Put On Your Own Oxygen Mask First

Last week I attended a conference in Florida. The conference featured preaching by several men who have been influential in the development of my pastoral ministry. I anticipated the conference greatly as the last few months had been quite draining. Pastoral ministry can do that. Providing pastoral care for Christ followers often means walking with people through some of the most traumatic stages of their lives. Repeat that several dozen (or several hundred) times and the effect is very real. And, of course, that is only one aspect of ministry.

As I sat on the plane waiting to push back from the gate, the flight attendant said something that caught my ear. Indeed, it sounded like something far more profound than I would have expected in a safety talk. The flight attendant was talking about what would happen if the cabin were to lose pressure. She said that, if that were to happen, an oxygen mask would drop down from a compartment overhead. We were to take the mask and put if over our nose and mouth and breathe normally. What she said next seemed to be why I was on the plane. She said, “be sure to put on your own oxygen mask before assisting others.” It seemed to me that was why I was on the plane.

It seems that in a low oxygen environment, you have to make sure you can breathe so that you can think clearly enough to assist someone else. Despite the instinct to want to help your child or someone else in need, without oxygen yourself, you will be rendered helpless. For pastors, this is instructive. We must put on our own oxygen mask before assisting others.

For me, putting on my own oxygen mask meant going to my first conference in about 8 years. The conference was designed to challenge and encourage my walk with Christ. More than that, it was a chance to break out of the regular routine and spend some focused time hearing from other great preachers and scholars. Literally, it was a chance to feed my soul.

Looking back, I wonder why I had waiting so long between attending conferences like this. Several reasons come to mind that I do not think are unique to me. So, I thought I would share three of the reasons I had not attended a conference in a while in the hopes of encouraging others to put on their own oxygen mask so they are better equipped to assist others.

1. I don’t have the time.
We are busy. We are all busy. You are not alone, nor are you unique because you are busy. In fact, it is your busyness that necessitates that you take some time to slow down and allow the Lord to use others to pour into your life. None of us have the time, but we all make time for things that are truly important. Ask someone who has been diagnosed with cancer where they found the time for chemo treatments and doctor visits. They made the time because their life was on the line. So is yours. Make the time.

2. I don’t have the money.
This is a very practical problem. Ministers typically do not receive large paychecks and, in the current economy, many churches are curtailing expense accounts. Add to that the fact that conferences are not cheap. Conference organizers have significant costs for producing the event and that cost is usually passed along to attendees. There are options, however, to fund a conference trip. Consider driving instead of flying. Then, consider attending with one or two other pastors. Splitting the costs of hotels and travel will help considerably. Finally, consider sharing your need with several key leaders in your church. You might be surprised at how generous they may be in helping making sure you are ministered to.

3. I don’t know which conference to attend. 
Once again, this can be a practical problem. It is especially a problem if you have attended a handful of conferences in which celebrated pastors share all of their “victory” stories. You know, those stories that make you feel like you will never measure up, that your church will never “get it,” and that make you feel more inadequate than refreshed? Yeah, I’m not talking about those conferences. I’m suggesting you seek out conferences where the focus is on the preaching of the Word. Putting on your own oxygen mask is not about trying to find a “better way” to do ministry. You don’t need a new paradigm or a radical new insight. You need to hear from Jesus in his Word.

I’ve given you my top three reasons…eh, um….excuses for not attending a conference in several years. Now, I want to hear from you. What other reasons do you have for not attending conferences on a regular basis?

Abortion...What Can You Do?

Since 1973 over 55 million babies have been aborted in the United States. When you consider that the population of the United States is currently 314 million, the number of aborted children is approximately 1 in 6 of the current population. I find it helpful to think of it this way, because I can easily count up 6 people in a restaurant and be reminded that abortion has taken away one of them. Try it sometime….it is haunting.

