I hear the statement quite often. Usually it’s raised in discussions
of church membership. People want to know how to help a wounded friend
or family member re-engage the church. Or, they’re the ones who have
been hurt and they’re wrestling with whether church is worth it. Some
want to be convinced to join a church and others want to be told it’s
okay to leave. Answering well depends, in part, on knowing which way the
person leans.
But recently I’ve been thinking that part of the answer must include
questioning the way the problem is phrased. What does the person mean
when they say, “The church hurt me”? Let’s walk the possibilities
backward from the most sweeping accusation to the most narrow.
The Universal Church
The person could mean the big-C Church has hurt them–all Christians
everywhere. That sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? But think about it. When
a person says “The church has hurt me” and they’re refusing to visit or
join any local congregation of believers they have practically
projected their hurt onto the entire universal body of Christ! They
have assigned their offense to every possible Christian and Christian
congregation imaginable. Practically, their distrust has reached
universal proportions. In every case this is false. We might provide
some of our best care by helping our friends recognize the practical
universalism in some of their reactions. Hopefully we can get them to
dial it down to the next possible level. Continue at Thabiti Anyabwile
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