from Shawn Lovejoy's blog
I believe I first heard Bill
Hybels say it: "The church is the hope of the world." I have actually repeated
it many times myself. However, in recent years, I've had a change of heart. I
simply no longer believe it's true. I don't believe the church is the hope of
the world. Yes, Jesus said, "I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will
not overcome it," but He also said, "On this rock I will build my church" (Matt.
16: 18 NIV, emphasis added). In other words, the church is not the hope of the
world. Jesus is the hope of the world. He has simply chosen to extend hope
through his people, the church. Without Jesus, the church has nothing to offer
anyone. Jesus is the chief cornerstone of the church. Without the cornerstone in
place, the house falls. For a church to be effective, Jesus must be at the
center of it.
Jesus said, "I am the vine; you
are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in
them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15: 5). Did you catch that? The church can do nothing apart from Jesus living through us. We might have crowds. We might have influence. We might make a lot of noise. We might have tons of religious activity going on. We might come together for services every few days. However, Jesus said that apart from him, no long-term spiritual fruit will be produced. Apart from Jesus, we've got nothing. That's what He said!
them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15: 5). Did you catch that? The church can do nothing apart from Jesus living through us. We might have crowds. We might have influence. We might make a lot of noise. We might have tons of religious activity going on. We might come together for services every few days. However, Jesus said that apart from him, no long-term spiritual fruit will be produced. Apart from Jesus, we've got nothing. That's what He said!
We don't really believe that
though, do we? If we really believed that Jesus was the hope of the world,
wouldn't our lives and ministries look much differently than they do? If we
really believed that Jesus was the hope of the world, wouldn't we spend more
time with Him?
Wouldn't the Gospels drive more of our lives and our teachings? Pastors, wouldn't we preach this Sunday with more urgency? Wouldn't more Christians be Going? Giving? Sharing their faith? Wouldn't we talk less about what's going on in our churches and more about what's going on in our relationships with Jesus?
The church is not the hope of the
world. In fact, the church is not even the church unless Jesus is living in and
through it! The church without Jesus is a cult. Period. Jesus is the hope of the
world. Jesus is the only Good News! Would you be willing to go out and live like
you believe that today?
Make sure you take a few minutes to check out Shawn's
interview about his new book with Ed Stetzer on his blog.
Shawn Lovejoy
Shawn is the Lead Pastor of Mountain Lake Church; Directional Leader of churchplanters.com; and author of The Measure of Our Success: An Impassioned Plea To Pastors.
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