Devotion - Wednesday, March 7

I continue to find additional material to add to tonight's LCM program. The general topic for discussion is "Why do we need Church?" If we are saved by grace; if we are to have a personal relationship with Jesus; then why do we need church?

This morning I was reading from I Corinthians 5 & 6. Here, Paul addresses the transgressions committed by members of the Church, sometimes against one another. He asks why such disagreements are being settled in the courts, rather than among the faithful.

Any institution reflects the values and the assumptions of its creators. The same is true for "cour.t" We assume courts to be fair and just. Which they are - according to the principals by which they are established. But not all "courts" reflect the values we would consider fair or just. There is an internet story circulating about the man in Iran who is being tried (and possibly executed) for not renouncing his Christian faith. He was found guilty "in court."

There are sets of standards and underlying principals to the court system of our society. Since we are also products of our society, we tend to agree with those principals. But they are secular; they are not religious. We do not expect the courts of our country to defend the issues of our faith; those are for us to practice, freely. So, the judgement we might receive in the courts would not automatically be the same we could expect from the other members of the Church.

Paul says as much, in I Corinthians. He writes, "To have lawsuits at all with one another is defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?" In the fair and just court system, we demand that to which we are entitled. Within the community of Christ, we give to the one who takes our coat our shirt as well.

One of the reasons we need the Church (need to be part of the Church) is to be continually challenged to read scripture - particularly those verses which we would prefer to ignore. Jesus doesn't want us to pick and choose which of his teachings we will adopt - Jesus asks us to follow completely. My following may look whole hog to me, but a loving sister or brother is likely to see the part that I have cast aside. I need folks looking over my shoulder and looking into my life. I need (we all need) the Church.