God Reflection:
Unfortunately, in my own North American culture of the USA the young and not so young chant, “Jesus yes! Church no!” Our 21st century North American church encounters a landscape of confused observers. Is it possible that the answer is found in the “Both And?”
Jesus asked Simon Peter who he thought Jesus to be. By this time, Peter was finally starting to get it: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus responds, “You got it! You are right. Upon this confession I will build my church and even the gates of Hell will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:16-18).
Build His church He did. He went to the very gates of hell to take care of sin and make it possible for those cleansed by His blood to be the church—His bride.
I love the church. The church is real. It came from the mind of God. It is never my place to judge or criticize the church established by God at the cost of His Son. My only role is to belong. Dare we humans criticize Holy Jesus’s choice of a bride?
However, as servants of God, we want to understand the nature of the church, its purpose, and its destiny. Yes, we are free—and encouraged—to explore God, and all ramifications of Jesus found within Holy Scripture. Likewise, we are free and encouraged to immerse ourselves into that same Biblical fullness to discover the importance that church—we who are his bride—is to Jesus himself.
Always, our boundary should be to honor the ownership of Jesus. Let’s examine our own hearts and actions that we do not block the Holy Glow of the church his bride from its cleansing shine on anyone who we might encounter on our everyday path.
To tell the truth, I believe I have a better grasp of belonging to Christ’s church than I have on what the church of Jesus should look like here on earth.
As we think along these lines, it is my suspicion we will find the church possesses greater grandeur than we can possibly imagine. I have a hunch that as believers we could do a better job at reflecting Christ in our world if our individual windows were cleaned up to allow more light to shine out from his church. It is us, rather than the bride that make it hard for some to affirm both Jesus and church.
I couldn’t have been more than 15 years old when I heard the flamboyant Nashville evangelist Dr. Ira North over half a century ago. 
Dressed in his traditional bright red suit, with red shoes, and stylish tie, he told the story of Jesus and His church as the greater Nashville area was transformed into the likeness of Jesus. Good flowed from the church in the name of Jesus faster than the flow of Tennessee’s Cumberland River.
I sat spellbound as I listened in pure joy to learn of the power of Jesus shining through the church. The entire Christian community from every corner of Nashville testified to their love for one another and their care for the less fortunate. Jesus’ Church in Nashville was making headlines throughout Tennessee. Then it happened.
Dr. North ended his speech with an apology.
The artful picture he painted was false. The marginalized remained outcast, hungry people continued unfed, lost souls far from Jesus still dominated the city of Nashville, and churches fought within themselves and warred against each other.
Six decades later, I still remember Dr. North’s message in the packed Sewell Auditorium. It wasn’t his flamboyant red suit or his bombastic personality. It wasn’t even my disappointment when I learned his fantasy portrait of the church was untrue. I do remember the feeling of joy in my soul as he strung me along for the major portion of his speech. What made an impression on me was for the first time I saw a vision of how grand the church could be.
Through the years, I have caught glimpses of such a church. Yet, for the most part, it still seems to remain as spotted potential on the canvas. My wildest dream for the Kingdom is that we his bride—the church will combine in a holy reflection and focus upon God, His Son, and His Church, that in some way the power of the Holy Spirit might move us to lay down our weapons and pick up holy paintbrushes.
Together we can fill the canvas with colorful gifts and talents as His witnesses in a lost world. And—if we step back from the multiple colors of paint covering the canvas—we might just see the portrait of Jesus.
What do you think? I would love to hear your thoughts.
Stay tuned.
Gary Sorrells – A God Reflection on Jesus Yes! Church Yes!
God Reflection 