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Although the Bible asserts that the Church is God's idea and creation, the Church in Australia, and in other nations frequently referred to as 'Christian', is in crisis. Whilst in Australia there are more churches than schools, only one out of seven people who identify as Christians attend church. Fifty percent of the population see the Church as irrelevant to them and their primary needs.
Now That is the Church challenges present and future church leaders and members to rediscover God's vision for the Church, and suggests that the evolution of what has become to many a universal organisation for the performance of religious ceremonies and rituals, and for acts of compassion to the community, has in some measure led to this perception of irrelevance.
The teaching of Jesu and the Apostles is very clear. God's Church was never intended to be an organisation, but a living, vibrant, reproducing organism called the Body of Christ, with Jesus as its head and the 2.2 billion Christians in the world as empowered functioning parts of the body. God's intention is to make his love and grace known to every generation through the Church. The question each of us must ask is, 'Does the wider community see the Church as god does? If not, how do we change that?'
About the author
GRAEME CANN became a pastor in 1962 and is still actively involved in ministry. He is the author of When the Tiger Roars (Elm Hill 2019); The Guilt Busters (West bow Press 2020); Encounter (Tellwell 2021) and Confronting Conflict (Tellwell 2022). Graeme lives in Melbourne, Australia, with his wife of 60 years, Julia. They have four adult children, fourteen grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
