Which Church Would Jesus Attend?
by Reinder Bruinsma | 20 November 2024 |
Recently I read part of a book written by Father Dale Tupper, whose title fascinated me: The Postmodern Catholic (Phoenix, AZ: Lionine Publishers, 2020). The topic of postmodernism has long intrigued me, and therefore I decided to order this book from Amazon. Unfortunately, its content disappointed me, and a major part of the book will most probably remain unread.
However, I owe Father Tupper, a priest and missionary for over fifty years, my subject for this month’s blog. He tells us in this book that he once participated in a panel discussion with some fifteen Protestant ministers. These pastors shared stories of their personal journey of faith, followed by a question-and-answer session. One of the questions was: If Jesus Christ visited our earth today, which church would He go to?
Of course, this is a hypothetical question. But it does give food for thought. Would Jesus want to join a church at all? Would He look for a building that looks like a church, and for a congregation to associate with? Or would He rather commune with His Father God in nature: a walk together with whoever might want to accompany Him, through an open field, picking heads of grain? Or a stroll along a quiet beach, meditating while admiring the sunset? Or just sit on a bench and watch children play?
Or would Jesus look for a nearby synagogue? He would no doubt be interested in how the Jewish people are doing in today’s world. After all, He was born in Bethlehem as a Jew, lived for 33 years as a Jew, and died as a Jew. He might wonder why there are so few of these Jewish houses of worship nowadays compared with two thousand years ago.
He did initiate an all-important change: He surrounded Himself with a group of men and women who came to believe that He was the Messiah, and who would become the nucleus of a new movement: the church that He would build on their faith in Him (Matthew 16:18).
What kind of church would Jesus look for?
Let’s assume that Jesus would not look for a synagogue but for a Christian community. Would He look for an independent congregation where He would feel at home, or for a local church that belongs to a denomination with the most biblically orthodox teachings?
If He were to select a denomination, our Lord would have a rather wide range of options to choose from. Nobody really knows how many denominations there are in today’s world, though Wikipedia says at least some 45,000. But to narrow this bewildering reality somewhat down, let’s further suppose that Jesus would not come to a part of the developing world where there is a myriad of religious groups with strange names, or to this overwhelmingly secular part of our planet called Europe, nor to a land where most people are Buddhists, Hindus, or Muslims.
Let’s suppose He would come to the United States. After all, would most Americans, with their Judeo-Christian roots, not expect Him to give preference to “God’s own country”? What denomination would there appeal most to Him?
He could consult the 14th edition of the famous Handbook of Denominations in the United States, which lists over 200 Christian churches and movements that litter the American denominational landscape. Would Jesus, among all these religious entities, find a church where He would want to attend regularly, or where He might even want to become a member?
For sure, He would not consider becoming a Roman Catholic or even attend a Catholic mass! It may be the biggest church, and its services may have more visual appeal than most Protestant gatherings with their frequently very dull and rather long sermons, but the fact that the head of the Catholic Church has consistently claimed to be Jesus’s substitute (his “Vicar”), after the Lord left for His heavenly abode, would certainly make Him think twice before darkening the door of a Catholic church.
At least, that is what many—maybe most—Adventists would think. They would be convinced that the answer to which church Christ would select is rather easy. Jesus was known as a regular Sabbath worshipper, and He actively participated in the service. He never said that the Sabbath was no longer valid, but He insisted that He is the Lord of the Sabbath, and that He Himself created that day for the benefit of all human beings (Mark 2:27, 28). So, everything points to the continued importance of the seventh-day Sabbath.
Indeed, it seems reasonable to think that Jesus, as the self-declared Lord of the Sabbath, would want to worship on the Sabbath-day. If Jesus wanted to honor a group with a centuries-long commitment to the fourth commandment, He might show that by visiting a Seventh Day Baptist congregation, which has deeper historic roots than other sabbath keeping bodies. The first Seventh Day Baptist churches in Amsterdam and London, and not long thereafter in the United States, date from the beginning of the seventeenth century. In that case He would be able to choose from about 520 churches, which together have close to fifty thousand members.
A more suitable candidate?
But would not the Seventh-day Adventist Church be the more likely candidate to attract Jesus’s attention? After all, would the One who called Himself the Truth, not want to associate with those who are sure that they preach the full biblical truth?
Let us, however, not be too quick with our self-congratulatory answer. What we learn about Jesus’s character and about the ways in which He interacted with people when He was with us some 2,000 years ago that He would pick a denomination where every person is welcome, regardless of education, social status, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation, and where love and tolerance top the hierarchy of values. He would look for a community where people are concerned about the needy and the distressed. He would look for men and women (and others) who practice peace and forgiveness and have learned to be non-judgmental.
Christ would no doubt choose a spiritual family where serving others comes naturally to all members. He would want to be among people of all ages, children, youth and young adults most definitely included—even if He would not like all of their music and would not share all of their interests. And, surely, He would prefer to be in a church community that would be eager to listen to what He has to say about serving God and society in the context of the world of 2024, and who are receptive to the Spirit that He sent them. He would be looking for people who long for a close relationship to His Father—a community of faith that truly enjoys life, and that knows how to experience true rest. Moreover, He would recognize His true followers from their commitment to the mission with which He entrusted His people.
So, the matter seems to be settled. Jesus would know where to go, if He visited this earth for some time in our day and age: He would choose a Seventh-day Adventist church. And He would not have to go far when looking for representatives of this faith community. If He were to consult the website of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, He would see that there are over 22 million people in over 50,000 churches who identify with this denomination.
But does the kind of faith community I just described really offer a true picture of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination to which I belong? Is this what my worldwide church really looks like? Does it reflect my denomination in my region of the world—in my division, and in my union and conference? Is this the profile of the local church where I attend and where my church membership is registered?
If Christ would not choose my church, why would I?
The question which church Jesus Christ would choose, if He were with us at this moment, is, indeed, hypothetical. But we cannot simply dismiss it. For, if Christ would not choose my denomination or my local church, why would I?
I hope that, if Christ were on any given Sabbath in the neighborhood where I live, He would quietly, probably anonymously, visit my local Adventist church. I hope that He would be warmly welcomed and would somehow feel instantly at home; that He would sense a genuine Christian camaraderie and real care for each other, and that He would notice that, with all their differences, the members of my church give space to each other and respect each other. And if He happened to listen in on a doctrinal conversation, I hope He would not hear sharp comments of people who just want to be right, but would notice a deep desire to know more about the One they claim to serve.
Perhaps someone would, at the end of the service and after the coffee time, when saying goodbye and wishing the visitor well for the week ahead, apologize for the fact that his or her church has so little drama and is so low-key, but that the people of this church simply want to be there for each other and for the wider circle of the friends of their church. Perhaps that person might add: “We do not claim that we understand every Bible text, and we do not know every detail of what the future looks like. We simply want to grow in our faith and to have a deeper trust in our God.”
That would most likely be the moment when the anonymous visitor would reply and say: “I saw it. But let me repeat what I said long ago. What you do for the people in your community, you actually do for Me. I see your love for each other. That represents your love for Me. Therefore, I will be happy to return next week to your church.
Always remember: Christ is used to associating with imperfect people.
Reinder Bruinsma lives in the Netherlands with his wife, Aafje. He has served the Adventist Church in various assignments in publishing, education, and church administration on three continents. He still maintains a busy schedule of preaching, teaching, and writing. He writes at http://reinderbruinsma.com/.
