Author: Bellissiwarriors

The root word for ‘church’ is from the Greek word meaning “of the Lord”. When Jesus talked about the church, He was talking about a group of people, a community of those who belonged to Him. It was only later that the word came to be associated with the building where the people of the Lord gathered. So when Paul says to Philemon, “I am also writing to the church that meets in your house” (Philemon 1:2), he’s talking about the people, not the place. It wasn’t important where they met. What mattered was that they shared the common bond of Christ.

Is there a church that meets in your house? Maybe you host a gathering of Christians like a small group or Bible study. Or maybe an entire body of believers assembles in your home. Or maybe others in your immediate family profess faith in Christ. If this is so, then there’s a church that meets in your house. 

Jesus assured the disciples, “Where two or three gather together because they are mine, I am there among them” (Matthew 18:20). Nothing will transform a gathering like the presence of Jesus. He is energizing, polarizing, stimulating, vitalizing. You cannot meet Him with indifference. Does the church in your house need reviving? Invite Jesus.

Relationships with the church in your house might be more challenging for you than those in the church building you attend. The church in your house is intimate, in-your-face, 24/7. It’s made of people who hog the remote, eat the last brownie, leave dirty towels on the floor and dirty dishes in the living room. In other words, sinners living with sinners. It’s bound to be messy.

So it’s worthwhile to look at the context of Matthew 18:20. The disciples are arguing with one another about which one will be the greatest in the kingdom (Matthew 18:1). Left unchecked, their self-seeking behavior will harm the health and harmony of the rest of the body. So Jesus tells them what attitudes they should be embracing, and He tells them how to handle the situation when someone strays from the truth. It’s here that Jesus assures them (and us) that He is present, directing their counsel, ruling their hearts, conferring His authority, and giving the blessing of His companionship.

Jesus is present in trial, in conflict, and in difficulty. He’s the Shepherd who goes after the one lost sheep. He’s the Mediator, the Peacemaker, the Reconciler. He cares about the health of the church because she is His bride. He’s zealous for her well-being. He has washed her in His own blood and clothed her with His own robe (Ezekiel 16:8). He will present her to Himself without spot or blemish (Ephesians 5:27). There’s nothing He won’t do for her (Romans 8:32). 

Because Jesus is passionate about the church, He’s committed to unity among her members (John 17:21). He says, In belonging to me, you belong to one another (Romans 12:5). So you must look beyond your own interests to consider the interests of others (Philippians 2:4). You must care for one another tenderly, in the same way you care well for yourself (Matthew 22:39). When one of you is hurting, let the others step in to help, and when one of you rejoices, let everyone join in the celebration (1 Corinthians 12:25-26).

If there’s a church in your house, then it’s no ordinary household. The relations among family members are more than just those of parents and children, husband and wife, brother and sister. Together, you are the body of Christ, revealing Him to the world. And so, together, you should look like Him. He forgoes position to embrace humble service. He gives up being right to make others righteous. He lays aside His heavenly garments to take up a towel, a basin, a cross. This is what the church looks like gathered together in Him.

I’ve lost track of how many churches I’ve visited in the past six months. It seems there are sacred buildings every few hundred meters in the older sections of European cities. Their open doors invite you to step out of the noisy hustle on the street into the hushed calm of cool stones and stunning artwork. The ones with works by celebrated artists tend to be full of tourists, and they’re certainly impressive. But the environment can be challenging for quiet prayer or reflection on the message of those works.

It’s generally in the less “popular” churches that I find people praying. And while the manner of prayer varies, one thing that has struck me is that generally the supplicants tend to keep towards the back. Maybe the weight of what they’re carrying is so heavy they can’t go one step further. I’ll never know what it took for them to even get to the vestibule. But I do know that God does not want to be far from them. And He loves that they’re intentionally seeking Him in their distress. 

I don’t want to minimize the importance of reverence. The Bible describes the Lord in this way – “It is God who sits above the circle of the earth. The people below must seem like grasshoppers! He is the one who spreads out the heaven like a curtain and makes his tent from them” (Isaiah 40:22). He is too majestic for the human mind to comprehend.  He could easily have kept His distance. But He willingly entered into our frame of reference. He took on Himself the cloak of humanity and made Himself nothing in order to fit in a manger (Philippians 2:7). 

What’s even more incomprehensible than the enormity of God is the immensity of His love for sinners. Even after we have disobeyed Him, rejected Him, despised His counsel and His care, mocked and crucified His Son – even now He wants to be close to us. Even now He offers us forgiveness and free pardon. 

“Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are his riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his methods!” Romans 11:33

We don’t need to go to a church to find God. We don’t need to wait for the doors to be open to cry out to Him. He’s everywhere, all the time, and He will meet us wherever we are when we draw near to Him. We take the first step when we recognize that God is the only source of meaningful help. But we can’t stop at the threshold. We must go into the sanctuary, to the altar, directly to the throne of grace. Since God’s own Son doesn’t condemn us, but instead stands before the Father as our advocate and intercessor, “let us go right into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him” (Hebrews 10:22). He has held nothing back to demonstrate the intensity of His desire to be near to us. What we will receive when we draw near is not condemnation, but merciful grace, an open embrace, a joyous welcome. 

“I’m asking God for one thing, only one thing: to live with him in his house my whole life long.” Psalm 27:4 MSG