The Church is Beautiful

I was driving to the church this morning, a cold and rainy December day, and as I pulled into the church parking lot I noticed the billboard that stands in the corner of our church yard. The use of this billboard was a 50/50 decision whether we should make a couple hundred bucks a year by letting someone else advertise there or if our church would use it. The elders decided to use it for church purposes. Originally on the billboard (both sides) was a large open Bible with our church name on it. Interestingly enough, there is a family who are members of our church who started coming to our church because of that billboard (only fuel to the fire for good use of the billboard, right?). Now on that billboard, with a white background and large black letters, it says:

The last phrase “The Church is Beautiful” caught my attention in a particularly unique way this morning though. There is a temptation for pithy statements of cliche phrases to lose their zing and umph sometimes, but this statement has proven itself time and time again. And it is proving itself again even this week. 

Disclaimer #1: I am writing this article to the members of Faith Community Church to admonish them with this; God is sovereign, the seasons of mourning and rejoicing are an inevitable joy under God’s sovereign rule, and he has given us himself (God the Father, Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit), his Word, and his Church to help us endure with one another through these seasons. 

Disclaimer #2: The Church is beautiful for one reason alone, because it is Christ’s bride that he purchased with his own precious blood. But what I mean by this statement is that it is true, not only principally, philosophically, etymologically, and foundationally, but also experimentally. In other words, the members of FCC should also be “experiencing” the beauty of the church. Now, moving on…

Romans 12:15 says to “Rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn.”

Within the last short weeks and months we have rejoiced and mourned in the life of our church:

• One couple experienced a wedding, the death of three grandparents, the joy of pregnancy, and the heartache of miscarriage all within a few short months. 
• One family endured the highs and lows of pregnancy which led to nearly four weeks in the hospital with a premature child birth but ended with a healthy mom and baby. 
• One member who lost a grandmother and shortly after got the news of her father’s cancer diagnosis which has progressively gotten worse and not sure how much longer he has.
• One member’s mother received a cancer diagnosis which has quickly progressed and heard the news that her mother only has weeks to live. Not to mention the same family lost a young cousin to a tragic accident last year. 
• Members who have dealt with family dissension due to their commitment to living a godly life.
• One member who has dealt with the pain that follows two hip replacements and a back surgery.
• Marital issues, parenting issues, work issues, issues, issues, issues...
• The birth of children!
• The joy of fellowship with one another!
• The news of couples getting pregnant!
• The welcoming of members who have been gone out of town for work for months!
• The blessing of family and friends!
• The renewing work of the Spirit in the hearts of believers!
• The satisfaction which comes from Christ alone!

Again, these are not all the things going on the lives of the members of our church. In fact, this is only the tip of the iceberg. Of this, I am certain. But what do we do in the midst of these circumstances? Many of these situations will not be fixed by the answered prayer of “take this cup from me.” In fact, many of these situations have not even seen the worst. Not yet, at least.

Yet, Paul does not say run from them. He says to actually mourn with those who are mourning. This is the beautiful part of the church–that as we mourn and as we feel lonely in the depth of despair, we have other brothers and sisters in Christ right there with us to encourage us with passages like Psalm 42:5-6 “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”

And the equally beautiful part of the church is also that we are to rejoice with those who rejoice. It is true that the bad seems to always outweigh the good, or the mourning always seems to outweigh the rejoicing but the Lord has given innumerable reasons to rejoice with one another, and FCC is not lacking in reasons to rejoice with one another. Praise be to God!

Why would Paul include such drastically different situations like rejoicing and mourning in the same sentence? The answer is because the church is to be unified and one of the unifying things that God has given is seasons of different kinds (sometimes drastically different kinds like rejoicing and mourning) yet he gives the same source of comfort for everyone. 

2 Corinthians is filled with an eternal comfort and hope that believers should have. Notice the source of this comfort. 

2 Cor. 1:3-5
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.”

Our comfort comes from Christ’s afflictions but we are to comfort one another with the comfort by which we have been comforted. How is this possible without the church?

Imagine your life without the comfort that comes from the brothers and sisters at FCC. Hopefully it doesn't take long for you to praise God for the blessings and beauty of the church. 

The Church is a display of God’s care for His people. I do not write these anonymous specifics of people within our church to create this hyper-sensitivity to these specific situations, although we should certainly tend to these situations in ways we are able to, by God’s help. It takes the whole church to tend to the needs of the saints and no pastor nor church member is ultimately sovereign, meaning we cannot know every single situation in the life of our church. However, I share these things to admonish you to walk in the spirit, obey the Scriptures, live among your fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord. There are hundreds of situations going on within our church that no one knows about, yet we should be the light of the world and salt of the earth among one another.

Charles Spurgeon said,
“If I had never joined a church till I had found one that was perfect, I should never have joined one at all; and the moment I did join it, if I had found one, I should have spoiled it, for it would not have been a perfect church after I had become a member of it. Still, imperfect as it is, it is the dearest place on earth to us.”

Therefore, members of FCC, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn.” Give praise to God for the blessing and beauty of the church!

Dec. 11, 2024

Soli Deo Gloria,
Ryan Wade