The 268 Declarationنموونە

Love for the Local Expression of His Church

The church has never been a building; it has always been a people. Saints and sinners, foreigners and strangers, grafted into the fellowship of the citizenry. We are God's people. The church has been built on truth, the revelation of a mystery, handed down to us by the apostles with Jesus Christ as the cornerstone. In and through Jesus, we make up the dwelling place of God here on Earth by His Spirit living within us. The Church has never been a building; it has always been a people.

And yet…

In today's world, there is a push to forego this gift from God, to leave behind the Apostles and prophets, the evangelists, pastors, and teachers that Paul lists as gifts to the body given by Christ so that the Church could be built up for the works of service He set before us. Jesus so loves the church that she is often referred to as His Bride, the one he gave himself up for to make her Holy, cleansing her by the washing of water through the Word. The Scriptures are full of the early Church's love for her, of their drawing together under her banner instead of drifting apart over momentary differences. Followers of Jesus sold off property and possessions to take care of the least among them. They met daily, breaking bread together with glad and sincere hearts, all the while praising God for His gift of the Church as thousands of new believers flocked to join the great assembly.

The Church is a gift from God, established to bring Him Glory, and it is made up of us. We, the men and women who carry the Spirit of God within us, will never be perfect, we will stumble, and we will fall; but we will always get back up, trusting that the God who called us is faithful to see us through. We will need to extend and receive grace time and time again, and through it all, the Church will endure, bringing Glory to God as we live out our lives in a manner worthy of the Gospel.

And so we pray: God, give me a greater love for your Church, the Body of Christ.