"...to simply be the Church..."

From the Pittsburgh Emergent Village Cohort

Gathering at a former church building converted to a brewery/restaurant, called The Church Brew Works in Pittsburgh, a group of growing friends began to ask the question - What would it look like to simply be the Church– nothing more and nothing less?

And though the beer is good, and they greet you at the door with, “Welcome to Church”, the Church Brew Works stood as a stark reminder of what can happen to churches when they become inward focused and concerned more about self preservation than bringing the kingdom of God near.

That quotation is from the most recent Emergent Village e-newsletter. A lot of what I've blogged about over the last several months could be summed up in the question at the end of the first paragraph: What would it look like to simply be the Church -- nothing more and nothing less?

A think that this question would likely scare a lot of people. I'm fascinated by it, though. I want to explore it deeply. I want to be in fellowship with people who feel the same way. But I think that often our uncertainty or fear of extremism, however you want to call it (liberalism, radicalism, fundamentalism), keeps us from questioning the familiar in order to explore the possibilities which lie in the unknown.

The unknown is scary for me at times too. I won't lie and say that it's not. Change is hard...trust me, I am experiencing that reality daily. But change is necessary for growth and development. I am not going to get critical of any church, organization, people, etc. No point in that. We just need to really consider this question (above). Is there or is there not something to this thought? Have we clouded the picture of church that Jesus had when it was established through the his ministry and that of the apostles? If yes, then it's time to figure out what we need to do to restore the picture and get moving toward that goal.

What a conversation this could be. Wish we could all get together for coffee and plod through this one. Man, I miss that kind of thing!