Christian Living

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If you are a believer, to be part of a church is healthy. It can foster one's spiritual growth and over-all well being in all aspects of life. You can find community, safety, and security amid a troubled world when you belong to a church.

The church may indeed be a place that is truly home. It's a place where you can feel accepted and loved no matter who you are or what you've done. It's a place where you experience family and cherish what life essentially is.

As the Apostle Paul said, "Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household ... built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit" (Ephesians 2:19-22).

However, a fact of life is that these hopes are not always realized in the church. The church, though a divinely appointed body, is also a human institution fraught with human frailty. The church is often less than a family, a community, or body of true believers.

So, in one practical sense, the church is not really "home" for us. Instead of unity and brotherhood, one can often find in it lots of struggles, strife, and politics. It is also a place of failure and tears, not just love.

Yet, why do we still need to be part of the church? For one, Christ calls us all to be part of His Body. His call is for us not to be solitary believers but to be in community. He wants us to take an active part in His family. Thus, God places the church as our "companionship on the road," imperfect though it may be.

Let's remain part of the church. We do so not because the church can meet all our needs. We do so because it's part of God's calling for our journey of faith and life.

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