OPEN: About 9 yrs ago, the Russian Orthodox Church had a 200 year old Church Building that had fallen into disuse. They wanted refurbish and begin worship services there, but when they arrived at village where the church building was … it wasn’t there anymore. It had disappeared. It seems that some thieves had decided that – since the Greek Orthodox folks didn’t seem to have a use for the building - they did! And they carried away the church, brick by brick, until there wasn’t much left of a once elegant building. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7728407.stm)
Most churches are built of brick or wood or stone. And everybody knows that even the best of those building is not going to last forever. But this morning we’re talking about a different kind of church. We’re going to talk about a church that WILL last forever. We’re going to talk about the church that Jesus built.
Jesus said: “… on this rock I will build MY church... Matthew 16:18
Now, of course, Jesus wasn’t talking about a building made bricks, and stone, and wood. The church Jesus had in mind was going to be built out of flesh and blood - your flesh and blood. My flesh and blood. The church Jesus intended to build was to be made of you and me. WE are the church and wherever we are…WE are the church. Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave to save us and make us part of HIS church.
Now many people don’t realize how important the church is to Jesus. The Bible talks about the Church as the “Bride of Christ” and in Ephesians we read: “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25). The Church is the Bride of Christ - and Jesus loves her! He died for her!!!
In fact, did you realize that you can’t be a good Christian and not be part of His church. I John 1:7 says “ if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another…”
Now, look at that closely: If we walk in the light as He is in the light we WILL have fellowship with one another. Or – another way to say it – if we don’t have fellowship with one another we aren’t walking in the light as He is in the light. If you and I don’t have fellowship with other Christians… something’s wrong.
Now, there are people who say they can be just as good Christian without being with church. But thhat’s a LIE!
Granted, they CAN be a “Christian” without being with the church. But they CAN’T BE “just as good a Christian” without the church.
You see, the church is the bride of Christ. Ephesians 5:25 tells us “… Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” If a “believer” says they don’t want to be with the church - if they say they really don’t like the church - what they’re telling Jesus is:
“I don’t like your bride”
“I think she’s ugly”
“In fact, I think she’s been hit over the head with an ugly stick way too many times.”
“I love you Jesus… but I hate your bride.”
I hate the church you came and died for.
I despise that which you have sacrificed your life for.”
Now correct me if I’m wrong (but I’m not) but I’m pretty sure that’s not going to go over real well with Jesus.
But now, why would people not want to be around the church? Well, the fact of the matter is, the church is sometimes… UGLY. Have you ever heard of a church where there’s been divisiveness? Where there’s been backbiting and gossiping and folks saying nasty things about each other? Of course you have. We all have.
And it's nothing new. Paul had to warn the church at Galatia: “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21
He warned them TWICE!!! Why warn them a 2ND time??? Because there were church members who’d been doing stuff like that! Some of those folks at Galatia were pretty ugly believers.
I’ve read that in a medieval church manuscript were written these words: "The church is something like Noah's ark. If it weren't for the storm outside, you couldn't stand the smell inside.”
Now why would that happen? Why would the church "smell". Why would Christians "stink?" You’d think that because Jesus washed and justified and sanctified and saved them… that these people would all be just like little babies – cute and cuddly and promising.
The problem with babies is that they’re not always cute and cuddly. They cry… and they cry… and they cry.
They fuss and they throw tantrums. They wet their diapers, and then they fill their diapers. And then, as they get older, they get into the terrible twos. And then they get older (pause) and they KNOW EVERYTHING!
ILLUS: Mark Twain once said: “When a child reaches age 12, he should be kept in a barrel and fed through a knot hole, until he reaches 16 at which time you should plug up the hole.”
Church members can be like that. Do you think Jesus knew that church members would be like that? Of course He did. But He died for us anyway. And He built His church from people who He knew might one day act that way.
Why would he do that? Because (even at our worst) we benefit from just being together.
* Insurance studies show if you are regular church attendance – adds almost 6 years to your life. So, if we go to Church regularly - we live longer.
* And we learn from each other: I’ve been a preacher for over 30 years and I love still love going to Bible study and Sunday School and such. I still learn things I’d never seen (or have forgotten). I benefit from seeing Scripture through the eyes of someone else. So, we learn more when we’re around other Christians
* And Hebrews tells as we are around each other we encourage and challenge one another: Hebrews 10:24-25 says “…let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” So, when we’re an active part of Church we do more for Christ.
And there are benefits to us even in difficult congregations. I grew up in a church that church had all kinds of problems. There were conflicts, back biting, and even a church split. And yet it was in that imperfect congregation that I fell in love with Jesus and was baptized for the forgiveness of my sins. It was in that imperfect congregation that I made up my mind that one day I’d be a preacher. So even a bad church can have a positive effect on people.
