To be sure, there is a proper place for church programs and parachurch ministries. In fact, the more a church is a growing organism, the more organization it will necessarily require. The implementation of programs and ministries must come as a corollary of the developing organic Christian living in the body. The more we desire what God desires for his church, the more we will better understand the blessing of the organic love and service of the members of the body. When we understand the blessing of the organic ministry among the members of the congregation, we’ll rightly utilize programs and organizational structure for the encouragement of the members towards one another.
As we enter a new year with new personal goals and desires, the Lord wants his people to commit to Christian living among the members of the body. We must resist the urge to look to practices and programs in the local church to live out the Christian life or do the work of ministry for us. Our God has given us the enormous privilege and responsibility of diligently living out, daily, our Christian lives in Christ. Let’s commit ourselves to the practice of seeking to live the organic Christian life in the context of the local church to which we belong.
This article originally appeared here and is used by permission.