More than a generic holocaust, the greatest impact has been in the African American community. It is sad that more African American pastors are unwilling to speak out about abortion. I can only surmise they fear political ramifications. Sadly, there is a close alignment with many in the African American church and liberal political policy. Yet, it is African American women (and children) who are disproportionately affected by abortion. Consider that in 2012, there were more African American babies aborted than born in the state of New York. That statistic does not come from a right wing political group or a pro-life activist, it comes from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. They report that during 2012 – among African Americans – there were 31,328 abortions in the city of New York and only 24,758 live births. Where is the outrage?

You may think that such numbers are sad, but, you think: what can we do? Simply put, you can support your local crisis pregnancy center. In the city where I live the health department reports that approximately 8% of teenage girls experience a pregnancy; that is nearly 1 in 10. Add to that number college age girls who experience an unplanned pregnancy, and it is clear that my city has a large population of abortion vulnerable young women. This is precisely the group of people that are ministered to by a local pregnancy center.

In my area, the local pregnancy center is moving toward becoming a fully medical facility. Being a medical facility will mean that the pregnancy center will be able to offer free ultrasounds to any woman who wants to verify her pregnancy. In addition, pregnancy tests, options counseling, life skills training, parenting classes, and many other needs are met by a local pregnancy center.

So, how can you help?

1. Pray. 
Those who serve in your local pregnancy center are engaged in a spiritual battle, not a culture war or a political debate. Prayer changes things.

2. Give.
In order for a pregnancy center to “go medical” and provide all their services for free, they need people to stand with them financially.

3. Volunteer.
Pregnancy centers rely on volunteers to provide client counseling, teach classes and many other tasks essential to their operation. Give of your time. You never know the impact you will have.

4. Share.
Let others know about the good work that is being done by your local pregnancy center. The best form of “advertisement” is word-of-mouth.

5. Pray.
Did I say that already? Let me say it again. Pray for women who experience unplanned pregnancies, their families and the pressures they are under. Pray for those who are wrestling with post-abortive depression and guilt.

Read the Book, Skip the Movie(s)

I've been asked by several faithful, gospel-concerned folks if they should see the new Son of God movie. Others have asked my thoughts on the upcoming Noah movie. As a general rule I do not tell other believers what they can and cannot do when it comes to matters of conscience. Having spent some time among legalistic Christians, I do not want to speak on an issue unless the Scripture speaks – either directly or in principle. So, if you hoped to get a “don’t go see it” or “yes, go watch the movie” directive, you will be disappointed. That is the Holy Spirit’s job. Rather, I will share with you a couple of reasons that I have decided against seeing both films.

First, any depiction of Jesus falls short of the real thing. It seems to me that if the Jesus of the Bible was accurately portrayed, half of those in the theater watching the film would want him crucified by the end of the film. After all, isn't that what really happened? Add to that the second commandment warns us against making idols (graven images). An idol is something that stands in the place of something else. We think of it as little wooden or metal images that represent a god. When it comes to film, the idol is just as real. We have an actor standing in the place of the real thing. That should give us pause. For many of us who saw the Passion of the Christ, when we think of Jesus, we think of Jim Caviezel. We cannot help it. And, that is one of the key problems with idols. We end up focusing on the pale imitation rather than the real thing.

Second, artists take too much poetic license with biblical material. I’m not attempting to be overly legalistic here, I promise. But, anytime there is a film adaptation of written material, there is the temptation (and general practice) of making the literature work better on film. It happened in a very popular movie recently. In Lone Survivor – the book – the rescue of Marcus Luttrell is pretty tame. He is walked up the side of a mountain by his host. He has tea with the man he was sent to kill. And he is found by Army Rangers who are scouring the mountain looking for him. In the movie, however, that just “doesn't play.” In the movie, Marcus is rescued as helicopter gunships strafe the village where he is located. The same thing happens in Son of God. Jesus didn't have a 13th woman disciple in the Bible, but he does in the movie. He didn't go into Lazarus’ tomb and cradle him to raise him from the dead, but he does in the movie. Jesus didn't look like a Calvin Klein underwear model and speak with a British accent, but he does in the movie. And on and on it goes.

