The 21st Century Temple
If Jesus spoke about God’s dominion, reign, or kingdom, why is it that many Christians only talk about the church? It seems as though there is a ton of energy surrounding the church and how to improve the church etc. I have participated in some congregational development work. Most of the congregations appear to be inward focused and concerned about upholding their little corner of the church.
It seems like the institution of church in many aspects has become the temple that was destroyed in 70 CE. Like the apostles, it seems many Christians have their eyes on the temple and its beauty and symbol. There are hoards of people showing up with paintbrushes and paint ready to remodel the temple, but Jesus is pointing elsewhere.
I just wonder what the church would look like if the conversation turned toward the dominion of God and how we are to live out our lives in the dominion of God? The reality is that many folks who confess to be Christians want nothing to do with church. If the church is the people-- uh oh-- we are in deep doo-doo.
The libraries have volumes of texts concerning ecclesiology, yet the church continues to die in America. Over 70% of Americans are not interested in church on a particular Sunday. Just think if all the talk shifted from what one believes, how one worships or one’s denomination affiliation to how one is living out his faith in the presence of God’s creation.
Jesus message was the transformation of the world, not the transformation of the church. I wonder what would happen to the church if our energy was shifted from the transformation of the church to the transformation of the world?
5 Comments:
I think Jesus talked both about "Building His Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." - don't we find a clear indication of transformation of the church - its goal being John 13:34-35;-where the world can actually "see Jesus in us" and also the transformation of the world: advancement of the kingdom of God - breaking gates of hell - engagements with the forces of evil. It's going to be an ongoing battle. Jesus is still healing [ building ] the church and the world is being transformed one person at a time. The cross reached both of us - didn't it? Thank God for the church. He gave His life for her - it's His bride and she's getting beautiful more everyday with people like you and many more.
this post reminds me of the re-thinking that i had to do recently...
we're getting ready to have a concert at our church building for tsunami relief and i was thinking of making this announcement before we began...
some of the invited bands have members that are non-christians & some are even atheist...gasp!...
i wanted them to be cognizant of the fact that this building was to be respected, but i kept hearing the words over & over again in my head that this building was/is not the church...
for some reason i've known this for sometime, but i've really had to think of the wording as something more than semantics to be able to get it through my own thick skull...
maybe such is the way of thy kingdom come & His dominion?
yes, Rick i agree..the bricks and mortar which, for lack of a better word, combine to form a church, should be always be used in a practical sense. a homebase. a refueling center. a physical place to gather the real church together for worship and training and teaching. and yes, i believe we all need a meeting place in our lives that is a regular and consistent reminder of Who it is that we serve. but those four walls should primarily be a launching pad to the real place we've been called to which is.. out there. if all of our attention is focused within to make that brick and mortar beautiful, we're missing the point. we should all be able to get this.
i'd rather be exploding outward than imploding inward. implosion just leads to a big hole in the ground.
Well, I'm 98% with you on this one, with one "yeah, but," brother.
I am with you 100% that the Christian church has become way too church-centric, and not Christ-centric enough. In my own tradition, I found that people's language would drift from Christ-speak to Luther-speak to tradition-&-practice-speak, which led discussions of faith to be about "we've always done it this way," which then provided the definition of sacredness being the stuff we've always done. That made (and makes) me crazy when I encounter it.
I loved this line: "There are hoards of people showing up with paintbrushes and paint ready to remodel the temple, but Jesus is pointing elsewhere." Amen and amen!
I guess I'm looking for churches that do not stand so much as monuments to the glory of God (both in physical presence and in action) but as spiritual emergency wards - bringing the spiritually-wounded and damaged to a place of healing and restoration. I guess that's why the poem "So I Stay Near the Door" that I posted over here means so much to me. To me, that welcoming, inviting, and healing is all about being co-creators of the kingdom of God.
I also believe that if we are working on building the reign of God, that means we also need to speak truth to power - and that means being active outside the walls of the physical building, and engaging the world for Christ's sake. Lots of churches get real squeamish about social action - but look at Jesus feeding, healing, encouraging...it's a pretty strong example.
My only "yeah, but" would be this. I agree that the church, in the end, can't be just "the people" - when it is, it's focused on human stuff exclusively, and not on God. But an important lesson I once learned is that the church is also not just the physical "barn" where we gather - it really is the people, and the spirit of God, working together. As I heard one pastor (whose church had been firebombed) say, "The 'church' is what's left after your sanctuary burns to the ground."
Powerful stuff, brother. Praise God for your vision.
Agreed. Yes, the church is the people, and the ones who don't know it and live appropriately are in deep doo-doo indeed.
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