Church: the Glory and the Grotesque


"The Church or something like it must be cherished, criticized, nourished and reformed.  The Church of Jesus Christ, with all its blemishes, its divisions and its failures, remains our best hope of spiritual vitality.  However poor it is, life without it is worse."  (Elton Trueblood)

Our Sunday School class is studying Choose the Life by Bill Hull--this week, chapter 9.  Hull says, "I am saying ...that the church will always vacillate between glory and the grotesque...there will be periods of great glory when Christ is paramount and the world all around will be infected with the life of Christ through us...when our little communities of grace show those around us who God is and what God has. It is for these periods of glory that we live, for which we train, and for which we pray."

These are the empty pews in which MY "little community of grace" gathers this morning.
O, Christ Jesus, let YOUR glory fall on us today! 
Show us who You are and what You have for us this morning!
Please.

9 comments:

  1. How true; how true! The church is either cherished or hated, and has been down through the ages. As our Pastor is often heard to say: The church - you (as he reminds us) - is God's Plan A. There is no Plan B.

    May His church, His body, be full of His presence and power; and may His sheep learn to obey the Shepherd.

    Blessings,
    Kathleen

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  2. AMEN...great post. May GOD BLESS each person in those pews on this Lords day!

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  3. Great post, Rebecca!
    And thank you for sharing this photo of your Church. Beautiful! I think that would be a nice idea for all of us to do sometime.
    And I think it's so true what Bill Hull said about the church vacillating between glory and the grotesque.

    By the way, you've won my give-away at Stick Close To Home!
    Love and Prayers,
    Eileen

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  4. Well now I feel bad because I didn't attend today. I am going to try to post later and you will undersatnd why. Blessed Sunday to you Rebecca. Love Di

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  5. "Where one or two are gathered together.."
    May we praise His name....and always let others see Christ in us.
    Thank you Rebecca.
    In His love,
    Jackie

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  6. Hi Rebecca! Thanks for stopping by my blog! I am excited to dig into yours! I write a little about faith and fitness, I am a born again christian and think the two are so important and tie together SO easily. I am loving your quotes on this blog, especially the prayer one from Tozer! I go to John Pipers church in Mpls and LOVE the theology heavies!! Thanks for the husband comment, I am praying and waiting for the Boaz for me. :) Have a great day!

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  7. I enjoyed the picture of your sanctuary. I hope you are enjoying the study of "Choose the Life". Blessings and peace. Donna

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Writing a Song a Week #3

Writing a Song a Week #3
♪ I wait for the Lord; my soul waits and in his word I hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning ♪ (Psalm 130:5-6)