But, you may protest, couldn't this movie be a tool to introduce people to Jesus? Well, I suppose. God can – and often does – use all sorts of things to speak to people. I remember one time he used a donkey to speak to Balaam. Though I am not sure that is his preferred method. If you decide to use this film to introduce people to Jesus, remember that the Jesus you end up pointing them to in the Bible is not the one they saw on the movie screen. The one in the Bible talks a lot more about sin and judgment and the fact he is God in the flesh than the one on screen does. The Jesus in the Bible demands your life. He demands that you leave everything and everyone for his sake. The Jesus of the Bible feels far less like a buddy than the Jesus in Son of God. Ultimately, my fear is that your friends may want Diogo Morgado’s Jesus to be their Savior rather than the Jesus of the Bible.

The issue of artistic license certainly applies to the Noah movie as well. Pre-release reviews have indicated that about the only thing in common with the biblical story is a guy named Noah, a boat, some animals and rain. Other than that, the depiction of why God destroyed the earth, God’s call on Noah’s life, God’s deliverance of Noah, and the like are far from biblically accurate. Indeed, several reviewers have indicated the theology is downright pagan.

Going to see either of these films does not make you a good Christian or a bad Christian. I’m afraid that too many Christians will see these movies for all the wrong reasons. The pressure of other Christians – especially through social media – who tell you that Christians need to see these films in order to prove something to Hollywood can be tremendous. Such people have their priorities mixed up. Our allegiance isn’t to Hollywood or to a Christian subculture that wants cheap imitations of Hollywood. Our allegiance is to the Jesus of the Bible. Our allegiance is to Christ, who I meet (and see) by faith, not on film. At the end of the day, I guess it comes down to the fact that I want my understanding of Jesus to be informed by the Bible, not Hollywood. So, I guess I’d say, read the book, skip the movie.

One of These Things (is not like the other)

When I was younger I really liked that Sesame Street segment that asked you to identify which “one of these things is not like the other?” Typically there were four items with one that was slightly different. As a song played, the viewer had to decide the commonality among items and, by default, which one was “not like the others.” So, fpr example, there might be four bowls of cereal on a table. Three were all the same size, while one was significantly larger.

We could play a form of “one of these things is not like the other” with three things in our culture: instant replay in sports, gun control laws, and the “n-word.” Our game is a little different, however. In our game, we note that there is one common bond between all three things, just as all four items on the table were bowls (in our example above). And, just as one bowl was a little larger than the others, one of our items differs slightly from the others.

Every major sport in the United States now utilizes instant replay in some form or fashion. The goal for using instant replay can be summed up with the phrase “to get it right.” We’ve all seen bad calls in sporting events. And whether we viewed that bad call from the arena or from our sofa, we wished the officials had seen what we (apparently) had seen. But, is getting the call right the only thing going on?

Although the debate over gun control was thrust back into the national spotlight after the tragic events at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT, the attempt to find the most effective way to minimize gun violence is very old. In the United States, the British sought to control colonists by restricting the amount of gunpowder available to them. A hundred years later, frontier town sheriffs sought to lessen gun violence by banning guns in town. These efforts, as well as current laws, are all an attempt to lessen violence. But, there is a bigger problem that hamstrings these efforts.

Most recently, and the thing that inspired this post, is the current fascination with attempting to legislate the use of the “n-word.” This month (Mar 2014) the NFL Competition Committee will convene to consider instituting an automatic 15-yard penalty for on-field use of the "n-word," with a second infraction resulting in ejection from the game. The NBA, too, is facing significant pressure to address the issue. In the midst of all this attention, ESPN ran a special story about Marge Schott on the tenth anniversary of her death. The story highlighted Mrs. Schott’s frequent use of the “n-word” and her views on race. The goal of all these “n-word” rules is obvious and clear: to promote civility and treat others with decency. But, again, I wonder, is there something more fundamental that will hamper this worthwhile goal?

As I think about these three issues, it seems to me that all three have in common a fundamental misunderstanding of the human condition. That is the way in which all three are alike. They all wish to deny the truth of the biblical description of mankind. According to the Bible, Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s command to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The result was a corruption of human nature that separates us from God. The result is that we are unable to obey God and, worse, we are unwilling to do so. The point is that the Bible teaches that the problem is inside of us. It is in our nature. And no matter what kind of restrictions we place on the outside, we cannot change the inside. That fact flies in the face of assumptions that are behind all three of the issues discussed in this post.

