Family

This Sunday, I will explore the baptized family of God in worship. I share this post so that we can start thinking about what it means to be baptized in advance of Sunday. To balance this message out, I will be focusing more on the baptized universal church this Sunday.

In the Gospel of Mark: "Your mother and your brothers are outside waiting on you, calling for you," one of the disciples said to Jesus.  And he replied, "Who are my mother and my brothers?" And looking at those who sat around him, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”

Over the last couple of months, two couples that sporadically attend worship at Plains have remarked that they will probably worship someplace different. This is hard for the small-membership church to hear. Of course, we asked them why. One couple remarked, “We want to go to a Church where we can blend in and not be seen.”  The other couple remarked, “We don’t want to be asked to do anything.”  I take these responses as compliments. If you want to be anonymous, then don’t go to the small-membership church.  

It's easy to slip in and out of larger churches and avoid being seen. The larger church blends well with our individualist/capitalist/consumerist society. If you prefer to slip in and consume then go to a larger Church. It is easier to become just a number.  Don't get me wrong--we need the large membership church. They do work that the smaller churches will never be able to do. Plus, they help keep the churches out in the sticks afloat.  

But the rural church cannot afford to have numbers for the sake of numbers. We want numbers because we desperately need our family to grow.  The field is ripe for the harvest, but the laborers are few. There is a lot of work to get done in the kingdom of God.  And family members have to pitch in on the farm. Don’t join a small-membership church and expect to never receive a hug or to never be asked to read Scripture on a Sunday morning. We won’t fit in that shopping cart; we expect discipleship and we expect family. This is a gift of the small membership church.

Last Sunday a gentleman returned to worship for the first time in years.  He slipped in the back door right after the service started. I don’t know if he wanted anonymity or not.  Like I said, privacy is not an option. We celebrated. We announced his name as we lifted up the joys in our lives; we greeted him with smiles and hugs. “Glad to have you home,” we said.  I shook his hand as he walked out the door and he replied, “See you at Sunday School next week.” 

If you want to be unseen during worship then you are free to go. If you ever decide to return we will slaughter the fattened calf and welcome you home to the family.