“Falling in Love With the Bride of Christ…Why I Love the Church?”
Introduction:
A 97-pound Labrador retriever named Marley is claimed to be the world’s worst dog. He crashed through screen doors with alarming regularity. He went berserk during thunderstorms, destroying everything in his path. He stole food off the dinner table, slobbered incessantly, drank from the toilet bowl, and ate bath towels, sponges, socks, used tissues, plastic toys, furniture, speaker covers, paychecks, even an expensive gold necklace.
He was incorrigible. And utterly lovable.
How could a master love a dog that had so many bad qualities? The reason why is because though the dog had many bad qualities it also had some good qualities.
The Church is the same way. We can point out the faults and problems within any church. We can talk about how there are decisions that we do not agree with, people that frustrate us, things going on that we have a problem with, but despite all of it’s warts and faults, the church is something we should love.
Throughout my life the church has meant a lot to me, and I am sure that many of you can identify with me. The church has been very good to me and very special to me. I think that many of the problems people have with the church is because they fail to see the good that the church has to offer. Over these next few weeks I want you to fall in love with the Bride of Christ, the Church. I want you to look beyond the warts, beyond the problems, and beyond the frustrations and see the church in the way that God sees the Church. I believe when we start to truly and sincerely love the church it changes the way that we interact within the church, it changes the way that we participate; it changes our motives, and changes our priorities. We can talk all day long about what God expects of us, and how much we should be doing within the church, but until the people that make up the church love the church and stand behind the mission of the church people will not do anything.
There are many people Christians and non-Christians who do not love the Bride of Christ, the church. They show it by rarely attending, rarely giving, and rarely doing any real work to advance the church. We can say we love the church, but if we love the church, the Bride of Christ, then we must show it through what we choose to do and how we choose to live our lives. I am here today to tell you that I love the Church that Jesus bought with his blood and I hope you do too.
Text: Ephesians 5:25-32
I. I Love The Church Because Christ Loves the Church
When we love someone we tend to love the things that they love. That is why family heirlooms are so treasured and valued. Most likely you have some family heirloom that has been passed down to you from someone you love. To anyone else they may view that item as nothing special or out of the ordinary, but you treasure it because of where it came from and someone you love loved that item.
One of the reasons why I love the church is because Christ demonstrated that he loved the church. Now, before we go any further is it important to make clear that when we speak of the church we are not speaking of a physical building with the name church on it, we are speaking of people who are saved. I can give you numerous reasons why we should love the church, but I believe that one of the greatest is because we have been commanded to love the church.
John 13:34-35
This commandment was not necessarily a new commandment, the idea of loving your neighbor was a principle that God has taught from the very beginning, but it was new in the depth of that love. It was new because we have been commanded to love others as Christ loves. His love is far reaching, in that it reaches to people that we may not be comfortable loving and his love is deep, in that it is unconditional and sacrificial. Jesus demonstrated this love that he had for the church.
a. He Gave Himself Up for the Church
I can’t help, but to see in the Scripture that God loves the church because Christ gave himself up for the church. The Scriptures teach us that it is by His stripes that we were healed.
Ephesians 5:25
Paul uses the analogy of Christ’s sacrificial love for the church to talk about how husbands are to love their wives. The point is that Jesus loved us so much that his own life was nothing in comparison to our souls.
b. He Takes Care of the Church
Not only does God promise to provide for our physical bodies he also promises to nourish and take care of those that make up the church spiritually.
Ephesians 5:29
It seems like all too often you hear on the news of a parent not taking proper care of their children. You hear of parents neglecting their kids, not providing the food and nourishment they need, not providing the guidance and discipline they need. Those parents are always cast in bad light and rightly so. The first thing that I think of when I hear of that is what is going on in that parents mind that would cause them not to love their child. They may verbally say they love that child, but if you love someone that you have been entrusted with care of you take care of them. Many of us have pets that are dependent on us for their nourishment. The Church is dependent on Christ for it’s spiritual nourishment and he takes care of the church.
c. He Hurts When the Church Hurts
Christ hurts when His people hurt. God has always taken it personally when His people are mistreated or when they are hurt. Do you remember what happened to the Apostle Paul when he encountered Jesus? He had been persecuting the church, and one day he was stopped dead in his tracks and heard the voice of Jesus saying, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” Why did Jesus say “me”? The reason is because as his people were being hurt he hurt as well. When you are heart broken, stressed, struggling in life, offended, or mistreated Christ hurts with you. I love the church because I know that as I deal with my emotions that there is someone who understands and sympathizes with us. He doesn’t just leave us alone and not care for us, but he hurts as we hurt. Christ loves the church, which means he loves you individually. No other club, group, or organization on the face of this Earth offers that kind of relationship with the head.
d. He is the Head of the Church
Some people may say, “I love Jesus, but I do not love the church.” This is not possible and is like severing the head from the body, because the church is the body of Christ and He is the head.
