Church Is Not a Spectator Sport
In our recent staff meeting, Pine Valley United Methodist Church Pastor Tim shared a letter with us that he received from Rev. Belton Joyner, the founding minister of PVUMC. While going through some things, Rev. Joyner found the bulletin used on June 11, 1961, the groundbreaking day for our church! They sang, “For The Beauty Of The Earth.” Part of the Scripture reading that morning was Ephesians 4:11-16, “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors, and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him, the whole body joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
I read a devotional from a friend, Rev. Homer Morris, recently. He said, "Christianity became a spectator sport. In football, there are eleven men on the field, desperately in need of rest. There are forty thousand people in need of exercise, but they are there only as spectators.” Hebrews 6:12, “We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” God does not intend for us to benefit from someone else’s labor. Ephesians 4:28, “Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.” If we do not do the labor, we will not benefit spiritually. The labor grows our faith. 1 Corinthians 5:58, “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” And the blessings do not stop there. We are told in 2 Peter 1:10-11, “Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”
Here at PVUMC, we are very blessed to have so many servant hearts wanting to use their gifts! Some people think church staff should do it all; after all, they get paid. Isn’t that why Christ made apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers? If we read on to verse 12, we see we have those people “to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up…” God intends for His people, the church, to do the work of the church. The staff's work is to train, equip, and motivate people to do this work.
Through the years, the church became known as buildings. One of the blessings that God has brought from this time of social distancing is that we realize our church is not the building. We did not even go in the building, and we still had church! Romans 8:28, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Every believer is placed in the body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:27, "Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it."
We worship best when we worship together with other believers, but COVID has made this difficult. When necessary, online services are wonderful, but we do not want to be disconnected from our church. Jesus regularly attended public worship. Luke 4:16, "He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read..." Paul also went to church. Acts 17:2, "As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days, he reasoned with them from the Scriptures." And we were meant for worship. Psalm 95:6, "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker..."
God wants to change our lives through worship. He also wants to use us in other's lives. Hebrews 10:24, "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds..." Are you a participant or a spectator?