Yesterday in the shower I was minding my own business and along came a thought that church is like a box of biscuits. Well, when a thought like that rudely interrupts ones ablutions one feels obliged to follow it up and see where it goes 😊
I think my initial thought was about denominations. I've been pondering the Catholic Protestant thing again today - being much cheered to hear the news that when Arlene Foster ( Protestant First Minister of Northern Ireland) attended the funeral of Martin McGuinness ( Catholic Deputy First Minister) she was applauded going into the church. Hard to imagine that happening even half a dozen years ago. Things are surely moving forward. There is much hope.
Denominations are like the biscuits in the box. They are all slightly different, but they are all biscuits. Made by the same manufacturer. Basically consisting of the same ingredients, with variations on a theme. The church box of biscuits is called Family Circle because every biscuit belongs. The Methodists might be a different shape from the Baptists, the Catholics might have a creme filling and the Protestants might have chocolate chips, the Pentecostals and Presbyterians and Bretheren might all taste slightly different - but they all have a place in the box. And the reason they are all in the box is so that when someone wants to taste and see what God is like, they have a choice. They might not like coconut, or chocolate chips, or plain shortbread - but because the Family Circle of God has lots of variety they are bound to find something which they think is delicious.
Imagine if the chocolate digestive were to turn round to the hobnob and tell it that it shouldnt be in the box because it didn't have a chocolate covering. That chocolate biscuits were the only real biscuits and anything without chocolate really couldn't be considered a biscuit at all. Ridiculous eh? Because the chocolate digestive doesn't get to choose what goes in the box. That's up to the manufacturer. No matter how much the choc digestive protests, if the manufacturer wants the hobnob in there, then that's what happens.
I suppose you can take the analogy one step further and say that the same principle applies to individual churches as well as to the Church. Congregations should be full of variety. If we look around on a Sunday and find that we are worshipping in a room full of people just like us - same age and stage, same class and culture, same tastes and habits then we are no longer a box of biscuits. We are a packet of biscuits. And there is nothing wrong with being a packet of biscuits - its just that when someone comes along wanting to taste and see what God is like, if they don't like the flavour of you and your people they won't stay. They will head off to find a biscuit they like better.Are you feeling hungry yet ? 🍪🍪🍪
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