Experiencing Life in the Body

This is in response to Autumn's latest post...

Don Winter just finished a series on Experiencing Life in the Body. I wish I could get in every detail because it was SO thought-changing about the "church." For several weeks, he wouldn't even say the word "church" to keep us from thinking inside the box. When we think "church," we think the building where we go every Sunday to sing and listen to a sermon. When the New Testament believers thought "church," they thought going to each others' homes - even daily - to fellowship, worship, and learn more about God. This is why our church has cell groups...which I know are in some churches in Cleveland and BCLR has "care groups" which are simliar.

Think about it. In the Old Testament, the people traveled from all over to the Temple for worship and learning. The priest presided and offered the leadership for all the people. But, when Christ died for us, the veil was torn in two and we were given access directly to the Father. Priests were not needed for that particular service anymore. So what did this open the door to? PEOPLE MEETING IN THEIR HOMES! They now could approach the throne of God for themselves at any time they desired. Yes, they still met at the temple for celebration, fellowship, and learning...but much of the early church's practice was small groups inside homes. The smaller the group, the less likely people are to fall through the cracks and sit on the back pew unnoticed. The smaller the group, the more people's needs will be seen and recognized. The smaller the group, the more vulnerable and real people will be...which is where UNITY in the Body of Christ appears. The smaller the group, the more people will be able to speak up as they discuss various doctrines, more questions can be asked, prayer can become more powerful.

Don't get me wrong. Assembling of all of these small groups into one building is still very much a part of Experiencing Life in the Body! It keeps a bigger part of the "church" unified and on the same page. But, where I now think the church has gone wrong is that there is not an equal amount of importance placed upon small, frequent gatherings as there is on the big once-a-week gatherings. The Body of Christ is also the Army of the Lord. Look at how our Army works. Do soldiers on a base only meet once a week for training? NO!!! They have smaller platoons and such that meet EVERY DAY for rigorous training so that in the heat of battle they will be knit closely together and know exactly how to defeat the enemy!

The same system would better serve the church...and PUSH people out of box that was formed so long ago. Can we come up with a word to replace "church" so that people won't even touch the box? :-)