My OperaChurch Buildings
Monday, January 16, 2012 2:37:13 AM
I heard an excellent sermon this morning (by the Rev. Dr. Allen Curry) on the nature of the church from 1 Pet 2:1-12. Now, the sermon really was good, and especially his overall application. What caught my attention initially, however, was his opening remarks, how we always hear that the church is not the building, but the people. He went on to point out that with that understood, Peter used the metaphor of building and temple to illustrate what we as God's people should be, and the reality of what it means to be the people of God.
That got me to thinking. The church is not the building, the physical structure in which we meet, but that doesn't mean that the building, as the physical structure, is unimportant. The church as God's people is meant to be visible in the world. We are not supposed to hide our light under a bushel basket, after all, but let it shine, the city on the hill, an inviting beacon to all who are lost in the darkness. One way that we can be visible is to have a specific building designated as the church building, the meeting place. Not only is it convenient in order to fulfill the Scriptural mandate of Heb 10:24-25, but is a way of saying "Here we are! We are God's people! Come and see that the Lord is good..." This is one aspect of medieval European culture that I think was spot on. In any village, and in most towns and cities of that time, the largest, most imposing structure, and the most important place, was the church building, a reminder that eternity and the kingdom of God was in their midst. We want to be that visible. We want people to know about us, and having a visible building is still an excellent way to do this.
Meeting together is especially important as we proceed ever deeper into the 21st century, "the information age." With apps for everything on our phones, computers in our homes, teleconferencing, and the like, it is easy to be "connected" in a sense without being together. Too many people use social media and technology as a substitute for being in community, and being in community together with God is what the church is all about, the covenant community. We can only do this by assembling as the corporate people of God. This is one way we show that we are different from the world around us. We have community, the only eternally valid community, and how can we express that to the world, how can we show them how much better it is than what they've got, unless we meet together visibly? And the best place to do that is... a building, good old fashioned brick and mortar.
That got me to thinking. The church is not the building, the physical structure in which we meet, but that doesn't mean that the building, as the physical structure, is unimportant. The church as God's people is meant to be visible in the world. We are not supposed to hide our light under a bushel basket, after all, but let it shine, the city on the hill, an inviting beacon to all who are lost in the darkness. One way that we can be visible is to have a specific building designated as the church building, the meeting place. Not only is it convenient in order to fulfill the Scriptural mandate of Heb 10:24-25, but is a way of saying "Here we are! We are God's people! Come and see that the Lord is good..." This is one aspect of medieval European culture that I think was spot on. In any village, and in most towns and cities of that time, the largest, most imposing structure, and the most important place, was the church building, a reminder that eternity and the kingdom of God was in their midst. We want to be that visible. We want people to know about us, and having a visible building is still an excellent way to do this.
Meeting together is especially important as we proceed ever deeper into the 21st century, "the information age." With apps for everything on our phones, computers in our homes, teleconferencing, and the like, it is easy to be "connected" in a sense without being together. Too many people use social media and technology as a substitute for being in community, and being in community together with God is what the church is all about, the covenant community. We can only do this by assembling as the corporate people of God. This is one way we show that we are different from the world around us. We have community, the only eternally valid community, and how can we express that to the world, how can we show them how much better it is than what they've got, unless we meet together visibly? And the best place to do that is... a building, good old fashioned brick and mortar.
