“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” — Matthew 16:15-18
What is the purpose of the church? Who established it? What does it do? The first mention of the word “church” is found in the interesting conversation Jesus had with the apostle Peter. The question was being asked about who Jesus really was. There were many speculations, so Jesus asked Peter what he thought about who he was. Built on the foundation of the confession by Peter, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” meant that nothing the devil could do would stand in the way.
The word, “church” literally means “called out ones.” God has issued a call to the followers of His Son Jesus to come out from among the world and show them who God is— and tell them about Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the living God. Where does the church learn how to do that? The early church met together on the Lord’s Day to worship, study, pray and learn how to love each other in fellowship.
The writer to the Hebrews gave this admonition to the church in Hebrews 10:24-25: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” So the church, the “called out ones” have a purpose in coming together. But what about if something interferes?
I read about a Catholic church in Green Bay, Wisconsin, that was faced with a tough situation. The Green Bay Packers were playing at 2:00 PM on Christmas Eve. Mass was scheduled at 4:00 PM—earlier than the game would be over. What should they do in a town where Packer football is itself an unofficial religion? It took some debate, but in the end, the pastor of St. Bernard church didn’t want parishioners to have to choose between coming to church and catching the Packers on television. Truth be told, some were a bit concerned how mass would fare if it came down to a choice. So the two 4:00 Masses on Christmas Eve were cancelled, and an additional 6:00 PM Mass was scheduled instead. Some parishioners were horrified that a church service would be changed to accommodate a football game. Others didn’t see any problem at all. As long as they were able to go to church, why would it matter when they attended?
How about you? Is attending church just another option in our weekly schedule or is it something that we wouldn’t miss for anything—even if our favorite team makes the playoffs or it happens to be Super Bowl Sunday? One final thought from Cambridge Professor W.R. Inge, “The Church which is married to the Spirit of its Age, will be a widow in the next.” Maranatha!
Pastor Don
