When I turned 18 years old I had the exciting occasion to buy my first car. It
cost me all of $400 bills and I was totally excited. It was a 1973 Ford LTD with
on 74000 original miles on it. What I soon learned was that the original yellow
paint was indicative of something less transparent...it was a complete lemon.
I learned a lot from that car, and I believe it serves as a metaphor for life in
the church today.
Many times I wanted to paint the car a new color. I thought about various colors
of red and blue and even contemplated green. I could get a cheap paint job and I
was ready to do it. What I realize though is that all the paint in the world
would not hide the fact that the car was a lemon. The transmission leaked, the
exhaust system was a mess, and it got gallons to the mile, not miles to the
gallon. It leaked so much fluid I know my father thought about having the
driveway declared a hazardous waste site.
How often do you and I walk around like the white washed tomb? We are all dead
and dreary and malfunctioning on the inside, but we have a nice shiny exterior
that we show the whole world?
I could have gotten a paint job for the car, I could polish it and make it look
so fancy and well cared for. No one would know the difference unless they got in
the car and started it up. I could bring people by my garage and show it to them
and act like a proud father. No one would know the difference...but I would.
The best way to show of my new paint job would be to drive the car around the
neighborhood and get people interested in the car. People could ask "Hey Carl,
who did the paintjob man?" Or "Hey Carl...looking good man". I could get a lot
more people interested in my car that way. In order to drive it around though I
would have to have it in working condition and not letting parts fall behind me
as I drive around.
The church best functions when it is polished on the outside...and running well
on the inside. A church divided against itself is a church that is not operating
as God would have it to. Anything from a deacon board that is dealing with a lot
of infighting...to a denomination that is allowing itself to split because of
doctrinal issues...all do not work to the glory of God.
In Philippians 1:27-30 we are reminded "Meanwhile, live in such a way that you
are a credit to the Message of Christ. Let nothing in your conduct hang on
whether I come or not. Your conduct must be the same whether I show up to see
things for myself or hear of it from a distance. Stand united, singular in
vision, contending for people's trust in the Message, the good news, not
flinching or dodging in the slightest before the opposition. Your courage and
unity will show them what they're up against: defeat for them, victory for you
and both because of God."
Any Bible believing and gospel driven church is working for the same cause...to
win souls from the fiery depths of hell. What has happened though is we have
gotten into the mentality that our way is the only way to get there. Each
denomination has it's missional aspect and we all buy into that way of reaching
Christ, but there are many different avenues to the one true and living God.
When I am driving my newly painted and mechanically sound 73 Ford LTD around the
town I control which way it drives. Do I go left, do I go right and so on. This
is the free will that God has given me at the helm of the vehicle. Ultimately at
the end of the day though I am driving one place...home. Any route I take during
the day matters not, because in the end I will be home, and that is the most
important part.
Carl is a freelance writer and seminary student living in Colorado Springs, CO.
He currently writes on the blog site Thoughts of a Gyrovague and he can be
reached at
Carl@thoughtsofagyrovague.com
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