"The Church is Called to Be 'Churchy,' So Deal with It"

The church is called to be "churchy," charged with proclaiming God's message for the world--Law and Gospel--whether the world likes it or not.

I don't like it much of the time. It's an unpleasant punch in the gut to realize that I am not self-sufficient and that I'm not "all that." I need God and what He offers as a free gift to all who are willing to repent and believe in Christ as their only Lord and the source of their only hope.

Its frequent unpleasantness doesn't alter the fact that I need this message, now and eternally.

Or that Christ commands that we Christians share it.

Or that this message and this message alone and our belief in it and the Christ Who is the message, saves us from sin, death, and darkness.

Saint Paul wrote: "...I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes..." (Romans 1:16). So, why should the Church be afraid to proclaim God's truth?

This article is a slap in the face to all of us--including myself at points in my life as a pastor, who try so hard to be palatable to the world that we effectively cease being Church, God's people on a mission. We just try to blend in. We try to avoid rocking the boat.

When we act in these ways, Jesus says, we fail to be "salt of the earth," people God uses, to preserve His kingdom until Christ's return and people who bring God's seasonings of grace, love, Lordship, and power to the world today.

Jesus warns the Church of the need to stay connected and true to Him in order to fulfill our life's purpose, to remain His salt: "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot." (Matthew 5:13)

Check out the article, The Church is Called to Be Churchy, So Deal with It.