UGLY CHURCH

“The church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints” – Abigail Van Buren

Let’s be real, mankind is jacked up. We’ve all done things we regret. We’ve all hurt someone we love, and as Paul says, we’ve “all sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). It’s no secret that we’re all flawed in one sense or another and we all desire authenticity. So why is that we are, often times, the most inauthentic version of ourselves whenever we walk into the doors of the church on any given Sunday?

It’s an unsettling reality to me that people go through the motions of Christianity by attending services, paying their tithes, or tweeting an occasional Bible verse, but are not connected together as a community that shares real life. Sure, we’ll sit around a circle and answer questions during a Bible study, but the thought of sharing our deep, dark sins with other people terrifies us!

So here is my question: Is the church a safe place to share sin?

Show Me Your Scars

Can you imagine a church that bears the scars and ugliness of their life for all to see? A church that says “Hey, we’re not perfect, and we’re not going to act like we are!”? Can you imagine if the church was a safe place for people to share their sins without the fear of being judged, cast out, or excommunicated?

I’ve been to plenty of churches where the Pastor asked us find two or three people and ask them surface level, ice breaker questions like “how was your week,” but I’ve yet to enter a church where the Pastor says “before you sit down, find one or two people and let them know what your struggling with and go ahead and share your sins with them while your at it.” That’s insane!!! Or is it? (Morrison)

It seems both implausible and terrifying to even think of doing that in the culture that we live in today. A culture in which if there are any signs of drama it immediately becomes a subject for gossip. The good news is, the church was created to be a hospital for sinner… the bad news is, in many cases, it’s become a museum for saints.

Faking and Fear

A father puts on their Sunday’s best and fakes a smile as he drives his ‘perfect’ family to church. On the surface, everything is wonderful, but not far underneath that surface, there are struggles and situations in which the community of believers (the church) is meant to help with.

A drug addict may wake up one morning (or evening) and think about going to church. But as he imagines himself walking through the doors of the church, he can’t help but think about all of the condescending, judgmental looks he’ll receive, simply because his sin is considered to be worse (and it’s not).

Wounds Need Attention

So why do people fear transparency in the church? If it is known that telling someone else about your struggle increases the likelihood of overcoming it by means of accountability, why is this not practiced by the church? The answer is simple: most churches are not viewed as a safe place to share such things. We’ll share our fake smiles and make sure that people think we have it all together, but we really just want someone to share our struggles and sins with whom we can trust and confide in.

So, what’s the solution? I wish I knew. But, the global church that I am familiar with is far too “pretty,” if you will, at this point in time. Don’t get me wrong, I love the church and am hugely optimistic about what the church is doing in the world, but we can do better. Now, I’m also not saying that you should grab the microphone next weekend at church and tell everyone about your infidelity, but I am saying that the church needs to be a little uglier. Wounds are ugly, but if you keep a large enough wound to yourself, it’ll get infected and cause way more pain than is need.

The (Incomplete) Solution

So, I don’t know how we get from Point A (unsafe) to Point B (safe), but I may have a couple of ideas:

1. Find a couple of people who you can be 100% transparent with. People who will speak into your life when you need it and call you out when it’s time to.

2. Love people like Jesus loves people. If someone approaches you and says “I’m really struggling with pornography,” don’t look down on them with a judgmental attitude; instead, pick them up and encourage them!

3. Quit gossipping. I’m preaching to the choir here. Gossip is so riveting. It’s so easy to focus on other people’s issues so that we forget how bad our own issues actually are! Rather than gossip, pray for them. Give them a call or shoot them a text and ask them how they’re doing.

I’m sure there are a million other ways creating an Ugly Church. And I’m sure my argument has holes in it.

What do you think? How can the church truly be a hospital for sinners? How can the church (on a global perspective) become a safe place for people to share (and in turn overcome) their sins and struggles?

(Originally Posted on mrdickenson.com)