WHICH CHURCH DO YOU LOVE THE MOST?

I remember singing as  a young person, many many moons ago, these words,

Oh I care not what church you belong to, as long as for Calvary you stand, your heart is as my heart, you are my brother so give me your hand.

Sadly, I can honestly  say I didn’t believe what I sang, I thought my church was the best, and any other church was 2nd class compared to mine.

I have come along way since those days, there came a time when I believe the Lord ripped the denominational blinkers off  me, and I started to appreciate in a very real way, this beautiful thing called the Body of Christ. Of course there needs to be a basic loyalty  to the local church the Lord has planted us in, but there needs to be a much higher loyalty  to the Head of the Church, the Lord Jesus Christ and to His Body the Church. Please note the word “PLANTED” some believers treat the local church like a restaurant, and if they are not happy with the menu, they simply move on. In God’s economy it should be extremely difficult for us to withdraw from a church, one reason could be employment in an other area, there is no such thing as a perfect local church, it is made up of imperfect people like you and me, and when  the going gets rough (and it does from time to time) we hang in, Unless the Leadership is  clearly teaching  heresy, or living immorally, or fiddling the books, WE HANG IN OK?

                         TAKE NOTE OF THE TITLES OF CHURCHES

Either it is a Personality e.g. Lutheran (after Martin Luther), or Wesleyan (after John Wesley)
Or a form of Government, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, or Congregational
Or an expression of Doctrine, e.g. Baptist, Calvinist, Reformed, Pentecostal, Charismatic etc.
This creates the potential problem that we camp around either a Person, or a form of Government, or a Doctrine. when we should be centred around the Lord Jesus Christ and the WHOLE OF THE WORD OF GOD.
Each of the above are important, and as a result of my studies I  have opinions regarding each category, but they are  not so important, that it will hinder me relating and fellowshipping with Believers who happen to be in a different “camp”.
For many years now, I have had the privilege of ministering across the Body of Christ, especially in Asia, this has been and continues to be a fantastic blessed experience.
There is one Bible School in Asia, that I deliberately get the students to sing each year when I visit.
“I love this Family of God, so closely knitted into one, they have taken me into their heart, and I am so glad to be a part of the Family of God”. As much for me as for them.
One day, when the dead in Christ arise, and those who are alive meet the Lord in the air, and we enter our eternal reward, WE WILL BE ONE IN CHRIST. The denominational tags will be gone FOREVER Hallelujah.
Can I encourage you to ask yourself, Where am I camped ? Is it around a Person, or a form of Government or specific Doctrines?
may the Lord help us to shift our focus to have our eyes on Him, and the whole of the Word of God. What do you think ?????