Come As You Are, & Let Others Do The Same

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘(39) “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, (40) for whoever is not against us is for us. (41) Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward.’ (Mark 9:39-41);  (21b)…<Jesus said,> “Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ (22) ‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ (23) “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full’”.’ (Luke 14:21b-23)

The ‘Babylon Bee’, a satirical site, put out a fictional story of a fictional Baptist church in Mobile, Alabama having on its sign in the front of the church, ‘All Are Welcome!* (*except sinners, tobacco chewers, tattooed people, democrats, homosexuals, smokers, drinkers, dancers, etc.’ and on the other side, “hippies, hipsters, vegans, secular TV watchers, and Methodists.’) This, according to the fictional pastor, is “…to make sure we were advertising what our church is all about accurately.  Now, the community will know exactly which groups of people are allowed to come hear God’s gracious offer of redemption in the gospel, and which ones we’d rather not get our hands dirty offering God’s grace to.  I’m really hoping the clarification leads to a much more homogeneous group of people gathering to worship the Lord this Sunday,” 

Fortunately, the above allegory is fictional. (I’m emphasizing ‘fictional’ as I don’t want anyone to believe a church would really do this, though the possibility is unfortunately never zero.) However, many churches have unwritten stipulations on who can come worship with them; some expect some type of conformity by its members, perhaps in the form of attire, or a pecking order in seating.  The Christchurch in Philadelphia, where many of our nation’s founders worshipped, had seating based on stature and gift-giving, and ‘esteemed members’ were buried under the floors of the church, including under the alter. 

Some churches frown upon those who may come in wearing jeans or shorts, or wearing sandals as opposed to dress shoes.  A more conservative church may chastise those members who are tattooed.  It would not surprise me if there are denominations that would ask someone who is of another denomination to leave the premises, and there are pastors who claim any Bible not of the King James persuasion is heretical.  (In case anyone is wondering, I primarily use the ‘old’ New International Version, or NIV.)

Jesus does not care about secular characteristics when it comes to church attendance or membership.  Jesus is an ‘equal opportunity’ Savior, who invites all people to come join Him at His Feast.  Appearance, social and financial status, and ethnicity are meaningless, as well as your sins and decorum (or lack of decorum).  Jesus does not provide a dress code or a list of grooming standards (I am most thankful for this) that one must attain in order to hear His Word.  Jesus wants everyone to come, per God’s instructions in John 3:16, ‘For God so loved the World (all the people) that He gave His only begotten Son…’  Everyone should have the ability to hear God’s Word being preached, and regardless of background or status, a true Bible-believing church will allow all to come in. 

The Christian, as well as the Christian church, must not hate the sinner, though we must hate the sin.  In Matthew 3:2, we hear John The Baptist (JTB) proclaim to anyone to listen, “Repent!  For the Day of the Lord (or the Kingdom of Heaven) is near!”  JTB did not say this to only a select group, but to anyone who would go out to see him in the wilderness.  A true Bible-believing church wants the sinners, tobacco chewers, tattooed people, democrats (and republicans), homosexuals, smokers, drinkers, dancers, hippies, hipsters, vegans, secular TV watchers, and yes, even Methodists (or any denominational member wanting to visit) to come in and hear the Word of God, and by the Lord’s grace be changed by it.

For church membership, the pickiness can go up a notch, but only in the realm of spiritual characteristics.  The second half of John 3:16 is ‘…that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.’  Church membership is reserved for those who accept Jesus and His precepts or His Gospel message.   To accept the Gospel is to accept Jesus as Savior and God’s commands upon us, which is to repudiate our sinful nature and repent or turn away from it and turn toward the Lord.  The attendee can become a member when the attendee can provide a testimony of Faith in accepting Jesus and in choosing to follow Him.  There is nothing that should prevent the one accepting Jesus from attending and joining the church in fellowship, especially their past transgressions.  Jesus forgives and forgets those transgressions, as should we. 

The Church should not provide membership for those actively and knowingly living and acting out sinful desires, especially sexual sins such as chronic infidelity and homosexuality, and this is laid out in 1 Corinthians 5 through 8, as it is also proper to expel those who do so flagrantly and in willful disobedience to the Word.  Even expelling those out of church, however, does not negate the ability for them to hear the Word of the Lord and for them to repent and return into the flock.  We as Christians must also be careful what we call ‘sin’.  Matthew 7:1 tells us not to judge others (lest we also be judged); many good Christians chew or smoke tobacco, have tattoos, and likely all of us watch some form of secular TV. 

Share the Word with all who you meet, using the Holy Spirit’s guidance and direction, and invite everyone to attend church.  Let them know that they can come as they are and be welcomed!