And Then There's the Institutional Church

And then there's the institutional church - the only kind of church life most of us have known.

We are involved in this expression of church as a part of our identity as a Christian. Being a part of (and supposedly active in) a local church is a large part of what it means to be a Christian in our culture. It is what we do as a Christian.

The institutional church provides us a place to worship, a place to connect with other Christians and build friendships, a place to study the Bible and our Christian faith, a place to grow in what we believe, a place (and a partner!) to nurture our children's faith development, a place to be involved, a place to serve. The institutional church allows us to join our energies and resources to do what none of us could do alone, to accomplish far more than any of us could do individually.

But the institutional expression of church life has a dangerous downside that many (most?) local churches fall into. That downside is its institutional life: the organizational side with its structure, roles, programs, traditions, rituals, and events.

A church's structure or organization are an important part of the church's functioning. They are designed to address some need in the church's life. Acts 6 records the creation of such a structure to address a need in the life of the early church. (See The Church with the Church, 4/29/2019.)  This account reflects the secondary nature of the structure and organization. They are tools to serve a greater purpose. Their role is to facilitate the spiritual life and development of the community, i.e., the make disciples.

The problem occurs when that which is secondary becomes primary, when focus on the institution takes the place of a focus on the spiritual, when the life of the institution displaces the life of the church as a spiritual community.

This subtle shift of focus has a devastating impact.

• Purpose - growing and living as the followers of Jesus today, making disciples - is forgotten and neglected. 
• Membership displaces discipleship. 
• Social relationships take the place of spiritual friendships. 
• Right belief displaces a transformed life. Defending positions replaces loving people. Standards of right belief, positions on issues are used to judge others (including the preacher!). 
• The Bible is used to support already held positions and established lifestyles rather than to shape how we think and live. 
• Worship becomes routine rather than life giving. Preaching that entertains rather than challenges is desired. Preaching is evaluated from political positions rather than from a biblical perspective. 
• Keeping members happy (inward focus) becomes more important than doing the things that will reach others (outward focus). This priority is expressed in complaints based on personal likes and preferences, in threats of withholding giving, and in boycotting worship. Petty issues drain focus and energy.  
• Focus on the past (what we have always done and how we have always done it, the way things were when ...) takes the place of dealing realistically with the present reality or intentionally planning for and pursing the future into which God is leading. 
• We continue to do what we have always done. Calendars and budgets are based on last year's calendar and budget which were based on the previous year's calendar and budget which were ... 
• A small group of people hold key positions in the organization and influence (or make) key decisions. Other people defer to their opinions rather than engaging in dialogue that seeks the Spirit's guidance and the will of the larger church. The congregation generally has no forum for such conversations or a means of dealing with conflict in a healthy way. Conflict is avoided at all costs. 
• Success is measured by numbers and enjoyment rather than by whether something meaningful and transformative occurred. Transformed lives and spiritual progress are seldom discussed.
• Spiritual health and vitality in the church begin to wain - generally without being recognized. 
• Membership and giving plateau, then decline. 
• Resources (money) rather than purpose dictate decisions. Maintaining the building consumes a major portion of the budget. 
• Anxiety and fear, rather than joy and hope, permeate the church's life. Survival of the institution becomes the unspoken purpose that drives the church. 
• Eventually, ultimately, the church dies. 

In this scenario, the people make church about themselves rather than about God. They create a place to worship a God made in their own likeness rather than worshiping the God who created them in the Divine likeness and is recreating them in the likeness of Christ.

National statistics indicate that countless churches across the nation, including within The UMC, have experienced this subtle shift and experienced its devastating results. They have forgotten their disciple-making purpose, forsaken their spiritual nature, and lost touch with the church as a life-giving, life-transforming, Spirit-filled spiritual community. They have morphed into a religious institution - the institutional church - rather than living as a spiritual community.

But it doesn't have to be that way ...