Who is the Church?

It is interesting to read people's comments to your posts. So here's some props to Shannon Marden who had the best comment to my last post - thanks to everyone else who commented too...good to know there are some others who have the similar twisted (although very sane to me) thoughts.

Shannon in the trenches and is still positive (some people in the trenches can get pretty jaded). I think it is great that someone other than me sees the glass half-full when it comes to the church. Many people are negative toward the church (a lot of time for good reason!) and then just check out of the whole thing. I totally acknowledge the way the church has screwed up and is still screwing up (see my last post), but change starts from the inside out. If all those people who are discontented and want change bail, then there is no hope and the baby goes out with the bathwater. The reason we bail really isn't about what was done to us, but rather a misunderstanding about who the church really is.

If we truly believe that the church is the people of God and not not a building, and not a company (most of us say this but do we understand what we are saying?), then we have to cut each other some slack. It is impossible for any of us to go through life and never offend anyone; all of us are dysfunctional at some level. We are deluded if we think the problem is everyone around us.

So yes Shannon, we do live in a day and age where things are exciting for the church. Exciting because, as you say, we are returning to what we should be. So, thanks to everyone who involved in God's church. You are changing things and making a difference in your families, communities and the world around you. I think we underestimate the little part each of us plays, in the grand scheme of things but all those little parts add up. All of our little parts fit together to create big change.

We become critical of the church when we see it as only an institution, an organization, or a corporation. Who isn't critical of all of those things these days, ha! But Scripture is pretty clear about what the church is. Search the word "church" in the Bible and see what it says about it - you won't find reference to any of the three things mentioned above. These are very exciting times. We are heading toward a clearer understanding of the essence of the church - Not mystical, not superior, not faultless - just normal people.