What a wonderful time we had this past weekend celebrating 25 years of God’s faithfulness to us as a congregation! God blessed us with wonderful weather and it was a delight to see young and old fellowshipping together. It is a good thing to remember. But there is also a danger. That danger is that we get stuck in a sentimental, nostalgic recollection whereby all we long for is “the good old days”.
But 2022 is not 1997. And the point of looking back in remembrance is to provide fresh encouragement for the days ahead. The Lord constantly called the people of Israel to remember His mighty work in the Exodus as a means to strengthen them for present challenges. But looking ahead is also a mixed bag. On one hand, there is excitement over what the future might bring and what new adventures and people we will encounter. On the other hand, there can also be fear and anxiety because we don’t know what lies around the bend.
While we may not know all the particularities of what the future holds, there is a way to walk into that future with courage. And that is by recommitting ourselves to what is constantly true throughout the history of God’s people. These marks may manifest themselves in different ways, in different places, and in different ages. Yet, if you look deep enough, you will find them there.
So while we know there will be changes in the life of Grace Community Church, here are some of those marks that, Lord willing, you will always find here.
*The centrality of the word of God. If we lose this, then we lose everything. The Bible will continue to be at the heart of our teaching and preaching as well as the means by which we are transformed individually and corporately.
*The priority of worship. Our weekly gathering together to lift our hearts and minds in praise and thanksgiving and to have our lives reoriented to what is true, beautiful, and good cannot be forsaken without dire consequences. God does something in corporate worship that is different from what occurs in our devotional lives. There is a reason we are commanded to not neglect to meet together (Hebrews 10:25). Weekly public gathering together in person is vital to our spiritual health as individuals and as a congregation.
*The proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It will be what we proclaim to each other as we encourage one another to continue to die to sin and to live to Christ. This is one of the reasons for our recent move to weekly communion. It is also the only message by which our neighbors might be saved.
*The fellowship of the saints. Our motto is “Discipleship through relationship”. My hope is that we continue to grow in our love for each other, that we might encourage one another, stir one another to love and good works, and bear each other’s burdens. Given we live in a fallen, broken world, we know the future holds ample opportunities for us to walk with each other through some of life’s deepest and darkest valleys. But those valleys are not ones we must walk alone but ones where we need companions. I pray that we will be such friends to each other.
The saying goes that the more things change, the more they stay the same. I imagine there will be change over the next 25 years. That’s the nature of life. But my hope is that when Grace Community Church (whoever she may be made up of at that point) gathers to celebrate its 50th anniversary, that they will be celebrating the same things we celebrated this last weekend: the faithfulness of God, a continued love for His word, His worship, and His gospel, and a people who are being transformed by the grace of God to love each other and their neighbors well. May God be pleased to grant it!
