‘What is Church’. The first thing that popped into my mind is something Drexel has said many times – ‘we are not a country club for the righteous, we are a hospital for the wounded’. That’s the way it should be – but is that the way it is? Not specifically at WGBC, but ‘church’ in general. I personally think that WGBC ‘gets it’. I think that our focus on the children’s ministries, NorthStar, Costa Rica, CARITAS and the countless other ways we reach out to people speaks volumes to what our definition of a church is. Not that other churches aren’t wonderful, and not that we have all the answers. 
I think the true test of what a church is doesn’t happen within the walls of the building. It is what happens when you walk off of the church property. Do you take it with you to work on Monday morning? Do you have it with you on Saturday night? This lesson teaches us that church is about teaching/learning; breaking bread; fellowship and prayer. Nowhere does it mention pews, steeples, Sunday or preachers! (sorry, Drexel)! So, if that is the definition of church – teaching/learning, breaking bread, fellowship and prayer – what does it mean on the sign out front that says Walnut Grove Baptist Church. It’s not describing the building. It’s describing the people who use the building for the purpose of teaching, breaking bread, fellowship and prayer.
WE are the church – not the bricks and mortar. And unlike the bricks and mortar – we don’t ‘live’ in the building. (although…) J We leave the building – but we are still the church. When we go to work on Monday morning we are still the church. When our kids go to school – they are still the church. But are our actions, our words and our deeds always representative of the church? It is much easier inside the walls – where all of the people that are there are ‘like us’. We hold similar beliefs, attend similar programs, and are very comfortable expressing our faith. When we go outside of the walls – we aren’t so sure. People are different – may have different beliefs, may not believe at all. But still, we are the church.
There’s a joke about a woman driving down the road … honking the horn, darting in and out of traffic. A policeman pulls her over and asks for her ID. He says to the lady, “I’m sorry, I saw the bumper sticker on the car “I love Jesus” and the fish emblem and saw the way you were driving … I thought sure the car was stolen.” Even in the car driving down the road – we are the church. Is what we do and say reflecting what we believe?
This week, try to incorporate some of the components of what church is - teaching, breaking bread, fellowship and prayer – into places with other bricks and mortar. Make a conscious effort to ‘be church’. As a hospital for the wounded, sometimes we need to send the rescue squad to pick someone up!
I think the true test of what a church is doesn’t happen within the walls of the building. It is what happens when you walk off of the church property. Do you take it with you to work on Monday morning? Do you have it with you on Saturday night? This lesson teaches us that church is about teaching/learning; breaking bread; fellowship and prayer. Nowhere does it mention pews, steeples, Sunday or preachers! (sorry, Drexel)! So, if that is the definition of church – teaching/learning, breaking bread, fellowship and prayer – what does it mean on the sign out front that says Walnut Grove Baptist Church. It’s not describing the building. It’s describing the people who use the building for the purpose of teaching, breaking bread, fellowship and prayer.
WE are the church – not the bricks and mortar. And unlike the bricks and mortar – we don’t ‘live’ in the building. (although…) J We leave the building – but we are still the church. When we go to work on Monday morning we are still the church. When our kids go to school – they are still the church. But are our actions, our words and our deeds always representative of the church? It is much easier inside the walls – where all of the people that are there are ‘like us’. We hold similar beliefs, attend similar programs, and are very comfortable expressing our faith. When we go outside of the walls – we aren’t so sure. People are different – may have different beliefs, may not believe at all. But still, we are the church.
There’s a joke about a woman driving down the road … honking the horn, darting in and out of traffic. A policeman pulls her over and asks for her ID. He says to the lady, “I’m sorry, I saw the bumper sticker on the car “I love Jesus” and the fish emblem and saw the way you were driving … I thought sure the car was stolen.” Even in the car driving down the road – we are the church. Is what we do and say reflecting what we believe?
This week, try to incorporate some of the components of what church is - teaching, breaking bread, fellowship and prayer – into places with other bricks and mortar. Make a conscious effort to ‘be church’. As a hospital for the wounded, sometimes we need to send the rescue squad to pick someone up!
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