People keep asking,
"What is the new church going to look like?"
I don't fault them- it's the obvious question. But it's still a hard question. I have to quickly evaluate- do they want the quick and easy answer, or do they have time to hear the whole story? Are they more interested in style, or do they want to know the substance? Can I use some tired churchy words, or will that just add more confusion.
The more I'm asked this, and the further down this road I travel, I'm more comfortable just saying,
"The new church is going to look a lot like me."
It does manage to raise some eyebrows, but it's also the most faithful and biblically sound answer I know to give. When we think about what the church looks like our minds turn so quickly to bricks and mortar, to style and venue, to one hour Sunday morning.But when the bible describes the church, it's called the body of Christ. It's the people of God, the people who live in union with Christ and with one another. When the bible describes the church it describes the people that make her.
"You are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and member's of God's household," Eph. 2:19
So the new church really looks a lot like me right now. But over the past few weeks we've already started to get a clearer picture of her- we'd added more people to the body, more personalities, more gifts and talents. We've started to see what the church will look like in worship, in bible study and in service to the community.
So if you want to know what the church will look like, just take a look at the people who are coming on board. It's a beautiful thing.
