Good Church?

"Church was GOOD today!" Often times when I leave church this thought goes through my head. I reflect back on the community of believers, maybe some new faces, or a comment after the gathering about how the message touched or spoke to someone, and think: "It was a goooooood day." What makes church good? Maybe if we looked at that definition, there would be a little less competition, and a little more focus on what matters most to God.

Does the look, sound, or message make a church good? But isn't that what we are often referring to when we say church was good? When Jesus was called "good teacher" by a rich young man, His response was noteworthy:

"And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone." Luke 18:19 ESV

In this statement, Jesus is not saying no one is good, but goodness belongs to God first. In His goodness we find good: the good He created as well as the good works He has prepared in advance for us (ref: Eph. 2:10). So then when it comes to good, whatever it is, it first needs to come from God. This is a universal truth, and works in any situation if applied. Get it?

So then, what should a "good" church look like? Let's look at the first church to see what they did:

"And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers." Acts 2:42 ESV

So instead of trying to do church "good," we might be better to think how to be a church that does good. So then I guess a "good" church has little to do with entertainment value or individual preferences, but everything to do with God's Word, communing with others (fellowship), sharing food, and praying. When those are covered by us, the rest gets covered by God...

In His grip,

Pastor Pat