Another quote from God’s unfolding purpose : a guide to the study of the Bible by Suzanne de Dietrich. How amazing that God chooses to use us and how powerful that he is making us into his glorious church.
The amazing mystery of the divine wisdom, as we have seen several times already, is that God’s plan of salvation is always unfolded by means of feeble instruments – through the poverty of words, through the dense veil of the flesh, and the stammering witness of a faithless people. God wanted it this way! He desires that his power be made known through weakness. He placed the torch of faith in our weak human hands, to make it quite evident to everyone that salvation does not come from us, but from him. This body, the church – divided, stained, bruised, responsible through the course of twenty centuries for many crimes – is nevertheless his body, the body of the Lord in glory, the body for whose life he let himself be crucified. Who, therefore, knowing that, will dare to repudiate the church or to separate himself form it? For this sick and bruised church is also the glorious and triumphant church that will reign with him in eternity! pg 249
The link to my book review is here.
“For this sick and bruised church is also the glorious and triumphant church that will reign with him in eternity!” This gets into a discussion that Erin has on her site. What is church? Because from what I have learned, many in denominational churchs will not rule anything. Because the ritual has become the god, and The God has fallen to the wayside. And God judges that heart, not the actions. But, if we are talking about the spiritual community as a whole, many of that church will rule. It all comes to definition. Interesting.
The soveriegnty piece is something that I do not believe many understand. I discipline my children so that they learn valuable lessons. God does the same. And people do what I did when my parents punished me, get really pissed at them and cry and get really angry. But time and again, the lesson he taught me made me better. I have come to accept his absolute power over my life, and quit fighting him. But all of the things that it seems that he does, it is always for a good purpose.
When I was reading this book I noticed that the word ‘church’ was not defined but as the book was written 50 years ago I imagine she was refering to the organised or structured church.
The quotes about church spoke to me because I feel so “bound to this church of his, no matter how wretched or disappointing it may be.”
I do think God will purify the organised church (Ephesians 5:26-27), not sure how He is going to do that though.