The Church Should Meet My Needs

Maybe I oversimplify things…but I believe that love wins. Period.

The world is to know us by our love. God is love. It’s quite clear. I believe fellowship and teaching one another in the church is an encouragement to one another. When believers are encouraged, they can come together collectively and love the broader community. In short, I think it’s both.

However, to think that the church exists solely for the betterment of one’s self is a selfish perspective. Jesus’ disciples were not selfish consumers of the Good News…they shared the Good News. Paul didn’t selfishly consume, he shared. But they all were able to share because they could encourage one another…let themselves be used by God in the lives of all around them…believer or not.

I love your blog…thanks for addressing the hard questions!

Well if the church existed to meet my needs it would look a lot different. Maybe that is why you church plant right

I have always seen the church as a place to gather with believers to worship a grace ful God. But also a place to serve.

I do think the church is to blame for these stats being so high. Over the years I have seen this message preached that the church is your one stop shop for your spiritual needs. Its almost like churches are looking to create an addiction so people will come back, not go out into the community.

I think as long as “my needs” are: sharing the gospel, serving the body, worshipping and growing spiritually that it’s a fine statement to make.

Otherwise…?

wow! that is so sad….

As far as I can tell the church exists to tell the story of a creation that is trapped in a cycle of sin and death, a Creator of that world who wants to put it back together and a dead and resurrected Lord who defeated the power of sin and death and who opens up the possibility for us to find our own resurrection in his. Ultimately the church tells us we think we’ve been thinking we live our own story but we’re a part of a story that is much older, much truer and much more significant than our own. and somewhere in that journey we discover that our life isn’t at all about our needs but about serving the needs of others.

And so if the church can play some sort of counter cultural role in telling people that what they think are their needs aren’t really needs, then amen that people expect the church to be the place where their spiritual needs are met. But a church pointing towards Jesus isn’t necessarily going to be the best at fulfilling what we think are our spiritual needs.

The church does not exist to meet the needs of those who go there.

My Pastor put it very succinctly because he called out people who claimed churches didn’t “serve their needs” to their satisfaction. He said:

“The church does not exist to meet your needs. The church exists for you to worship God and his son Jesus Christ. It exists for you to meet the needs of others. You do that, and you’ll find your needs being met.”

Well said by your pastor.
The sad thing is, I was playing drums at my home church on fourth of july and I asked why we were doing so many patriotic songs? The worship leaders response: “because we have to” he went on to say “it is what people expect”
It was troubling to hear that really.

Your pastor gets it, Jay.

I would add that the church exists, as well, to make disciples and raise up the next generation of disciples, and so on.

Probably not the best statement to grow a church quickly but I do think it is the truth.

So I hear you saying that part of church is walking through the process of selfishness to selflessness with people. That accurate?

At it’s best, yes Tyler.

Reminds me of Bernard of Clairveaux’s stages of love – from love of self for the sake of self – to – love of God for sake of self – to – love of God for sake of God – to – love of self for sake of God(this one is usually considered to be unattainable until the eschaton).

Anyways, there’s a clear progression that takes place, but it’s critical for the church to remind itself that it doesn’t exist to meet needs but rather to tell the story of how God is putting everything back together.

Is that any clearer?

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Tyler Braun, Dave Ingland. Dave Ingland said: Rt @tylerbraun: New blog post: "The church exists to meet my needs" http://bit.ly/cdy6La // i'm sensing a theme for today [...]

Yeah I wasn’t disagreeing with you, just clarifying. For me the church exists for the great commission. But beyond that there are tons of reasons for the local church to exist, but they’re just specifics of the great commission being worked out.

There are times when he brings up issues he knows will result in people leaving. But it’s something he said needs to be done from time to time because he said doesn’t want people to be comfortable but to be challenged. He also said that there has to be a balance of truth and love in the church. But also said that there will be times when truth and love clash and when that happens, truth has to win out.

Makes sense. I was thinking that I’d also point out this isn’t really an original thought of my own but something I stumbled upon in a chapter in Eugene Peterson’s book, the Contemplative Pastor. The chapter is called “Pastor as Subversive.” Really makes sense to me with the idea of church telling an alternative narrative to the world, along Robert Webber’s statement that the question for the church in the 21st century was who get’s to narrate the world?

If you look at the first century church as described in Acts 2:42-47, was the church really ever intended to be a place where selfish people came to get their needs met?

42They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer
43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.
44All the believers were together and had everything in common.
45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.
46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

I can’t imagine what I would do if I ever stumbled upon a church where everyone was filled with awe, people sold all they had and gave to anyone with a need, and met together everyday with glad and sincere hearts. Seriously, if that ever did happen, the message of Christ and him being crucified would be a selfish need people would realize they need to have met. Then again, most days I feel as if I know nothing anymore about the church.

1) Church is a place to stand ground for good
Church is not a building but it does occupy space with worship and serving others. In my experiences, when a church is void or is not living in worship the city around it is decaying morally and physically, and when a church is living in worship the city around it is better off (lower crime rate, less fear, pride, anger, abuse…more life and a small picture of what heaven is like)

2) Church is a place where we can learn that all our needs are already met in Jesus
( I would use 2 cor 4 as a reference)

Church exists to glorify God by showing that children of God do not desire things in this world but those of heaven.