Importance of the Church July 5, 2009

For some reason, my thoughts today have centered on the church - even though this is Independence Day weekend. In particular, I have been thinking of Bethlehem Baptist and what God has planned for us. Perhaps that is why an email from Chuck Swindoll caught my eye. He references a sermon by Dr. Jay Kesler entitled, "Why I Believe in the Local Church." There were five points in the sermon. As you read, substitute Bethlehem for The church:

1. The church is the only institution dealing with the ultimate issues. Death. Judgment. Relationships. Purpose. Lasting priorities. Meaning in life. Identity. Heaven and Hell.
   
2. The church provides perspective that gives dignity to mankind. We live in a day in which man has become a means rather than an end. This creates a desperate sense of inner worthlessness. The church counteracts this insidious message.
3. The church provides a moral and ethical compass in the midst of relativism. Like a swamp of murky, slimy water, our society has either rethought, resisted, or completely rejected absolutes. Not the church! It still stands on the timeless bedrock of Scripture.
4. The church is the only place to find true community, healing, compassion, and love. It is here people care. Really care. Not because of status or money. But because the Spirit of God is at work, weaving together the lives within the Body.
5. The church (like no other institution) has provided motivation for the most lasting, unselfish, essential, courageous ministries on earth. Not Schools. Hospitals. Halfway houses. Orphanages. or Leprosariums. Curches.

The Holy Spirit is the glue that makes churches diffeent from all other institutions.