Slowly but surely

It seems to be finally happening. I have, for the longest time, been trying to get my mind thinking correctly about the word "church". It was very easy for me to play lip service to the fact that the church is the people of God rather than the building that they congregate in on a given Sunday. I mean the Bible is pretty clear that is the case. On the other hand whenever I heard the word church I immediately thought of the building. I have been trying to get that out of my head for the longest time. Well, I think that I have turned the corner.

I have heard the word "church" from my oldest son and, most recently, a co-worker where my mind went immediately to the people rather than the building. In fact, when I heard it from my son, I got very confused because he was using the word in a context where it could not have been misunderstood as being the people rather than the building. My confusion brought me an amount of satisfaction that is not usually produced when I am confused about something.

I have often heard it said that "with right doctrine comes right living ". I am not too bent out of shape if I cannot make the connection between orthodoxy and orthopraxy at this moment about this particular teaching. I just know that I have had to spend an unusual amount of time on this point and I think that it is, thanks be to God, finally starting to sink in.