don't believe in God, I encourage you to ask yourself why, and seek truth.

If you do belong to a church, we need to forget the semantics and cling to the truth of what we all believe and take action where it is needed. This world is hurting and at times we don't see it through our american lenses but there is work to be done. Let's exercise our faith through our works. Love God, love your neighbors, give abundantly and be unselfish.

"But someone will say, 'You have faith, and I have works.' Show me your faith without works, and I will show you faith from my works." -James 2:18