The Church Building

(Salvatore Vuono - FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

If you've been in Christian circles for any amount of time, you've probably heard people talk about "going to church."  What they mean by that is usually that they are going to the building where Christians from a local community gather for worship services, teaching, serving others, and the like.  Now if you were to be like me (a stickler for language) you might say something like, "Well, the building isn't the church - the church, according to God's Word, is the people, the Body of Christ."  Quickly the response would likely come, "Oh but you know what I mean when I say 'church'."

I'm always thinking about our Christian-ese, the language Christian people often use.  I shared the other night that while the term 'lord' is biblical, it's not a word we use often these days unless it is followed by '...of the Rings'.  So when we throw around words like 'church' and then assume we know what we mean, I feel the need to stop us and say, "But do we?  Do we really KNOW what the 'church' is?"  Because here's the deal - we often don't know what the church is.  We don't know what the purpose of the church is, we don't know what the church should be doing or not doing, and and we often don't know where to look.  Too often I think we take our cues from the culture at large instead of from the Word of God. 

Let me give you a few examples. 
What is the place where the pastor stands to give the sermon?  Most would call it 'the stage'.  But a stage is a place where, most often, people go to perform.  But preaching God's Word is not a performance - it is a privilege and a sacred duty.  Thus, people used to call it 'the platform', a place from which we proclaim truth. 

What do you call it when we sing songs about and to God on Sundays?  Worship.  Wrong.  According to Romans 12, all of life given to God is worship - singing is just one of many forms of worshiping God. 

If you think I am over-stating my case, just consider this question: what is the purpose of the church according to God's Word?  In future posts I will be looking at what the church is and what it should look like.  I hope you will join me in this journey as we examine the Bible for God's insights into the church in it's truest form. 

- tC