God Calls You the Church of God

Metaphor: Church of God

Concept: Whose church are you? To whom do you belong? Who is it that you worship. These may all be a part of the name of a local church. They should all be a part of how we identify ourselves as believers.

Acts 20:28-29 Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

1 Cor 1:2 To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ — their Lord and ours: NIV
1 Cor 10:32 Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God;
1 Cor 11:22 What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you.     
1 Cor 15:9-10 For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.     
2 Cor 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
Gal 1:13-14 For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; NASU

 I have always had to pause when I first see a church’s name. I was not raised as a person of faith. I came into the family of God after seeking out many religious possibilities in the 1960’s. When I see a church name I always wonder what they were thinking when they named it.

There are many possibilities when naming a church but I always think the name should communicate the vision or at least a part of the founders vision. Now by founder I do not mean the people who began a particular local church but God or Jesus God’s son or the Holy Spirit of God. The source of any churches life. Today we tend to use the name of a community, church organization or something that makes people comfortable.

 I will go back to my original idea. The individual believer in Jesus is a member of God’s church no matter where they may worship each week. No matter what the building we attend is like, the seats, the carpet the lighting none of that matters in the end. We are after all His church. When we get to heaven we may not have our dwelling places in communities next to those we sit with each Sunday. We will all be there because we are a part of God’s church which is the body of Jesus the Christ or Messiah.

So enjoy the journey with your fellow pilgrims who are looking for a city who’s builder and maker is the one true God and do not get to concerned about the physical appearance of where you fellowship and worship God with others. Remember whose you are and who it is you worship.