The Church Club vs. The Church

Recently, I have met quite a few people that have just become Christians in the past year or two. It has been the most refreshing thing. It has also made me think about what I call "The Church Club".

I was in marching band in high school and now no matter where I am, if I meet someone who was in marching band, there's like this instant connection. We first guess what instrument the other played, we feel each other's pain as we speak of standing at parade rest for what feels like eternity, and we just understand each other's language.

The thing I've realized is that when I meet fellow Christians that grew up in church, most of the time it's the same thing. We talk about denominations, our favorite Veggie Tales episode, what Sunday School was like, youth retreats, and small groups/home groups/life groups (depending on where you went to church). And then once you get to college, you give the name of your catchy, one-word, non-denominational campus organization (i.e. crave, breakaway, ignite, radical). Plus, we have this church language that we now know is safe to pull out because the other people will understand.

I'm not saying having things in common is a bad thing. These can be great conversation starters, but I keep coming back to how the bible says Christians are suppose to interact. John 13: 34-35 says, "Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other." So, if we are a part of "The Church Club", we will be recognized by our language, the catchy phrases on our t-shirts, and so on, but to be a disciple of Jesus, to be a part of The Church, we will be recognized by the love we show one another. This definitely sets a higher standard.

I guess all of this to say I am being challenged to stop being just a member of "The Church Club" and to start being a true disciple of Jesus and I challenge you to do the same. Who knows? We could, dare I say it, change the world.