We speak of being in a love-hate relationship with different aspects of our lives. We can speak of both loving and hating exercise. It’s fun and makes us feel and look better, but exercise also hurts and takes up time. Maybe you speak of being in a love-hate relationship with your job. Maybe you speak this way of your extended family.

A lot of people could speak of both loving and hating the local church. They see the blessings the local church pours into people’s lives, the way healthy churches teach about the love of God and provide counseling and friendships and genuine community and care for the poor and a voice for justice. But people also see in local churches the hurt, the neglect, the hypocrisy, and the defaming of the glory of God rather than the exalting.

I wouldn’t say I have a love-hate relationship with the local church. The most I could say is more of a love-and-occasionally-annoyed-or-disappointed relationship with the local church. I’m thankful God has spared me from experiencing the worst parts of the church.

Wherever you fall on this spectrum, it’s my impression that it’s easier to write about what makes us mad and what we hate than it is to write about what we love. Consider how easily we write a 1-star Amazon review. The time and effort, however, to write a 5-star review—the time and effort required to offer fitting praise—is so much more. When I write book endorsements, those one hundred words can take forever.

Some of you know that, in addition to pastoring a local church, I serve as the managing editor for a ministry called Gospel-Centered Discipleship. I work with our online and book publishing ministries—including overseeing our editors, staff writers, and guest posts—to cultivate writers and resources that help make, mature, and multiply disciples of Jesus.

At Gospel-Centered Discipleship this fall, I wanted us to try to do the opposite of what was easy. I wanted us to publish articles about the many and varied blessings of the local church. It’s not that we wanted to ignore or whitewash the bad stuff. It’s just that there has been so much of that lately. And, as I said, I think the bad stuff can be easier to write—at least most of the time. Sometimes, of course, the hardest stuff is terribly painful, even nearly impossible, to write, let alone publish. So I’m not saying that dumping on the church is always easy.

Maybe you remember back during the height of Covid when John Krasinski (“Jim” from The Office) launched a YouTube channel called Some Good News. He shot the videos from what appeared to be his home office and talked about good happenings in the world. He did this during a time when we were all very aware of bad happenings in the world. As Christians we can learn from this. We often forget that to be evangelical is to be those who major on the euangelion; we major on the very Greek word for gospel or good news.  

Certainly, there is a lot of junk that happens in the local church. Please also remember that God still uses the church to bless the world in beautiful ways. He may discipline his church to make her more holy, but he loves his church. His sons and daughters are always his sons and daughters, even when they live less holy lives than he desires. God even calls the church his bride, dying to purchase her and make her radiant. And one day we will see her in all her splendor. God loves-loves his church.

Rather than writing my own post in December, I wanted to share with you all the articles we published this fall about the local church. We published over twenty of them, so I’m not suggesting you read them all. But maybe you can skim the titles and find two or three that catch your attention and read those.

And if your heart is in a season of disappointment with the local church—maybe you’d even use the word hate to describe how you currently feel about the church—then consider praying to God, asking him to show you some good news. God loves to answer those prayers.

Indeed, I’m saying this kind of good-news prayer for you now as I write.

 

Gospel-Centered Discipleship’s “The Blessings of the Local Church” Series

 

The Church Is Not a Meritocracy, Jessica T. Miskelly | November 27, 2023

After restless years in systems where you have to earn your keep, it was so refreshing to come back to the church and be welcomed for reasons other than what I can offer.

The Hands of Grace, Amber Thiessen, November 20, 2023

While we were in our deepest pain and the most chaotic season of our life—the fear of potentially losing our six-month-old daughter—the church served as our pillar of prayer. 

The Warmth of the Local Church for the Suffering, Brianna Lambert, November 15, 2023

To start a fire and to keep a fire going, you need both smaller and bigger logs. In a similar way, suffering people need care of all sizes to keep their faith in Christ warm.

How the Church Taught Me God’s Varied Grace after my Husband’s Bike Wreck, Lisa Spence, November 13, 2023

When we faced unexpected adversity, our local church provided help and support.

The Church: A Family of Redemption, Chase Johnson, November 8, 2023

Not only did the dynamic within my house change but my whole life was shaped through the local church.

The Unexpected Blessing of a Rural Church, Stephanie O’Donnell, November 1, 2023

I wanted nothing to do with the church. Then everything changed when a guitar teacher quit his job and planted a church in our town of 700 and became our gospel preacher.

For the Love of Liturgy, Erin Jones, October 30, 2023

I didn’t know how much my heart craved liturgy until I experienced it.

Redeeming Love Has Been My Theme and Shall Be Until I Die: Faith Reflections from a Cancer Oven (#15), Tim Shorey, October 27, 2023

Tim Shorey, one of our staff writers, is journaling through his struggle with stage 4 cancer. In this entry he reflects how deeply moving songs about a Christian’s death have become.

The Local Church Helps Rid Me of Morbid Introspection, Chrys Jones, October 25, 2023

During some of my worst moments of deep introspection, Satan has fired darts at my mind to make me question my salvation and usefulness in my home and local church.

The Pastor as Curator, Ryan Kucera, October 23, 2023

Help lay the building blocks for your people to become life-long readers.

Counseling in the Community of the Local Church, Tom Sugimura, October 18, 2023

Through biblical reflection and long experience, we have come to believe that counseling works best when connected in meaningful ways to the local church.

How the Wonder and Weirdness of a Bus Reminds Me of The Blessings of the Local Church, Melinda Wallace, October 12, 2023

My life would be so different without the manifold blessings of the local church.

God’s Church Is the Lifeline We Need in Times of Trouble, Grace Strijbis, October 11, 2023

Although we were in a different part of the country with people we barely knew at all, we were still surrounded by God’s family.

Finding Beauty in the Local Church in Our Age of Social Media, Cassie Pattillo, October 4, 2023

We’ll tend to focus on the imperfections within our local church while only seeing the highlight reel of another church via social media. That’s dangerous.

The Diversity of Gifts in Christ’s Body Invites Us to Embrace Humility, Adam Salloum, October 2, 2023

Not every part of Christ’s body serves the same purpose. And that’s good for us to remember—for so many reasons.

7 Encouraging Quotes for Pastors from a New Book for Pastors, Benjamin Vrbicek, September 30, 2023

If you’re looking for a book to buy your pastor during Pastor Appreciation Month, I’d suggest Jeremy Writebol’s Pastor, Jesus Is Enough.

The Singles Among Us Deserve a Better Church Culture, Denise Hardy, September 13, 2023

Most church cultures slight the singles among them. This must stop.  

Love Your Church Anyway, Heidi Kellogg, September 11, 2023

Sometimes I would rather be done with the local church than remain. But the Lord continues to bless me with his church in too many ways.

God’s Good Design of the Local Church, James Williams, September 4, 2023

To call the church man-made is like giving a worm credit for the Mona Lisa or saying a fly painted the Sistine Chapel.

On the Other Side of the Church Split, Abigail Rehmert, August 18, 2023

Truths God taught my heart the hard way.

Family Partners: Men and Women Serving Together in God’s Church, Denise Hardy, July 12, 2023

I’m a woman who worked on staff at a church for more than thirty years. My experience was almost all positive. I wish my story was less rare.

* Photo by Simone Viani on Unsplash