Ever wonder where the word “church” comes from?
Wherever the word “church” appears in the Bible, it is translated from the Greek word ekklesia. From Andy Stanley’s book, Deep and Wide: “The word church is not a translation from the Greek. It is a substitution for the Greek. And a bad one at that. The German term kirche (from which we get ‘church‘) and the Greek term ekklesia refer to two very different ideas. A kirche is a location. An ekklesia is a purposeful gathering of people. You can lock the doors of a kirche. Not so with the ekklesia of Jesus.”
Today’s message at Fellowship of the Emirates was a continuation of the series “This Is Fellowship”, this time emphasizing how “We Value Being Connected”.
Back home in the Philippines, our word for “church” is “simbahan”, which literally translates to “place of prayer.” All over the world, people say “Let’s go church”, or “I just came from church.”
This is not the meaning that was intended by the original writers of the New Testament. All of these beautiful cathedrals, quaint chapels and even the comfortable hall where we hold services every Friday – these are merely empty buildings. The “church” is the community of believers that meet, pray, worship and listen to the word in these places.
For most of my life, I saw church as just a place I would go on Sundays, simply because it was expected of me. I attended several different services both in Cebu and Manila but always felt that it lacked something that I didn’t know I was looking for.
Community.
Sure, I had friends in church, but I considered them “church friends”. Not my “real” friends. I never felt like I could open up to them or be honest about who I really was because there was always some pressure to put on a “holy” mask instead of being real. The church to me was simply a “kirche”; a place I would go regularly with no real commitment or intimacy. It didn’t feel like family. It felt so fake, and it was one of the reasons I drifted away for a while, in addition to my own pride and rebellion.
3 months ago, my isolation from everyone back home and troubles at work leading to a mini-breakdown were the catalyst to my decision to finally look for a small group (called 2:42 groups at Fellowship – referring to Acts 2:42). I had already been attending Fellowship and serving in ministry for over a year and yet felt all alone in a sea of faces every Friday…even though I enjoyed the sermons and loved the worship sessions. So I braced my introverted, anti-social self, found a group I thought would fit my schedule, and sent an email to its leader, Jonathan Warner. He and his wife, Janice, host a Bible study in their flat every Monday, and it isn’t too far from where I work. They invited me to come the very next Monday and I’m so glad I did. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made in my life and I thank God for leading me to this group.
Since then, I’ve experienced church in the way I believe it was intended by the early followers of Christ. A close-knit, intimate group of people connected by our faith in Jesus, who accept each other’s shortcomings, who encourage one another, pray for each other, exchange ideas with each other, and also do non-“churchy” things together. I used to think small groups would just be boring meetings full of boring people talking about boring things, but I was wrong. We laugh, eat, watch stupid movies, play games. We talk about real issues and ask real questions. We open up about our weaknesses without fear of judgment or condemnation, and somehow it’s made them easier to deal with.
This is what ekklesia is all about. I found my home and family in Dubai, a place notorious for isolation and loneliness.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with coming together as a big church, especially with pastors as gifted as the ones we have been graced with at Fellowship. After all, as Pastor Steven pointed out, Jesus preached to crowds of thousands too. But having an intimate church family is also essential to growth. You can always listen to gifted preachers online or read their books, but there is no online substitute for real, face-to-face community.
Ever since that day I first rang the doorbell of the Warners’ place – even though I know there are roughly the same number of people who attend Fellowship as there were when I first arrived in Dubai – it feels that much smaller, simply because I now feel like a real part of it.
