by Jonathan Perz<\/p>\n
When one’s expectations for local churches full of imperfect people drive their faith, they often end up facing one, if not all, of these “D’s” in the title of this article. I talk to so many who have walked away because they are hurt by the church. Yet their greater challenge is that they place too much emphasis on and have unrealistic expectations for a local church. Their faith is largely rooted in the local church, not the Lord. So, when the local church fails, as it will, their faith falters.<\/p>\n
Local churches will struggle, face challenges, and fall short (read Revelation, chapters 2 and 3, for a synopsis of the failings of local first-century churches). In a perfect world, local churches would never disappoint. But we live in a sinful world, and churches, at their best, are made up of struggling sinners who are forgiven. Still, Satan tempts, and Christians succumb. Church members, thus, don’t always say the right things or act the right way. Therefore, it is critical to ensure our faith is always rooted in He, who will never fail us, and He, who will never disappoint us.<\/p>\n
For those out there struggling to rekindle their faith and recover from their hurt, I point you to Jesus. Remember why you love and follow Him. Then, you will have a basis upon which to love and labor with His imperfect, struggling people – the church. It also serves well to recall that the church we will gather in heaven will not be made up of struggling, imperfect souls but those who were victorious. There will be no sin there. So, with that as our hope, let us rekindle our love for the Lord and His people, putting our trust primarily in Him as we strive to encourage one another to reach home.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Jonathan Perz When one’s expectations for local churches full of imperfect people drive their faith, they often end up facing one, if not all, of these “D’s” in the title of this article. I talk to so many who have walked away because they are hurt by the church. Yet their greater challenge is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[448],"class_list":["post-66453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-church"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":18923,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/christians-without-churches\/","url_meta":{"origin":66453,"position":0},"title":"Christians Without Churches?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 23, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"by Ethan R. Longhenry Over the past few years, a trend has increased among people, especially Americans: the idea that people can be good Christians without being part of a church. Many people will recognize that Jesus is the Messiah and Lord, but yet want nothing to do with any\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/East-Orange-300x169.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":55539,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/church-recreation\/","url_meta":{"origin":66453,"position":1},"title":"Church Recreation","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 5, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"by Keith Camp Recently I received an invitation to a facility that provided \"ping pong, walking track, concerts, basketball, weights, pool table, board games, banquets, refreshments, etc.\" No, the invitation did not come from the local Boy's club. It came from a local church. Increasingly churches have begun to take\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":25801,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-autonomy-of-the-local-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":66453,"position":2},"title":"The Autonomy of the Local Church (Sharp)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 8, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"by Keith Sharp Introduction Several years ago I spoke by phone to a preacher who works with a large congregation in South Texas. As we conversed he asked if I was \"anti-cooperation.\" I told him I knew what he was talking about, but that I advocated scriptural cooperation between churches\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/09\/sharp1-300x150.gif?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":61801,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-autonomy-of-the-local-church-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":66453,"position":3},"title":"The Autonomy of the Local Church (Hamilton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 9, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0One area that sharply distinguishes the Lord\u2019s church from the various denominations is its organization \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The church is the organization through which God\u2019s wisdom is made known - Eph 3:9-11 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It is a product of that wisdom and is organized by God. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The head of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Sermon"","block_context":{"text":"Sermon","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/sermon\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33111,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-legacy-of-campbells-error\/","url_meta":{"origin":66453,"position":4},"title":"The Legacy of Campbell’s Error","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 8, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Steve Dewhirst Sentry Magazine, December 2000 Alexander Campbell (1788-1866) was a remarkable man, but he was just a man, subject to error even as the rest. for all of his great learning, teaching, and writing over many years, he was profoundly wrong in his understanding of one vital aspect\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/Alexander-Campbell-200x300.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":46060,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-sponsoring-church-arrangement\/","url_meta":{"origin":66453,"position":5},"title":"The Sponsoring Church Arrangement (Longhenry)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 22, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"by Ethan R. 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