Colossians 1:18
Though there I no sin in the head we are a body with flaw and faults, but regardless Jesus loves the church so much that he gave himself up for her, and we too should love the church because of his obvious love for the church.
II. I Love The Church Because The Church is God’s Family
I would be willing to bet that every family has some secrets. Some things that they would never tell anyone about. Perhaps something that a family member has done that would embarrass the entire family, but you keep it a secret to protect your family who you love. You don’t stop loving that person that may have done something terrible, because your love is unconditional.
I think that the church should guard each other in the same way because we are a family. When one in the church sins, it probably isn’t the best response to go and tell people of the sin that your brother committed. We don’t want to broadcast it to the community, but rather should want to help the one who sinned to overcome. Some things simply need to stay in the family and our love for one another, as a spiritual family needs to be unconditional.
Ephesians 3:14-15
You are related to your family through a blood relation. As God’s children we have been washed in the blood of Jesus and made a part of God’s family. The Bible uses all sorts of analogies comparing the church to a family and God as the father. For example we are all children of God. We are brothers and sisters with Christ. We are co-heirs with Christ.
Being a part of a good family is something that everyone can value and treasure. For me there is nothing that means more to me than knowing I have a loving Heavenly Father, who wants more than anything to be with me forever. That is hard for me to grasp because I didn’t grow up in the best home. There was always arguing and fighting, and I didn’t spend much time with my Father. I never felt within my family that my parents loved me because they didn’t want to spend time with me. The Church makes that all different, doesn’t it? The thought of having an eternal family who really cares about me makes me glad to be a part of the family of God, I love the Church!
I love to sing:
I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God;
I’ve been washed in the fountain, cleansed by his blood,
Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod,
For I’m a part of the family, the family of God
III. I Love The Church Because of the Strong Relationships
The Church is unlike anything else in the whole world, in that special relationships can be formed between those who have a common bond in the church. You can have dozens of friends in the world, but no friendships or relationships can compare with those that you can develop within the church. You cannot find friends in the world that care about your soul, that will pray for you, that will desire you to be a better person, that will encourage you when you are down, will love you unconditionally, will forgive you when you mess up, and will care about where you spend eternity. The fellowship that we can have within a church is a special thing that is unique to the church.
I have heard that giant redwood trees in California actually have really shallow roots. How then can they stay strong and not topple over with out deep roots? The reason is because the Redwood trees are connected together by their roots. Since they are connected together at the roots they are able to stand strong and withstand the storms and the wind.
As Christians when we are rooted together in Christ we are able to withstand a lot of difficulties because we are connected together.
I John 1:7
Christian fellowship is distinct from worldly friendships and is different from just spending time with friends. Christian fellowship results in spiritual growth. I have heard many people share that the church and the relationships with the church have meant the world to them. The cards written by brothers and sisters in Christ, the visits from those who care, the waits at the hospital when someone is sick, the prayers that are offered on someone’s behalf. Those things mean the world to people, and it is beyond me how and why someone would be able to go through the storms of this life without Christian friends to be there for them.
I believe it is very important for us to be wise in who we choose to have as our friends, because our friends have a great influence over us. What better than to have deep and strong relationships with people that share the same faith and have the same values that we do.
Proverbs 13:20
Proverbs 27:17
It is important for us to make wise decisions concerning our friends. Has there ever been an institution that has relationships like the church? I don’t fully understand, but all I do know is that the church is full of amazing people who can at times really come through for each other. I could not imagine going through this life without the love, care and support of friends within the church. I have no idea how non-Christians deal with death and sickness with no one to fall back on. I have seen the church do amazing things for people. I have seen when a loved one dies, the church take up a grieving person in their arms and come together for them, make them food, shower them with cards and love, visit them, and check in on them. I have seen people diagnosed with disease prayed over, cared for, loved, and physical needs being met. Not everyone in the church can teach, or preach, but everyone can love each other. That is what is unique about the church. The relationships that are formed because of a common bond and a common hope that we have in Christ.
