What Do You Expect Out Of Your Church?

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. ¹² Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. Ephesians 4:11-12 NLT

When a church is viewed as a shopping mall, we tend to think, "What can I get out of the church?" When we view the church as the body of the Living Christ, we must rightly conclude, "Where do I fit into God’s plan for His church?” Many Christians have a shopping mall mentality, the Vanity Fair of Christianity with its multiplicity of departments seeking to appeal to your impulse to buy. In this approach market trends are studied to satisfy your desires rather than seeking God’s will.

This may be an excellent approach for a progressive shopping mall, but the church cannot be broken down into departments. We are one body, under the headship of Jesus. We cannot go to church seeking what we can get from one department or another. We must recognize that each one of us contributes to making up the larger church. When you view the church in this manner, you will not merely come to church, but you will be the Church.

The danger for Christians today is missing out on one of the most significant blessings of God, that is the blessedness of growing in community by serving one another in love. Some of the meagerness that comes into our lives is the direct result of starving this necessary part of our Christian walk.

The church, to be healthy, must involve every member seeking to glorify God in His church. We must step beyond a self-serving life and enter the world of others, for it is here where we minister the power of Christ. When we as a congregation purpose to live Christ in the presence of a watchful world, even the trappings of Vanity Fair lose its luster and people see God through us.

Pastor Mike

I always thought it incredible to see 150+ men retreat to study the Word on how to live Christ in this world. Praise God!