Gathered & Called Out

Hello SPV Fam!
I want to share a verse from 1 Peter 2.9 with you this week and then add a few thoughts...

“...you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.”

This entire verse is describing the “Ekklesia” of God which is the Greek word we use for “church”.
The word ekklesia/church contains within it 2 distinct ideas, that almost seem contradictory, but are held together within a single concept.
The word literally means “a gathered people who are called out”. 

I know these are unique times, but we must never forget or lose sight of the fact that the church can never function the way God intended if we minimize the significance of the “gathered people”.
We’ve obviously had to press pause on gathering in the church building for a few months, but the author of Hebrews provides us with a healthy reminder:
“let us not forsake meeting together as some have gotten into such a habit.”
I’m praying that we, as a church, will be found faithful loving our neighbors, taking all of the appropriate precautions to ensure the health and safety of our community. Covid-19 will not win the day by settling us into the bad habit of not gathering together. 

While “meeting together” is an important component of the “ekklesia”, the “sent out” aspect is just as important. For the church to be the church, we are called to both gather together AND be sent out as the holy nation God intended. So, what do royal priests and a holy nation do? 

They show others the goodness of God.
Unconditional love, healing, generosity, food, shelter, mercy, justice, kindness...
These are all practical ways we are called to show people the goodness of God. 

May we each pray and ask the Lord for unique/creative ways in which we might demonstrate the goodness of God to those we interact with on the daily as a “sent out” people....
and let us look forward to when we are again able to be the “gathered people” in a faithful way. 

Much love,
Pastor Chris