One of the many reasons that I absolutely love my church is that everyone is so welcoming and friendly to new people.
For example, this past Sunday I had the opportunity to pray for a girl who was recently saved out of a paganist/witchcraft background. As she talked about the church she said that she felt so welcomed and loved by everyone. She was amazed at the warmth of all the people. Those kind of statements make my heart really glad. I’m so grateful that my church is adorning the gospel with friendliness and love.
As a church we are 100% committed to keeping the gospel central in everything that we do. By God’s grace, we will preach God’s word without shame and without holding back. If our church is going to be a healthy church it has to be a God-centered, gospel-centered, scripture-centered environment.
However, the reality is, most people (not all, but most) won’t stick around to hear the preaching of God’s word if they don’t also feel welcomed into the church. God created us to be in relationship with himself and others. He created us to feel connected and people have a natural desire to feel embraced by people. It’s true in the church just as much as anywhere else.
And the wonderful truth is, friendliness can make up for many other deficiencies in the church. Our church doesn’t have the best preaching in the world. We don’t have the best worship or the coolest facilities. We’re not a particularly smooth running operation. We have a lot of coffee stains on the carpet and our bathrooms are too small.
But, there sure are a lot of people who go out of their way to make guests feel welcome. I think people tend to overlook our many flaws because they feel welcomed in the church.
That’s why I love my church. They reach out to people in a way that my dad, Joe, and I never could on our own. They adorn the gospel with friendliness and grace. Thanks Sovereign Grace Church. I love you guys!
