I was thinking today how complicated everything seems, even the church. Every day I see terms associated with the modern church that leave me confused, and I am one of the ones in the church! I can't imagine how those outside the church feel. No wonder they are confused and disillusioned. I just heard a new term today, the Organic Church. I have no idea what it means, then there are these terms associated with the church today:
Emergent Church
Post-Modern Church
Mega-Church
Conservative and Post-conservative
Liberal and Post Liberal
Reformed
Charismatic and Neocharismatic
Calvinism
Arminianism
Those are just a sprinkling of terms I found and those are general terms that don't even include the different denominations themselves. No wonder people are confused about Christianity. Sometimes I think it would be a whole lot easier if all churches had one name...."The Way" with a simple fish on the front.
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." Isaiah 30:31The important thing to remember is that behind all the differences of denomination and styles of worship, we are all one church.
Lord, I pray that we can be one unified church so that You might be glorified on this earth. May we continue to be a light in a dark world that needs You. I pray that we can use love as a filter through all of our differences. Thank you for Your Holy Spirit who makes this possible. Amen.
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Acts 1:8
Celebrating the church today and all the important ways we are the same.....believing that He is risen, and that we will rise too, that we have forgiveness through His work on the cross, that we must trust Him daily, confess our sins, know that we are unworthy but He is worthy, lifting our hands, bowing our heads, praising His name in the sanctuary, that we remember what He did through communion, enter into new life through baptism, death swallowed up in victory
Amen, so be it!
ReplyDeleteThankul to be a Believer, a follower of The Way!
Thank you for sharing :)
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6
As I read your post, I am thinking we really need to watch the lingo. We can create all these terms and no one outside a tight circle has any idea what they mean. It can be way we build walls that keep people away.
ReplyDeleteCassandra, yes that is what I fear. When I read through the gospels the message of Jesus is so simple that a child can understand it. It would be interesting to go out on the street and ask questions and see what answers come back! Thank you for commenting :-)
ReplyDelete