What Hurts You, Heals You

If you have been in the church for any length of time then most likely you know what it is like to be hurt by the church.  I have often told people that you should never let the hurt caused by people keep you from God.  Sometimes I have gone as far as saying that if you lose faith in God because the church has hurt you then your faith was not in God, but man.  But that statement is really not right.

Church hurts typically cause us to struggle with God for this reason: God’s people are called to be imitators of God.  In fact, Paul put it this way, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:1-2).  Therefore, it is not so unusual for a person to struggle with God when hurt by a church.

The church is supposed to be a gospel community.  It is to be a community where grace and undeserved favor flow in and through relationships.  It is to be a hospital for sinners, and a haven of hope and restoration for those who fall short of being all that God wants them to be.  It is to be a community of no condemnation because there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 

Now, I know what some are thinking: “What about holiness?”  We are to pursue holiness out of love for God, never to earn approval from God.  Jesus has bought our approval with his blood.  We can’t add to it.  But we pursue holiness with a piece of bread in one hand and a cup of wine in the other.  The bread is Christ’s body and the wine his blood; a reminder that we are sinners in need of mercy that comes only through the saving work of Christ.

We need a gospel community, not because we are good people, but because we are sinners.  We need gospel community because each of us needs healing, deliverance, and restoration during our time here on earth.

Now, let me go back to being hurt by the church.  As one who has hurt and been hurt by the church, I have learned this: what hurts you heals you.  That’s right.  The church hurts, but the church heals.  The healing from church hurts can only be found in a gospel community, one that is overflowing with God’s grace and mercy.  Ironically, wounded people healed by the gospel of grace become the greatest vessels of grace for healing other wounded people.  Find a community of people who have tasted the redemptive and restorative power of the gospel, and most likely you will find a gospel community that heals.