Both gun laws and the attempt to legislate human language is an effort to reverse the effects of the fall of humanity without the gospel. Gun laws are developed with the (false) assumption that people are able and wiling to follow the law. The problem is that we have not figured out a way to create legislation that makes people good. The best we can do is attempt to manage evil behavior. And we do not do that very well. Why? Not because we have a lack of laws or because they are poorly written. No. We do not manage evil behavior very well, because the problem is on the inside. And until the inside changes, all the laws in the world cannot protect the innocent.

The attempt to legislate human language has the same problem. The Bible testifies to the power of language. The Proverbs 18:21 tells us that “life and death are in the power of the tongue.” The old notion that “sticks and stones break our bones but words will never hurt me” is patently untrue. With that said, all of the penalties and fines in the world will not change the human heart. Jesus said that it is “the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them” (Mt 15:18). Reigning in the tongue is treating the symptom. The problem is the heart.

Instant replay is a little different. While the other two issues are driven by a denial of the human condition, instant replay is an effort to live as if the results of the fall can be overcome with the right technology and the intelligence to employ it correctly. Every time a call is missed, we are reminded that we live in a broken and fallen world. Those reminders point us to the need for help. We need someone to fix the broken mess. We need someone to fix us. But, rather than turning to Christ, we turn to technology.

In short, our culture’s obsession with making rules in order to force people to behave better is an attempt to reverse the fall without the gospel of Jesus Christ. For all of the good intentions, all three efforts fall woefully short. The reason calls get missed, the reason people commit violent acts with guns, and the reason people use their mouths to disparage those made in God’s image is because we are sinners, separated from God. We don’t need more laws. We don’t need penalties and fines. We don’t need instant replay. We need the grace of God in Christ.

Lessons Learned in the Small Church

I recently spoke with a member of a pastoral search committee in the Midwest. No, I wasn’t looking for a job, I was acting as a sounding board for a friend. He expressed his search teams mounting frustration with resumes from student pastors and children’s pastors. According to him, it seemed that “no one with pastoral experience was applying.” He did not make that comment to denigrate ministry to students or children. What he meant was that he was receiving few resumes from men who had served as “senior pastors” in churches his size (300-400) or smaller. This concerned him greatly and it concerns me, too.

The concern is not because student or children’s ministry is not important. Indeed it is. Both of those roles have a set of unique challenges that require a call from God and a love of those you are serving. But, it seems there is an increasing number of individuals in ministry who are not interested in pasturing the “small church.” By “small church” I mean those with attendance of 125 or less, in (often) rural locations, and (sometimes) “run” by a handful of folks (usually related). Rather than embrace that kind of mission field, many today would rather opt to plant a church or go the student / children’s ministry route until they can move into a mid-sized church. Unfortunately, in so doing, these would-be pastors miss out on lessons that one uniquely learns in the small church. I’ve noted a few such lessons from my own experience to challenge you to consider starting small.

1. You learn to serve.

The first church I ever served on a full-time basis was rural; very rural. Our community has far more animals than people. We had no main street. No post office. One gas station where an attendant still pumped the gas for you. The church had about 80 people in it that first Sunday. Most of them were related. I’ll never forget the first question from the chairman of deacons during my interview with them: “Do you have a problem cutting the grass?” You read that right, cutting the grass was a part of my formal job description at senior pastor of the church.

Initially I bristled at such a suggestion. But, I learned a lot on that lawn mower. One of the first things I learned was that I needed a bigger lawn mower! Beyond that, I learned that being a pastor means being a servant first. Funny thing about servants, they do not get to pick only the jobs they like, their masters do. As servants of Christ, serving the church, we need to learn that pastoral ministry often involves tasks that we didn’t learn about in seminary or bible college.

