Church and Charity

Words are powerful things. Just one word contains so much meaning for us. The meaning behind a word is often developed over a period of years. Words therefore convey different meaning to people. The word “Father” for some invokes thoughts of nurturing, kindness, protection, love, friendship, wisdom, etc. However, the word “father” for some people can invoke thoughts of anger, intimidation, cruelty, etc. In a similar manner, the word “church” holds different meanings for different people. For many people that word would conjure up thoughts such as repression, mediocrity, religion, ritual, routine, and charity.

Image is everything for some people, and for many organizations such as multi-national corporations, a good positive image is essential for their success. Why should the church therefore be any different? We often find that we are trying to attract people into the church with Bible tracts and acts of charity, but to be honest, most people aren’t really impressed. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not putting down the charity aspect of the church. Charity has its place in Christianity - it’s scriptural.

But you see, as individual members of the Body of Christ we have all been chosen to reflect different aspects of the body. Charity does appeal to some people, for instance, a homeless person may be overwhelmed by the kindness of Christians who freely give of their time in order to provide them with cooked meals. This is the love of Christ made manifest in the body. But in this generation, it often takes more than acts of charity to reach the lost.

⁴ Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; ⁵ does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; ⁶ does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; ⁷ bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

Galatians 5:22-23

1 Corinthians 13:4 says that love is kind; kindness and goodness are also listed as fruits of the spirit in Galatians 5:22, so this explains the way in which love can express itself through charity. But as you can see, there is more to love than kindness and goodness.

If the church does not think that there is more to church than charity, roles and routines then they will never be able to fully embrace the supernatural and the transformed life. They will always be looking to see what they can do in respect to helping others, often in their own strength. If believers do not begin to exercise faith progressively in their lives, then their faith will remain stagnant. Church leaders will therefore regularly exhort their members to devote themselves to things that they can do in their own strength.

I think the biggest let down in my own church experience is the sheer lack of transformed lives; it seems to me that many believers simply interact with the church with the sense of security and goodness which they already had even before they committed their life to Christ. Without the capacity for restoration, healing, miracles and transformation – the church becomes a place whereby the more secure members see fit to prove their love for others and their devotion to God, in their own strength, through acts of benevolence affiliated to the church.  Then, pressure is applied in the form of guilt to the rest of the congregation who are still struggling with the issues of life and are simply too frustrated to join the others in their religious pursuits.