NOW this is Unity Sunday. It’s a time when we declare the world around us that – even though we are two congregations speaking two different languages – we are ONE church. But here’s the deal: the only way our English and Spanish Church can have unity - and the only way both of our churches can have unity within themselves - is if we as Christians realize we need each other. Even when we aren’t perfect; even when we fail to do things right in church; even when we stink. And we will STINK every now and then.
Romans 3:23 says “… all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”
How many of you have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God? Me too. In too many churches – too many people forget that. One of the most interesting books in the Bible (for me) is Ephesians. Paul spends the first chapter of Ephesians telling the Christians there how important they are to God, and how much God loves them, and how they’ve been sealed by God’s Holy Spirit, and that God has set aside a special inheritance just for them.
But then, in chapter 2, Paul tells them to remember something. He wants them to remember WHO they were BEFORE they became Christians - they had been without God and without hope in this world. And he tells them WHY they’d been without God with hope:
“…you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. Ephesians 2:1-3
But now, wait a minute! Why would Paul start this letter out telling them how valuable they were to God NOW and then switch to how worthless they were BEFORE becoming Christians?
Paul did that because sometimes Christians forget who they had been BEFORE. They forget HOW MUCH God had forgiven them of. They forget that at one time they had sinned and fallen short. And because they forget WHO they’d been they tend to think of themselves as having “arrived”. They view themselves as righteous – and by extension they view themselves as the measure of what is righteous. And because they begin to think they are the measure of righteousness, they believe that they can stand in judgment of other Christians who don’t measure up.
But the Bible teaches us NONE of us ever truly arrive. Years ago I read 2 Corinthians 3:18 and saw something fantastic: “… we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from GLORY TO GLORY, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”
When I first read that I visualized a staircase. I saw Paul telling us that we are transformed into God’s image one step of the staircase at a time. The more time we spend in Bible Study and prayer and church and working for Christ, the further up the staircase we climb – closer and closer to the image of God. When people first come to Christ (I stood at the bottom of the steps leading up to the stage) they start out on the ground level. But the longer they spend with other Christians, they begin going up the staircase step by step.
Now some folks get up 12 or 13 steps and they stop and look down the staircase at the others. And they think to themselves “Fools. Why aren’t they at my level? Why don’t they tithe like I tithe? Why aren’t they as faithful in attending church or Sunday School? Why don’t they help in this ministry or that ministry like I do?” And they think those on the lower steps are literally “beneath them” in spirituality, and unworthy of their attention. They’ve “arrived” and those other folks haven’t.
Sorry, that’s not the way it’s supposed to work. If you think that you’ve “arrived” and that God should be impressed by your righteousness … you’ve missed the point. If you stand before Him on judgement day and try to impress God by how far you’ve made it up the staircase - God will ask you where the rest of the people are. He’ll ask you why you didn’t work harder at helping those other Christians in their journey of going “Glory unto Glory”.
Hebrews 11:24-25 tell us “… let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
Our job is to “spur one another on” and “stir up one another” and to be “encouraging one anther”. If we don’t try to help others get closer to God because we don’t think they measure up to our HIGH standards… then we’ve failed. Because we’ve ALL sinned. We ALL have fallen short. If we really remembered what we were before we became Christians and how much God has forgiven us of, then we’d realize that none of us can stand before God and brag about how more righteous we are than others.
True unity in the church can only be gained when we approach God realizing that we have ALL SINNED in our lives and that God regards other Christians as needing our assistance to reach further up the stairs. One man that understand that was a guy named George.
CLOSE: George was part of this English congregation when I first came here over 20 years ago. When I first met George he was a big teddy bear of a guy. Lovable, gentle and Godly. But George wasn’t always that way.
Before George became a Christian, he wasn’t a very nice guy. He cursed a lot, often frequented the bars and often got into bar fights. Actually, he never started the bar fight, but he always ended them. He was not a man you messed with.
When the preacher started studying with a group of women down at a local factory that included George’s wife – George threatened to kill the preacher. But the preacher had no fear and went face to face with George and told him about Jesus. After a few conversations that preacher baptized George into Christ and George's life began to turn around.
His fellow workers, at the plant where he worked, began to take bets about how long this “conversion” would last… but they all lost. The bar he used to frequent had a wake for him, because he had died to them. And he had died, and was buried with Christ and rose up from his watery grave to walk a new life. And when George died a few years back, they held the funeral service here at Church and it went for over an hour. And it was standing room only.
It was obvious George’s life had made an impact on the people around him. But he only made that impact because he never forget what he’d been before meeting Jesus, and he never forgot what God had done for him since he came to Jesus.
INVITATION
