I LOVE THE CHURCH! DO YOU?

The easiest job in the world is critic. Everywhere you go, you can hear experts and prognosticators of every kind and inclination pronouncing their assessments of what’s wrong with most everything. Quick to point out the problems they see, these self-appointed pundits are generally somewhat slower to jump in and become part of the solutions.

A common object of these critics’ disapproval is the church. It’s easy – even fashionable these days! – to be critical of the church. Composed of sinners, some of whom are saved by grace, and some not yet, the church is kind of a sinner hospital. It is exceedingly odd that a hospital for souls should be criticized for having as its clientele those who suffer from sin’s illness. Jesus did not “come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32).

So it is that I love the church. And here are a few reasons why.

I love the church, because in the church, those who admit their sin-sickness can receive both the healing provided by God’s forgiveness in Christ and the sustainable health imparted by the sanctifying power of God’s grace. In the church, people can experience wonderful life-changes together, and share the glories of watching one another be transformed.

I love the church, because Jesus promised to make His presence known in a very special way when we gather in His name (see Matthew 18:20). When His people unite to study His Word, or to pray, or to worship Him, the Lord “shows up and shows off His glories,” as one of our members puts it. This means that many of the things of God simply cannot be experienced outside the gathering of the Body of Christ.

I love the church, because the church calls believers to account for their sins. In the church Christians have brothers and sisters who speak the gospel into each other’s lives, reminding one another that Christ died to deliver us not only from the penalty of sin, but also from the power of sin. They urge each other daily to “press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). And when some stumble and fall, the others bend down and pick them up in love.

Finally, I love the church, because the Son of God died for the church. Indeed, who would dare refuse to love those for whom Jesus hung in agony on a cruel cross? This quirky rag-tag bunch is what “He obtained with His own blood” (Acts 20:28). In other words, we are right to love the church, because Christ loves the church. Despite her many blemishes, Christ still calls the church His Bride, and He’s still passionately in love with her.

Can you imagine someone saying to God’s Son, “I love You, Jesus, but I can’t stand that ugly Bride of Yours”? Indeed, such a sentiment might rightly incur His displeasure! It seems so clear that, if you love Jesus, you have to love His church.

So, let me ask: do you?