THE LOCAL CHURCH—A GIFT OF GOD’S GRACE - By Joel Berry

A young couple holding their two toddlers stood before the congregation, eager to affirm their commitment to teaching their children to love God and to walk in His ways. At the pastor’s request, the congregation rose to their feet. The pastor asked for their pledge to walk alongside this young family to support their efforts through prayer, faithful instruction, and fellowship of the community. As visitors that day, my wife, Cheri, and I remained seated while those standing enthusiastically responded, “We will!”

I am thankful for the local church. United by the Holy Spirit through faith in Christ, believers encourage one another to walk in holiness, to grow in God’s grace, and to know God’s love. God created us to live in community, and the local fellowship of believers plays a vital role in our sanctification. Dietrich Bonhoeffer describes the physical presence of the church community as a gift of God’s grace, “a source of incomparable joy and strength to the believer.”

The local church has played a significant role in my spiritual formation throughout my life. Even now, I have fond memories of my childhood Sunday school teachers, flannelgraph Bible stories, and singing songs about Jesus. Faces and names of men and women who came alongside my parents to teach me the truth about God’s love are permanently etched in my memory. I grew up listening to my mom sing in the choir and observing my dad stand to pray when called upon during the church service. I competed with my friends in Bible knowledge drills and recited large portions of memorized Scripture verses to teachers and grandmothers who loved me enough to teach me the Bible. I spent many evenings at church during my teen years socializing with friends and absorbing biblical truth from faithful men and women who invested their time in my spiritual growth. I thank God for all of these people and their investment in my life.

As newlyweds, and then as young parents, Cheri and I were blessed with spiritual role models in our church who demonstrated how to navigate the waters of marriage and parenting. We developed lifelong friendships within our church with peers who pursued holiness through their devotion to God. We grew in God’s grace and learned of His love through the ministry of the local church. I cannot imagine how different our lives would be without the influence of the local church, the visible representation of the body of Christ.

With the rapid spread of the Covid-19 pandemic last year, churches were compelled to close their doors, and people were forced into isolation. Local churches, many of which had never even entertained the thought of offering their church services online, scrambled to produce live-streaming access to their Sunday services. Although the church could not gather physically, advanced technology offered a viable alternative of gathering virtually. But virtual community cannot replicate the impact of the physical church community.

Cheri and I initially enjoyed the convenience of an online church. As empty-nesters, we felt no urgency to attend in person. We grew accustomed to sleeping a little later on Sundays, going to the gym, or running errands before coming home to stream the service on our Roku. But, as a few months turned to many, we soon realized how we missed being among other believers in worship. Yes, we benefitted from watching sermons online each week, but we missed the fellowship of the church community. With the passage of time, the novelty of online church lost its luster. What had once seemed a luxurious convenience became routine and boring.

The arrival of the 2020 Christmas season prompted a few churches to open their doors, often with mask requirements and limited seating capacity. We managed to find seats for our family in a Christmas Eve service at a nearby church. We did not know anyone seated around us, but the experience of corporate worship on Christmas Eve refreshed our thirsty souls.

The optimism of beginning a new year motivated more churches to open their doors. Cheri and I had the privilege of attending the Sunday church service with her family in Colorado. After many months absent from the physical presence of the church, our hearts rejoiced as we joined with the congregation in songs of worship. Like dry sponges, we soaked in the pastor’s encouragement for the new year as he taught from the Scriptures. We observed the Lord’s Supper with a renewed appreciation for such a blessed time of remembrance of our Savior, whose body was broken and whose blood was shed for the remission of sin. (continued)

The fellowship of believers engaged in the worship of our Lord and Savior rejuvenated our spirits. We came home eager to return to church—in person—where we can experience the joy of worship with other believers.

The physical gathering of the church is vital to its effectiveness in ministry. The author of Hebrews expressed its importance in this way: “Let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works, not staying away from our worship meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:24–25, HSCB)

I thank the Lord for the local church—for its role in my spiritual development, and for the opportunity it provides to influence the growth of others. I am thankful that we are able to attend live services each week and enjoy the fellowship of other believers. The local church surely is a gift of God’s grace!

1 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2015), 3, Kindle.

Joel Berry holds an M.A. in Biblical Studies from Dallas Theological Seminary. A CPA by profession, he serves in his local church as a spiritual mentor and small group leader. Through his writing, Joel desires to encourage believers to grow deep roots into Jesus Christ, enabling them to remain steadfast in their faith (Col 2:7).

Joel and his wife, Cheri, have been married thirty-seven years and live in Roswell, GA. They have two wonderful sons and daughters-in-law.

Read Joel’s Blog at https://www.outoftheblocksblog.com