2. You learn leadership is about relationships.

Leadership is not about your position or your title. In the small church that is painfully obvious. I recall a deacon’s meeting in which I floated an idea. I cast the vision for the idea and gave the biblical reasons for it. The deacons were on board. I presented the idea at the church business meeting and was shot down. One of the members did not like the proposal. Rather than the deacons backing me up, they shrunk back. They did not want to “cross” their friend.

I do not blame those deacons. It was my own leadership immaturity that led to the problem. I didn’t understand the role of relationships for leadership, so I assumed that if those in positions of leadership made a proposal that would be sufficient. I’m glad I learned that lesson in a small church on a minor issue rather than cause a major upheaval in a larger context over a more serious matter.

3. You learn you are replaceable.

Shortly into my tenure in that first church I went to a Vacation Bible School training event. I went with the lady who had been the VBS Director the previous year, but now that I was there, it was my job. She agreed to accompany me to the training to introduce me to the other folks in our local association. The lesson I learned, however, had nothing to do with VBS. It was an offhand remark she made as we traveled back home from the meeting.

Someone in the vehicle had remarked how the church was affected by the previous pastor’s ministry and how he would be missed. My VBS hostess replied by stating, “pastors come and go, but the church stays the same.” While I did not tease a more precise meaning out of her – I was too stunned to do so – I have come to understand what she meant. She meant that pastors are stewards of the church for a time and then pass it along to others. She meant that the church does not rise and fall with you, pastor, but – if I may insert a theological meaning to her words – with Christ. She meant that I was replaceable. And, indeed, I was eventually replaced. I moved to a new place of ministry and the church called another pastor. In the 18 years since leaving there, they have called three pastors. Not a bad average for a small, rural church.

4. You learn the rhythms of ministry.

My next place of ministry was a bit larger, but not by much. When I arrived the church had about 95 people in attendance. It was a small, county seat church in a small town. It was there that I how to flow with the rhythms of ministry. By that I mean I learned how to balance my schedule to ensure that my highest priorities were met first. As a pastor, my conviction is that my highest ministry priority is studying the Word and preparing to proclaim it. But, there are many other tasks that must be undertaken as well.

I am thankful that I had a smaller context in which to learn how to manage my schedule. After all, if you do not set your schedule, other people (or other circumstances) will. If I had jumped immediately into a larger church – complete with larger budgets, personnel issues, etc – I suspect it would have been more challenging to learn how to get in the flow of the rhythms of ministry.

There are many other lessons that I learned in those small churches. These are but a sample. My point here is to encourage men who feel called to the pastoral ministry to not despise the day of small beginnings (to paraphrase Zech 4:10). Serve the Lord in small places and he will teach you incredible lessons. Love the people in those small churches and you’ll learn even more. 

Deciding What is Really Important in Theology

Theology is one of those mysterious, challenging, and often difficult to understand topics in the church. It is a topic that has the potential to inflame passions and divide believers, often creating more heat than light. At the same time, it is a vital and crucial subject. Theology proper is, after all, what one believes about God. From that flows general theology, which is all the rest of what we believe related to who God is and what he has revealed about the world, mankind, Jesus Christ, and the future, to name just a few.

Because theology is so important, many of us take it very seriously. The fact of our seriousness about theology – even to the point of inflamed passions and divided believers – is not always a bad thing. It is, after all, good and right to determine, with conviction, what the Bible teaches and commit ourselves to it. Contrary to the old World Council of Churches dictum that “doctrine divides, service unites” the problem is not with doctrine, per se.

The truth is that doctrine does define. It defines who we are and establishes a framework for ministry in the world. But our problem is not with doctrine. It seems to me that our problem is with thinking that every doctrine is equally worth fighting over. In fact, I used to be just that way. I thought that doctrine had to be a seamlessly integrated system, with no room for divergence. When I found someone who disagreed with me over an area of doctrine, I would argue at length to convince them of how wrong they were.

That all changed when I read a piece by Dr. Al Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Mohler’s piece described doing “theological triage;” a process by which Christians could determine which doctrines were indispensable as opposed to those in which honest disagreement was within the bounds of orthodoxy. I learned a lot by reading about that concept, specifically the fact that I had argued about way too much doctrine in my life. (You can read Dr. Mohler's piece here. He also wrote on the subject in A Theology for the Church, ed. by Dr. Danny Akin.)

