Today’s perspective comes from Pastor Joshua Roberts of Encounter Assembly in Burbank, California:
- 1) How would you define the (local) church
- I would define the local church as a geographic gathering of Christ followers/Christian/etc. that come together on a regular basis to worship God the Father together, encourage each other, pray for others, and partake in ordinances/sacraments of the Church (i.e. the Lord’s Supper and Baptism).
2) Is the church relevant? Why?
I guess that depends on which manifestation of the Church you’re speaking about. Some local congregations are, and others are not. I believe the more important question is “Is the message and mission of the Church relevant?” To that question I answer a resounding yes! It’s up to each local congregation to use its gifts and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to relevantly live out and communicate the good news (gospel).
3) Do you see the church looking different in the future? Please explain.
Short answer: Yes.
Long answer: Yes, the Church should constantly be examining itself (through the study of the scriptures and the guidance of the Holy Spirit). We should examine all areas of our theology and practice and leave room for the Spirit’s correction. If we do this, we should always be maturing, thus looking different.
I also sense the Church is shifting away from the Western Culture focused ministry paradigm to a more Easter and Global focused model. We see evidence of this with some Roman Catholics and even Evangelicals migrating to the Eastern Orthodox church (article). I think we are many years away from the complete shift, but it is something we should continue to watch.
***Please note that I intentionally used both “church” and “Church” in my response. The use of “church” is to denote the local gathering of believers. The use of “Church” is for the church universal.***
Be sure to follow Pastor Robert’s blog at: joshinthe818.com or he can frequently be found on twitter at: @joshinthe818. Find more information on Encounter Assembly at: encounterassembly.com
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