Let me give you a little background on the word church. Our English word church translates a Greek work, ekklesia, which simply means, called out. The church is a group of people who have been called out of something. The Bible often speaks of us as being called out of darkness and into God's marvelous light, but what that simply means is that the church is the group of people, from all over the world, from all races and ethnic groups, from both genders and from all ages, who trust in and follow Jesus. So church isn't anything we go to or anything we attend-- church is who we are. We are the church, the called-out ones, the ones who follow Jesus. Peter calls us a holy nation, a chosen race, even a people for God's own possession (1 Peter 2:9). We trust His words, we believe in His work, and we give our lives to live for and to follow Him. We follow His character, His heart and His teachings. Our goal in life is to be like Him, to be transformed into His image so that we think like Him, act like Him and love like Him. C.S. Lewis used to say that if your conversion to Christ didn't change you outwardly, your conversion was probably just imaginary.So how did church become a place we go to or something we attend? It's actually quite easy--as we the church would meet together we acquired buildings in which to meet, and over time we began to refer to them as churches. As we the church met together weekly for worship, that gathering became central and we also began to refer to it as church. It was an easy step to begin to refer to church as a place we go and a meeting we attend, rather than to us as a people who are the church.
I know that words morph and change over time. Not too many years ago, a "gay event" would have referred to a "happy occasion", but not anymore. So calling the buildings we meet in churches is here to stay. Referring to our weekly worship gathering as church, probably isn't going to disappear either, so why would I even write about this in a post?
Well, even though I know we can't change the church at large, I do think we can speak to encourage our own thinking. The Bible says, "as a man thinks in himself, so is he." How I think affects me, so if I can consciously think correctly about the church, I can influence my own life. Again, church isn't something we go to. It's who we are, so when we come together on Sundays, it's not to spectate--it's to participate.
So here's my challenge. Remind yourself often that the buildings where you meet are not the church. I've been trying to refer to the buildings as our "facilities" or the "buildings where we meet." I confess, it's hard. I know you might be saying, "Why bother when no one else will follow suit?" Bother because it will remind you that we are the called out ones--not our building. In the Old Testament, the temple was built and God's presence dwelt there. It was a magnificent edifice that pointed people to the greatness of God. But with the new covenant in Jesus, God destroyed the temple and built a new one, not with stone and mortar, but rather with living stones--us! We, His people, are the temple of God. His presence dwells with us and we live to show off the magnificence of His grace (1 Peter 2). So do your best to stop calling bricks and lumber the church of God.
But maybe even more importantly, it will help us to stop referring to our Sunday morning gathering as church. "Did you attend church today?" We don't attend church. Attending gives the idea that we are spectating at whatever is happening. When we speak of attending a sporting event, we never mean that we are the players on the court or field--we're just watching others perform. When we come together as God's church (God's called-out ones) we are never supposed to be just watching others perform, but I sense that's too often just what we do. When we gather to worship as the church, we are not the people in the stands; we're supposed to be the people on the field. Now you may be thinking, "How do I do that? I'm not up front. I'm not a praise leader or a pastor." You do that by giving yourself, your mind, your heart to that worship expression time. You sing. You engage in prayer. You listen attentively with a heart to obey what you hear. You heed the Holy Spirit as He prompts you to encourage others. You take the initiative to greet others and meet them if you don't know them. You gather early and stay a bit afterward, for the purpose of engaging with others, and you use your words and body language to affirm them, build them up and help them where you can. You see yourself as one of the players in this gathering of worship rather than just someone in the gallery of observers. I know it's just semantics, but words matter. So we should say things like, "Did you gather as the church to worship yesterday?" instead of, "Did you attend church yesterday?"
As I read back over this post, I'm sure some of you will think it's silly, but I stand by my assertion that we should stop going to church and just start being the church. Join me and others as the church this coming weekend.