For those who have never read about theological triage, I will do my best to represent the idea here. I do not pretend to have developed this idea, nor do I represent myself as describing Dr. Mohler’s position, although I will use his terms. The examples I will use are my own (to the best of my memory) and can best be described as my “takeaways” from reading and reflecting on the issue over the last few years.

Theological triage is an attempt to assign levels of seriousness to theological concepts; similar to the way in which medical triage assigns levels of seriousness (or, urgency) to medical conditions. A hangnail is not as serious as a heart attack. The hiccups are not a stroke. However, our tendency is to treat all theological issues (or at least our favorite doctrines) as if they are equally non-negotiable.

Using theological triage one can divide beliefs into three categories: dogma, doctrine, and debatable. Dogma describes those beliefs which define Christianity apart from other religions. They are the beliefs that, if absent, Christianity ceases to be Christianity. I would place the doctrine of God – including belief in the Trinity – at the forefront of dogma. Also included would be the full humanity and deity of Jesus Christ, the inspiration, inerrancy, and authority of Scripture, and justification by faith alone. If any of those core beliefs are missing your doctrine is not consistent with historic, orthodox Christianity. In fact, it is not Christianity.

The second category is doctrine. I realize that is a little confusing since the overarching term for all these beliefs could be called doctrine. Here I mean doctrine that is unique in defining Christians from one another. Dogma distinguishes Christian as opposed to non-Christian beliefs. Doctrine distinguishes Baptist from Presbyterian or Methodist beliefs. Committed Christians who agree at the level of dogma can (and often do) disagree on this level of beliefs. Issues such as infant baptism, women serving as pastors, and church polity are examples at this level.

The final category can be called debatable. Debatable means exactly what you think: these are issues that Christians disagree on, and often do so in the same congregation. The debatable category is different from the doctrine category in that disagreement on these issues can happen within a congregation. I think, for example, of eschatological issues (i.e. the end times). Within the same congregation amillenialists, dispensational premillenialists, historic premillenialists and even postmillennialists can worship, serve, engage in missions and evangelism, all while disagreeing over the specifics of Jesus’ return. The details of soteriology (i.e. Calvinist vs. Arminian), type of worship, Charismatic gifts, and the like are issues that disagreement does not need to destroy fellowship.

My experience has been that the fiercest debates rage over issues at this third level. That is incredibly sad. It need not be that way. Rather than divide over honestly debatable issues, believers need to accept one another with love and understanding and agree to disagree over such issues. I am learning to do that more and more each day. Every time I learn something that helps me know Jesus better from someone who does not dot all their “i’s” or cross all their “t’s” exactly the way I do. I pray that God would grant us greater courage to hold matters of dogma with unwavering conviction, matters of doctrine with great commitment, and matters that are debatable with tremendous charity. 

Why I Quit Bashing the Church

It has, apparently, become fashionable these days to consider the church unfashionable. Perhaps “unfashionable” is not the right word. But, I am not sure what is. Unnecessary? Out of date? Optional? I read Donald Miller’s revelation that he does not consider church attendance all that important. After all, he reasoned, Jesus is not limited to the church alone. Besides, Miller confessed he doesn't get a lot out of the services. And, according to Miller, he is not alone. There are a number of cool and hip “Christian leaders” who have concluded they no longer need the church.

I do not intend to debate Donald Miller on this issue here. Indeed, I do not know Donald Miller and have never read a word he wrote – outside of his “I don’t need the church” blog. Frankly, I have never bought into the whole “Blue Like Jazz” thing. I put it in the same category as the writings of Rob Bell and other “cooler-than-you-are-because-I-ask-questions-instead-of-give-answers” types. But, I digress.

