Called Out - Countdown Day 12

Church is not a place. If you're referring to church as a place, please stop. If you hear me refer to church as a place...please stop to remind me that I'm a hypocrite!

Our translation of church is poor, mostly because we can't find an English word that closely matches the Greek word we are attempting to understand, "ekklesia." "Ek" means "out," and "kaleo" means "to call." Those who were called out. Set apart. At the time of the original writings, "ekklesia" had political connotations which far exceeded any religious connotations. It was understood to be a group called out to look after and grow the Kingdom of God. I am afraid the word "church" in our culture just does not communicate that.

Church is not a place. Church is people. Church is US. We are part of the very people called out to look after and grow God's Kingdom. I'm thankful that our "place" at the Playhouse is not yet considered a church, in the traditional sense, because it helps us to all be very aware that the church is the very people we worship with and work out our faiths with. Fellowship of Memorial isn't a place...it's a people. I pray that's always so real to us, no matter where God might lead us.

Remember that we are called out. We are set apart. And in the Kingdom of this upside-down, inside-out God, that doesn't mean we are served, but rather that we get to serve. It doesn't mean that we get to go first, but rather that we get to go last. And by following this path we somehow, mystically and practically, become more like Christ.

We can become easily distracted from this. Our world values the easy road. How much of our culture is built around the concept of some new contraption or solution that can make it "easier" on us? But this faith we are committed to is anything but easy. And in that sense, it is exactly the sort of thing the culture around us would ordinarily reject. Let's not be distracted. Let's not be distracted by the world's message or our desires to live for ourselves, always demanding more than what God has deemed sufficient. Instead, let's live to what we were called out for in our selfless service to our community and to each other, which will call attention to the One we love. "And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved." - Acts 2:47
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Pray that technical issues on Sundays would not cause a distraction to his purposes.