Pieces of a Puzzle

Last night I passed out some simple puzzles that I gathered from the 2-3 year old nursery. Everyone had a piece of the puzzle and when I said go, we raced to see which group could put their puzzle together the fastest.

It was a simple exercise with a profound message. A puzzle is made of different pieces. If even one piece is missing, the picture is not complete. If the pieces are not in the right place...if they're not playing the role they were made to the play...then the picture doesn't work. The puzzle was made to display a pretty picture or a beautiful landscape, but it only works if every piece is in the right place.

That may help us to think about the local church. God, the master designer, is painting a beautiful picture, but the picture is only complete when every person is involved and is functioning in the way that He has designed them. The church is not just a social club "formed solely by human intentions and efforts, individual or collective, but instead by God's empowering presence (Darrell Guder)."

The church is the work of the Holy Spirit. The same Holy Spirit which brings about regeneration in the work of salvation, when one is born again (John 3:5-8) is the agent which knits together the church by baptizing each born again person into the body of Christ which is the Church (1 Corinthians 12:12-14). The Church is not an option for Christians; it is the result of their salvation. God does not redeem individuals and then leave them hanging isolated and alone, He has a beautiful picture to which they are an indispensable piece.

But why then does church seem so unfulfilling and so optional for many Christians. It is easy to show up once in a while on Sundays to fill a pew and then to go back to regular life. It can be difficult to find people that we click with, can't it? It can be scary to consider making a "bigger" commitment to church, right? I agree and have personally thought all these thoughts and more.

So whose fault is this situation? I think some of the blame lies with church leadership. Pastors can be so busy running their own agendas that they miss the important task of identifying, training, connecting and launching people to their God designed role in fulfilling the church's mission. Isn't that the main role of pastors & teachers anyway? Consider Ephesians 4 :12-13,

"It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. "

At the same time part of the blame lies with the individual. Many choose the path of least resistance and so they never give their time to serving in the local church or they choose to never attend a bible study so they never get to know anyone. They cling to Christ for their salvation, but they seem to have missed the idea that they are an essential part of the body of Christ. That in fact if they are not connected and functioning as they have been designed that the church is deficient in some capacity.

My 2 1/2 year old son loves doing puzzles. He often will grab a piece and after a few attempts at placing it, comes to me and says "Where does this go daddy?" He can't always figure out where all the pieces go, but he does one thing really well. He can quickly figure out if any piece is missing...and it drives him crazy. He is okay if the pieces are upside down or if they are spread across the table as long, as they are all there.

God is painting a glorious picture by bringing together many pieces. Each local church is a small part of the painting and each is made up of many parts. Not only do you need the church, but the church needs you. So...which piece are you? What role do you play in the picture of your local church?