It is very easy to gain an audience with the ensuing dopamine rush by bashing the church, especially evangelicals, added points if they’re baptist, and bonus if they are rapture minded. Very easy, and there is a large market for it. There really is not a value advantage to being Christian in today’s world. So why remain in ministry that outside the church is antagonism, and within the church there are numerous issues as well?

Jesus rose from the dead

The main reason I am staying in ministry is because Jesus rose from the dead. This is of first importance. The historical fact of Jesus existing, being killed, and the grace being emptied proves that God exists and that Jesus is who He says He is. A post for another day, and numerous books exist demonstrating this point. I’d submit it takes more faith to reject the resurrection than to believe in it. Given this truth, it requires we follow after Jesus and this truth be told.

Jesus died for His church

Part of the mystery of marriage is the relationship Jesus is to have with His church. While churches are not immune to criticism, we must be guarded in how we treat the church Jesus died for. Care-front sin, yes. Deal with struggles, yes. Be belligerent towards her, no. Jesus is in the process of refining and purging His bride. The winning team will be the church because of Jesus. The church is not an after thought nor is she an option.

Jesus organized His religion

Christianity is a religion based on a relationship with God the Father because of the work of God the Son, and is sealed by God the Spirit. The Father has Jesus as the Head of the church. The Head of the church is also our Great High Priest. To set the foundation for His church, Jesus gave us apostles and prophets to set the foundation. To build upon that foundation He gave us evangelists and pastor/teachers. God the Spirit also gives gifts and guides, which lead to the development of deacons to help serve the church. Organized church comes from Jesus.

Jesus made us family

Because of what Jesus did, we are adopted into His family and are co-heirs with Him. The Bible speaks of this not as illustration but as a reality. Church is family, not a business, not a commodity. To quote a mentor, “move your church towards family and away form business as fast as possible.” Healthy families are transparent, work through issues, steward resources well, and nurture one another because the family must go on. This is the mindset the New Testament works off of. This is why we use the term brothers and sisters. Thesis why father is an inappropriate title in the church because we have one Father who is in heaven.

Jesus said life would be hard and not fair, but we will win

Anyone who desires to live a godly life will be persecuted. People will not want to hear sound doctrine. At the same time, the gates of Hell will not prevail against the church. The right side of history is to be engaged and active in the church. All others sides have an expiration date. Suffering for the cause of Jesus will be nothing compared to the glory that is to be revealed. This is why Jesus emphasized love, and love takes work and being like Him. Church is about loving endurance.

And so I stayed…

Given these five realities, quitting ministry is not prudent. So how does one wrap their mind around the issues in the church, the antagonism towards the church, and the biblical realities of the church? We must accept that church is a dysfunctional family until Jesus returns. If the Bible is true, and it is, then church will be messy until Jesus finishes His work in us. We cannot control what happens, but we can control our attitudes and our actions. So I choose to be happy with the church. I respond by helping the church where she is dysfunctional. Because I recognize that the church is family. This is why I often say from the pulpit that church is one big happy dysfunctional family.