Churches are imperfect institutions filled with sinful people trying to learn to be like Christ. Paul wrote in Romans 7:18, “For I know that in me (that is in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.” All people struggle to live a life that is obedient to the Lord, yet Peter reminds us that we are to, “be holy in all your conduct,” (1 Pewter 1:15). This is a tough command, but an area that we need to learn and grow. How do we make this possible? One of the key ways that God has designed for us to do this is to live in a redemptive community, so that this community, can encourage you, and hold you accountable to growth and maturity. That redemptive community is to be a living organism, called “the church.” As followers of Jesus Christ, we become primarily citizens of heaven who live in America (or whatever country our redemptive community is in). As citizens of heaven, we are to hold each other accountable for our walk and relationship with Christ. According to Scripture, the local church is the … READ MORE

Can you imagine giving birth to a baby, and then saying to the child, have a good life, and I hope you are able to figure out how to grow and mature. That would be irresponsible at best, and criminal at worst. Yet, many times we approach someone’s rebirth into the kingdom of God, in just this manner. We say to the new believer, welcome to the family of God, hope you are able to navigate all the issues in growing and maturing. Looking to Christ as Lord means being united to Christ’s people. The church is more than a business that is being run with the gospel as its product. The church is to become a family to us, which will enable us to grow and mature. Every family member has responsibilities to fulfill within that family, and it is essential that they carry out those duties. Same is true in the church. The local church is the organism in which we are to carry out those responsibilities, and minister to the needs of each other. Therefore, the local church becomes to the believer, what parents are to become to a child. That church provides hope and help to … READ MORE

In Genesis 2, we see in the creation of man, that God said in verse 18, that the Lord said, “It is not good for man to be alone” By creating woman and brining her to the man, God established the importance or relationships, and the establishment of the family. This is a significant statement, especially when we remember that sin had not yet entered the world. Since, that was a true statement before sin, how much more is relationships needed now that sin has entered the world. During His incarnation, Jesus, recognized that because of sin, family and relationships will be hindered by the barriers of relationship with God. As a result, God established the church to be the family unit, to provide relationships in a sin cursed world. The enablement of that relationship was established by the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2. We must remember that church is not an event, it is a organism provided to the believer for hope and help in this sin cursed environment. One of the reasons for the church, is to provide the accountability we need to live a life that is honoring and pleasing to the Lord. The … READ MORE