Some years back I remember Tim Stiemann, now a pastor in Houston, teaching our kids a song: “I am the church, you are the church; we are the church together.” This is pretty advanced theology. “The church is not a building,” the song says. It’s not an institution, either, and it does not consist in a short list of leaders. It really is all of us, every one, those who feel important and those who don’t. Kids and teenagers too: this stuff applies to you too.
How does a healthy church function during a time of transition? The same way it functions all the time: Ephesians 4:16, “as each part does its work.” And what is the work of the church? It’s “the work of ministry,” verse 12. And Christian ministry must be ministry of both Word and deed. I don’t believe for a moment that some of us (like, a short list!) are called to Word-ministry, and the rest to deed-ministry. I’m firmly persuaded that we’re all called to both. I’ll talk about deed-ministry in a future post. But let me stir you up to engage your proper ministry of speaking in the life of the church, and in the web of relationships that exists around the church.
In order to speak any words helpfully, we all need to be first listeners to the Word, with a definite article and a capital W. I am so proud of the breadth and depth of New Life’s knowledge of Scripture, that many of us read the Bible privately and in small groups on a regular basis. I, as a participant in the body life of New Life, learn from many of you, often–profound things. Thank you! You may think of your Bible reading as I often have my own: “I need to meet with Jesus today to protect my own sanity, to help me think straight. Otherwise I go wildly off track.” Absolutely. But there is also this collective need–we engage the Word not just to anchor ourselves individually, but to anchor the church: to God’s self-revelation, to the doctrines of grace, to what Paul calls in several places “sound doctrine.” Your study of Scripture helps me to be anchored to all these things; we do this for each other as we read and talk.
Let me give you three concrete things to do:
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Read the Bible for yourself, individually, privately. Think about what you read. Learn to “meditate” on the Word. (Perhaps a topic of a future post?) Steve’s Bible reading plan has been helpful to many of us. But many of you have your own rhythms of reading in place already. Press on in them!
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Participate in community Bible study, in community group or Women’s Bible Study or the Saturday Men’s Group or the New Creations ministry. You can’t read the Bible always, only in your own bubble; you need to hear from others. And they need to hear from you.
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Practice the fine art of conversation. This is actually something to be learned. (sounds like another post!) Ask questions. Listen well. Speak good words, informed by your own ongoing marination in God’s word. Sometimes the lines back to the Bible will be explicit; often they’ll be implicit, because, like that good piece of steak, you have been immersing yourself in the marinade of good and true things. Your words “taste good” because of your long marinade in the Word.
New Life’s church culture has been shaped by many people who have practiced these things. Let’s keep doing them, more and more.