IV. I Love The Church Because of Her Impact on The Community
There are a lot of clubs and social groups that do amazing things. I am thankful for those groups, which raise money for finding a cure for a disease, to build hospitals, to feed the hungry, to provide gifts for children that cannot afford it, to lobby for moral issues that are important to us, but those groups will never make the impact that the church has. Much to the regret of many people in society the church has greatly impacted the world in which we live in.
A. The Church Has Been A Conscience in the Society
Do you ever wonder where the world would be if it wasn’t for the influence of the church? I will tell you for sure that the church has influenced many things. If you don’t believe that, you can see plainly that it was the church that had an influence on issues like homosexual marriage. If it wasn’t for the church and the influence Christians have in the world morality would be a whole lot worse than it is now. Watch what happens when there is a moral issue within a company, who speaks out against it? The Christians do. Some people may see that as offensive, intolerant and fundamentalist, but I see it as being a voice of truth. I see it as being the salt of the Earth, I see it as speaking out against what is contrary to what is good and right, I see it as being a conscience and a voice in a society that without the voice of Christians would be an immoral and chaotic place to live. I believe that the Church has kept America from being far worse than it is today because there are still people with morals and convictions willing to stand up for what is right and they are found within the Lord’s Church.
B. The Church Has Shown Love and Compassion to the Unlovable
In India they have a whole group of people that numbers over 60 millions that they call the “untouchables” all depending on what they do for a living. People are born into a specific Caste and that caste will dictate to them what they and their children will do for a living. If you do certain jobs you are considered untouchable and thrown off as an outcast in society. Nobody will love them or befriend them.
Many of those people are coming to Christ because they are finding a unique love and acceptance from Christian people. The church has shown people that many people would throw out as garbage love and compassion, the same way Jesus did and they are making an impact on society. Jesus showed that every person had value, that every person matters, that though those who called themselves religious wouldn’t show grace to the unlovable he would. Many of the people that make up the church may have been rejected by the world and never could find love and acceptance, but the church has shown love to those people. I love the church because sinners should be able to find acceptance in the church. I am thankful that people in the church do not hold the things that I have done against me and force my past to dictate my future. I am thankful that people who have done awful things can find love and acceptance. After all, aren’t we all sinners in need of grace from God and from others? Aren’t you thankful that in the church we can be accepted for who we are. You don’t have to have a great career, a large bank account, you don’t have to fit the perfect image, you don’t have to look a certain way, dress a certain way, you don’t have to be limited because of what you have done. The church should accept people from where they are, they way Christ accepts us. What an impact on society! What an example of Christ’s love! I love the church because the church shows love and compassion to those that may be and seem unlovable.
C. The Church Has Influenced Lives
How many lives have been impacted because of the church and what she stands for? There is no telling. Paul is one of those people, who was an incredibly immoral man, that sough out to kill Christians, and he was changed because of Christ and he became a great influencer for good. He may have been someone that was ruled out as a evil man that could never change, but Christ saw beyond that. One life changed makes an eternal difference.
Paul on one occasion was influencing so many people that he caused a riot in the city of Ephesus.
Acts 19:23-27
What an impact on an incredibly immoral society.
You probably remember Jeffery Dahlmer. He was an incredibly wicked man, one of the most notorious murders ever. He did things that disgust most people, but he still was not too far from the grace of God. I have heard that before his death he gave his life over to Christ. How can someone so wicked change in that way? What an impact on society? No club can bring about those changes, but only Christ can change a wicked person like that into a child of God. There are countless stories of lives being impacted and the world becoming a better place.
II Corinthians 5:17
There is nobody that is too far from the grace of God. One person at a time the church has been an influence on society and by individuals changing their lives and making Christ their Lord it has shaped our world to be a better place. If it wasn’t for the church people would have less medical care, would be less educated, and would have less freedoms and laws protecting them
There are countless more reasons to love the church. The church has conviction and commitment to truth in a world rejecting absolutes. The church shows there is hope beyond this life. The church is a great place to raise kids and educate youth. The church is a great place to celebrate life and salvation. The church is a place to find meaning, mission and purpose in life. I love the church, don’t you?
