Tourist or living stone? - Bill Wilson -
At the risk of offending many, here we go...Is your church a tourist destination or a congregation of living stones? Are you a tourist or a living stone? This is not meant to offend, but to provoke thought. So many churches these days are so large that they have Starbucks and gift shops and book stores. Hey, it's all justified, right? The Starbucks is for fellowship. The gift shop is for outreach. The book store is for building up oneself in the Lord. All in all, they also make money. Money is really a badly needed commodity for churches these days. Salaries. Building expenses. Mortgages. Speaker budgets. Audio equipment. Programs. It takes a lot to run a church. But are these churches creating tourists or living stones?
Merriam-Webster defines tourist as: "a person who is visiting a place for pleasure or culture." Gotta ask: Is your church a tourist attraction? Is it encouraging people to visit for pleasure, hoping they will stay a while? Has it become a cultural destination where people smile at one another and speak Christianese? Is there more being taught about how you can be all you can be in Christ than about, as Christ would say in Matthew 16:24, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me"? Is there a focus on self-improvement over self-denial? Is there more about taking up Christ and having a great life than taking up your cross and following Christ? What is talked about over that cup of coffee?
Is your church a building made of wood and stone or is it made of living stones with Christ as the cornerstone? 1 Peter 2:4-6 says, "Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is also contained in the Scripture, "Behold, I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame." Have you and your brothers and sisters been built up as a spiritual house, a holy priesthood in Christ? Or are most your church community enjoying the visit to the building?
In Israel, there are stones everywhere. Stones are stacked upon stones. So the comparison of Christ's disciples to living stones was totally understood by those in Peter's time. IF each person was as a living stone, the Church would be strong, people would be Christ-centered with Christ as the cornerstone. You see, you are the Church, not the building that people attend. What you are being taught, the way that you are becoming a disciple of Christ, the emphasis on the gospel, the leading of the Holy Spirit are all part of the cornerstone and the building of the living stones. The early church, persecuted as it was, did not have buildings, coffee shops, book stores, or gift shops. The believers were the living stones that made the church upon the solid rock of Christ. No offense intended. Just think about it. Things need to change.
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