View From the Outside

Sometimes we need to ask ourselves what our church would look like through someone else's eyes.

A week or so ago I visited a church that I had only attended a couple of times before, and I couldn't help but make some observations. However, before I get into that, I'm going to give some background information. I am a firm believer that friendliness and openness are key components that add to the overall quality of the church experience, and, naturally, the lack of these components can put a somewhat negative spin to that experience. That being said, let's get into what I encountered.

I arrived at church as the first worship service was nearing an end (this church had two worship services). Simone was taking care of something at the time, so I decided to walk around the building a little bit. I decided to take a passive role regarding my interactions, that is, I wasn't openly friendly while at the same time conducting myself so as to appear approachable. The interesting thing was that during this time nobody approached me or even said "Hello" to me. It wasn't until some time later when the worship service was completed and I was seated for Sabbath School that an older gentleman came to me and welcomed me to the church.

This series of events would not have caught my attention had not just a few days earlier I had gone to an auto parts store. I had hardly two steps into the store when one of the employees called out "Welcome to _____!" A phrase that was repeated by that same person whenever someone walked into the store. The contrast between that prompt greeting and the delayed greeting I received at the church was startling.

I don't harbor any negative feelings, but I can't help but wonder if my attitude would be different had I been a true outsider, someone who had never been to that church before, or any church before my visit there. Would I have been treated differently if I wasn't dressed like an insider (shaved, combed with shirt & tie)? The more I think, the more questions come to mind, and I'm sure that some come to your mind as well.

The key conclusion I drew from this experience is that surely God's church can do better than an auto parts store. If someone were to feel unwelcome there it probably wouldn't be a problem if they could find the right part for the right price, but if someone were to feel unwelcome when they walk into a church, well, now, that's a problem.

My point in sharing all this with you is not to place blame, but hopefully to increase our awareness of how we treat the people that walk through our church doors. Because if we want those who are outsiders to our church to become insiders, well maybe we should act more like auto parts store employees.

Everlasting Law

Psalm 119:145-152 

Qoph

 ¹⁴⁵ I call with all my heart; answer me, O LORD,
       and I will obey your decrees. 
 ¹⁴⁶ I call out to you; save me
       and I will keep your statutes.
 ¹⁴⁷ I rise before dawn and cry for help;
       I have put my hope in your word.
 ¹⁴⁸ My eyes stay open through the watches of the night,
       that I may meditate on your promises.
 ¹⁴⁹ Hear my voice in accordance with your love;
       preserve my life, O LORD, according to your laws.
 ¹⁵⁰ Those who devise wicked schemes are near,
       but they are far from your law.
 ¹⁵¹ Yet you are near, O LORD,
       and all your commands are true.
 ¹⁵² Long ago I learned from your statutes
       that you established them to last forever.

God's laws are designed to last forever.

There are many good points in this passage, but the one that really stood out to me is the one found in verse 152. That point is the one I highlighted above in that the statutes (laws) of God were designed to be everlasting. The reason this point stood out from the rest is most likely because I have also been studying the book of Romans (which some of you probably are doing as well). I won't go into depth regarding Romans, but as many of you know, there are quite a few people who misuse that book of the Bible to say things that aren't true. The big one being that the Law of God was done away with at the cross. Verse 152 stands in direct contradiction to that argument.

If God's statutes were established to last forever, than why would He do away with them after a few thousand years, which are nothing compared with eternity? The closest illustration I can think of would be if those responsible for the Hoover Dam, a structure that was designed to last a very long time, were to suddenly decide that it should be destroyed. No doubt people would think that they were crazy. Yet, sadly, this is how many view God and His laws. To think that He would do away with something that was established to last forever is to think that He is impulsive at best.

I know this may be an oversimplification of the matter, but then again that may only be in contrast to people's tendency to over complicate things. God designed for His laws to last forever, and that is exactly how we should view them.

Time to Act

Psalm 119:121-128 

Ayin

 ¹²¹ I have done what is righteous and just;
       do not leave me to my oppressors. 
 ¹²² Ensure your servant's well-being;
       let not the arrogant oppress me.
 ¹²³ My eyes fail, looking for your salvation,
       looking for your righteous promise.
 ¹²⁴ Deal with your servant according to your love
       and teach me your decrees.
 ¹²⁵ I am your servant; give me discernment
       that I may understand your statutes.
 ¹²⁶ It is time for you to act, O LORD;
       your law is being broken.
 ¹²⁷ Because I love your commands
       more than gold, more than pure gold,
 ¹²⁸ and because I consider all your precepts right,
       I hate every wrong path.

We must know when to act and when we should leave the actions to God.

Even though I quoted the entire ayin section above, I will focus mainly on verse 126. The psalmist, as we can ascertain from reading the rest of the psalm, was a person who had a close relationship with God, and had very high esteem for His law. Even though much of Psalm 119 is devoted to talking about the psalmist's actions in regards to the law, such is not the case in verse 126. Here the psalmist states that it is time for God to act, not himself. That is an attitude that we all should spend more time developing.

Too many people have the mentality that they should be defenders of the faith. I did a simple word search for the word "defend" and found only one reference that talked about a human being defending the gospel. The rest were either God defending us or us defending other people.

What I get out of this is that we should spend less time thinking about how to defend God and His law from attackers, and spend more time thinking about how to proclaim His message to a dying world. God and His Word have stood the test of time well before we came on the scene. He is much better at defending such attacks than we could ever be. So with this in mind, let us remember that there are times when we should act and there are times when we should leave the actions to God.