Imagine for a moment that you attend the congregation of your dreams – the
“perfect” church. What would that look like? How would you describe it? What would
those of the world have to say about it?
Personally, the church of my dreams would be a…
Loving Church: Brotherly love is crucial to the Lord’s church. The apostle John
writes a great deal concerning this in the book of 1 John. In 1 John 3:16, John explains
that we should love our brethren so deeply that we would be willing to lay down our life
in exchange for theirs, just as Christ did for us. In verse 18, he continues by urging us to
love one another through our actions and not just by word alone. Furthermore, if we fail
to practice brotherly love, then we are not of God (1 John 3:10). In the church of my
dreams, long-lasting friendships would be formed; not only because we love each other,
but because we love BEING together.
Longsuffering Church: Just as we cannot choose the members of our
biological families, we do not have the ability to choose our brothers and sisters in
Christ either. In Ephesians 4:1–3, Paul is urging the church in Ephesus to “walk
worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with
longsuffering, bearing with one another in love…” Paul extends a similar exhortation to
the church in Colossae, which we can read in Colossians 3:12–13. Paul’s message to
both congregations is that they must continue to deal with one another in love, even
when conflicts arise, for the sake of preserving the unity of the church. After all, if we
cannot tolerate our brethren here on earth, how can we expect to be in heaven
together?
Laboring Church: Imagine a congregation in which there was never a shortage
of Bible class teachers, song leaders, men willing to serve, or those willing to lend a
helping hand in coordinating a VBS, ladies’ day, youth rally, gospel meeting, or
lectureships! If this were the case, then spiritual burnout would never be a concern. Titus
2:14 teaches that we should be a people “zealous of good works.” Sharing the work
load helps to prevent us from growing weary in well-doing (Galatians 6:9).
Law-abiding Church: There would be great security in knowing that those of
our number are all striving to live faithfully, because they understand the necessity of
keeping God’s commands (John 14:15). Never again would we question the decision
making of our elders or the faithfulness of the men leading worship services. Church
discipline would no longer be exercised, because each member would be striving to
obey God daily rather than living a secret life of sin. The lukewarm members would
become burning hot in their desire to please the Lord (Revelation 3:15-16).
Light-bearing Church: Lighthouses are useful for guiding sailors back to shore
if, and only if the following 3 conditions are met: darkness is present, the lighthouse is
visible from afar off, and the lighthouse is shining. These may seem obvious, but these
same conditions must be true for the Christian as well. In Matthew 5:14–16, Jesus
teaches that we “are the light of the world”. As such, we must boldly let our lights shine
amid this world of darkness and help bring as many people to Christ as possible
(Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:15).
Obviously, there will never be a “perfect” church. Every congregation has their
issues - we have sin to blame for that. But if each of us strives to do our best in all 5 of
these areas, then the potential for spiritual growth and encouragement is endless. Let
us all strive to love genuinely, labor continually, and shine brightly.
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