By John Cole
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By John Cole
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Chapter Two What are we here for? "It is not those who say to me, 'Lord, Lord', who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the person who does the will of my Father in heaven." (Matthew 7:21) Introduction It might seem from the last chapter that the only way a local church can be really 'local' is when it allows one or other of the local communities to set the church's agenda - to 'use' the church for its own ends. This certainly happens - in every kind of locality; and if one section of the local populace doesn't manage to hi-jack the church, the resident congregation will probably do it instead! Attempts at hi-jacking are going on in most churches most of the time. When there are no tensions between different groups within a congregation, this usually means that one or other group of hi-jackers has been successful! You may already be aware after taking a close look at your locality - as suggested in chapter one - that your own church faces problems. The fact that you and your fellow church members are well suited by what goes on in church may be precisely what is barring the church door against other people who ought to be allowed in. It is easy to react to all this selfishness by saying "Hey, it's meant to be God's church - if not it's useless." But this doesn't solve the problem. If it is God's church, how does he want us to use it? Or perhaps we ought to say "If we are God's church, how does he want to use us?" When we spend our time on 'churchy' things, what is it all for? This chapter includes a number of activities which might help you find your own answers to these questions.
In this Chapter: Stage One
Stage Two
Stage Three
Three Additional Exercises
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