The Church as a Home

Psalm 23:6- "I will have a home in the house of the Lord forever."  

Thoughts:  The church is a home for those who believe.  It is where our Father lives.  It is where we find "sanctuary"- a place of peace and rest.  Normally 23:6 is translated "I will dwell in the house of the Lord" or "I will settle in the house of the Lord."  But it could be translated "I will make my home (or have a home) in the house of the Lord forever."   
      The church does the things that a home does- provides love and gives an opportunity to be loved; a place where you are cared for in the tragedies of life (surgeries, sins, death) and celebrated in the joys of life (births, baptisms, confirmation/graduation and weddings).  The church is supposed to be an imperfect image of the perfect ultimate home for the believer- heaven.  This world is not our home- we are strangers here and pilgrims on the way home.  The Pilgrims of Thanksgiving fame embraced the name- having been kicked out of England and Holland.  Pilgrim is a good name for those who believe.  But the church is an oasis, a hostel on the way to our destination. 
     In our day, we need to honor our church home by keeping the faith and honoring the name of the One who calls us to our ultimate home.  But perhaps even more importantly in our day when love is missing- we need to love.  We need to love those with whom we disagree, and not be disagreeable.  Sometimes we may have to move away- for work, or sickness, or going to college.  Even then, we should pray for our church home and our church home should pray for those who move away.  The old song, says, "When we asunder part it gives us inward pain.  But we shall still be joined in heart  and hope to meet again."  In our consumer culture- where it is all about me- loyalty does not seem to count (only what you can do for me counts). But loyalty to our church home is good for our soul.  Divisiveness, schism, and an inability to love or forgive can destroy a church.  

        Augustine used to say, "No one can have God as his Father who does not have the church as his mother." Where our mother is, there is our home. The church is described as the bride of Christ in scripture.  We are called to have respect for the bride and have loyalty to the One God loves- if we love God.  To treat the church as if it were a club, an institution, or a human organization forgets that God is the One who gathers us, makes us a family, and forms us a home for His people. If we leave God out of the church, and take the love out- the church is nothing.  But if God is respected and worshiped in spirit and truth- we should be careful to not dishonor our home.  There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism (Eph. 4:5) that unites us as a home.  As far as it depends on us, we should live in harmony with all men, especially the household of faith (Rom. 12:16).  

Prayer: Lord, help me to honor your bride, my mother, the church.  Let me speak well of her, work for her well being, and invite others to be loved by her and you.