The Unchurch

Satan watches for those vessels that sail without a convoy.~George Swinnock

I believe with all my heart that Christians need to be among a community of believers. Alone with my Bible I am not safe, it is only when I am exposed to the thoughts of other believers on a regular basis that my daily scripture readings stay centered in the Word of God, not the thoughts of man.

That being said, a community of believers can take many forms. A large formal worship experience that lifts up the spirits of thousands might cause a brother or sister to shrink in horror at the perceived lack of intimacy. I attended a service this morning that would have appalled the "Suit and Sunday Dress" crowd, all sandals, shorts, and tattoos, and if respect was a matter of dress code we would have needed to excommunicate these folks. But the Lord was there.

 Who ever said that church needed to be a one size fits all kinda deal anyhow? Or that we all needed to worship in the same fashion? Not Jesus. It's the content of the worship that matters. Since when is it mandatory that the leader of the flock needs to be a degreed person, that new believers need to undergo some sort of incubation period before they're allowed to have real responsibilities? 

 The one thing I think we're lacking today is the unchurch. A place of worship run by the inmates, where energy, commitment, and effort matter more than degrees and titles. A place where the church bashers can go, after all they're not Jesus bashers they just believe that man has screwed up a perfectly good Savior. Of course the traditionalists recoil in horror at the thought of "laypeople" running a church but that's okay, these folks aren't coming to any church and don't intend to. But they deserve to hear the gospel in a way they can understand no less than anyone else so what the hell, let's give it to them. 

It's gonna be a glorious mess but we've already got plenty of that in so called traditional pulpits.