For the Love of Church

Where do you turn in times of distress? The question presupposes that none of us are completely self-sufficient. It admits that at times, many times if we are completely honest, each of us needs other people. You and I need a support system. We need a community to which we belong and from which we find love, help, friendship, devotion, counsel, and encouragement for life’s challenging hours.

I hope that each of you know that God has provided all of this for us in His church. As a pastor, I often come face to face with people who have sharp criticisms of Christians and the church. Some of those criticisms are deserved but many are not. I also come into contact with many people who need help with challenges they have come up against. Very often those who I encounter in need of this help are not affiliated with any local church. Each time that happens, I am reminded of the richness of God’s grace that has brought me into the church, the body of Christ, the household of God. I am reminded how I should daily thank God for the love, help, friendship, devotion, counsel and encouragement I have received from the church over the years. While none of these precious gifts has come in perfect form, they have nonetheless come to me by God’s design through His church. I imagine that if you think about it, you will realize that you have received them as well.

Amid all the criticism of the church in our day, let us not neglect to thank God for all that the church does. We could all use a dose of Paul’s affection that he expressed to the Thessalonians. He wrote, “For what thanks can we render to God for you in return for all the joy with which we rejoice before our God on your account, as we night and day keep praying most earnestly that we may see your face, and may complete what is lacking in your faith?” (1 Thess. 3:9-10). We would also do well to pray for our churches as he prayed for the Thessalonian church in 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13,

Now may our God and Father Himself and Jesus our Lord direct our way to you; and may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people, just as we also do for you; so that He may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.

Even if your church is far from what it should be, rather than abandon it and condemn it, why not pray for it? You may be surprised what God will do.