I don't know 'church' in every culture. I do know church in my culture. Church in my culture is primarily a place - we go to church, or a nebulous institution that is outside of us - the church should feed the poor, or do this, or that.
What I find is that only rarely do we understand that WE are the church. People, believers, followers of Christ are the church - not a building or an institution.
Even as I write this, and even as you read this, I am sure that we are in agreement - at least in the realm of knowing the truth that the church is people. The real difficulty comes not in knowing, but in living this truth.
Our church gathers at the Capitol Theater on Sunday mornings - but the Capitol Theater is not our church. The followers of Christ who gather there ARE the church.
The church should ___________________ (fill in the blank) - means that the PEOPLE - Mike, Chad, John, Cameron, Paul, Merry, Amy, ADD YOUR NAME HERE_________... should__________________ (same fill in the blank).
What I am getting at is this - YOU are the church. No, not you alone, but YOU as a part of US. So the mission of the church is YOUR mission. And the needs to be met in the church are to be met by us - which includes YOU - as does our vision.
Notice in our vision the action involved.
The call to Christ is a call to His body - the church. It is also a call to His mission. It is a call to BUILD the kingdom, not sit back and listen to others talk about it, or even to watch and cheer them on.
Vision
It is our dream that New City church downtown be a people engaging its culture at work, at play, and in worship.We dream of a church that shapes culture, not runs from it or chases after it.
We dream of a church that celebrates the arts and looks for creative ways to engage our culture, a church willing to cross traditional lines and take significant risks to bring Jesus into the public square.
We dream of a church with multiple campuses, each campus strategically placed to engage its culture.
We dream of a church intent on planting new churches that will engage cultures around the world.
We dream of a church whose people are a multiplying movement of disciples of Jesus Christ, disciples who look like Jesus, love like Jesus, live like Jesus.
We dream of a church where people connect in authentic relationships and nurturing small groups to love one another, encourage one another, build one another up and serve one another, the community, and the world.
The call to Christ is a call to His body - the church. It is also a call to His mission. It is a call to BUILD the kingdom, not sit back and listen to others talk about it, or even to watch and cheer them on. The call to Christ is a call to action - not from duty, as if you might 'pay Him back' but a call to follow Him, to walk as He walked, to be His hands and feet.
Are you watching - or are you building? Are you living the mission and vision, or do you just 'like' it?
If you want to engage but aren't sure how or where, e-mail me, I'd loe to help.
