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in case you weren’t at north point yesterday, here’s my sermon. it’s short and to the point.
(make no mistake here…i am not disrespecting, undermining, undervaluing, or underestimating the power and purpose of personal, intimate, and life-changing moments of individual time with the lord…those moments in the prayer closet or transcendent worship, or transparent communion that only happen between me and jesus. without these times, our spiritual lives will dry up and we will become as barren as the west texas desert in the middle of summer. with that said…)
if it’s not drawing us deeper into relationships, it’s not church.
if it’s not drawing us deeper into service, it’s not church.
if it’s not causing us to evaluate and redefine our personal priorities, it’s not church.
if it’s about what I am getting, it’s not church.
if it causes us to extol the virtue or talent of the pastor, it’s not church.
if we don’t give our money to it, it’s not church.
if we are entertained by it, it’s not church.
if we can hide at it, it’s not church.
if it creates co-dependency, it’s not church.
if you think you don’t need to be there, it’s not church.
if you evaluate the church experience by how it makes you feel, it’s not church.
if church is an event you attend, it’s not church.
if it’s about sitting and watching, it’s not church.
if you look for a good seat, it’s not church.
church is not a meeting. church is not an event. church does not have hours or meeting times or schedules. church is not a spectator sport. church is not a service, a performance, a show, a presentation or a routine. church does not have stars. church does not have performers. the only audience in a church meeting is god.
church is the body of christ. no one in the body of christ is more important than anyone else. there are no pedestals. there are no positions of honor. there are no special parking spots. there are no marquees with the names of pastors. no one is more valued, more special, more needed, more exceptional.
in the church, every body has a role. we exist for the benefit of each other. one person does not exist for the benefit of all. if you are not needed, it’s not church.
just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. romans 12:4,5 now to each one the manifestation of the spirit is given for the common good. 1 corinthians 12:7
if it is not resulting in deep, long-term, friendships with people on days other than the day of your “big event”, it’s not church. if it is not compelling you to draw new people into your life, it’s not church. if you spend the majority of your “church time” soaking it in, it’s not church. church is about squeezing you out.
whether it’s at north point, or somewhere else you call your church, you better make sure you are defining “church” properly.
church is a group of people who live life together, serve a fallen world together, grow deep in fellowship and maturity together, share their resources with each other, need each other, and sacrificially live in a way that brings glory and recognition to god through jesus christ…and extends the kingdom of god to a lost and broken world.
remember…we don’t go to church…we are the church!
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