I've had my fair share of bad experiences in a church. I've been part of nearly every kind of church you can imagine. I was once a part of a church that was so legalistic that I listened to REM’s “Losing My Religion” after church every Sunday. Literally. Of course, the pastor didn't know….if he had I would've been in big trouble. Later, I was part of a small country church where the biggest issue was whether the pastor would cut the grass at the church. No joke. And, then, I was once part of a church that was really modern and contemporary, but lacked the spiritual discernment to distinguish between Joyce Meyer and Kay Arthur. Seriously.  In all of those experiences I had moments in which I made pointed and sharp criticisms of the church. But, that has changed. In light of Miller’s recent blog, and having reflected on it for the better part of a week, I thought I would share three reasons why I decided to quit bashing the church.

Jesus Died for the Church
The first reason I have quit bashing the church is because Jesus died for the church. That sounds so “churchy,” but it is true. In Acts 20:28 Paul reminds the leaders of the church at Ephesus: “Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.” Those six words stop me cold when I start to get critical of the church. Because what I am criticizing is the very thing that Jesus bought with his own blood. His blood. It is because of his blood that lost and sinful people can repent, experience forgiveness, be born again and, yes, made part of the church.

The church cost Jesus everything. Without Jesus giving his life, the church would not exist. While that does not mean the church is beyond correction or reproof, it does seem to me that it should be beyond my petty criticisms about the length of a sermon or whether the music was inspiring. When I critique the church because I “don’t get anything out of it,” perhaps I have forgotten what Jesus put into it: his blood. So, then, it occurs to me that maybe the church isn't all about me. Maybe the point of gathering isn't to impress me with musical skill or oratory magic. Maybe the point of gathering is to worship the One who gave it all so that I might live. And, you know, remarkably, as soon as I get my eyes off of myself and onto Christ, the church becomes far more important and my petty, narcissistic criticisms melt away.

The Church is Jesus’ Bride
If the fact that Jesus died for the Church is not sufficient to give you pause for criticism, perhaps the fact that the church is Jesus’ bride will. Can you imagine pulling your friend aside and telling him (or her), “You know, I really like you and value our friendship deeply. But, I can’t stand your spouse. In fact, I have no use for him (or her). He (or she) is really obnoxious, awkward, and annoying. Frankly, I don’t get much from my relationship with him (or her). But, I don’t want this to change our friendship.”

I don’t know, but my guess would be that friendship would not last long. I cannot imagine having a deep friendship with anyone who thought badly about my wife. I don’t mean that they have to think she is awesome. But, if they dislike her…well, I don’t have much of a place in my life for a relationship with someone who despises the one person I love most deeply. While I recognize the use of “bride of Christ” is an analogy in the Bible, and all analogies have limitations, I don’t think it too much to assume that the idea of love is present. I have no doubt that Jesus loves the church more deeply than I love my wife. If I won’t have a deep friendship with someone who despises my wife, why do we think Jesus will be nonchalant toward those who despise his bride?

The Church is Jesus’ Body
A final reason I decided to quit bashing the church is that the church is Jesus’ body. Let’s shift the analogy from above. As my wife and I have aged, our bodies have changed a bit. We don’t metabolize food quite like they used to. Ok, to be honest, mine doesn't. Hers is just fine. But, for the sake of thinking about this issue, let’s imagine that you get dressed for an evening out and you ask your spouse, “how do I look?” Imagine that they respond by saying, “Well, not bad, considering the shape you are in. I mean, you've really let yourself go and I am embarrassed by how you look.” I’m guessing that night is over!

In the NT, the church is called the “body of Christ.” We enjoy that analogy when we are talking about being Jesus’ hands and feet. But, we seem to forget the church is his body when we start complaining. It seems we have no reservations about telling Jesus just how flabby and out of shape his body is.

None of this is intended to suggest the church is perfect. It is not. It is filled with sinful people who are saved by God’s grace. We are in constant need of forgiveness and restoration to fellowship. But, the church is also a miracle of God’s grace. It brings together diverse people to live in community. It is the place where lions and lambs lie down together. The church provides us something bigger than ourselves that we are a part of. It provides us a constant reminder that life is not about us, but about serving the God who loves us and is everything for us in Christ. Considering the grace of God and the sacrifice of Christ, I believe I will think carefully before I relegate the church to the realm of the “unnecessary.”